On Open Letter to My Senators

Dear Senators Alexander and Corker:

I would like to first thank you for your service to the State of Tennessee. I am a constituent living in Memphis and write to express my views on a couple of issues currently before the Senate and your committees.

First, I have grave concerns about the Republicans current plans to “Repeal and Replace” the Affordable Care Act. As you know many of your constituents receive health insurance through the exchanges and receive subsidies to help pay premiums. I am one of those individuals. I am a full time graduate student working two part time jobs and without the ACA would not be able to afford insurance. If the law is repealed and the insurance marketplace collapses, I and many others will be left uninsured. Last year I was forced to go to a cardiologist due to an arrhythmia. Ultimately, I was fine, but had I not had insurance the tests alone would have cost me thousands. Because of the Affordable Care Act, I escaped without much financial damage. If the ACA is repealed and not replaced immediately with something better, many thousands of individuals like myself will suffer and hold the Republicans accountable. You and your party own this issue now. If you dismantle it, you will have to answer for the disruption you have caused.

Second, I would like to address the nominations to President Trump’s cabinet currently being considered by the Senate. I believe that Betsy DeVos is manifestly unqualified to be Secretary of Education. Senator Alexander, as a former Secretary yourself you of all people should realize that a familiarity with the tradition of American public education should be a requirement to lead that department. It is not acceptable to confirm someone who is unprepared because of long-term goals you may share. Children will suffer in the meantime and you will be held to account. Regarding other nominations, those who have given false or misleading testimony regarding their conflicts of interest or investments must not be shown deference because of partisan obligations. President Trump has promised to drain the swamp and I look to you to ensure that our ethical standards are not weakened in an effort to quickly confirm his nominees.

These are trying times and I respect your need to negotiate them with diligence, but you have constituents with actual needs that you must not ignore. I implore you to lean on your judgement and patriotism to serve and protect us all and to defend the values of the Constitution in full not just in part.

Sincerely,

Zach Harpole

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