On April 16th, I broke my rule.
I was in my car heading into downtown Manchester to the famous Red Arrow Diner to meet a friend for breakfast, when I heard my Representative, Carol Shea-Porter, on WGIR-AM 610 talking about the previous day's Tea Party.
When asked to comment on the protest, Rep. Shea-Porter said that she was sure that those at the protest would agree a recent poll that said the spending in the Obama stimulus package was needed. I hit the roof at that point. I listened to as much of the interview as I could stomach and then went into the Red Arrow to meet my friend.
When I was done, I walked back to my car and realized I was parked right in front of Rep Shea-Porter's office in Manchester. I stared at the office for a few seconds and that's when I decided I was going to send my Congresswoman a letter.
This is what I mailed out that same day:
April 16, 2009
The Honorable Carol Shea-Porter
United States House of Representatives
1330 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Congresswoman Shea-Porter:
I was quite dismayed when I heard your reaction to the "Tax Day Tea Party Protests" on WGIR AM610 this morning. In your interview, you stated that you were sure that those gathering to protest yesterday would agree with a recent poll that stated a majority of Americans agree that we needed to spend this money now.
That assertion could not be further from the truth. With all due respect, you could not be any more wrong.
People are angry with their Government and they have every right to be. Washington stopped listening to us decades ago. Americans are struggling right now, and this new Congress and this new Administration have just added trillions more in spending that we just can't afford.
You also said that President Obama inherited a trillion dollar deficit. While that is absolutely true, you failed to mention that President Obama and this Congress have added trillions more. The President's stimulus plan, which went unread by every member of Congress--including you--contained items such as:
- $6 billion to turn federal buildings into "green" buildings
- $2 billion for a near-zero emissions coal power plant in Illinois that the Dept. of Energy defunded last year because the project was inefficient.
- $650 million for the digital television (DTV) converter box coupon program.
- $600 million to buy hybrid vehicles for federal employees
- $150 million for parking improvements at a Little League facility in Cidra, Puerto Rico
- $6 million for a "snowmaking and maintenance facility" at Spirit Mountain Ski Area in Duluth, Minnesota.
I ask you, Congresswoman Shea-Porter : How could we need to spend this money when no one in Washington even knew what was in the bill to begin with? It is precisely this kind of spending that the Tax Day Tea Party protests were rallying against.
The people who rallied yesterday not only believe this spending to be unnecessary, we also believe it to be irresponsible. All Congress does is take a larger percentage of our money and never once do they tighten the belt and reduce spending.
In the last year I've lost my home and my job. How do I get you folks in Washington to see that you already get enough money? I have to scale back my spending and draw clear priorities.
Why can't you?
Sincerely,
William E. Smith
The letter I wrote is pretty self-explanatory, I think. She completely mischaracterized what these protests were about and that made me pretty angry.
It took several weeks, but I got a response:
The letter reads:
Dear William:
Thank you for contacting my office regarding government spending.
The 111th Congress and President Obama have inherited a massive budget deficit and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Over the past few months, Congress has passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Fiscal Year 2009 Appropriations bill, and the Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Resolution. All of these bills are intended to help the country recover from the economic downturn and fund programs that will help the economy grow in the future.
The goal of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is to create jobs and help jumpstart the economy in the short-term. By investing in critical infrastructure needs, providing a tax cut for 95% of working Americans, and helping businesses create new green jobs, Congress puts a specific emphasis on helping working men and women during these tough economic times. While this legislation did have a significant cost, the losses that our economy could have suffered had we not taken action would have cost the country far more. In addition to the Recovery Act, Congress had to enact legislation, the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill to keep the federal government operating through the 2009 Fiscal Year.
On April 2, 2009 both the House and Senate passed separate budget resolutions for Fiscal Year 2010. These bills were slightly different and will have to be negotiated and passed gain in order for the budget to be finalized. However, the budget does not require the signature of the President and therefore does not have the rule of law. The budget is an outline of what the Congress believes are the priorities we must address. This is why this budget makes investments in modernizing education, making college more affordable, and fixing our broken health care system. In order to address the serious problems of the future, we must take action now and make investments that will control costs and make our economy more competitive.
I continue to be extremely concerned with the debt of our country. As Congress works to restore our economy and make investment in our future, I will continue to advocate for fiscally responsible policies.
Sincerely,
Carol Shea-Porter
Member of Congress
Nice form letter, huh? Like Shea-Porter's comments on WGIR, this letter totally misses the point. Some staffer saw something about "spending" and used the generic form letter to reply to me.
It's what I expected, but...still...I'm not happy. I deserve a better response than this. Carol Shea-Porter didn't even read the Obama stimulus bill and then says it was necessary to spend this money? Does she think I'll fall for this?
Wait until she gets my next reply...
You may be missing the real issue here, Bill: Maybe Carol can't read?