Hello Jim,

How are things going in Washington? Well, I hope. It’s storming here in the Second District.

I took an advanced placement government class when I was in high school. I’ll admit it was many years ago and I’m certain I’ve forgotten most of what I learned, but I’m positive there was some mention about checks and balances. My understanding of these “checks and balances” is basic, but I’m sure the writers of the Constitution did not want any one branch of government to wield power over another. All branches (executive, legislative, judicial) are supposed to be equal, having equal say on how the government performs its work. What happened? Is the Congress so blinded by party loyalty that it willingly allows the values that America was founded on to be slowly pissed away?

What’s going on in Iraq? Why hasn’t Congress stepped up to its role and managed this disaster a little better. $270 billion spent, over 2000 dead American soldiers, countless Iraqi dead, and an impending civil war? Surely we can do better than that. We had the most powerful military on earth and your president has so diminished it that we cannot respond to another threat or control the countries we occupy. Your president can talk all he wants about Iraqis needing to step up and take the responsibility of running their country. But this is pure rhetoric and you know it. We invaded a sovereign country under false pretenses and now we want to drop it merely because things didn’t go your president’s way. No. He is, you are, responsible for this. I know it’s a big huge mess and nobody knows what to do about it. You should of thought of that three years ago. Others did.

I’m not going to run through everything else, I’m sure you get lots of letters from Iowa City already. But I will say this, you voted yea on two articles of impeachment for President Clinton lying about something that he should have never been asked about. Can we expect you to perform in the same manner for a president who has circumvented the Constitution in the name of some non-defined war?

Sincerely,

Robert Herring

“Loyalty to the country always. Loyalty to the government when it deserves it.”
–Mark Twain