Why do the media always depict Trump as an idiot?

Why does the destroy-Trump liberal media continue to depict President Trump as some idiotic buffoon?

Granted, Trump is no community organizer, but he did earn an economics degree from the prestigious Wharton School.

President Trump’s company has built, renovated and managed numerous office towers, hotels, casinos and golf courses all over the world.

Surely these are not the accomplishments of a simpleton.

— Russ “Rusty” Brown, Glendale

A way to put an end to those high-octane police pursuits

How to stop high-speed pursuits? Drones. When a perp speeds away, rather than give chase, a police officer could launch a drone. She then guides it and monitors the perp’s path until the copter can take over. The drone does not have to be as fast as a car because it flies high and has long distance cameras.

Once this is common practice all will know and just pull over.

— Ron Rucker, Cornville

At his core, Trump is nothing but a two-bit Manhattan con man

The Trump campaign had no business attempting to do business with the Russians. However, that judgment rests upon framing the Trump campaign as a typical or ordinary political campaign. Unfortunately, it was not. Donald Trump brought to his campaign, and now to his presidency, the gutter behavior and ruthless self-interest of the Manhattan real-estate market, or at least Trump’s sleazy version of that market.

Ordinary political attempts to put things in the best light became outright lies, blared and repeated, and then repeated again, even in the face of hard evidence to the contrary. The consummate showman put his instinctive con man persona to work, and he won the presidency.

Now by drips and drabs the truth is beginning to come out, albeit some true blue Republicans hear no evil, see no evil and think Trump does no evil. That Trump, Jr. follows in his father’s footsteps should surprise no one. And indeed, no one in Manhattan familiar with the Trumps is reportedly surprised.

Hillary Clinton was a terribly flawed candidate, and Donald Trump made the most of that. The media played a huge role, reaping ratings and money by giving Trump endless free publicity.

Perhaps more importantly, the media failed to hold him to account by any ordinary standards. The same commentators who today publicly lament Trump’s transgressions, failed to point them out prior to people voting. Now what? Who knows. The media has finally at least partly returned to its traditional critical role. But alas, Trump’s vaccination of fake news has so far done a remarkable job of protecting him from the terrible truth. And what is that truth? Donald Trump is a con man and a showman in over his head.

And it will take more than a bevy of evangelicals laying their hands on his head in the Oval Office to make America great again.

— John W Greco, Scottsdale

The precarious future of roof-top solar power in state of Arizona

In Republic reporter Ryan Randazzo’s July 9 story “10 things to know ahead of regulators’ solar vote,” he points out that one essential feature in the proposed APS General Rate Case (if approved) is the end of the net metering process.

Net metering has defined the financial arrangement between the rooftop solar owner and the utility for many years, and it permits the homeowner to export to the utility excess solar energy from the rooftop system at the retail rate.

It will be replaced by a new arrangement called net billing, in which the homeowner will export the solar energy at a wholesale value. This will substantially change the value proposition of roof-top solar, increasing the so-called payback period substantially from the time enabled by net metering - from about 10 years to 15 years.

I am writing this letter to encourage those Republic readers who have been considering adding a rooftop solar system to their residence to act now! If you and a solar installer apply for an interconnection to APS before the voting takes place next month, you will be able to ensure net metering for a period of 20 years. This is the best way to maximize the value of the PV system.

— Ronald Roedel, Phoenix