Mendacity got him this far

Re “Salesman Trump pitches fear, promises and riches,” Oct. 25

Plaudits for laying bare President Trump’s efforts to sway midterm election voters with amped-up mendacity. I’m glad Trump’s apologists responded to such an unflattering account.

One telling reply: The American Conservative Union’s chairman likened Trump to a “marketer” who constantly tests ideas, phrases and policies. That fits with Trump’s answer to whether he regretted outrageous lies he told in 2016 about campaign rival Sen. Ted Cruz: “I don’t regret anything, honestly. … It all worked out very nicely.”

In other words, the ends justify the means. That immoral rationale has been offered for travesties from slavery to forced sterilization.

Next month’s elections will put Trump’s marketing skills to a test. So too will a corollary of that old adage be tested: Can an election be lost by underestimating the intelligence of American voters?

Hasn’t happened so far. Christine Hagel Orcutt, Calif.

I can hear it now: Some indignant conservatives will deem this insightful, impartial report on Trump’s mendacity to be unduly biased, something that belongs on the op-ed pages.

Not so. Even-handed reporting of relevant facts invariably will pique readers who find them inconvenient to their political leanings.

Truth be told, the president’s allies don’t want to admit that the emperor is wearing no clothes. For them, Trump is nakedly fulfilling a key role: He provides a constant distraction from the GOP’s relentless effort to replace our democratic rule with plutocracy.

Pay the naysayers no heed. Please keep the pertinent, nonpartisan reports coming. Mel Farber Pacific Palisades