On June 25 I received Andy Harris’ monthly newsletter. His introduction stated, “I wanted to provide an update on the work I am doing in the House of Representatives to represent the great people of Maryland’s First Congressional District and to advance commonsense, conservative legislation in Washington, D.C.”
I carefully reviewed his major areas of “accomplishment” and I found them quite troubling. Not only are his generalizations misleading but some are outright wrong. Needless to say, I don’t see the common sense he refers to. Here are a few areas of concern.
Andy Harris on Agriculture: Harris is proud to have supported the Fiscal Year 2026 Agriculture Bill. “This legislation strengthens agricultural research, supports rural businesses, and safeguards our food and drug supply- all while cutting Biden-era waste.”
Truth: During Trump’s first term, from 2017 to 2020 tax-payer farm subsidies went from $4 billion to $20 billion due to his trade war. Our farmers lost markets as China, in particular, found other suppliers. Now our farmers are facing an even more serious loss of markets and consumers will miss the crops that are simply not grown in the U.S.
Trump’s agricultural policies favor agri-businesses. Our smaller farms will find it ever more difficult to survive due to increasing costs of machinery, fertilizer, and ag-tech and the unpredictability of Trump’s tariff policies. In addition, the round-up of law-abiding, hard-working immigrants threatens farmers’ ability to get crops planted and harvested. Either due to deportations or immigrants simply being afraid to show up, it is very difficult to plan ahead.
In fact, government cut-backs and ICE raids are not saving us money or helping our farmers. The budget for ICE of $9 billion has been spent and has been exceeded by taking $2 billion from other funds such as FEMA. Republicans now want to increase this budget to $45 billion for detention facilities, $50 billion to build the border wall, and $45 billion for ICE enforcement . What a great loss to our farmers and frankly, our communities. Is this how we want our money spent?
Andy Harris on Veterans’ Affairs: “Real support is on the way for our veterans and military families with the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs…Act of 2026. This legislation fully funds Veteran care and benefits and includes important mental health and homelessness assistance. It also prioritizes housing…”
Truth: When Trump came into office, the VA was facing serious staff shortages. The Department of Veterans Affairs is now planning to cut 17% of current staffing which will greatly impact healthcare. With 17 veterans committing suicide each day, the VA is severely cutting back its suicide hotline. 10% of our veterans are on Medicaid and 1.2 million receive SNAP. They are over-represented among the homeless. Nearly 30% of the federal workforce is veterans. It is estimated that 38,000 have already lost their jobs. This is no way to thank our veterans for their service.
Andy Harris on the rule of law: “Condemning Lawlessness and Disorder:” “ The violent riots in Los Angeles this month weren’t just unrest; they were a direct attack on safety, law enforcement, and the rule of law. The House passed H. Res. 516 which condemns the violent riots that have taken place and calls on local and state officials to work with the federal government to restore peace.”
Truth: If there is so much violence, to the point that local police can’t handle it, why were we not seeing this on the news 24/7 since the media thrives on this type of coverage? Not even on Fox…Protests there are by and large peaceful. Nevertheless, the Pentagon’s acting comptroller told lawmakers in a hearing that the military’s deployment of almost 5,000 National Guard troops and Marines to Los Angeles in response to immigration protests will cost around $134 million and last 60 days. These troops are living in uncomfortable quarters while they mull around “protecting” federal buildings. And what about states rights! I suspect our troops don’t want to be there either.
The facts are the facts and so are the consequences. I truly feel for all those on the Eastern Shore who will be impacted by Trump’s policies and Andy Harris’ unwavering support. In fact, as head of the Freedom Caucus he advocates making deeper cuts. We may be “saving” money with cuts to services but we’re spending lots on policies that don’t benefit the public. We are losing the programs that benefit those not counted among the wealthy. Is this what we voted for?
We, Andy Harris’ constituents, deserve nothing less than the truth and an honest accounting of the consequences of his votes.
Barbara Vann
Chestertown
Wendy Wander says
Barbara, thank you for the summery and review. I also get Andy’s newsletter and hate how he is lying to his constituents about his accomplishments and the BBB. You actually did something about it and wrote this Letter to the Editor. Thank you for setting the record straight.