By SJ Otto
It was the Wichita Women's March Town Hall Meeting, last
night here in Wichita ,
and three of our elected representatives were invited to come. When I first
found out about it on Facebook, I thought that our congress people already
planned on coming to meet with their constituents. I have to admit I was surprised that our new
slacker representative Ron
Estes was coming. He rarely makes public appearances and he avoids anything
that would cause him to have to do any work. So it was no surprise that he
failed to show up. He said in a statement to KAKE TV that his schedule was busy
since the election and he already held a town hall meeting using his phone. I
don't know how anyone would know he had the phone-in meeting unless he just
told his friends about it. I don't expect Estes to ever intentionally meet face
to face with his constituents. He's just not that brave. Senators Pat
Roberts and Jerry Moran also didn't
show up. They have been in office much longer than Estes and they already know
how much flack they can get from those constituents who they represent and have
stabbed in the back. Those two are no braver than Estes. They know they can
keep getting elected with money from the big backers such as the Koch brothers,
Charles and David.
One
representative who did come was Wichita City Council member Lavonta Williams, District 1. She is a more progressive politician than we usually get in Wichita . She took the
time to come and show some interest in what her constituents had to say.
While I was at the meeting, a
woman explained that she was conducting fund raisers to try and help more
progressive people get elected. Here is an example of the big difference
between conservative and more progressive politics. Big $billionaires such as
the Kochs and Robert
Mercer can just write a check. They don't have to fund raise. And while
millions of people struggle to get congress people to listen to them, the Kochs,
Mercers and others get an automatic audience with the many politicians they
have bought.
So despite the
lack of interest by our actual elected representatives, the meeting went on
anyway. The moderator Cindy Claycomb, a candidate for Wichita City Council
(District 6) announced that they planned
to tape the meeting and send a copy to the three Kansas
The meeting was
ambitious. The topics included the Affordable Care Act, versus the American
Health Care Act; climate change; children's issues, such as charter schools,
school meals, food stamps; science funding, such as renewable energy; taxes;
and women's issues.
Much of the
meeting consisted of comments from those who were in attendance. There were
about 40 people there.
Some of the
comments were about the changes in the ACA:
"They
(legislators) have insurance. They treat us like we are cattle," a woman
said.
Another woman
said she had just got over having cancer and the treatment cost $75,000.
"It's gone
now, but what if it comes back?" She and many others said they are losing
insurance with the new Republican plan.
One man in the audience
expressed his anger that our elected leaders don't want to listen to us.
"Let's go to
the polls and get some revenge," he said. "If they won't listen to us
and do their jobs, lets get someone who will."
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