Does ‘sanctuary’ mean ‘soft’?
Ridgewood, N.J.: This sounds very much like the U.S. Justice Department intends to do harm to the citizens of New York City and other sanctuary municipalities (“Ganging up on the NYPD,” editorial, April 23). Removing grants from some endangers all, and it precludes equal protection and due process. If the Justice Department is under written instruction, then this constitutes a conspiracy. That may be criminal.
All federal buildings, courts and facilities should lose any NYC-supplemented security. At the initiation of suspension of these grants, the city should also remove all extra-ordinary security provided embassies to the United Nations. President Trump may not listen to “little people,” but 160-plus nations is another matter. A court bench warrant should be issued for any and all ICE agents who identify themselves as “police.”
The city and other affected governing bodies should file a federal class-action suit against Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Justice Department to stop this suspension.
The requesting of an accompanying judicial warrant with ICE detainer requests, prior to compliance, is lawful. It ensures due process, and accountability of federal agents.
Mistaken News
Bronx: Wrong again, Daily News. “Soft on crime” was not aimed at the NYPD, but our elected officials who violate federal laws; change 25 years of quality-of-life laws for the convenience of the courts; place unrealistic restrictions on the police; consider DWI as a minor crime and 16- and 17-year-olds as juveniles for adult crimes committed, and help criminals with low bail and legal assistance. Criminals first, safety and security of NYC residents second, maybe. Robert Neglia
Mistaken mayor
Lynbrook, L.I.: Mayor de Blasio you are wrong, as usual (“‘Soft’ in the head,” April 23). You are to blame for the failure to lower crime even more because you are hiding illegal aliens who have committed additional crimes. You and the City Council are the ones soft on crime. The NYPD does a great job, but they take orders from their commissioner and you and the liberal council. If the mayor helped remove those criminal aliens who the mayor frees to commit even more crimes, crime stats would be even lower. Follow the law, not your own, Mr. Mayor. Steve Grogan
Who’s a softie?
Ravena, N.Y.: Maybe it’s time to stop protecting Trump in NYC with “soft” police paid by New York tax dollars. Sad.
Kevin Williams
Gang on the loose
Coram, L.I.: Nice to see that President Trump, Attorney General Jeff Sessions and former Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy have the courage to express outrage over the deaths of innocent young people in Brentwood and Central Islip (“Trump, top officials take aim at brutal MS-13 street gang,” April 19). None of the liberal, bleeding-heart politicians and so-called activists have expressed any outrage. Levy was outraged and the first one to bring it to national attention. MS-13 is flourishing on Long Island thanks to liberal politicians who allowed the flood of illegal, undocumented, unchaperoned young people to flee their countries, cross our borders and bring drugs and unimaginable savagery and fear with them. While the atrocities took place in Suffolk County, it is still in New York, and there wasn’t too much attention paid by the politicians who were responsible for allowing the flood of immigrants who brought with them the plague of gang violence, drugs and fear. These same are critical of our President for his stand on immigration and the need to free our country of the illegal, undocumented criminals who have taken lives. Would they have turned their heads if their innocent loved ones were murdered like Kate Steinle and these innocent young people and who knows how many other victims there might be out there?
Arlene Reilly
It’s the mayor’s fault
Brooklyn: To Mayor de Blasio: I think you’re a little confused. President Trump didn’t mean the NYPD is soft on crime. He meant you! Sheesh! Diane Hunt
Sanctuary ripples
Brooklyn: It looks like New York is getting closer to being a sanctuary city with the Brooklyn DA wanting to be soft on those refugees (illegals) who commit lowlevel crimes (“Brooklyn DA hires staff to protect immigrants from deportation,” April 24). It is bad enough the quality of life in New York City is not good to start with — this can only make it worse in the long run. You also have those who commit supposedly minor offenses then, knowing they can bend the laws without fear of being a felon to be deported. More than likely, there will be serious repercussions regarding the lack of cooperating with immigration laws in this country.
Joseph V. Comperchio
Marching to remember
Cape Town: My granddaughter from Melbourne, Australia, is taking part in the March of the Living (“Thousands at Auschwitz for yearly Holocaust memorial event,” April 24). Ever since she was a little girl, she has been reading books on the Holocaust. She says this has been an experience of a lifetime, one that she will never forget and carry with her for the rest of her life. Thank you for the amazing photos. She is in one of them. I am her proud grandmother whose grandmother and uncle perished at the hands of the Nazis. Bernice Kaplan Far Rockaway: With all the negative news about the abuses the traveling public has had to endure in dealing with obnoxious transportation services, I would like to add a complaint about Access-A-Ride’s Star Cruiser — the worst paratransit service company out there. I’ve already had two trips ruined because Star Cruiser is either habitually late or doesn’t bother coming to pick me up at all. Yet Access-A-Ride always circles the wagons around their drivers and puts the blame on passengers whose only crime is trying to get from Point A to Point B. Isn’t it their job to be on time and not inconvenience stressed-out passengers who are recovering from serious illnesses or are physically challenged? This Access-A-Ride inefficiency has got to stop. Sharon Rutman
Too young to work
Bronx: I am a substitute teacher in New York City and I love it. When Mayor de Blasio champions his “3-K for All” policy, are they going to take all the dressup, blocks and other fun toys out of the universal pre-K like they did when they started pre-K for 4-year-olds? They took all the fun stuff out, and now 5-year-olds basically sit with books and pencils all day long. No nap time, no playtime, no cookie time. It is just work, work, work. How is a 5-year-old so different today from one in the past? Kitty Hughes
Icing out coverage
Montclair, N.J.: Does the Daily News know that the New York Rangers have just won a playoff series and are moving on to the second round? The News continuously refuses to cover (or buries on its website) metropolitan area hockey teams. Why? Why would a story of a potential draft pick on the Jets get prime coverage with no mention of a New York playoff team on the main page? To be fair, I much prefer The News as a paper to the New York Post. However, I go to the Post every day first given the respect they give the Rangers and hockey in general. This is not a uniquely crazed hockey fan who is an outlier. It’s actually offensive that you don’t give a New York playoff team prime coverage. I would expect to see the Mets or any other team on your main page if they were in a playoff run, even though I’m not a fan. You are out of touch with New York City.
Dominic Pandiscia
Presidential par
Congers, N.Y.: Perhaps Voicer Jeffrey Gross needs to Google how to do math. If, as he says, Obama played golf 333 times over his eight-year presidency, that would mean he played golf an average of once every 8.7 days. Trump hasn’t been in office 100 days yet, and he’s played 20 times, which would mean he plays an average of every five days. More important, though, is the fact that Trump promised that as President, he would be “too busy running the country” to play golf at all. And, yes, you can Google that, too. Beth Friscino
Dim all the lights
JAMES KEIVOM Valley Stream, L.I.: I see more and more people driving with their high beams on in well-lit areas than ever before. Now that they make cars that can drive and stop by themselves, why not install a great safety feature like automatically dimming one’s brights when oncoming headlights are detected, like they already had on some luxury cars way back in the 1960s? Maybe that would put a stop to the ignorant drivers who never respond to the flashing of high beams when blinding oncoming drivers. John Esposito