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Sunday's letters: GOP strategy is bad for business

 
Published Oct. 18, 2013

Shutdown ends | Oct. 17

GOP strategy is bad for business

It was no surprise that the current Republican agenda to shut down the government and place the reputation of U.S. Treasurys on the firing line came to a humiliating end. Both moderate Republicans and Democrats voted to end this faulty, destructing thinking by overwhelming majorities.

Americans once proclaimed that "what's good for General Motors is good for the nation." However, the tea party-led GOP forgot this well-grounded concept. What is good for American business and for Americans is what makes a political party great, not just good. Our keen economic strategies were replaced with the faulty cry for freedom and growth by rallying against health care for low-income, working families. Once again, we are seeing that bad economic ideas are not the fuel for enriching our nation.

Moderate Republicans across America want to rid us of the tea party parasites living off the monetary droppings of misdirected billionaires. Any successful political positioning must include respect for what is best for American business and Americans, which the current GOP strategy fully ignored.

Stuart Berney, Tampa

Shutdown ends | Oct. 17

Serve state, not tea party

It is shameful that Florida Sen. Marco Rubio voted against the bill to reopen the U.S. government. I am appalled that Rubio feels the need to cater to the radical wing of the Republican Party and not the residents of the state.

Not every resident of Florida is a tea party Republican. Not every resident is a conservative. We are Democrats, liberals, independents, moderates, and all of us deserve equal representation.

We expect members of Congress to work together for the good of the country. This past month has shown us that Congress only cares about who makes the most noise. Well, expect us to roar come Election Day.

Sheila M. Roit, Lithia

Fighting vs. governing

House Speaker John Boehner says that they fought the good fight but they lost. What a pathetic lack of understanding. Governing is not about who wins or who losses, it's about doing what is best for the American people. The statement shows what is wrong with Congress, and it will not change until the people replace those in Congress with individuals who do understand what the difference is.

Ronald Matte, Land O'Lakes

Stop the political games

U.S. Rep. Richard Nugent, R-Spring Hill, recently addressed the situation in Washington via a letter to his constituents. I believe it is reasonable and appropriate to reply via this medium since it affords an opportunity to share my comments with other voters in his district.

It is gratifying to read in his letter: "For me personally, I think the country is best served by responsible forward planning and proactive measures to control the debt."

Certainly no reasonable individual can disagree with that, but I would ask just what Nugent has done to achieve this? Are the desperate (and obviously futile) attempts to embarrass President Barack Obama a means of working toward the goal of a balanced budget?

Just exactly what has the House of Representatives done to "accomplish forward planning and proactive measures to control the debt"?

Did bringing the country to the brink of disaster, with the associated economic damage, actually accomplish anything other than to satisfy a small number of tea party voters?

If I may be allowed to look ahead, I am sure that Nugent would argue that he and his fellow members of the House have made numerous attempts to achieve an agreement, but I believe that their efforts have been more in the nature of positions that are intended to embarrass the president, rather than offers of a reasonable compromise.

They continue to play political games while our nation suffers the consequences.

Thomas W. McCarthy, Spring Hill

Time to jump ship

While I was disappointed that our U.S. senator, Marco Rubio, voted to continue the shutdown of government functions and risk a default on the full faith and credit of the United States by voting against raising the debt ceiling, I was not surprised. He has developed a track record of being more interested in his political well-being than in the interests of the people whom he was elected to represent.

When will Rubio realize that he is but a barnacle on the bottom of Ted Cruz's ship of fools?

Jeff Thofner, Tampa

U.S., GOP on the brink | Oct. 16

Demonizing politicians

The Times has reached a new low in biased headlines. This large headline was created for an attached article about congressional negotiations for raising the debt ceiling and solving the shutdown impasse. The article cites the New York Times for reference content, but that paper's front page does not lead off with similar wording.

Judging from this headline, the latest political fight must be the United States versus the GOP. That's ironic considering the GOP only controls one-half of one-third of the federal government. Rather than seeking to understand political controversy, this headline only inflames political discord.

Your constant demonization of the tea party, in print and in cartoons, as a bunch of radical lunatics, goes beyond the pale of impartial reporting, and amounts to little more than liberal propaganda.

David Mokotoff, St. Petersburg

Obamacare

Rollout is a disaster

I have been reading news stories from around the country in the last few days that would make me believe that any fair-minded person would conclude that the rollout of the federal exchanges of Obamacare to date has been a total disaster.

Yet the only mention of the rollout in the Times in the last few days has been an article regarding small business signup in a few of the state-run exchanges. I believe the Times owes it to their readers to give the real story, not just advance their left-wing agenda.

John Haugen, Gulfport