My Un-Representative

That image above has more red than blue, but is far from mostly red, or all red. But for the “change” we are all getting in 2017, it might as well be all red.

And while Arizona is a “red” state, looking at the tallies from the 2016 Presidential election, the Republican candidate “took” the state with 1,252,401 votes over his opponent’s 1,161,167. That is a win, but not a sweeping one. And let’s note that write in candidates Robert Buchanan got 56 votes, more than Willie Felix Carter who only got 42, but both of them crushed “Rocky” Roque de la Fuente with 29 or Cherunda Fox who only got 14 votes and poor Michael Corsetti who only got 3 votes (Mom, Dad, and wife?)

One of those red dots is my US Representative from Arizona’s 4th Congressional District, a rather oddly shape region that stretches almost north to south along the left side of the state. It’s a lot of land.

From the article in Wikipedia:

The current 4th was created after the 2010 census from portions of the old 1st, 2nd, 5th and 5th districts. It is the only district that is not a geographic or demographic successor to one of the districts in the 2003-2013 map. Prior to 2013, the 4th District was a majority-Latino district located entirely in Maricopa County; most of that area is now the 7th District.

Things did change a lot in 2013, as that was when the current Representative, Paul Gosar was elected. He was re-elected in 2016 with something like a 70% margin.

That’s a lot, but it’s not 100%.

I’ve been getting his email updates for several years. Generally they could be summed up asL

Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks.

Here is a photo of me fishing with veterans.

Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks. Obama sucks.

He still has graphics on his web site with Obama illustrated as a thief.

I would think he might develop some new material, but he seems to be riding Obama for a while. There is also this highly enhanced image of the border, I guess that is supposed to make us full of fear.

The gates are wide open! Brown people are pouring into Arizona!

I already wrote of my experience listening to his “teletownhall” which was completely stacked with calls from supporters.

The question is– how is Representative Gosar representing the 4th District? Does he just act on the wishes of the 70% wearing red hats?

I do not expect to have much impact in communicating with him, but I do call, send emails, letters, and am looking forward to showing up if he ever makes appearances relatively near me.

I was very incensed with the latest child tantrums of our Tweeter in Chief, who not only falsely accused President Obama of wiretapping his penthouse, but had to lop on insults. I had some tiny hope that my Members of Congress, Gosar plus Senators Jeff Flake and John McCain (especially McCain) might hold some amount of respect on the office of the President.

So this was my email message to each sent Sunday:

While your disagreement and perhaps even dislike of President Obama has been clear, hopefully your patriotism and belief in the American system of government includes a high degree of respect for that office.

However, it’s current occupant, with all the powers and intelligence resources of the NSA, CIA, and FBI available to him, instead turns to Breitbart “news” to not only level an unsubstantiated accusation at his predecessor, but also uses his platform to hurl insults too.

Many of my friends and neighbors here in the Rim Country of Arizona are disgusted by crass behavior if a sitting President. We urge you, as the arm of the US Government to check the powers of the President, to encourage him to act more in a manner that characterizes the dignity of his most powerful position. Please pressure him to stop using a personal twitter account like a petulant child, and to use the official account of his office in the manner of a President the same as 44 men did before him.

Yes, his voters sought “change” but that does not justify behavior that tarnishes the position he was elected to.

(I also tried Tiny Hands Mail which supposedly sends hand written postcards of what you fill in to your Senators; I sent one to Senator Flake).

Believe I have no illusion any of this gets in front of their eyes, but would like to think a volume of message reported by staff ought to have an impact somewhere. Somewhere.

I did get a “response” from Representative Gosar, which never acknowledged my message, and was more like:

Thanks for your message. Let me ignore it and instead cut and paste several paragraphs of rah rah.

Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great. Trump is great.

Oh, and Obama sucks.

Well, that’s my interpretation. you can judge:

PAUL A. GOSAR, D.D.S. Fourth District, Arizona 2057 Rayburn House Office Bldg Washington, DC 20515 (202) 225-2315 122 N. Cortez St., Ste. 104 Prescott, AZ 86301 (928) 445-1683 6499 South Kings Ranch Road, Suite 4 Gold Canyon, AZ 85118 (480) 882-2697 220 N. 4th St. Kingman, AZ 86401 (928) 445-1683 WWW.GOSAR.HOUSE.GOV		COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM SUBCOMMITTEES Interior Information Technology COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES SUBCOMMITTEES Vice Chairman, Water, Power and Oceans Energy and Mineral Resources Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs
March 6, 2017

