Don’t Worry, Jim

‘Tis the season when politicians get antsy over their prospects for reelection, so I was not at all surprised to find a franked flyer in my mailbox, addressed to “Resident” from my representative, Jim Bates. This was one of many that I have received from said Congressman Bates. Mostly they tell me what I already know: Bates is pro-Soviet-backed communist Sandinistas and is anti-military.

But this time Bates demonstrated what I’ve long believed, that he cannot construct a sentence with coherent syntax. Here’s how the good representative worded a query for his constituents to answer: “In the wake of the recent events in the Persian Gulf, do you support the Administration’s use of the military in that region or do you think Congress should invoke the War Powers Act that would force the President to consult with Congress on the use of the military after 60 days of invocation?” Yes or no?

How many yeses did you get, Jim? And what were they saying yes to?

This isn’t one of those “Have you stopped beating your wife?” questions, but it might just as well have been so. Oh well, since most of his supporters have difficulty reading, it really doesn’t make all that much difference. Don’t worry, Jim, you’ll carry your Democrat-gerrymandered district no matter how foolish you appear to be.

EDWIN O. LEARNARD

San Diego