Indivisible Carbondale protests wall, calls on Mike Bost to support HR 1 proposal

Protestors+stand+alongside+Carbondale+mayoral+candidate+Nathan+Colombo+on+Monday%2C+Feb.+18%2C+2019+outside+Carbondale%E2%80%99s+Hunter+Building.+The+group+protested+President+Donald+Trumps+recent+declaration+of+a+national+emergency+on+the+Mexican+border.

Carson VanBuskirk | @carsonvanbDE

Protestors stand alongside Carbondale mayoral candidate Nathan Colombo on Monday, Feb. 18, 2019 outside Carbondale’s Hunter Building. The group protested President Donald Trump’s recent declaration of a national emergency on the Mexican border.

By Emily Cooper, Staff Reporter

Nearly 11 protestors gathered outside Representative Mike Bost’s Main Street office Monday calling for Bost to support the HR 1 proposal and stop supporting President Trump.

The HR 1 proposal is intended to present solutions to common political problems in the areas of voting, political money, redistricting, and ethics, according to an NPR article about the bill.

“The most important [part of the bill] is that they want to use paper ballots instead of electronic,” Mary Rajcok, leader of the group Indivisible Carbondale, said. “I think everyone should agree that if we want to run a clean election it has to be that way.”

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Indivisible Carbondale is the local branch of the Indivisible Project Network and was responsible for setting up the protest.

“To begin, it was a day of action […] nationwide for the HR 1 that is being proposed,” Rajcok said. “That is what our first goal was until the national emergency.”

The protest was advertised online as a protest against Trump’s policies and his declaration of a national emergency to fund a border wall.

“The wall, I feel, is a distraction,” Kate, one of the protestors, said. “We have to get the money out of government.”

She said the group has to keep up pressure on Bost and let him know that there are people in his district and in Jackson County who voted against him in the election.

“He needs to start paying attention and stop following Trump right down the line because it is dangerous,” Kate said. “It is not good for the country.”

Staff reporter Emily Cooper can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at @ECooper212.

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