Huelskamp town hall touches on veterans health care, debt, Social Security and marijuana laws

From veterans health care to federal government overreach to the national debt, U.S. Rep. Tim Huelskamp touched on a variety of topics Tuesday afternoon during a town hall meeting at Ward’s Garden Café in Garden City.

Huelskamp, who serves on the Veteran Affairs Committee, had five town hall meetings to attend in southwest Kansas on Tuesday, and immediately left for Jetmore after visiting Garden City for about an hour.

Huelskamp told those in attendance that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Choice Program, which gives veterans the option to receive medical treatment at local hospitals rather than oftentimes having to travel more than 100 miles to seek treatment at a veteran’s hospital or clinic, proves Congress is making a difference on this matter.

To date, more than 8,000 veterans nationwide have chosen a local hospital over a VA hospital for treatment, Huelskamp said.

“So, you now have a choice,” he said. “It’s good for our hospitals, veterans and families.”

The Congressman also talked about regulations the federal government is imposing on local communities, but did not go into much detail on what those were.

“Bureaucratic overregulation does not work for Kansas farmers or other small businesses,” Huelskamp said. “We don’t need folks in Washington, D.C., regulating us.”

Huelskamp said the $20 trillion national debt concerns him. He said in the last 10 years, the debt has doubled, and it has continued to increase under President Barack Obama.

“What we are doing today is borrowing from the future,” he said. “That’s something that bothers me.”

Last year, the public paid $250 billion on just interest alone, and Huelskamp said it could have been as high as $500 billion if not for the low interest rates in 2015.

On the fate of Social Security, Huelskamp said this fund likely will be going bankrupt at some time. To prevent this from occurring anytime soon, he said, the discussion has been about raising the retirement age to 67.

Garden City resident Jason Lujan questioned Huelskamp about the positive effects that the legalization of marijuana could have on the state of Kansas. Lujan said such a change in the law would give farmers another crop to grow, and added that its medicinal use often is better than using prescription drugs.

“It’s a wonder drug,” Lujan said.

Huelskamp disagreed, saying that since Colorado has legalized marijuana, the state has seen a huge increase in the use of methamphetamine and heroin.

Huelskamp said he had seen reports of a 4-year-old boy whose seizures stopped after he was treated with medical marijuana, but added that he is skeptical of the positive effects.

“I have not seen the research, but I would be scared to give marijuana to my kids,” he said. “One case is not a true test.”

Garden City resident Jack Anstaett wanted to talk about entitlements the federal government is handing out.

Huelskamp said entitlements remain a problem, as more than 45 million Americans are receiving food stamps.

“A job is the way out of poverty, not a government check,” Huelskamp said. “We have got to encourage a work ethic.”

After the town hall, when asked about entitlements, Anstaett said, “Don’t get me started.”