Witwer column compares apples and oranges
Editor:
After reading Rob Witwer’s article titled “Now liberals have their own Nixon” in a recent Clear Creek Courant, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the young fellow.
He obviously feels his political brand (Republican) is inferior because of the disgraceful episodes he cites that took place near the middle of this past century. I will try to cheer Rob up because, as a liberal, I recognize that neither liberals nor conservatives are always right and have the right answers for everything.
I admired President Eisenhower for his role in our interstate highway system, and President Nixon for his vision in protecting our environment and opening up China, and after President Reagan stirred up the “sagebrush” rebel movement by declaring he was one, his successor, the first President Bush, made it clear that bombing a government office in Reno and threatening a government official in Elko wouldn’t be tolerated.
Rob, thanks for your work in the state legislature to help get private landowners and recreationists together to open 14ers to public access. Now that was public service!
But, Rob, you are way off base in equating the current IRS scandal to Watergate, and in doing so you demonstrate exactly what is wrong with our dysfunctional political system today. First, let’s compare: Nixon declared, “I am not a crook” and hid the truth behind executive privilege for as long as he could. Obama immediately renounced the actions of the IRS in the strongest terms, and promised to find out what happened and take action to prevent it from happening again. Hmm, which was the more responsible?
There is still no evidence that Obama had any knowledge of what the IRS was doing; not so with Nixon, as he and his immediate staff discussed what had happened, but of course he denied it. Now, what the folks at the IRS were doing was wrong, very wrong, as Obama stated immediately, but the real onus belongs to Congress and the courts for allowing political organizations to claim tax-exempt status under Internal Revenue Code 501c4, originally designed for civic leagues or groups not organized for profit but operated exclusively for the promotion of social welfare. The Tea Party is obviously a political organization whose primary purpose is a partisan political agenda and not social welfare.
But, getting back to you, Rob. Your article projects the worst possible motives to those whose political brand is different than yours. That is why Congress has the lowest approval rating in history. Please stop adding to this dysfunction with articles like this.
Glenn Wallace Sr.
Evergreen