Washblog

Cathy McMorris Rodgers voted for the 2013 GOP Budget, commonly known as Paul Ryan's budget, which proposes $2.71 billion in cuts to SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) over the next decade.  Almost two thirds of SNAP recipients are children, elderly, and/or disabled.  According to a report by the USDA, The State of Washington ranks 14th in the nation for food insecurity, tied with states like Mississippi, Texas, Arkansas, and Alabama.  Washington exceeds both of our neighboring states in percentages of people who are food insecure.  Voting to cut food support when Eastern Washington needs it most as a way to balance the budget is unfair to all of those who have to go to bed hungry.

Cathy McMorris-Rodgers voted for sweeping cuts to Medicaid and Medicare included in the Paul Ryan Budget.  The budget outlines raising the eligibility age of Medicare from 65 to 67, affecting nearly 5 million seniors who would normally qualify.  It also details the conversion of the program into a voucher system where seniors will get set stipends to use at private insurers or from the government.  These stipends are set at a rate that does not increase at the same rate as health care costs inflate, leaving many seniors with elevated health care costs and no way to pay.  With 15% of Washington's population currently receiving Medicare, Cathy McMorris-Rodgers has turned her back on the most vulnerable in her state, even while stating that this budget will « protect our most vulnerable - especially our seniors;  Medicaid would be cut by $810 billion in the Paul Ryan budget over the next decade, which Cathy McMorris-Rodgers voted for.  It would be converted into a block grant program with capped amounts and therefore shift the  rising costs of health care to the states.  The State of Washington faced $10 billion in cuts over the last 4 years and does not have the capabilities of handling an increased necessity to fund the states 17% of recipients, 57% of them being children.  Once again, Cathy has shown through her voting record that her party is more important than the people who rely on her to represent them.

The Paul Ryan Budget that McMorris-Rodgers voted for also proposes unbridled cuts to the most important earned benefit of all, Social Security.  In his Path to Prosperity budget proposal, Social Security would be dismantled through privatization.  Social Security is one of the paragons that defines this country's dedication to its citizens from cradle to casket.  McMorris-Rodgers supports the Paul Ryan proposal to privatize this fund, allowing Wall Street to collect huge sums off the taxed earnings of millions of working class citizens with no guarantee for them when they will need it most.  Voting to unhinge Social Security from its foundational stake upholding our social safety net is completely unwarranted and wrong for the many working class citizens of Eastern Washington who will rely on Social Security after a career of hard work and dedication to our economy.

In addition to the staggering budget cuts she has voted for, McMorris-Rodgers has also indicated that women's issues are not important nor a priority.  In the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), Cathy supported the version of this bill that excludes LGBTQ, Native American, and immigrant women, stating that those women are «a side issue.» Spokane County's own sheriff, Ozzie Knezovich, a Republican, has stated «"My concern is that the safety nets are rapidly being stripped away with funding.  As safety nets slip away, it will increase the number of calls, and number of violent calls we respond to."  Cathy has shown that her desires to climb ever higher in the Republican party trumps the real needs of her constituents, especially women suffering from domestic violence.

With reference to women's issues, she has also voted against two other key piece of legislation affecting women. She voted against the Lilly Ledbetter act, an act aimed at helping women address pay inequalities in their workplace.  She also voted against the Affordable Care Act, which would make it mandatory for self insured employers and Catholic hospitals  to provide contraceptive coverage at no additional cost.  In an interview with Chris Matthews, she stated in the Seattle Times that it "infringes on religious freedom" (Saturday, August 25, 2012). Cathy votes against women time and time again to ensure her place at the side of the most powerful men in the Republican party.

Representative McMorris-Rodgers also voted for the Budget Control Act of 2011, outlining the sequestration cuts already coming into effect.  These sequestration cuts outline cuts to child care, nutrition assistance programs for seniors, nutrition assistance for families, vaccine programs for children, domestic violence support programs for women, early education programs, work study programs for college students, job training and placement services, primary education for Washington state, military readiness, public health services, environmental funding to ensure clean air and water, and food inspection programs.  McMorris called the very cuts she voted for "devastating".  Even she is starting to criticize the impacts of her votes on her constituents.

Representative Cathy-McMorris Rodgers' voting record, outlined above in a small fraction, can only be described as hyper-partisan.  She votes on issues with no understanding of how it will impact the people paying her to represent them. The sequester cuts are just the last unfortunate example of how dedicated she is to party lines despite the consequences it will have on her district and the citizens who live within it. For sources not listed here, please see this website.

Update: Here is one constituent's opinion of her decision to be a no show for a debate with her opponent in the 2012 election.