NEWS AND ADVANCE

IN THE EVENT MY LETTER TO THE EDITOR DOESN'T GET PUBLISHED, I AM PRINTING IT IN FULL CONTENT HERE TO DEMONSTRATE THAT IT IS IMPORTANT TO MAKE ONE'S OPINIONS AND COMMENTS KNOWN.  HEREWITH MY LETTER:

Letter to the Editor
September 17, 2013

It’s getting increasingly difficult to differentiate between the two major political parties in America  whose platforms were almost completely opposite.  Republicans trying to do the job they were sent to Congress to do are under attack from the ‘establishment’ Republicans who apparently no longer represent the people, have lost their way and morphed into Democrat lite. They are the so-called ‘obstructionists’ not those who are really trying to do what they were sent to Congress to do.  Democrat lite would be people like Representatives Boehner, Cantor, and Senators McCain, Lindsey, and McConnell, to name a few.

Two items with an urgency to be addressed are the budget and the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare).  Congress has not passed a budget since 2009 – simply ‘kicking the can down the road’ with the use of Continuing Resolutions.  I don’t know about you, but I can’t run my household without a budget so I am aghast that the government continues to neglect its budgetary duty but I guess it makes it so much easier for them to spend it as it comes without accounting for it – a precursor to raising the debt ceiling.  One solution would be to stop financing and arming countries who have sworn to kill us and use that money here to take care of our own economic and social problems which are many. 

Secondly, I would urge the House to, preferably, defund the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) in its entirety – a majority of the public has been and is currently against it anyway. Some reasons for defunding:  1)  Congress along with their staff have been granted a waiver; 2) 3 major unions who once endorsed it want out because it “will destroy the foundation of the 40 hour work week”; 3) the employer mandate has been delayed 1 year; 4) the ‘keeper’ and ‘enforcer’ will be the IRS who has proven itself to be somewhat less than ‘fair’ and who will have access to your life story; 5) cost of your current insurance that “you can keep if you like it” will increase substantially; 6) a key provision limiting out of pocket insurance costs for consumers until 2015 has been delayed for some insurers which means they get to set their own limits starting in 2014.

The House should draw up their budget to totally fund the government for a full year and defund the Affordable Care Act in the same breath.  If the Senate Democrats and the President don’t want to fund the government for a full year because the Affordable Care Act is defunded, then they and not the Republicans should be held entirely responsible for any government shutdown that ensues.  

 

UPDATE:  Letter published 9/20/13