Vern Buchanan

As a lifelong Republican and resident of U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan’s district for most of his 20 years in Congress, I read with interest your editorial complimenting and honoring his service ("Vern Buchanan leaves Congress with strong record, legacy," Jan. 27).

It is clear Buchanan has had many legislative achievements during his tenure, and I would like to be as laudatory as your editorial.

But sadly, I cannot.

I believe it is important to view Buchanan's “service” in its entirety.

Let me explain.

Like every other member of Congress, Buchanan took an oath to uphold the Constitution.

On Jan. 6, 2021, Buchanan was in the U.S. Capitol when it was attacked.

I suspect that he feared for his life, just as every other senator and representative did.

And yet when it came time to hold the perpetrator of that insurrection accountable, Buchanan failed to do so.

He did not vote for the second impeachment of President Donald Trump after Jan. 6 took place – just as he had failed to support the first impeachment of Trump following the president's quid pro quo phone call to Ukraine leader Volodymyr Zelensky threatening to withhold arms funds.

And over the past nine years, Buchanan has overwhelmingly supported Trump's policies.

Most recently Buchanan lauded and voted for Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, which caused many Floridians to lose access to Medicaid; meanwhile, numerous Floridians have lost their health care subsidies and can no longer afford health insurance.

The bill also provided billions of dollars to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency to continue terrorizing blue states and cities on Trump's hit list.

And, of course, the bill took very good care of the rich by giving huge, favorable corporate tax reductions to large stockholders and corporate owners.

So when you look at Buchanan’s record in its entirety, you could make the argument it is quite mixed – and that in many ways he did not represent his constituents in a positive way.

Given the uprisings occurring across the country and the declining approval ratings for the Trump administration – one that Buchanan has blindly supported – you have to wonder whether the congressman's retirement is the result of “too much heat in the kitchen.”

Richard Correnti, Bradenton