Today's scathing letter to my Congressweasel below the fold...
I have written and or called your office every day since you and your colleagues in the House put me out of work. I have yet to hear anything back. Perhaps you are really busy? Perhaps your staff has been furloughed too? Is that why you haven't even attempted to explain what you and your colleagues are ACTUALLY doing to end this government shutdown so my colleagues and I can go back to work?
I am not alone among your constituents who are hurting right now. My husband is out of work too, making our current family income $0. Thanks a bunch to you and your House colleagues for that. We are hurting, but I guess we can take comfort in knowing we aren't alone. There are thousands of us out of work in your district! There are thousands of us who can hold you accountable for what we are going through right now while you and your colleagues are posing for photo ops. Seriously, it just so happens that Charleston is in the top ten cities in the country in the percentage of federally funded jobs. Check it out. http://www.washingtonpost.com/... Have you been hearing from them yet? If not, just keep this up. It won't be long.
It's not just the financial impact that is making us angry. Being in this situation with no end in sight is taking a huge emotional toll on us as well. We are seeing how little you and your colleagues seem to care about what you are doing to us. We are seeing how little you and your colleagues seem to regard us for the work we do for you and your constituents. We are seeing how perfectly happy and willing you are to sacrifice us for politics. We are hearing the comments by your House Leadership and colleagues about "winning this thing" and "scoring points in public opinion polls". We are hearing your colleagues describe how many of you in Congress are the "happiest you have been in a long time". So guess what, not only are we hurting financially because of you, but we are hurting emotionally as well. You might as well be spitting in our faces.
By continuing to play this political game, you are participating in and condoning the kind of treatment of public sector employees that your colleague Mr. Neugebauer so disgustingly displayed yesterday when he attempted to shame a National Park Service employee for doing her job. He told her the National Park Service should be ashamed for keeping veterans out of an NPS site. Seriously, a Congressman who helped shut the government down tried to get himself a newsworthy photo op by shaming a public sector employee for enforcing the shutdown he created. In case you missed it, you can check it out here. It is disgusting. http://www.npr.org/...
She is on the job (without pay right now) as an "essential" NPS employee needed to enforce the shutdown of NPS sites. Why? Because there are so many other NPS employees furloughed (without pay at all), that it is not possible to adequately safeguard the public or protect these national monuments - so they must be closed. Instead of working to get the furloughed employees back on their jobs, Congressmen are now wandering around DC looking for opportunities to score political points by beating up on the remaining government workers that have to deal with this mess you guys created. The political blame game has sunk so low in Congress that you guys are now resorting to blaming federal agencies and employees for this shutdown? THAT is what is SHAMEFUL!
Thankfully, that person is not my Congressman. (Just imagine the letters I would be sending him.) I cannot imagine you would act in that manner or personally support his actions BUT you are condoning this politicized approach to the shutdown and therefore contributing to the farce and political theatrics that give rise to such pathetic behavior. You are contributing to this. All 3 million plus federal employees across the U.S. are watching and seeing how little respect and regard that members of Congress (particularly the U.S. House of Representatives) have for us.
Meanwhile, your constituents are suffering and continue to ask what you are doing to stop it. What are you doing to help us get back to work? As we are desperately reshuffling our financial lives each day this drags on (eliminating discretionary spending, canceling scheduled auto payments of bills, selling off belongings, borrowing against retirement savings to pay our mortgage, applying for unemployment) what are you doing to end this shutdown? Please tell me it is something more constructive than trying to cast blame on someone else. As we are comforting our children who wake in the middle of the night worried over the desperation they can't help seeing in us, what are you doing to fix the situation you put us in? Please tell me it is something more constructive than trying to figure out what concessions you can get from the other side.