Should Jeff Flake Be Fired?

Should Jeff Flake Be Fired?

Jun22 /2009

Jeff Flake, R - AZ

Today a soldier in Afghanistan wished he could be home with his wife as she was giving birth to their first child. But he couldn’t because he had a job to do. He had a responsibility. It’s just a fact of life that sometimes our responsibilities will take us away from other things and the people we love. It doesn’t mean that we don’t care but often there’s a bigger picture to be concerned about. A higher calling that may involve personal sacrifice.

Jeff Flake, a republican from Arizona’s 6th congressional district, did not hear that higher calling today. While concerned Americans across the country tried desperately to reach their representatives in a massive effort to stop the hideous ‘cap-and-trade’ bill, Jeff Flake chose to be absent. Reportedly he left Washington on Friday to attend a beauty pageant in Alabama where his daughter would be competing on Saturday.

While Jeff was apparently preparing to leave town, tens of thousands of conservatives were emailing, calling and faxing congress. The lines were jammed. We were passionate. And for good reason. Passage of this bill would be a defining moment for Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats. Under the guise of environmentalism, it would actually dismantle American industry and productivity. Millions of jobs could be at stake and an oppressive tax burden would be put on us all. If ever we needed conservative representation in Washington it was today. If ever we needed a guardian of freedom and liberty it was today. We needed Jeff Flake to show up for work. Especially today. But he was AWOL. And, arguably, he was AWOL during a time of war.

Today regular Americans understood the devastating effects that the so called ‘cap-and-trade’ bill would have. So they sacrificed. Housewives spent less time with their children. Business people didn’t follow up properly with their clients and perhaps missed a sale. Employees were distracted from work as they called, emailed and twittered their friends. It was an important day for patriotic Americans as we did battle against those that are trying to steal our country. We didn’t mind. It’s our duty as citizens. But should we expect any less from a man that we pay to represent us? Is it too much to ask that Jeff Flake actually do what we pay him to do? Did he not know what was going on today? Did he not care? Where was his sense of duty?

I’ve never met Jeff Flake or know much about him other than he has a pretty good voting record and has stood up for conservative causes in the past. He’s obviously a good Dad. But he left town on possibly the most important voting day of the century. He abandoned his constituency and his responsibility to his country. If he were an employee he might be fired on the spot. If he were a soldier he would have likely been busted and possibly jailed. Should he be allowed to remain in office? Voters in his district will have to make that choice.