Mr. Alan H. Levine Strawberry, AZ Dear Mr. Levine,   Thank you for contacting me regarding President Donald Trump. I appreciate your thoughts on this issue and welcome the opportunity to respond. The 2016 election will be remembered as the year of the silent majority that put a stop to business as usual in Washington D.C. After more than eight years of big government policies from an Administration detached from the actual challenges facing millions of Americans, Donald Trump offered an alternative path forward, fighting to end the status quo and dysfunction in a broken political system. He understood the frustrations shared by millions across this country and ran a commonsense campaign focused on standing up for everyday people. Voters across this country – including in Arizona and particularly in the counties that comprise our district – elected him President as a result. Now that his term has begun, I plan on working closely with the Trump Administration to build a safer America that works for everyone and empowers individual liberty, not big government control. I support his efforts to enforce existing immigration laws that are already on the books to undo the dangerous routine of non-enforcement set by the Obama Administration. President Trump’s executive order related to border security and ending sanctuary cities will save American lives and help to finally protect the American people and enforce the rule of law.Further, after the suffocating implications of Obamacare, I look forward to working with the president and Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. Tom Price to repeal the disastrous legislation. At last, Congress and the American people have a president who will not turn a blind eye to the staggering premium increases, disappearing healthcare options and plummetingpatient satisfaction that have plagued this beleaguered law. Perhaps most importantly, I will work with the Trump Administration and my colleagues in the House of Representatives to utilize the Congressional Review Act (CRA) and other tools to fight the crippling legacy of unilateral. Obama-era regulations. After eight years where small business owners, farmers, and ranchers saw their bottom lines shrink as more than 600 major job-killing regulations and policies were implemented by the Obama Administration, it is time forcommonsense policy that works for the American people. Despite public outcry and legitimateconstitutional push-back Congress, the Obama Administration consistently jammed through regulations – especially in his waning days as president. These misguided regulations cannot stand and I am hard at work with my colleagues to undo the damage these costly rules have wrought. As the Chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus, I am also pleased to see President Trump tap a variety of knowledgeable Westerners to key cabinet positions. In particular, Iapplauded his selection of former Representative Ryan Zinke, previously a member of the Western Caucus, to the critical position of Secretary of the Interior. This nomination will put a public servant well-versed in land issues in a key post for facilitating cooperation between the federal government and the American West, where nearly half of all land is under federal control. Additionally, President Trump made a wise decision in tapping my fellow Freedom Caucus member Mick Mulvaney, a consistent, principled budget hawk, as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. For too long, our country has turned a blind eye to the growing threat of our enormous, $19 trillion debt – but no longer. We can expect more well-reasoned choices by President Trump as he continues to fill out his cabinet and other advisors. I look forward to working with the Trump Administration to advance common-sense policies that will help make America great again. At the same time, rest assured that I will continue touphold constitutional checks and balances to keep the Executive Branch and all federal government accountable to the American people it serves. Congress must, and will, continue to serve as a check against federal overreach. I fought this consistently under President Obama and will continue to ensure the separation of powers is upheld under President Trump. Our founders wisely set up three distinct branches of government, each responsible for their own sphere of authority and to serve as a check on the other branches. This is a responsibility I take seriously,as the very existence of our Democratic Republic depends on it. I look forward to working alongside my colleagues in the House of Representatives and the Senate to dutifully carry out this responsibility. Again, I appreciate hearing your thoughts and concerns.  It is an honor to serve Arizona as part of its congressional delegation. Your suggestions are always welcome, and if I may ever be of assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me.  To receive the latest legislative updates and news you can sign up for my e-newsletter at gosar.house.gov.

Sincerely, Paul A. Gosar, D.D.S. Member of Congress

PG/JA

That’s funny, I do not recall requesting a stump speech on how great the new President is.

Now I know this is done by staffer (with initials “JA”), but this is how my representative communicates. By not even acknowledging the issue I raised. That makes me feel so ____________ (you can fill the blank).

I bet if I asked about opening up Government Lands for mining, I’d get a lot of praise. Gosar likes that stuff.

Just for fun, I replied:

While I appreciate a quick response, I do not appreciate the lack of addressing my message, and instead copy/pasting me your boiler plate campaign rhetoric. That is all smoke.

The President’s behavior is a stain on the office, and your message tells me you approve.

I do not.

I imagine at some level many Republicans felt un-heard when Democrats held the numbers. But the glee with which this new regime is sacking, pillaging, and looting our Government is nothing I have lived through before.

Sigh.

I will continue to keep the flood of messages going, knowing it is as pointless as shouting in a well.

But the real work is getting them out of office, and questioning them at every possible opportunity. I wonder what having a listening Representative is like? Or is that a fairy tale all around?

Featured Image: “United States House of Representatives 2017” is a Wikimedia Commons image place in the public domain.

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