Daines ignoring constituents, facts

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines is still insisting on his sham tele-townhalls, where he controls the conversation, his staff screen questioners, and he has no idea of the mood of his constituents. His staffers have told me he “cares deeply about Montanans” - if so, then meet with us in person!

He continues to repeat the statistic that “premiums have risen 133 percent under Obamacare” while failing to point out that in the eight years prior to the Affordable Care Act, premiums rose 204 percent!

Daines chooses to ignore the thousands who have told him how Obamacare has helped us, and hasn’t even taken a stand against the huge, regressive wealth transfer from poor to rich that the Senate bill includes.

Even more infuriating is his claim that “Obamacare is in a death spiral,” while ignoring the many ways Republicans have been trying to undermine the ACA, like eliminating the risk corridors that would have helped some insurers stay afloat.

I have asked Daines’ staffers repeatedly to explain how the Senate bill fulfills Donald Trump’s campaign promises of “insurance for everybody” that would be “much less expensive and much better.” No one has yet been able to answer this, and I’ve been calling for weeks.

Julie Chapman,

Huson