Yesterday, I was surprised, as were many Coloradans, to see the statement from my current representative to the Colorado House walking back his votes on January 18th that gave support to careless election officials, rioters, seditionists and election conspiracists and off-handedly dismissing his actions as the result of ‘not fully digesting’ the legislation in front of him.
As a constituent, it’s hard to comprehend which is worse: having a representative who is openly hostile towards the concept of democracy or having a representative who is openly negligent of his duties to democracy. While the first case is an affront to our values as a free society, the second calls into question the sincerity of every vote he ever has taken (or ever will take) on the behalf of every person, business and organization in my community.
The role of representing others within a democracy is a sacred one that should not be undertaken lightly. Our democracy relies on elected officials who will well and faithfully represent the voices of their constituents on life and death issues every day–issues like access to healthcare, adequate housing, clean air and water, good jobs with living wages and the hundreds of other important topics taken up by our legislature each year.
My district deserves a representative we can trust to actually know what is going on. One who not only reads, but understands the issues before he votes. It’s clear that Dan Woog is not that representative. It’s time for him to step aside to make room for someone who takes their oaths seriously and knows what it means to serve.
Jennifer Parenti, Lt Col, US Air Force (retired) and Candidate for CO House District 19