A response to Smith's claims

With every edition of 8th district Congressman Jason Smith's newsletter, I find myself wanting to correct the misstatements that are advanced. Then I realized that each newsletter followed the same pattern. Take facts. Weave a story surrounding them. The story accomplishes its task in that "the base" unquestioningly accepts this version of alternative truth and then gets really mad that the "deep-state" is out to destroy America.

Sky-high gas prices. Illegal immigration. "Runaway inflation". Weaponized FBI and DOJ. Thirty-one trillion dollars of national debt. Two-tiered justice system. The list goes on, all with the cause of all these laid at the feet of the "liberal Democrats". All claims embellished with superlatives. The result? An increasingly militant electorate that embraces an alternate reality who blindly accept these "facts".

I do not suggest that problems facing the U.S. can be laid at the feet of one political party or that the other has all the solutions. But I hope that voters would seek facts from diverse sources, separate the facts from the spurious assertions and from outright lies. Congressmen are elected to represent ALL the people, not just their supporters. This means we should hold them to a standard where they will not blindly support bad legislation just because it originates on their side of the aisle and will support good legislation that originates from the other party. The prevailing attitude in Congress of "no compromise" will never advance the best interests of the country. But perhaps honesty and integrity will.

Peter Gordon, Cape Girardeau