One Guy's Viewpoint

No Need To Write This Congressman

Following my retirement in 2002, my wife and I moved back to Alvin from the Kansas City area where I had spent the last ten years of my working life. And I moved back to a nice surprise. The reapportionment following the 2000 census had put us back into Ron Paul's congressional district after Alvin had been a number of years in Tom DeLay's.

I had never really cared much for DeLay since we came into his district sometime during the Reagan administration. To me he just seemed another party hack. Nor was Dennis Moore of Kansas my cup of tea. I never voted for or against DeLay but did vote against Moore in the 2000 election. No doubt because his constituency is primarily up-scale Johnson County, Kansas, Moore is more conservative than most Democrats. That pleased me.

For a couple of years, I subscribed to the New American magazine, a publication of the John Birch Society, as they published every quarter, I believe it was, all the major bills coursing through congress, both in the House and Senate, and how how each member voted on them. Before I got bored with all this and let the subscription lapse, I don't recall being upset enough with Moore to think about contacting him.

Once, though, not long after he'd taken office, I had some business in the building in Overland Park where he had his local office. I stopped in and told the receptionist there (Moore was in Washington) that I would appreciate very much the congessman's vote for the Bush tax cut bill. She agreed to pass this along. Maybe three weeks later I received a very curt form letter from Representative Moore stating that he considered himself a fiscal conservative and had already voted for the bill. True enough. I had failed to notice that the tax cut had already passed the house before that day I was in his office.

But, now, of all 435 members of the House of Representatives, I feel that Ron Paul probably shares more of my views than anyone in there. He's actually read, and understands, the Constitution. A lot of them haven't or don't, I feel certain. And he bases his votes on what it says. Although he's a Republican nominally (he once was in the Libetarian Party), he votes against the Republicans often enough that there was some talk of the party itself financing an opponent to run against him in the primary. Apparently this went nowhere as Dr. Paul was unopposed last time. I really like it that he's not a big party man--like Tom DeLay. I'm not a party man myself. So, I don't feel the time will ever come that I'm going to be writing this congressman to try to influence how he's going to vote. Most likely his vote will be to my pleasing.

However, I did write him once asking a question about a particular bill. Some days later I received a form letter which explained why he was going to vote against it without addressing the particular question I'd asked. Oh, well. I know these guys are busy.

posted by Burt @ 3:54 PM