To: Rep. Pramila Jayapal (WA-7)

Democrats: Stand strong against Tea Party Republicans

From the government shutdown to the debt ceiling, Tea Party Republicans have wreaked enough havoc on our country. Democrats must stand strong -- demand a vote on a clean continuing resolution to reopen the government -- and don't capitulate on Social Security, Obamacare, or other vital programs.

Why is this important?

Republican extremism has impacted me in this way: I am a technical writer/editor for the U.S . Geological Survey in Tacoma (I live in your district in Seattle and commute to Tacoma) who has been furloughed as a result of the shutdown. This is already causing financial hardship on my family--my wife and daughter. And all this after having been laid off from a much higher paying job of 16 years two years ago and being unemployed for 6 months before getting my current U.S. Geological Survey job.