Trump trauma
Re “The president’s new troubles,” editorial, Aug. 23
This country needs to consider the path it might be taking. We should be mindful of the fact that President Trump has not been indicted or had articles of impeachment drawn up against him by members of Congress. Even Democratic lawmakers will not speak the “i-word” for fear of exciting Republican voters.
Many voters express frustration that Congress is paralyzed, but what action are people demanding? History has taught us that going after sitting presidents for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors” has not brought about conviction in the Senate. Most recently, the attempts to remove Presidents Nixon and Clinton from office directly contributed to today’s divisiveness. What might a Trump indictment or impeachment do to the country?
For those who dislike Trump and want him impeached or put on trial, and for those who believe the president is under siege by a hostile left-wing cabal, I urge everyone to consider what indicting or impeaching Trump, or what dismissing every accusation against him as “fake news” or political theater, does to our constitutional democracy. It is under threat, and we the people seem unable to ignore the media’s constant coverage of this president.
We need to consider the best course of action for our country. Isn’t it proper to allow the American people to determine their own future via the 2018 midterm election and by selecting the next president in 2020? Voters should decide if this president deserves to remain in office, not the loud voices that dominate our frenzied, angry political discourse. Natalie Root, Arlington, Va.
Recently, the president warned us that if he was impeached, the stock market would crash and we’d all be poor.
I am an 85-year-old woman living on a fixed income. I’m also a patriot. If our country was at war, I would make sacrifices to help it survive.
I believe the country is in a crisis no less serious than war. Therefore, if impeaching Trump means I would have less money, I would be eager to make that sacrifice. It would be a small price to pay in order to keep our democracy safe.
Elaine Lubkin
Los Angeles
I believe the latest developments in Trumpworld will probably not cause any sudden shift in the quarter of the electorate who, shockingly, strongly admires the president.
I think that these Trump supporters should, however, begin to consider into which of the following categories they fall: They have not been paying attention, they are not thinking clearly, or they are among the “deplorables” referenced by Hillary Clinton.
The latter category includes those who will never reject Trump, even if, as he suggested himself, he were to shoot someone in public.
There can be no doubt that there is much more to be revealed regarding this corrupt and outrageous presidency. Let us hope that those Trump supporters who are not in the “deplorables” category will begin to wake up and pay attention to what is happening and the damage that is being done to this country.
Their future and ours may depend upon it.
Gertrude Barden
Porter Ranch
Everyone is writing about former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s connection with the president. But this is just a tiny tip of a huge iceberg.
How many other wealthy Americans are avoiding taxes by using tax dodges similar to Manafort? How many are benefiting from living and working in the United States but hiding their true incomes in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda, Singapore or other tax havens?
Our national debt is greater than $21 trillion, and we need major investments in infrastructure, education and healthcare. However, Congress just passed a tax cut that benefits mostly corporations and wealthy individuals.
Manafort’s tax dodges would never have been discovered without special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation. How many other Manaforts are out there?
Herb Adelman
Del Mar
Count me out from ever paying federal taxes again.
The president of the United States said Manafort, who has just been convicted of tax and bank fraud, is a good man with a nice family. Is Trump implying that would absolve Manafort from his crimes?
Manafort may be loyal to Trump, but at this point he is a criminal. Perhaps I can be absolved from paying taxes since I am a good person with a nice family.
Christine Gregory
Beverly Hills
Judging by his praise of the newly convicted Manafort, Trump’s definition of a “good” person does not carry the meaning most of us know.
A good person is typically someone of strong moral and ethical character. In Trump’s world, a “good” person is typically someone who is morally corrupt, a trait that common among the president’s innermost circle.
Trump has chosen to surround himself with these “good” people. As with most corrupt organizations, some of the president’s lieutenants will disclose to a court, as part of a plea bargain, the skulduggery of the “godfather.”
Larry Naritomi
Monterey Park
Trump threatened that if he ever got impeached the stock market would crash and everyone would be poor. He forgot the locusts and the death of the firstborn.
Irving Weinstein
Ventura