Local faith leaders dare Devin Nunes to actually meet with them
Nunes attacked faith leaders in his own district, but they just want to talk to him.
Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) would rather attack his constituents than meet with them, but a group of faith leaders who represent thousands of people in his district is fighting back.
Recently, Nunes created a lengthy magazine-style mailer in order to attack his hometown newspaper, but it also featured attacks on constituents who have been unsuccessfully trying to contact the congressman at his district office. Now, leaders of a group called Faith in the Valley are speaking up.
In an editorial for the Fresno Bee, Faith in the Valley leaders pointed out that contrary to Nunes’ fake magazine, they are not associated with the political campaign of Nunes’ opponent, Democrat Andrew Janz.
“Those pictured in the publication are pastors, priests, rabbis and parishioners, all residents of California congressional district 22, who are called to seek justice, dignity and peace for all residents of the Central Valley,” the group wrote. “Many of us are members of Faith in the Valley, a nonpartisan, multiracial, multifaith coalition of more than 120 Central Valley, congregations which represents thousands of people.”
The group says it was making one of many attempts to contact Nunes about their concerns as people of faith, attempts which Nunes has “regularly ignored.”
“We live in one of the poorest congressional districts in the country, with hundreds of thousands of people living with vulnerable health, fear of family separation, and housing that is fast becoming less and less affordable,” the group said. According to the Food Research Action Center, more than 25 percent of the children in Nunes’ district live in poverty.
Nunes supports policies that hit the most vulnerable people in his district particularly hard. He voted for a GOP health care law that would have stripped 74,000 of his constituents of Medicaid benefits, and has done nothing to protect undocumented immigrants from Trump’s deportation and family separation policies.
The group of faith leaders concluded by telling Nunes that “Our invitation to Congressman Nunes to meet with us to discuss these and other urgent issues facing our communities remains open.”
But Nunes has been dodging constituents for years, and has not held an open town hall event since 2010. This week, he’s holding an RSVP-only event with former Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), but tickets for that shindig top out at $2,700, and the location is only available to paying attendees.
Nunes can avoid and attack his constituents all he wants, but in a few weeks, he will answer to a higher authority: voters.
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