Letter to the Editor: Incredulous with Kitchens

Incredulous was my response to Rep. Kitchens’ perspective piece in the May 22-29 Peninsula Pulse. I emailed him in early April to please vote “yes” to move the April 7 election so citizens did not have to choose between health, the foundation of life; and voting, the bedrock of democracy. 

Rep. Kitchens’ response was that he understood science because he was a veterinarian and blamed Gov. Evers for not acting earlier. Of course, Wisconsin’s emergency session was a showy 45 seconds and as partisan as a day in quarantine is long. The headline across the country was, “Republican Legislators Refuse.”

Kitchens now writes that it’s time to “stop pointing fingers and blaming the other side” and that Wisconsin needs to exercise caution in reopening. Why the change in outlook? Because Gov. Evers was right? Fifty-plus cases of COVID-19 that are traceable to standing in line to vote? Or that now there is a worthy challenger to the office Kitchens holds? 

Although there may be another reason that’s still unclear, the cynic in me thinks this is simply political posturing after the horse has left the barn rather than any real concern for his constituents. It’s time for responsive representation, not partisan tomfoolery that has a real impact on our well-being. Kim Delorit Jensen may well be the best person to represent the 1st District.

Dianne Shorter

Algoma, Wisconsin