Letters to the Editor for April 10
War continues to drain Treasury
During a C-SPAN broadcast in February, 2003, Secretaries of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz told the Senate Finance Committee that they “ ... can’t imagine this war lasting more than two months and costing over $2 billion.”
The war is now in its eighth year, and nearing the trillion-dollar mark, never mind that there was no yellow cake from Niger, nor any weapons of mass destruction. We’re spending $480 billion to $600 billion per year on the Pentagon. Much of that money, as in the case of Iraq, is going to closed-bid contracts from corporations like KBR, a former subsidiary of the Halliburton corporation over which Dick Cheney was CEO.
In realization of these bitter truths, I must ask the well intended folks of the tea bag party, where were you while all of this happened? Why are you now so concerned about our country’s deficit and its Constitution? Why is spending a trillion dollars over 10 years for health care a pariah when spending the same money over a meaningless war is not? Furthermore, don’t you realize that big government isn’t the problem, it’s big corporations? And if you don’t believe that, ask yourself who your lobby is. Ask yourself where your PAC funding is. And then ask yourself why a corporation has more personal rights than you. Finally, if you really want to make a positive impression, tell your representatives that you’ll only vote for those who will repeal PAC funding and lobbies. Otherwise, go home!
BURR LUNDGREN, Olympia
McKenna’s lawsuit is not partisan
As the chief law enforcement officer of the state, Attorney General Rob McKenna has been consistent in upholding our law. Those who accuse him of being partisan in his suit against the health care act should remember these cases: McKenna pursued a legal action against allegation of wrongdoing against Rossi’s campaign, he defends our state’s Public Records Act against supporters of Ref. 71, and he put together a task force on eminent domain and listened to all sides before recommending the appropriate action. All these have provoked anger and resentment from those within his party, but McKenna pursued them because he refused to be partisan in his responsibility.
Besides, this is not the first time that an act passed by Congress has been challenged and many laws with clear bipartisan support have been thrown out because of the Constitution.
The Brady Act (a gun control law passed after Jim Brady was paralyzed when President Ronald Reagan was shot) was declared unconstitutional because of the 10th Amendment. The civil rights remedy of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 was struck down because it offended the commerce clause also. The line-item veto law passed that could have allowed the president to veto pork items from a bill was declared unconstitutional because of the presentment clause in the Constitution.
Gov. Chris Gregoire and the Legislature vehemently criticized McKenna and threatened a funding cut. They are the ones being partisan. Maybe, Gregoire should invite McKenna over for a beer summit to settle the feud.
ROSE GUNDERSEN, Olympia
This story was originally published April 10, 2010 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Letters to the Editor for April 10."