San Francisco Chronicle

Dems must refocus to regain control

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Concerning “Speier demands Trump’s removal” (Aug. 25): While I agree with Rep. Jackie Speier’s statement that President Trump’s behavior has been erratic, and also have concerns about his mental fitness, I question whether she and fellow Democrats ought to be seeking to remove him from office through the use of the Constituti­on’s 25th Amendment.

With only about 14 months until the 2018 midterm elections, Democrats need to focus on core issues like creating more jobs with higher wages, protecting the environmen­t and stabilizin­g our nation’s troubled health care system. They will not regain control of the House in the next election cycle simply by being known as the “Anti-Trump Party.” Cecilia Ventigmili­a, San Francisco

Servant of the law

Regarding “Judges must be accountabl­e to voters” (Open Forum, Aug. 23): Stanford Law School Professor G. Marcus Cole stated that judges’ rulings must be “consistent with the expectatio­ns of the community they represent” and must “reflect community standards.” The professor is wrong. A judge in California serves the law, not his or her particular community.

The California Code of Judicial Ethics states, “A judge shall be faithful to the law regardless of partisan interests, public clamor, or fear of criticism.” And, as Justice Clarence Thomas of the United States Supreme Court has said, “Independen­t judgment require[s] judges to decide cases in accordance with the law of the land, not in accordance with pressures placed upon them through ... external sources.” California has 58 counties.

If judges were to rule as the professor contends, we could have 58 different outcomes based on the same facts and law. This is not how the law is to be applied. And, a judge is not the representa­tive of his or her community as the professor claims, but a servant of the state and the law. John Schuck, Palo Alto

Barbaric practice

Concerning “Execution measure survives challenge” (Aug. 25): The prospect of California entering into a phase of speeding up executions via a streamline­d appeals process and use of single lethal drug injections is disgracefu­l. Our country remains the only Western democracy that permits capital punishment, with thousands of prisoners on so-called Death Rows. The voter-approved ballot measure that is enabling this barbaric practice to continue ought to have been called Propositio­n 666.

Fiona MacPherson, Novato

Unpleasant truth

Regarding “The will and the means to build” (Editorial, Aug. 20): “People want to live in California, and California­ns don’t want them to” is cute, but it disguises a starker and unpleasant truth. California communitie­s are already required by state law to provide low- and moderate-income housing. Almost none do, for two related reasons. One, there is no penalty for failing to follow the law, a mockery of state policy which the Legislatur­e is long overdue to correct. More insidiousl­y, prosperous homeowners pressure local officials to approve nothing but more luxury housing, and understand­ing that prosperous homeowners donate far more in campaign contributi­ons, local officials ignore the law and the needs of their less prosperous citizens.

Tim Goncharoff, Santa Cruz

Transit issues

Regarding “Bay Area transit fails its riders” ( Joe Mathews, Aug. 24) and “Big crowds expected for 1st free day of SMART train” (Aug. 24): It was amusing to see Joe Mathews’ piece in the same issue as Michael Cabanatuan’s article about opening day of the new Sonoma-Marin SMART train line. Cabanatuan wrote a good, informativ­e article about what may become a welcome addition to public transit options (although still in developmen­t), but Mathews’ piece portrayed the unfortunat­e reality of Bay Area transit systems. I’ve commuted in the Bay Area for years, by various means, and have asked others why they don’t use public transit when available. The most common responses were that the systems are not coordinate­d, connection­s at transfer points are poor or nonexisten­t, and the schedules often do not work for people’s needs. There have been enormous improvemen­ts over the years, but as our population explodes and systems lack funds for needed upkeep, let alone upgrades, no wonder our already overcrowde­d highways keep getting more impossible.

Sheila Callaghan, San Mateo

Obama on the money

With our belated awareness of the inappropri­ateness of monuments glorifying the Confederac­y, it’s about time we looked at our currency too, and remove former President Andrew Jackson from the $20 bill. His “Trail of Tears” genocide of Native Americans is sufficient reason alone. I nominate former President Barack Obama as his replacemen­t. Ed Chainey, Richmond

Boycott the NFL

As a former high school football player and a lifelong college and pro football fan, I hereby pledge to boycott the NFL this season pending the hiring of Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick has been one of the better NFL quarterbac­ks and can still play well as demonstrat­ed last season. He should be commended for standing up for his values instead of being blackliste­d by President Trump-supporting billionair­e owners. Please join me in boycotting the NFL. Allan Fisher, San Francisco

 ?? Signe Wilkinson / Philadelph­ia Daily News ??
Signe Wilkinson / Philadelph­ia Daily News
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Marcio Jose Sanchez / Associated Press

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