Water flows through a series of sediment retention ponds built to reduce heavy metal and chemical contaminants from the Gold King Mine wastewater accident, in the spillway about a quarter-mile downstream from the mine, outside Silverton, August 2015. (Brennan Linsley, Associated Press file)
Re: House Republicans grill Interior Secretary Jewell on EPA Gold King disaster, March 2 news story.
If the puzzled politicians and media pundits need an understanding of why frustrated citizens are flocking to Donald Trump s outsider, I m-gonna-fix-things campaign, they need look no further than Interior Secretary Sally Jewel and the Environmental Protection Agency s response to the Gold King Mine disaster.
A House committee staff needs a subpoena to get a damning e-mail from Interior, and Interior provides thousands of heavily redacted documents ?
Who do these people think they work for? What exactly are they trying to hide from Congress and the affected people? Are there national security concerns contained in the e-mail and documents that need protection? If the answer is no, then the arrogance of agencies that are there to protect and serve the people is exactly why the electorate is fed up with government and people in it promulgating their own agenda instead of working for the citizens who provide their paycheck.
These hypocrites are what is driving people to Trump — and Bernie Sanders. Pay attention and you ll understand why people are frustrated and angry with government — maybe you ll even join in if you care.
Mark Heiden, Fort Collins
This letter was published in the March 7 edition.
