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Sirs & Madams,
Quite recently our Longmont Mayor, Brian Bagley, staged at his home a fundraiser for Ken Buck, who is running for re-election as Congressman from CD-4. CD-4 includes much of Longmont. Bagley has the right to do this; all of us have the right to fundraise and support the candidates we favor. And all Longmont residents have the right to know where their mayor stands on issues that directly impact Longmont. By so overtly supporting Buck, Bagley is declaring that he supports Buck’s stances. So everyone should be clear what Buck stands for.
Buck has clearly defined himself by four stances. One, Buck voted for the GOP/ White House tax scam to give the rich 1.5 trillion dollars without regard to the harm that will cause the 99% of the rest of us. Two, Buck voted to rip healthcare away from the 25 million Americans who had gained healthcare via the Affordable Care Act; Buck seems oblivious to the fact that without healthcare many of these Americans will die. Third, Buck has promoted more fossil fuel development, in total and direct defiance of the ongoing climate change that all knowledgeable people know is now imperiling civilization itself. Fourth, Buck is one of the top five recipients of NRA money in Congress so he strictly does NRA bidding, which means he opposes all restrictions on firearm ownership, no matter how sensible or how life-saving such restrictions could be. So there you have Buck. And this is the man for which our mayor thinks is worthy of a fundraiser?
Perhaps Bagley will claim that he supports none of Buck’s stances, and he’s only supporting Buck as a friend? That’s disingenuous nonsense. Yes, friends can “agree to disagree”, but when the support reaches the level of fundraising what does that mean except that Bagley supports Buck’s positions? Who ever heard of anyone who actively garners financial support for a candidate that they largely disagree with on most major issues?
So the bottom lines are that Mayor Bagley supports a man who voted for giveaways to the rich while opposing any meaningful measures that would protect America’s school children from gun violence by criminals and terrorists. Mayor Bagley supports a man who has voted to take away healthcare from millions while urging actions that will continue to endanger the Earth. Is this the man that Longmont residents want as their mayor?
Stan Gelb
Longmont, CO 80501
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