Dear Editor,

For over a year, a group of Danville citizens has tried unsuccessfully to gain an audience with our U.S. senators, Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul. We have travelled to their offices in Louisville, Lexington and Bowling Green; we have offered to arrange a town hall; we have agreed to meet them whenever their schedules permit. To no avail. It seems they are too busy to speak with their constituents when they are in state.

So, we reasoned, if we offer to drive all the way to Washington, D.C., to meet with them while they are in session, perhaps they will feel obligated to meet with us. But senators McConnell and Paul could not take even a few moments to speak with Kentuckians willing to make a nine-hour journey for the privilege of a face to face conversation with their legislators.

If our elected officials cannot find such time within the space of an entire year, then we must conclude that they have little regard for or interest in the concerns of the citizens they presume to represent. 

We are not unique. Except for several fundraising events among Republican supporters, we are aware of no town halls or public forums across Kentucky in which our senators have participated in recent months.

This unwillingness to speak with constituents is disappointing and unprofessional. We need representatives who listen to the people and make decisions based upon the input of a cross section of the population, not just those who support them financially. 

On Saturday, March 24, we watched with admiration as the youth of our nation expressed their deep dissatisfaction with politicians who lack the courage to protect them, bending instead to the will of those who keep their coffers full. Would that all Americans would exhibit the determination displayed by these young people! Perhaps their inspiration will be the beginning of change, especially as they go to the polls in November. 

Joanie Lukins

Charlotta Bright Norby

Susan Weston

Danville