Clarence Thomas must go

Editor: There has been a lot of scandal in the news about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Thomas is accused by ethics experts of accepting luxury trips, including trips on yachts and private jets amounting to over $500,000.

These lavish gifts were from GOP mega donor Harlan Crow and they were not reported by Thomas. Thomas also sold real estate to Harlan without disclosing it. It was also just disclosed that Harlan paid over $100,000 for Thomas’s adopted grandnephew’s tuition at an exclusive private school. This gifting has been going on for many years and Thomas never disclosed these gifts on his taxes. The Supreme Court does not have a formal code of ethics in place but you would think a Justice of the Supreme Court would know that gifts this large can be perceived as a form of bribery. This scandal undermines the legitimacy of the Supreme Court. How can the American people trust that the Court is unbiased in their decisions? Clarence Thomas should resign or be removed from office by Congress. DAMASA HARTSHORN Stockton

Local officials should protect transgender rights

Editor: I implore Gov. Newsom, Sen. Eggman and Assemblymember Flora to protect the rights of transgender Americans, including those who are under 18.

Gender-affirming healthcare has been proven to dramatically reduce suicide risk among transgender and gender non-conforming people, especially youth.

Transgender people deserve access to hormones, reassignment surgeries, and any other healthcare that allows them to live their lives fully as themselves, and they deserve to get that access without being subject to potentially abusive parents or excessive red tape.

The treatment of transgender people in this nation is, frankly, horrifying. As the socalled land of the free, we need to do better by our citizens and protect everyone’s right to the gender expression that feels natural to them.

And I can promise my elected officials that this will be very high on my priority list when election time comes round again. SARAH JANE SMITH

Please make Sunset more presentable

Lodi

Editor: I would like to applaud and thank Debi Goni for her recent letter concerning the now abandoned Sunset Theater project. The Clark family started what most citizens of Lodi considered a commendable and worthy renovation and repurposing of the decades-old theatre. But after months of slow progress on the project, work was quickly halted and it was left to become an eyesore for anyone living or driving in the area.

The least the Clarks could do is to clean up the project site and make it presentable to the neighborhood and prospective buyers! Thank you, Clarks, in advance for doing the right thing. NANCY SCOTT Lodi