As President Obama lands in Flint this afternoon to address the city’s ongoing water crisis and the poisoning of its citizens, remember that Congressman Tim Walberg simply doesn’t believe it’s his responsibility to protect his constituents from drinking poisoned water. Perhaps it’s because his reelection campaign is financed by Governor Snyder’s staff and special interest groups?
As Walberg put it, the lead in Flint’s water system “shows that government can’t protect us against everything. It comes down to people watching out for themselves.” [Skip to 6:50 mark]
This was after Walberg called Flint citizens’ reaction to the crisis as “hysteria” and actually said “the state of Michigan has done very well in the process of regulating water and protecting citizens.”
Walberg was then called out for lobbing ‘softball questions’ at Governor Snyder during the Flint hearing, while rudely interrupting and shouting over EPA officials.
- One outlet declared Walberg “did not press his home-state governor during questioning,” pointing out his conciliatory opening statement:
“We appreciate you voluntarily releasing all of your emails so they could be part of the record,” Walberg told Snyder. “We appreciate the fact that you’re willing to answer tough questions that this committee will offer today and outline the steps you’re taking to solve the crisis and help Flint recover.”
- A Lansing-based political newsletter then called his heartless comments a “lesson learned,” and a local writer dubbed them “truly astonishing.”
A popular website then berated Walberg for lying about meeting with one of the EPA’s staffers – and for repeating misinformation during the Flint hearing.
We recently learned that Walberg’s “government can’t protect us against everything” philosophy applies to 7th District workers, too; Walberg was recently lambasted by the United Steelworkers for opposing tighter workplace safety rules that prevent workers from dying or getting sick on the job from being exposed to toxic chemicals.
“Astoundingly, Congressman Walberg simply does not believe it’s his responsibility to protect the people he was elected to represent,” said Sacha Haworth of the DCCC. “Given that Walberg’s reelection campaign is backed by Governor Snyder staffers and special interests, we are seeing that Walberg is willing to protect fellow politicians and lobbyists, but not Michigan working families.”