Letters

Our U.S. representative, Lee Zeldin, has been a busy man lately — not fighting for his constituents, but speaking on Fox News and elsewhere, defending the actions of a president who has invited and coerced foreign countries to interfere in our elections.

But while he has been carrying the president’s water, Mr. Zeldin has refused to meet with voters in a real town hall meeting where he could explain his position on a number of issues.

This week, nine prominent environmental organizations issued a statement: “Donald Trump’s administration has unleashed an unprecedented assault on our environment and the health of our communities. His policies threaten our climate, air, water, public lands, wildlife, and oceans; no amount of his greenwashing can change the simple fact: Donald Trump has been the worst president for our environment in history.”

Mr. Zeldin has in the past attempted to paint himself as an advocate for the environment. (This despite an abysmal rating by the well-respected League of Conservation Voters.) So I would like to hear his response to this unprecedented statement by these respected organizations.

President Trump has done everything he could to take health insurance away from hardworking Americans. In his State of the Union Address, he said, “I will always fight for, and always protect, patients with pre-existing conditions.” But this is blatantly false. His Department of Justice is siding with plaintiffs in a lawsuit that, if successful, would end protections for those with pre-existing conditions.

One result of this and other presidential policies is that the number of Americans without health insurance climbed to 27.5 million in 2018, according to federal data.

Does our congressman approve of these policies that hurt American families? Does he have any real plan that would alleviate the pain and suffering of Americans who face bankruptcy because of a health crisis? Can he explain why the greatest country in the history of the world cannot guarantee health care for its citizens?

We do not know, because Mr. Zeldin is so busy currying favor with Mr. Trump that he has no time to meet with his constituents.

I urge all East End voters who care for our environment and who believe health care is a human right to contact our congressman and demand that he hold a real town hall meeting where he can explain his positions on these issues.

That’s supposed to be part of his job, isn’t it?

John Neely

Westhampton Beach