Letter to a Senator

Here is my letter to Chuck Grassley of Iowa, one of the Senators making uneducated idiot remarks about the NHS. If my request for a meeting with him is granted, I shall let everyone know.

Sir, As a British national living in the United States, I wish to register my disgust and contempt for a remark attributed to you regarding the British National Health Service. Your statement of "I don't know for sure, but I've heard several senators say that Ted Kennedy with a brain tumour, being 77 years old as opposed to being 37 years old, if he were in England, would not be treated for his disease, because end of life – when you get to be 77, your life is considered less valuable under those systems" is nothing short of a vile lie, seemingly with the only purpose of trying to undermine an example of a successful public health system for your own political means. I find your remarks to be ill-considered and wholly uneducated, and somewhat shocking given your position as a senior member of the Senate. I suggest that you fire your advisors as they clearly did not brief you very well (or at all) on this issue. Even the most cursory of research would have shown that your statement is a blatant falsehood. I hope that you are aware that there is a considerable backlash against your besmirching in the United Kingdom, and that you have probably contributed to worsening the view of the Republican party in the eyes of many. The only honorable thing for a man in your position to do would be to publicly apologize for your mis-informed statement, and even if you do so, I sincerely hope that the British Government issues you with a writ for liable. I eagerly anticipate your response on this sensitive issue. Sincerely, Gavin Bridge