Letters to the editor of your local newspaper are effective supplements to a letter to your elected official.  R’s these days are impervious to differing opinions. Many Republicans deny publicly that they hear from progressives. R’s only  talk about how they hear from people who agree with them.  And it’s not just me saying it. To illustrate my point you only have to watch the first 25 seconds of this video that I recorded at a Joni Ernst town hall in Iowa City. Check it out.

So we have to keep writing but in my view your time and energy is better spent calling them out publicly.  Here is a great letter published in the Quad City Times by our friend Don Paulson.

https://qctimes.com/opinion/letters/letter-iowa-republicans-school-plan-irresponsible/

In a stunning and fiscally irresponsible move, Republicans in the Iowa Legislature passed the “religious/private school voucher plan” that spends over $900 million over the next four years. Isn’t there supposed to be a separation between church and state?

After a decade or more of Republicans short-changing public education in Iowa they pull this stunt, essentially before the Legislative Services Agency could score it completely. To add insult to injury, apparently there will be a private company to manage the “education savings accounts.” No doubt there will be high administrative costs to do that.

If you’ll recall, Republicans passed their irresponsible tax cut bill last year. Most of that will benefit the wealthiest Iowans, and will blow a $1 billion hole in the budget in the near future. Now they are proposing to cut property taxes. Didn’t they arrange for the state to take on mental health costs as well?

One poll had over 70% of Iowans opposed to the voucher bill. Maybe that’s why the Republicans had to act fast.

Thank you for your time.

Don Paulson
Letts, Iowa