An Open Letter to Rochester, N.Y. Area Tea Party House Republicans Tom Reed and Chris Collins

l to r: Reps. Collins and Reed

October 18, 2013

Dear Mr. Reed and Mr. Collins:

First of all, I am extremely disappointed that you could not muster up enough personal courage to vote for ending the government shutdown or raise the debt limit. I'm afraid your actions might haunt you in the days to come and more specifically, Election Day 2014.

In any event, $24 billion dollars is the price we've paid because of your inability to do your job. That's how much this shutdown cost our country. 

And now we face yet another opportunity for you to cost Americans billions of dollars and the security of benefits we've earned.

As the fight on the debt ceiling emerges, and as the battle for the budget begins, I want to make clear that I am going to hold you accountable to the middle class in America.

I demand an end to job-destroying austerity—the repeal of sequester. I demand there be no cuts to Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid benefits, period. And I demand an end to the $600 billion in tax breaks we are going to give companies for going offshore over the next ten years. That’s real money that can fund the investments we need to make to rebuild America’s competitiveness and put our people back to work.

My family and I need you to focus on policies that actually help working people, not punish us further. We've already been punished to the tune of tens of billions of dollars, and we need you to stand strong against taking away the benefits we've worked hard for, benefits that we've earned with our work.

There is a good reason why you and your House GOP colleagues have a lower approval rating than head lice, cockroaches and the legacy of Genghis Khan. Please temper your rhetoric and start collaborating with other lawmakers in Congress. That is what Western New York's middle class families want. And, by the way, when did the common good become such a bad idea?

Sincerely,

Ove Overmyer

Rochester, New York