Letters to the Editor | Nov. 6, 2023

I’m a lifelong Democrat demanding that any primary candidates wake up and file state nomination petitions to give voters a choice. If not, the Democrats are risking another Donald Trump presidency. Polls show a solid majority believe that President Joe Biden should not run for reelection due to his age. Although I believe he’s done a relatively good job — from strengthening NATO to supporting Ukraine to implementing his bipartisan infrastructure bill — his campaign lacks enthusiasm because he’s too old. Biden’s mental acuity and physical ability have naturally declined, and it’s likely he will not finish a second term. Voters are even more worried with Vice President Kamala Harris, who garners less enthusiasm than Biden, waiting in the wings.

It’s disingenuous to say that there are no viable Democratic candidates. What about Govs. Gretchen Whitmer, Gavin Newsom, Roy Cooper, or Wes Moore? These candidates should display political bravado and push back on the party that’s disenfranchising voters, especially the younger ones. Biden is acting like Trump by putting his own interest before that of the country. Unless something changes, the world will be holding its breath every time Biden walks on stage or addresses a crowd. One more display of frailty, especially after we’re locked into a Biden-Harris ticket, may mean defeat. Biden will go down in history as the man who saved us from Trump in 2020, just to put him back in office in 2024.

Christian Sondergaard Jr., Wayne

President Joe Biden is no strategist, nor should he be advising Israel on how to fight the war against Hamas. The world watched the debacle in 2021 when Biden ordered the complete withdrawal of U.S. troops in Afghanistan. “Pausing” the war for humanitarian purposes is not and should not be Biden’s call. Hamas is a terrorist organization and not to be trusted. A cease-fire at this point will give Hamas time to regroup and could be detrimental to Israel winning the war. The fight against Hamas terrorists should continue until they are destroyed. Time is of the essence. You don’t make deals with the devil.

JoAnn Lee Frank, Clearwater, Fla.

Enabling the bloody retribution of the corrupt and incompetent Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has cost Joe Biden my vote. We cannot stand idly by and witness the senseless deaths of thousands of Palestinians. The horrors inflicted on Israel do not shield it from criticism of the barbarism it is inflicting with the backing of words and weapons from the United States. I cannot, in good conscience, vote for a man who looks at this carnage and does nothing to end it. In America, the lesser evil should not be my only option for leadership, but it will be in 2024.

Roy Lehman, Woolwich Township

In columnist Will Bunch’s predictably hyperbolic anti-Republican rant (“Trump’s looming dictatorship is the only real winner in House speaker debacle”), he decries the turn to the right in House leadership evidenced by the installation of Rep. Mike Johnson as speaker. Though a lifelong Republican, I agree that former President Donald Trump is unfit for any elective office and Johnson is a turn for the worse in the speakership. However, I can’t help but note how Bunch conveniently ignores the role that Democrats played in the “debacle.”

After former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy managed to work across the aisle to avoid a government shutdown, Democrats joined the handful of far-right Republicans who initiated the motion to vacate the speakership by providing 208 of the 216 votes cast to remove him. Rather than help reject the effort to throw the House into chaos and focus on legislation, the Democrats made a cynical political calculation that this would better serve their interest in trying to take back the House in 2024. This is exactly the kind of unproductive partisan maneuvering — seen on both sides — that keeps the electorate’s confidence in Congress so abysmally low.

Robert Graves, Wayne

Columnist Will Bunch hit the nail on the head regarding the possible reelection of Donald Trump. To those who support and say they will vote for Trump, I say to them: It’s time to wake up and smell the coffee. Trump’s potential reelection will mean the downfall of our democracy and the beginning of authoritarianism, or worse, here in America. Is this the legacy we want to leave our children and grandchildren? For sure, I am concerned about Joe Biden’s age but consider the alternative. My advice to those who are not fearful of a second Trump presidency? To quote Geena Davis in The Fly, “Be afraid, be very afraid.”

John Brian Cudlipp, Townsend, Del., jbeyedoc@aol.com

In his recent column (“Amid violence from Maine to Mideast, ‘peace’ becomes a dangerous word”), Will Bunch exhibited very poor judgment in coupling Rep. Jared Golden’s brave reconsideration of his position on assault weapon sales with Rosalind Petchesky’s demonstrations for a cease-fire and “peace” in Gaza. She is a leading member of Jewish Voice for Peace, which is a blatantly anti-Israel, anti-Zionist organization. She stands with those who ask for a Palestine from “the river to the sea” — hardly a peaceful solution for Jews who would have to give up their country. Golden is a hero who has apologized for his past opposition to the banning of assault weapons. He can see reality and refuses to keep quiet despite the political risk. Petchesky, on the other hand, has had no change in her thinking; she is intransigent in her denial of Israel’s right to exist as a democratic state. Of course, she has the right to speak, but she does not deserve Bunch’s praise. Bunch is mixing apples with oranges and makes an ignominious comparison.

Susan Dyshel Sommovilla, Elkins Park

Rep. George Santos survived a bipartisan vote to expel him from Congress. This act of survival, despite a mountain of evidence of immoral, unethical, and perhaps even illegal behavior, makes a total mockery of House ethics guidelines. Surprisingly, perhaps, Santos survived with the help of ample non-expulsion votes from Democratic members. Some political analysts said that those who voted against expelling Santos were worried about setting a precedent that could be used against them. Their cowardice is highly unfortunate. The House had a chance to do the right thing and chose not to.

Ken Derow, Swarthmore

The failure of the vote to oust George Santos is a black eye for bipartisanship and the U.S. House of Representatives. Claims that expulsion would create a dangerous precedent and violate due process are tripe. A House decision to discipline a member for misconduct is political. A claim of due process violation is not justiciable. The Constitution gives the House unfettered discretion to expel a member by a two-thirds vote. A 1972 House report noted that, without exception, precedent holds that the House won’t act against a member for “actions of which the electorate had full knowledge at the time of the election.”

Leaving aside Santos’ current indictment, as a candidate, he lied baldly about his education, work history, wealth, Jewish identity, athletic achievements, rental properties, and his mother’s 9/11 death. Voters knew none of this at the time of election. Santos’ fictional persona won the election. Ample cause existed to expel him. Keeping him in office is a bad precedent and shows that a House majority lives by the ethos of “It’s not how you play the game, it’s whether you win.” The GOP needs to quit harping on government waste while Santos’ office is a dump for a congressman with no responsibilities save party-line votes.

Stewart Speck, Ardmore, speckstewart@gmail.com

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