I have an email from Sen. Mark Udall of Colorado. It reads, in part, “This time it’s the confirmation of Gina McCarthy —  the president’s well-qualified nominee for Environmental Protection Agency administrator. … Last week all eight Republican members of the Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee attempted to stop her nomination by boycotting the committee vote … they literally didn’t bother to show up. That’s not leadership, that’s obstructionism. … President George W. Bush’s EPA administrator, Christine Todd Whitman, scolded her GOP colleagues and called them ‘sore losers’.”

Ever since Barack Obama was elected, the goal of the Republicans has appeared to be to stop anything from being accomplished.

Thirty-seven attempts to eliminate the Affordable Care Act — wouldn’t it be better to improve it? The United States has wonderful, accomplished health care providers and a system that prevents a large portion of citizens from obtaining health care. I have known families whose only access to health care is the emergency room, which they visit as a last resort. That is expensive.

How many other nominations have been blocked, including several judges?

It is a waste of time and money and has accomplished nothing.

Unemployment is down, the economy is improving and the national debt is smaller. It is very possible those positive events could be much better with some help from the opposing party.

Nancy Willard, Woodstock