Senator Heidi Heitkamp has certainly done some good things for North Dakota. She has supported federal legislation related to things like agriculture, funding of Medicare, and Second Amendment rights. I would certainly expect this from a senator representing our state and its values, but this is only one side of her voting record.
On the other side, there are some key issues where Senator Heitkamp has not stood with the people she purports to represent, such as voting for unwarranted preferential treatments for the LGBTQ community that would endanger our wives and daughters, and her lack of support for school choice. Most recently, she voted against the 20-week abortion ban bill in Congress, while a recently released poll showed that only 37% of North Dakotans would have voted with her against the bill.
Despite Senator Heitkamp’s obviously inconsistent representation of our state’s voters, she has also flip flopped (ridden the wind) on certain important issues. Let’s take a recent example.
In a somewhat surprising move, Senator Heitkamp changed her mind and voted to confirm recent conservative Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch. She also managed to change her reasons explaining why she voted for him. Senator Heitkamp stated in a CNBC article, “Would he be the judge I’d pick? No, never…but he is the judge that the duly elected president picked.” However, on Twitter and in a press release she stated, “He has a record as a balanced, meticulous, and well respected jurist who understands the rule of law.” So, which is it, Heidi? Did you vote for him because President Trump nominated him or because he has the qualifications to do the job? Riding the wind can be difficult to explain.
Ironically, Judge Gorsuch fundamentally disagrees with her on almost all key issues. However, it just so happens that her support for Judge Gorsuch was preceding an election year when she is going to have a battle retaining her seat in the Senate against challenger Representative Kevin Cramer. The term political expediency comes to mind. She is riding the wind.
What happens now? Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy just announced his retirement and President Trump is expected to declare his chosen replacement nominee by next Monday. It’s very likely that it will once again be someone who agrees with your and my constitutional rights and will support traditional values President Trump has championed in the past. Will Heidi vote to confirm his nomination? Time will tell.
The key question is this. Senator Heitkamp, will you vote your own personal beliefs, some of which are in direct conflict with your North Dakota constituents, or will you ride the wind and vote for someone you don’t believe in for the purpose of political expediency?
There really is no good solution for Senator Heitkamp and the whole nation understands the significance of this race. It’s going to be a tough election and you can count on Kansas Family Voice of North Dakota to be in the thick of it, representing you and your pro-life and pro-family values.