Forget the daily rantings, the lies and the personal attacks. One, and only one, issue must dictate our decision about how to vote in November.
Does Donald Trump respect our laws, our country and our Constitution? Yes or no?
Whether or not his fiery rhetoric incited the riot of Jan. 6, 2021 (which is yet another issue for the Supreme Court to decide), it happened.
An armed mob stormed the United States Capitol and almost succeeded in overthrowing our government. In the process,140 law enforcement officers were injured and five people were killed. “A normal tourist visit,” as someone at the time farcically called it?
Hardly.
Did the President of the United States step in to stop this assault on our government? Yes, he did — after five hours. He then told the insurrectionists to go home.
“We love you, you’re very special,” Trump told them.
That is the level of respect for our government — or lack of it — that defines Trump. Remember that in November, or you won’t have a country anymore.
Joel Speiser, Delray Beach
Like Nixon’s ‘secret plan’
Donald Trump didn’t want Congress to consider a bipartisan bill on immigration so he can run for president on that issue.
In other words, let the crisis fester until January 2025, if not much longer. In 1968, Richard Nixon ran on a “secret plan” to end the war in Vietnam.
In other words, let American soldiers and Vietnamese people die until sometime after January 1969. And they did die until he finally withdrew U.S. forces in April 1975. Political expediency trumps leadership.
W.M. Payne, Fort Lauderdale
Anti-abortion consequences
The recent cases of Brittany Watts in Ohio and Kate Cox in Texas serve as harrowing reminders of the consequences women face in states with draconian abortion laws.
Despite Republican assurances, these women’s health emergencies were not just neglected; their personal tragedies were compounded by legal prosecution and denial of essential health care.
Despite what you might hear from Republicans on the campaign trail in 2024, trying to appear moderate by talking about the supposed “exceptions” to abortion, it is all a mirage. The “exceptions” to these laws are neither reliable nor humane, and they’re not just failing women but are actively endangering their lives.
This systematic denial of health care is a chilling echo of the once-decried “death panels.”
The only viable path forward is clear and urgent: We must send more Democrats to Congress, reelect President Joe Biden, eliminate the filibuster, and firmly codify Roe v. Wade into law. This is a critical step in ensuring that women’s health and rights are not just a matter of political debate but are protected as fundamental human rights.
Janice Neckes, Miami
Remember Franklin’s words
Many thanks for the letter to the editor from Rick Soskis, and his quotation from Benjamin Franklin on what happens when a country’s people become so corrupt “as to need despotic government.”
We don’t need a stronger leader, but a more civil, even virtuous society. I have been an American for all my 84 years, and I once worked on an election fraud case, but only now do I realize that “a government by the people” ultimately depends on those people trusting our superb, time-tested election processes.
Without that trust, it’s goodbye to the grand American experiment. Never has a quote from a Founding Father been more apropos. Please re-publish Soskis’ letter multiple times, for all to read, until November, 2024.
Hal Harrison, Boca Raton
