She likes some government

In her public meeting in Spokane, Cathy McMorris Rodgers exploited the prejudices of her avid supporters - about half the crowd - while revealing her own on a number of issues, including being against union scale government contracts or corporate accountability.

She repeatedly chanted the vapid mantra “get government out of the way,” blaming regulations for impeding economic recovery. In fact, corporate indifference to public health and safety, as well as environmental protection, demanded regulations. Do the disastrous results of bank deregulation or inadequate regulation of oil and mining industries register with her?

Curiously, Cathy doesn’t want government out of the way concerning our civil liberties, voting to renew the Patriot Act, with related government snooping in our private lives.

Although voting several times to increase the national debt, Cathy pledged to support a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.

Yet, she has voted for every military appropriation since taking office. Spokane’s share of the $3 trillion spent in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan would be $200 million a year for 10 years. Rather than supporting this terrible waste in human lives and dollars, Cathy should be promoting programs to help those affected by our greed-driven sick economy.

Buell Hollister

Spokane