Weekly Wrap: Deborah Takes Red Pen To Burr's "Seniors For Burr" Webpage And Announces A Series Of Policy Discussions On Retirement Security

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This week, Deborah Ross warned "Seniors for Burr" to read the fine print before they fall for Burr's sales pitch. To help, Deborah made some edits to Burr's webpage. The facts are clear: Burr says he is for seniors, but then he takes more than $1 million from insurance companies while also writing a plan to privatize Medicare and raise the retirement age. His plan helps insurance companies profit and forces North Carolina seniors to pay more. And, he voted against protecting Social Security from benefits cuts or privatization.

Deborah also announced that she will be holding a series of policy discussions on retirement security across the state where she will talk with voters about the importance of protecting Social Security and Medicare.

Also this week, the US Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutional right of a woman to make her own health care decisions, regardless of her zip code or income level. The decision made it clear that politicians, whether in Raleigh, Austin, or Washington, have no business dictating health care options to women. However, we know that the court's decision won't stop politicians like Richard Burr from politicizing women's health. He voted to shut down the government over Planned Parenthood funding and is even blocking the nominee to the Supreme Court in hopes that Donald Trump -- the man who wants to appoint judges to overturn Roe v. Wade -- can pick the next three Supreme Court justices.

Meanwhile, in Washington, Burr is still refusing to honor his oath and do the job North Carolina's taxpayers are paying him to do. Burr declined to attend the North Carolina Bar Association's annual meeting and defend his decision to obstruct the nominee to the US Supreme Court. He also refuses to offer a justification for blocking the nomination of Patricia Timmons-Goodson to the Eastern District of North Carolina, which is the longest running judicial vacancy in the country and has been labeled a judicial emergency.

In addition, Burr was sharply criticized for his refusal to even consider the "most modest, seemingly common-sense efforts" to keep guns away from dangerous people like suspected terrorists and violent criminals. Deborah Ross was commended for voicing support for background checks as a way to "assure that would-be terrorists and those with a history of violence" are not able to easily get their hands on guns.

And, on the floor of the Senate this week, Burr's response to the Zika virus epidemic was to politicize women's health and restrict funding for family planning services. What's worse is that this isn't just mean-spirited politics -- it's harmful policy. It would actually make it harder for women in Zika affected areas to access birth control. A New York Times editorial labeled the Senate's actions "inexcusable."

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