by Sharon Rondeau
(Jun. 15, 2023) — On May 30, 2023, The Post & Email published a letter sent by constituent Michael Jackson to Rep. Darin LaHood (R) of Illinois’s 16th Congressional District regarding the then-hotly-debated debt ceiling increase sought by the White House and conceded to by Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy in pre-vote discussions.
The agreement, approved by majorities in both the House and Senate as of June 1, avoided a default on the nation’s current debt; extended the debt ceiling to January 1, 2025, after the next presidential election; and contains some concessions to Republicans.
LaHood, who voted against the bill, responded to Jackson with the following.
| June 9, 2023 Dear Michael, Thank you for contacting me with your thoughts regarding H.R. 3746, the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, and the debt ceiling. Your views are important to me as I work to effectively represent you and Illinois’ 16th Congressional District. As you may know, H.R. 3746 was introduced by Representative Patrick McHenry (NC-10) on May 29, 2023. This legislation increases the federal debt limit, establishes new discretionary spending limits, rescinds unobligated funds, and expands work requirements for federal programs. While I appreciate the hard work of Speaker McCarthy and Republican negotiators to force President Biden to the table and get significant Democrat concessions, I cannot support an agreement that allows unlimited borrowing over the next two years and does not take long-term steps to address our debt crisis, resulting in potentially $4 trillion in new deficit spending. I have listened to residents of central and northwestern Illinois, and it is clear that 16th District constituents do not want unlimited COVID-19 level deficit spending that continues to kick the can down the road and place the burden on our children and grandchildren. We must do more to curb Washington’s spending addiction, and that is why I voted against the debt ceiling agreement. In Congress, I will continue to work with House Republicans to put our country back on a fiscally responsible path, promote better work and family outcomes, and responsibly preserve vital programs like Social Security and Medicare. Thank you again for contacting me. Please stay in touch and share your views as we discuss these issues in Congress. Call one of our offices and visit our website at: http://lahood.house.gov/, where you may find additional information and sign up for my regular E-newsletter updates. I also encourage you to like our Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/replahood or follow us on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/RepLaHood where we can continue our conversation. Sincerely,  Darin LaHood Member of Congress To stay up to date on my work in Congress please click here to receive my eNewsletter. If you no longer wish to receive my eNewsletter, click unsubscribe. |
| Peoria District Office 100 NE Monroe Street, Room 100 Peoria, IL 61602 (309) 671-7027 Fax (309) 671-7309 |
In response, Jackson sent LaHood a handwritten letter with an enclosure of “The American Gulag Chronicles: Letters from Prison,” described as “a first-hand account of the January 6th inmates mostly at the infamous DC-CTF aka The American Gulag thus the name of the book.”
“This book is a clarion call of lost liberty and the reminder that we all are living under the same system of justice that now seems to treat individuals differently based upon their political beliefs and affiliations, in all aspects of American life,” the introductory page further states. “Whether you believe January 6 2021 was a riot or an orchestrated disaster, no one can deny its impact on America’s traditional values and those who hold them sacred.”
On that point, Jackson wrote, “Men and women are being tortured! The NCAA of 2012 HR 1540, Sections 1021 and 1022 that Obama signed calls for ‘indefinite detention’ of Americans (innocent before guilty) and labeling them domestic terrorists falsely. Obama is a foreign-born domestic terrorist and Biden a domestic terrorist and foreign agent in our White House!”