This letter is in response to Gail Allison’s Letter to The Editor of Aug. 14. Yes, I agree that this country is in bad shape, but it isn’t because of the changes President Barack Obama is trying to make.

This so called unqualified, disingenuous community organizer as you call him, has had 2 1/2 years to try and correct all the harm that eight years of George W. Bush has inflicted upon us all. President Obama came into office with two wars facing him, which incidentally added trillions of dollars to our national debt. Tax cuts for the rich, while the ever-shrinking middle class has had to bear the burden of this on our backs, has taken a toll. Let us not forget about the tax cuts in education, Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security that the American people have had to endure. And there is also the record high unemployment and the recession that President Bush left us with.

I ask you, how can you expect a man who has been in office less than three years to correct all these problems? Any sensible person would come to understand that it is impossible to do all this in such a short time. And now there is this radical group of Republicans who call themselves the Tea Party, who are behaving like spoiled little children. President Obama has literally bent over backward trying to compromise with these people. And what does he receive in return? Headaches and frustrations because of their unwillingness to compromise. The members of the Tea Party are of the mindset that it is their way or no way. Now how can you truly work with people who think like this?

The United States Credit Rating fell from AAA to AA status. And this was squarely do to the unwillingness of the Tea Party members to negotiate a deal on raising the debt ceiling in a timely manner. These people were willing to destroy our government just for the sake of making the president look bad.

As far as taxes being paid, I am a taxpayer and I presume that you are also. But there are multi-billion-dollar corporations out there who pay little to no taxes at all. I ask you, is this fair? Why not write your congressman and inquire about raising the taxes on them?

The raising of the debt ceiling has been going on for years without any fuss and fanfare. Why all of a sudden are you voicing your complaint about it now? What about when Bush raised the debt ceiling all those times, as did his father before him when he was in office? And let’s not forget about the darling of the Republican Party, Ronald Regan, when he raised the debt ceiling. Where was the complaint then?

I agree that the United States needs to wake up. This Tea Party movement is out to destroy our government and I hope Americans will wake up and see them for the radicals they are before it is too late.

James E. Montgomery

Vicksburg