House leaders refuse to act on redistricting bill

As a volunteer with Fair Districts PA, I was heartened to read the March 23 Perspectives piece “The Tyranny of the Gerrymander.” The article underscores the voter disenfranchisement and danger to our democracy resulting from extremely partisan, noncompetitive congressional and state districts. This has been our reality in Pennsylvania, particularly since the 2011 district maps drawn by a Republican majority in Harrisburg.

I was disappointed, though, to read the March 23 editorial “Map of Confusion,” accusing the Pennsylvania Supreme Court of overreach in their recent redrawing of our congressional districts.

If the editorial board is really concerned about lasting fairness of the redistricting process, I urge it to support Senate Bill 22 andHouse Bill 722, which call for an independent nonpartisan citizens commission to direct the process in Pennsylvania. These bills have been stuck in Republican-controlled committees in the General Assembly for more thana year.

The Senate version (S.B. 22) is finally scheduled for a hearing on Tuesday in the Senate State Government Committee. However, Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, RCranberry, who chairs the House State Government Committee has refused to even hold hearings on H.B. 722, in spite of the fact that this bill has more than 100 co-sponsors in the House. And House Speaker Mike Turzai refuses to allow the bill to move forward. As a concerned voter, I think this seems like “legislative overreach.” SUE MEYERS

Edgewood During their years in office, House Speaker Paul Ryan has collected $336,597 from these groups and Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey has received $167,051, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Make no mistake, this isn’t primarily a mental health issue, a Second Amendment attack or a self-defense issue. It is a money issue. The NRA wants to sell as many guns and as much gun equipment as possible, and our politicians are being bribed to makethis possible.

You can make it stop. If you aren’t registered to vote, register. Donate time or money to those candidates who support reasonable gun controls. And most important, vote for those representatives who will work hard for reasonable gun controls. M. PATRICIA LIED Cecil

Regarding “Fish and Boat Director Runs Afoul of Legislators” (March 18): It makes my blood boil when I see our legislators trying to run the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission when they can’t even run our state.

They would rather see our fishing in Pennsylvania grind to a halt than let someone dare to offend the kings in Harrisburg. They need to stay in Harrisburg and do their thing, and let the fish commission do its job. We can’t expect the fish commission to run our fishing resources on outdated license fees and survive.

As the Pennsylvania legislators look out to the horizon to see our ship sinking in high water, theycan see the captain trying to steer through the rough water with one hand tied behind his back. What do they do? They throw him a rope to tie the other hand.Only in Pennsylvania. DAVID RADO

Economy

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If letter writer Valerie Y. Nance (March 20, “Undermining FBI”) is relying on her Pennsylvania senators “to defend this nation’s founding principles and our democracy,” she better start examining their voting records and viewpoints on fundamental issues.

Republican Pat Toomey along with 55 other U.S. senators have co-sponsored (and Democrat Bob Casey has expressed strong support for) Senate Bill 720. This bill, also known as the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, would make it a felony subject to fines up to $1 million and 20 years imprisonment for supporting the international campaign of legitimate and peaceful protest (BDS) to boycott companies that operate in Israel or the Palestinian Territories that are illegally occupied by Israel.

S. 720 would betray every U.S. citizen’s fundamental right to free political speech, which is embedded in the Constitution’s First Amendment. GERALD SCHILLER

Penn Hills