Unequal treatment for Puerto Rico

Bronx: The xenophobia of the Trump administration should be condemned. But I wish more of our elected officials would denounce Puerto Rico’s present “commonwealth” status. All of us boricuas living in places like New York are statehood-ers by default. Why? Because we have two U.S. senators and a large House delegation fighting for our interests in Washington. The 3.2 million American citizens on the island have one non-voting delegate.

This disparity impacts island residents through the budget process that allocates Medicaid funds. Approximately half of the island’s residents rely on Medicaid for their basic health needs, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

States receive open-ended federal funds to match 83% of their Medicaid expenditures. Puerto Rico only gets an annual fixed block grant that fails to cover the running of its Medicaid program. Their funds are only matched at a rate of 55%, according to the Center.

This unfair treatment needs to stop.

No charters

Silver Spring, Md.: Carol Burris and Diane Ravitch were right in defending Bernie Sanders’ negative take on charter schools (“Bernie is right on charter schools,” op-ed, June 7). A Stanford University study found that nearly 40% of charters are worse than regular public schools, while fewer than 20% are any better, and that due to the selectivity. Charters are part of the campaign to undermine and privatize our underfunded public schools.

A better use

Manhattan: In regard to your recent editorial on the High Line Park being a valuable addition to the city, I couldn’t disagree more (“High noon for High Line,” Editorial, June 5). For one thing, we already had a multitude of parks before creating that one. And demolition was not the only alternative. With the massive traffic congestion — which includes countless trucks — clogging up Manhattan streets, the roads, tunnels, and bridges polluting our air, and beating up infrastructure, there has to be a better way. That better way would include loading cargo onto trains. While it wouldn’t eliminate all trucking, it would reduce it substantially given the massive amounts of retail merchandise deliveries that come into the city, garbage going out, and mail going both ways.

Glass, not plastic

Woodside: I wonder why I am drinking out of a plastic bottle. It used to be glass. Glass can be used again and again. Seems like a quick save for the environment. That is a pretty big save for our Earth. Medford, L.I.: I’m reading that Mexico has finally agreed to help stem the flow of illegal immigrants traveling through their country to get to our southern border. When you really think about it, it’s actually amazing the results President Trump gets and how superior a leader he’s been compared to at least the last four presidents. During the very first GOP debate, what I consider to be the most important and revealing statement Trump made in the whole campaign was, “Politicians are stupid! They’re babies… we hold all the cards.” What’s amazing is that Trump, as a private citizen his whole life, knew his skills and knowledge could make such a radical difference for the country. Making Mexico acquiesce to our demands is just part of how he “plays the cards” to maximum advantage for the benefit of the American people. Whoever and whenever the next president takes office, Trump will leave behind a template for them of how business is now done in the Oval Office.

Fashion woes

Port Jefferson Station, L.I.: People are freaked out about Melania Trump wearing sunglasses on D-Day. These people are just a bunch of jealous wackos. If Michelle Obama were wearing sunglasses — OMG! Twitter, Google, Amazon people would want to know where to get those sunglasses. It’s so insane and pathetic. Hypocrisy is so in our wheel house right now it’s sickening. The Kool-Aid has infected this country.

Prime time

Manhattan: Watching Trump and his mooching family members bumble their way through Great Britain, I felt as though I was watching a bad episode of “The Beverly Hillbillies.” One Jed, two Jethros and an Ellie Mae! No class, no sophistication, no decorum whatsoever. Let me be quite clear here: I don’t mean to disrespect the Clampetts in any way. As far as I know, they weren’t liars or crooks. Or orange.

Lefty letters

West Islip, L.I.: You’re not the Voice of the People. Whoever is picking which letters to print is definitely a racist man or woman and should be replaced. Two sides of every story. Your letters are boring and that’s a shame. I’ve been getting this newspaper delivered since 1960 and I love to read a good letter for Trump or against. That’s not happening. Read the letters. They are so to the left they scare me.

Hey, WABC

Glendale: Please take Sam Champion off the air. Can’t stand him; can’t stand his laugh. Bring back Bill Evans. Love Lee Goldberg and Amy Freeze. Once Sam is off, I will come back to WABC.

Where are the ladies?

Ridgewood, N.J.: Watching Brazil and Jamaica battle during the FIFA Women’s World Cup was inspiring. Even if it is in Spanish, which I do not speak, the fever of international competition is contagious. Your coverage, while slim, is better than none. Hopefully you will improve, before the games are done. New York City is a blending of many cultures, all of which play soccer. Fox and NBC missed the boat by not carrying the games live in English. Thank God, Telemundo was not so small.

Legal recourse

Manhattan: If I were Linda Fairstein, I would sue Ava DuVernay and anyone who has taken up her gauntlet for slander (“Publisher drops mystery writer and ex-prosecutor Linda Fairstein over growing Central Park Five backlash,” June 7). Are we now going to see the judge in the case (if still

GETTY IMAGES alive) unseated? What punishment will the jurors get? This is such a travesty. Fairstein did her job and presented the evidence to the 12 jurors, who considered it and reached a guilty verdict. The actions taken against Fairstein are beyond any mantle of political correctness. It seems to be a monumental chipping away at the judicial system. Balancing the majority of Fairstein’s handling of so many cases, this “witch hunt” — which it truly is — should cease and she should be restored to her rightful place in the prosecutorial and literary worlds. I hope all fair-minded individuals will protest this outrageous situation.

With the blue

Jacksonville, Fl.: How easy it must be patrolling the streets of New York City from the comfort of a desk in midtown and drawing conclusions based upon lack of knowledge in police procedures and thirdhand accounts of an incident (“What O’Neill must say,” editorial, June 8). Police Officer Daniel Pantaleo should be back on the streets where he belongs serving his fellow New Yorkers.

Not veg-friendly

Valley Stream, L.I.: Could it be possible that the losing horses from the Belmont Stakes become Belmont steaks?