Past Spokesman-Review articles indicated that, in her response to President Obama’s State of the Union Address, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers’ “Bette in Spokane” story was invalid. Her assertion that “Obamacare isn’t working” is also not true, particularly for her constituents. In fact, the participation rate for her Eastern Washington constituents is even higher than the successful rate for the entire state.

Although the Obamacare federal website rollout was initially botched, what’s most important is the end result. Generally, states running their own exchanges, primarily those with Democrat decision-making, have been successful in signing up their residents.

But why haven’t most Republican states and Republicans like McMorris Rodgers, who purportedly favor local control, advocated for states running their own exchanges? The answer: Clearly most Republican politicians, including McMorris Rodgers, don’t even want to give Obamacare a chance to work.

Kudos to a notable Republican state exception, Kentucky, for running its own exchange successfully, much due to its minority Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear.

Representing a high-poverty, high-unemployment district, McMorris Rodgers’ opposition to government-funded job creation and raising minimum wage are among her further stands against her constituents’ needs.

Please support opposing candidate Joe Pakootas, who vows to strongly represent his constituents.

Norm Luther

Spokane