Boilerplate reply from my congressman.
Bradley Byrne was elected from the 1st District in Alabama because his repug primary opponent was a batshit crazy teapartier and all the Dems and independents voted for the (somewhat) saner of the two.
The opposing Dem was a loser from the get go, although I did vote for him in the general election. How bad was he?
At a meeting I attended he said he was in favor of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) but thought there were problems with "Obamacare".
We gently explained that they were one and the same.
I sent Bradley an email asking that he introduce a bill to lift the salary cap on Social Security deductions and make them once again free from federal income tax as they were from inception until the Reagan administration decided to tax them.
This would help his 'senior' constituents a lot.
The high earners wouldn't suffer, and they'd get their S/S benefits back tax free.
His reply:
(Oh, he addresses me as Dr. I have no idea why.)
Dear Dr. trof:
Thank you for contacting me with regard to Social Security.
As must be clear to all Americans, our nation is on a fiscally unsustainable path – we are currently over $18 trillion in debt, and our average annual deficits have exceeded $1 trillion for each of the last six years. We have not arrived at this point because of the actions of one party or one administration; both parties have enacted programs that have increased our debt over decades. Because of this, it cannot and will not be reduced and controlled by one bill or even by one Congress.
If our nation is serious about fiscal reform, and the sustainability of Social Security, we must deal head-on with our ever increasing mandatory spending, which currently accounts for 65 percent of our overall expenditures and is the primary driver of increases in our national debt. These mandatory programs need reforming to ensure their solvency and long term viability. The Republican leadership of the House of Representatives and the Members of our conference remain open to discussing serious legislative solutions with our Senate colleagues and with the administration. Please be assured I will keep your thoughts in mind as we work to address these issues in the 114th Congress.
Again, thank you for contacting me on this matter. It is my great honor to serve as your Member of Congress, and it is my number one priority to represent you and the best interests of the First District of Alabama."
You see where he addressed my original comment, right?
Me neither.
= new reply since forum marked as read
"...our average annual deficits have exceeded $1 trillion for each of the last six years."
So now they have to resort to using averages to further their crappy propaganda? 
Asked him to address the specific comments I made.
I got a reply.
"Dear Dr. trof:
Thank you for contacting me with regard to the federal minimum wage."
I said NOTHING about the minimum wage.
I guess that was just next on his list of canned responses.
This is getting to be fun.
