At a recent Town Hall Meeting, held at LISD headquarters in Lewisville, Congressman Michael Burgess addressed about 200 of his constituents. The topics ranged from the war in Iraq to illegal immigration and the economy. Dr. Burgess said a major decision will be made in a few weeks on the Iraq war, a reference to the anticipated report from General David Petraeus, US Commander of the Multi-National Force in Iraq and US Ambassador Ryan Crocker. The congressman has been to Iraq 5 times, including his most recent visit a few weeks ago. He commented about the 128 degree temperature during the summer, the courage shown by the troops and the efforts toward “debathification,” the process of removing former members of the ruling Bath party of Iraq from the military and civil offices following the ousting of Saddam Hussein. 
 
On the issue of health care, he posed the question of available medical service in the future. This was in response to the concern that there may be fewer physicians and nurses available for the “baby boomers” as they age.  He would like healthcare colleges to have residencies in service areas where the need is greater, i.e., lower income communities.  This would take strengthening the physician work force. In addition, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) may be getting additional funding for families that have at least 4 children and make $41,000 a year. 
 
The congressman also spoke about renewable wind energy in Texas. “There’s plenty of wind in Texas and it doesn’t all come from politicians,” he quipped. He went on to say that wind farms along interstates 20 and 28 are producing thousands of megawatts of wind power, capable of assisting in the energy needs of urban areas. Tapping into solar energy is another source he cited for our future needs. For all of this to work, he feels we must also decrease our demand for fuel, suggesting hybrid vehicles (he owns one) with an ethanol blend. He also touched on nuclear energy, but said it was expensive to set up and took long to build. As an aside, he said Michigan Democrat Senator John Dingel suggested that a large tax on gasoline be imposed to decrease demand. Dr. Burgess didn’t think much of that plan.  
 
The GOP congressman said he was totally in favor of enforcing existing immigration laws. As for the wall on the border between the US and Mexico, he said the money was appropriated but he felt it was not the complete answer to stopping the invasion. Moreover, he said some of the townships that line up along the borders were not happy about a wall because of the “aesthetics.” He feels that employee verification is a good idea, but many employers have difficulty knowing which documents are false. Overwhelmingly, the audience felt any sort of amnesty was wrong. Nevertheless, a few people felt that some form of amnesty for the children of illegals should be considered. That elicited a round of boos from the audience.  Dr.  Burgess also commented on it being necessary to have illegal immigrants checked for communicable diseases. 
 
Regarding the recent problem with tainted products being shipped to the US (namely, China); he said he recently sponsored an amendment that would quarantine companies that consistently send us unhealthy products until they correct the situation. Basically, the audience responded most vigorously to the issues of immigration, healthcare and Iraq. One geriatric physician spoke up about the Medicare problems that she was having.  Her reimbursements were being reduced to the point that she felt would one day put her out of business.  Dr. Burgess responded that the system today is, in some respects, much better. He said the physicians are ordering only the testing that is necessary, which is cutting down on expenses. 
 
One gentleman, sitting with his wife, stood up to thank Dr. Burgess for having the Town Hall meeting. He also said that he and his wife had a son in the armed forces in Iraq and they wanted to thank the congressman for his strong support of our soldiers. The audience gave a standing ovation to honor the couple and their son. There were very few people who were not in support of the war in Iraq, but they were clearly outnumbered by the overwhelmingly support for the troops. In addition, Rep. Burgess was the recipient of several rounds of applause for his diligent work in the congress.