Ms. Maloy,
When a member of Congress states: “We must ensure government agencies and actions align with the wants and needs of American citizens,” and “We must focus on creating a government that is effective and responsive without infringing upon the rights of U.S. citizens or overstepping its constitutional bounds,” most would recognize the word “We” as referring to Congress itself, as per its designated role in Article I of the Constitution.
You, Ms. Maloy, and your Republican colleagues have made it clear, through your collective inaction, that you’re okay with the Executive branch usurping Congress’s power. You can rationalize it however you want, but I don’t think you’ve considered the consequences of your inaction.
I’m talking about the economic consequences.
Since you “have been closely monitoring the president and DOGE’s actions,” you must know that thousands of federal workers are now unemployed, and more firings are expected. Of the 33,000+ federal workers in Utah, about a third reside in District 2. Statistically, these actions are going to impact your constituents if they haven’t already.
Cost-cutting is only one factor to be considered when it comes to efficiency. There’s also the matter of revenue. Federal employees are tax-payers—at least up to the point when they’re fired; then, they have no income to be taxed. No income to pay their rent or mortgage, nothing to purchase groceries and other goods and services. This affects the lives of others who earn taxable income through the goods and services they provide for their communities. Without that income, they can’t pay for their goods and services either. So, it doesn’t just impact tax revenue; at the most basic levels, it negatively impacts—to use your words: “...the wants and needs of American citizens.”
As newly unemployed people, they should qualify for unemployment insurance, which will barely offset the economic damage being unleashed—unless that also gets illegally gutted in the name of cost-cutting.
Plenty of people are “closely monitoring” what’s happening quite effectively without you—especially those enduring the real pain of these actions.
What are you going to DO to mitigate that pain?
The President and his minions are actively harming people. Until you step up and do something, your inaction enables that harm, so you share the responsibility for the human suffering that’s being caused.
Sincerely,
Mr. Puente.
