Letters to the Editor for March 30
Gov. Inslee: Best bet for defeating Trump?
A letter by David Koch (Letters to the Editory, March 20) claims Trump will win the next election if Jay Inslee is the Democratic candidate. Wrong. Mr. Inslee is probably the candidate that Trump fears the most. An articulate, intelligent, likeable man with experience at governing and leading a state with a strong economy, focused on an issue (climate change) that threatens and unites all Americans, and good-looking to boot, Jay Inslee is everything that Trump is not.
Mr. Koch attributes Al Gore’s defeat in the 2000 election to Gore’s focus on climate change. Wrong. Gore was undercut by third party candidate Ralph Nader, sabotaged by the court’s stoppage of the Florida vote recount, and hurt by his own decision to cede the race without contest. Too bad; that was the last moment when a strong hand at the helm could have steered humanity clear of the huge oncoming crisis.
When Gore ran, “bomb cyclones,” desperate struggles with massive wildfires, and horror-grade hurricanes were all in the future. The only voters who feared such things were those who accepted climate science. Today, most voters “get it.” We are joined by a wave of young new voters who are angry at how their/our Congress has betrayed their future and energized by the most innovative, visionary crowd of contenders for the Democratic primary in our nation’s history. Let’s hope that climate change is of highest priority for the next Democratic nominee – and that some “me first” third party contender doesn’t throw the election to Trump.
David H. Milne, Shelton
Stop pharmaceutical greed
Americans pay the highest brand-name drug prices in the world. Congress, the Administration, and importantly, our own Washington State legislators must take action now to lower prescription drug prices, the root cause of this problem.
That’s why AARP is launching a national campaign urging federal and state policymakers to Stop Rx Greed by cracking down on price-gouging drug companies. AARP’s goal is to help lower drug prices for all Americans through decisive actions and solutions aimed not only at the Federal level but also at the State level. We’re pushing hard in Olympia for Senate Bill 5292 that would add increased transparency to prescription drug pricing, and shine a light on price increases by drug manufactures and insurance companies.
In 2017, the average annual cost for one brand-name medication used on a chronic basis was almost $6,800. For the average older American taking 4.5 prescription drugs per month, the average annual cost of therapy would have been more than $30,000.
No American should be forced to choose between paying for the medicines they need and paying for food, rent, or other necessities. We urge lawmakers both here in Washington State and in Washington D.C. to work together and pass bipartisan, commonsense legislation to lower prescription drug prices.
Joyce LaValle, Tumwater
This story was originally published March 29, 2019 at 12:08 PM.