Comment on Twelve Ohioans defend Mount McKinley, seek stay of action in new letter to President Obama

Twelve Ohio Republicans in Congress on Wednesday sent a letter to President Barack Obama raising questions about renaming Alaska’s Mount McKinley to Denali.They are seeking an immediate stay of action on the name change and want a full reply to their letter by Sept. 11.They said the federal action ignores congressional jurisdiction and established law.The Obama administration has “shown a troubling lack of respect for the rule of law and the separation of powers between branches of the federal government,” they argue.“This unilateral action is troubling to many Americans as this honor speaks volumes of respecting our nation’s heroes and their patriotic work to better our nation,” the three-page letter said.“It is also upsetting that William McKinley’s legacy has been tarnished by a political stunt to promote a partisan agenda,” the Ohioans wrote.They questioned the process and the authority of Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell to unilaterally rename Mount McKinley.On Sunday, Jewell said she used a secretarial order to change the name, overriding the federal Board of Geographic Names and ignoring legislation in the House of Representatives.She said such action was appropriate because the Board of Geographic Names had failed to take action to change the name to Denali for 40 years, largely because of opposition from Ohio.The new letter was spearheaded by U.S.