An Open Letter to Speaker Boehner and the Republican Leadership

 Mr. Speaker,

I write to implore you to govern.  You may believe that the steps you have taken in response to the President’s stated intention to act on immigration reform is governing, but it is nothing more than political gamesmanship.  If you think that the mid-term elections provided you with a mandate to continue with the same strategies you have employed over the past six years you are sorely mistaken.  The only mandate granted to your party is that you govern. The nation demands it and demands that you cease this tiresome and destructive course of gamesmanship. That means that you offer a plan for governing. Sitting on an immigration bill that received support from both Senate Republicans and Democrats for two years is unconscionable. The tax payers of this country pay your salary and demand accountability from their elected officials…accountability that mandates that you inform us of what your plan for governing entails. The President has challenged you to pass a bill if you are so unhappy with his having exerted his constitutional authority. Responding to that challenge by suing him over the ACA is not governing.  That you decided to take such an absurd tact in response to the President’s message can only be taken to mean that you have absolutely nothing to offer us in response.

Mr. Speaker, the people demand an explanation. Please explain why nothing has happened to the immigration bill passed by the Senate., and why that bill has not even reached a house committee. Please tell us  how the house proposes to correct the bill if, in fact, the House has reviewed the bill and believes it should be amended.

Please explain why you chose to bring suit to force the President to enforce provisions of the ACA that Republicans vehemently oppose and how this action is not simply more political gamesmanship. Apparently voting 54 times to repeal the Act did not waste enough of the nation's time, money and patience. How much of my money is now going to be wasted in pursuit of a suit that has no purpose other than to score political points?

Your collective hyperbole about the President’s “unconstitutional” behavior may play well to your base (which needs no convincing that Obama is the devil) but does not answer the call of the majority of Americans who demand that you cut the crap and provide us with your vision for governing this country now that you and your colleagues have taken control of Congress.

There is a lot of work to be done, Mr. Speaker. The people demand that you get to work.

P.S. Credit to Ed Wexler for the terrific cover.