LETTERS: McConnell, Senate obstruct justice with Supreme Court tactics

Once in a while, an issue such as federal lands gets groups of citizens into such a state of frustration that they just erupt. Right or wrong, they are just so fed up with what they are seeing that they lash out in an effort to get people behind them. In the end, no one else jumps in with them and their effort sputters out. Today, I feel like these people. I am waiting for some type of groundswell to begin.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has assured the country that there will be absolutely no action taken by the Senate on whomever President Barack Obama nominates to the Supreme Court to replace deceased Justice Antonin Scalia. Never mind what potential Supreme Court candidates have to say; they are not in play on this subject. Sen. McConnell has declared that we the people will not be getting our Supreme Court restored, on the off-chance that in November a Republican will be elected president. This is discussed as if it is within his legal province to do so. What hubris.

The Senate has an obligation to fill the opening in a timely manner. Show me where it says that Republican Party opportunists get to sit on this. Sen. McConnell needs to do his job, period.

When President Obama was elected, Sen. McConnell said his No. 1 priority was to make Mr. Obama a one-term president. The Republicans embarked on the most obstructionist movement in history. And now, Sen. McConnell has put himself out there as a roadblock to governmental process once again. To those who voted for Sen. McConnell, congratulations! You are getting the government you voted for.

As for the rest of us, if there is a time for revolution, perhaps it is now. Sen. McConnell needs to be sanctioned, impeached and taken out of the way. Is there not a single news figure out there who sees the outrageousness in this? Sen. Bernie Sanders? Hillary Clinton? If you want to be the president, now is a good time to start acting like it.

Jim Cassidy

Henderson

Veterans’ health

The Veterans Health Administration got its start at the end of the Civil War, when few other care options were available to the very large number of veterans who served. The agency expanded greatly after World War I. The Veterans Affairs health care system has grown from 54 hospitals in 1930 to include 152 hospitals, 800 community-based outpatient clinics, 126 nursing home care units and 35 domiciliary facilities. The VHA now operates one of the largest health care systems in the world.

As with any organization, the larger it gets, the more difficult it is to manage. The VHA is simply too large, and it will never become efficient. Furthermore, with the agency run by government employees, there is not nearly as much motivation to change as there would be in a for-profit corporation. There is a lack of employee accountability.

Unlike after the Civil War, today there are plenty of other options for veterans to receive service. Rather than continue along the ever-growing track it’s been on, the VHA should be disbanded and its facilities sold off. Veterans who are eligible for VHA services should be provided Medicare benefits. Use of an existing functioning program with cost-control features that provides vets with choices and local services would improve access, reduce wait times dramatically and significantly reduce costs.

I am a 24-year Navy veteran and have never used VHA services. But with sympathy for those vets who do, and as a concerned taxpayer, I believe the VA should get out of the health care business.

Troy Pyles

St. George, Utah

Bathroom fee next?

With all the controversy over MGM Resorts’ decision to begin charging for parking at its Strip properties, one cannot help but wonder what the company will begin charging for next. How about a fee to use restroom facilities? Think of the expense involved with those bathrooms. Toilet paper, seat covers, soap, paper towels and lots of water.

Then there is the cost to have all these bathrooms cleaned on a regular basis. Dare I suggest putting in a coin or credit card machine upon entering bathrooms? It’s something to think about.

Cynthia Coletti

Las Vegas