An open letter to Indiana's 6th District Representative Luke Messer...

I learned today that Federal employees furloughed by the shutdown will now be paid retroactively.  That seems to take all the pressure off of Congress to act quickly to bring this mess to a close.  

I believe the Republicans have acted irresponsibly and un-patriotically.  Not only has your behavior jeopardized the standing of the United States in the world and caused significant harm to millions of citizens, but it is insulting to Federal workers and damaging to their morale and retention.

Despite the Republican talking points, you can't deny this debate is about a law passed by Congress, endorsed by the electorate (given the President's re-election on the issue) and upheld by the Supreme Court.  Why can't you just amend the law if you think it's broken?  Why can't you simply run for re-election yourself on the basis of your disagreement?  I believe the Republican charge that the ACA will irreversibly damage our country is speculative - but the damage done to our country by the shutdown and partisan politics practiced mainly by Republicans is certain.

The words of your colleague Marlin Stutzman are embarrassingly revealing.  The Republicans don't know what they want besides the destruction of the Obama administration.

This is a clear result of too much money in politics - Congressmen must pander to increasingly polarized constituencies continuously to retain their offices.  And gerrymandering has created districts that can be dominated by one party - and pushed farther and farther to extremes.

At least this debacle may present teachable moments in Government classes.  Hopefully a generation of young people will take their patriotism more seriously than most of the members in Congress and place the good of the country ahead of their selfish ambitions for more power.

Sincerely,

Kim Brand
Greenfield