Did you get Lummis' letter?

Governor Ed Herschler used a darkly humorous anecdote to call attention to political hypocrisy. His was the story of the young man who murdered both parents and then begged the court for mercy on the grounds that he was a lonely orphan.

That story came to mind when Lummis’ self-serving, taxpayer funded website reported, “Lummis Votes to Fund Troops, Prevent Government Shutdown.” Are you as incredulous as me? Some of her GOP colleagues called her Tea Party strategy of shutting down the government “lunacy.”  Being a lunatic is one thing. Being dishonest is another.

Lummis was one of 70 House zealots demanding the Speaker of the House blackmail President Obama with the threat to close down the government unless Obamacare was repealed, defunded or delayed. She and her Tea Party allies got what they wanted. You’d think they’d take credit, or at least accept responsibility.

But no. Her constituent letter, answering those who are angry, predictably blames Harry Reid and President Obama. “We are at this juncture,” says Lummis, “because President Barack Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have refused to agree to fundamental fairness in the implementation of Obamacare.” 

That’s blatantly dishonest. The “fundamental fairness” of the law was settled when Congress passed the law, the Supreme Court found it Constitutional, and the American people soundly reelected Barack Obama at the end of a campaign where her party made repeal of the law the theme of their campaign to defeat him.

Lummis’ distortion attempts to convey the idea that she is Diogenes, looking for an honest debate when what she actually wants is to repeal the law and deny millions of Americans affordable health insurance and consumer protections.

She blames “the Administration,” saying Obama “has closed off national parks and other federal lands to visitors, furloughed employees, and curtailed numerous other federal activities and programs on which people and businesses in Wyoming rely.” Please.

It’s an insult to our intelligence when she proffers a strategy she knows will result in a government shutdown and then raises the “orphan’s” defense. She’d like us to believe she was shocked when her vote to shutdown the government actually shutdown the government.

As one of her Republican colleagues, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) said, she and others who insisted on this strategy are not really conservatives. They are nothing more than obstructionists who are more interested in proving their talking points than they are in governing. That’s why three-quarters of all voters and a majority of Republicans blame them for this fiasco. It’s understandable that Lummis is blaming others for the unfortunate success of her scheme.

Her letter then shifts to the debt limit. “Republicans in the House are choosing not to hand over the already maxed out federal credit card yet again without some semblance of accountability on the part of the President and Democrat-controlled Senate,” Lummis mythologizes.

House Republicans ran up this deficit. They approved every penny. Then they threatened not to pay the bills under a schizo-scheme to repeal Obamacare. Lummis voted for a government default knowing the result would be disastrous and not caring. Hurricane Sandy cost taxpayers 50 million dollars. Hurricane Tea Party cost us 24 billion. And she calls herself a “fiscal conservative”?

Lummis doesn’t tell the truth. The “orphan” in Herschler’s story knew the truth would get him a guilty verdict. Lummis realizes that the truth just doesn’t sound right. But she knows her constituents. If the orphan had blamed Obama, a Wyoming jury might well have voted to acquit.

Truth-telling wouldn’t threaten her politically. That alone should offer an opportunity to be honest about her role in this disaster. But, no.

Before Lummis was Barbara Cubin, a Republican who served five terms despite one of the worst attendance records in congressional history. During her last term, she had the worst attendance record in the House. Of the four worst voting records Cubin was number one. The other three died in office.

We didn’t know how good we had it back then.