1. United States
2. W.V.
3. Letter

I am writing to you—not as “loyal opposition”—but as a citizen who has watched in horror as you gleefully raced through a budget that slashes healthcare, guts Medicaid, dismantles disability support, and funnels gifts to billionaires. You say you want the government open? We say not until you undo these policies. You voted for versions of the continuing resolution that excluded ACA subsidies, even as 60,000 West Virginians depend on them. You’ve remained silent or defended deprioritizing healthcare while throwing crumbs at hospitals, even though these cuts threaten rural facilities and essential services. You claim the shutdown is costly—but what’s more costly is your betrayal of people who can’t choose between rent, food, or medicine. What’s more dangerous is trading life-saving services so the rich can keep hoarding wealth. This is your red line: you do not re-open the government unless healthcare cuts are reversed. Restore the ACA subsidies. Protect Medicaid. Reinstate disability and safety-net funding. You don’t get to hide behind procedural excuses while people go without care, lose coverage, hospitals crumble, and lives go on the line. We are watching. We are organizing. We will not forget who stood up for us—and who gave us away. Fight for West Virginians. Refuse to fund cruelty. Refuse to fund fascism.