Tucson Speaks Out: November 10

Adelita Grijalva was elected to Congress on Sept. 23 in Arizona’s 7th Congressional District. Speaker Mike Johnson swore in two Republicans also elected in special elections within 24 hours, but he continues to refuse to honor Ms. Grijalva’s election. This is illegal and undemocratic, cheating an entire district out of representation in Congress. Mike Johnson does not have the authority to single-handedly decide an election; the voters have done that. Unfortunately, instead of speaking out publicly that his colleague from the city he represents needs to be seated to Congress, Rep. Juan Ciscomani continues to smile for the cameras, and by his silence essentially endorses this abrogation of voters’ rights. As usual, Rep. Ciscomani seems to forget that by law, he represents the will of the voters, not Donald Trump or Mike Johnson. It would be a great opportunity for him to show some spine for once.

Don Falk

Midtown

SE Asia and climate change

I just finished a trip to SE Asia, including China, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. What I saw puts a lie to the right-wing stories that Asia is not concerned about climate change, all to the detriment of American businesses.

For instance, I saw dozens of billboards advertising electric vehicles, by Vin and BYD to name a few, produced by Asian countries. I saw so many driving on the streets. These are EVs I have never heard of and did not know existed, all produced by non-American corporations.

I also saw dozens of solar installations producing renewable electricity, by non-American corporations. These corporations are producing renewable energy because they see the handwriting on the wall, that climate change is real.

What a market we are ignoring because some in our country refuse to believe in climate change.

Howard Strause

Foothills

The tax man cometh

Trump imposed tariffs on autos, heavy trucks, steel, aluminum, lumber, furniture, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and copper, among others.

The Trump tariffs amount to an average tax increase per US household of $1,200 in 2025 and $1,600 in 2026. They are the largest U.S. tax increase as a percent of GDP (0.54% for 2025) since 1993.

Trump’s tariffs will raise $1.8 trillion over the next decade, while the “Big Bullpucky Bill” will cost more than $3 trillion. They threaten to offset much of the economic largesse of the “BBB” tax cuts, which goes disproportionately to his buddy billionaires, while falling short of paying for it.

The evidence is clear: tariffs are taxes that raise prices and reduce goods and services for US businesses and consumers, resulting in lower income, reduced employment, and lower economic output.

A price paid disproportionately by poor and working-class people.

So when Trump raises tariffs, hold on to your wallet.

Chuck Barrett

Midtown

Threats and threats

Over 100 nations were ready to approve a deal to reduce cargo ship pollution when the Trump administration threw a pressure campaign against it: Asian sailors would not be allowed to disembark at American ports; diplomats could lose their U.S. visas; several countries were threatened by Marco Rubio with financial and other punishments; and, of course, there were more potential tariff perils.

Foreign diplomats were stunned by the ugly, personal threats made by the U.S. State Department representatives. Most countries had already approved the pollution reduction plan, but Trump’s gangsters managed to block the vote by their “over the top” menacing, using a “cruise missile to redress a traffic violation,” said former American diplomat/Energy Department official, David Goldwyn.

Trump’s White House, State Department, and Energy Department predictably denied that American officials had ever threatened and/or intimidated diplomats. But then Trump and cohorts are rabid about promoting the sales of U.S. oil, gas and coal, as well as rabid climate change deniers, and seemingly rabid liars.

Melody Sears

North side

Why cost of living is rising

I must admit puzzlement regarding the results of recent elections, which the Democrats won. A major issue was our rising cost of living. That increasing cost is the direct result of Trump’s putting tariffs on our trading partners. When a tariff is imposed on a country exporting goods to the United States, then that tariff must be paid by the U.S. importer to our government. In other words, the tariff is a tax. The importers have to raise the price of their goods to get back at least some of the cost. That increase of cost which the merchant charges is paid by the consumer. My puzzlement is that we all pay the higher price, including those in rural areas where a large majority of people continue to vote for Trump politicians. Don’t they understand the stupidity of Trump’s tariffs? It’s just one of the many ways that Trump is destroying our country.

Michael Mount

Foothills

America better start thinking about jobs

Finally, someone took note of the “elephant in the room.” The column by Froma Harrop addresses an important but often neglected point about the future of AI and robotics, namely, as they become more and more powerful and refined they will eliminate the future need for human workers. This may be the major consequence of the AI and robotics revolution, not their apparently insatiable need for electric power and water.

Gerry Maggiora

Foothills

People need food help

Mr. Johnson asks leading questions about food assistance, claiming fraud. About 13 out of 100 people need help with food security. He offers no facts, only cheesy leading questions to cast doubt about the need to help hungry people. According to the USDA, 98% of people receiving food assistance are eligible. Program fraud accounts for 1% and service delivery mistakes are 1%. To question the delivery of food to people in need is unconscionable. Would you deny 98 people food assistance because one person received food assistance unfairly? In Mr. Johnson’s perfect little mean world, being a person in need of help should raise suspicions of fraud. People are in need of food assistance all over the world. Mr Johnson should not eat for a few days and gain insight as to what going hungry feels like before casting aspersions on people who need food. Who would Jesus deny food to?

Richard Bechtold

West side

Not everyone has airport problems

It’s beyond comprehension how many people voted for the absolute debacle that is Donald Trump and the most incompetent and corrupt administration in history. A lot of those voters will not be flying anywhere for the holidays this year. However, Kash Patel has the FBI private jet for his date nights. Kristi Noem, Homeland Security’s useless director, has just ordered $160 million worth of private jets for her use. The other billionaires in the administration have their own private planes. Trump will still be flying Air Force One for his golf dates at taxpayer expense. There seems to be a complete lack of empathy among these people for the pain they and their government shutdown are inflicting on this country.

Mary Zimmerman

SaddleBrooke

Pentagon Purge

Every Republican member of Congress should be charged with dereliction of duty and be considered an Enemy of the State. Their refusal to impeach the current President, the most dangerous individual threat to the U.S. in history, can no longer be viewed as political gamesmanship. Many citizens who recognize this threat have been holding on to the hope that some senior members of our military, who have sworn an oath to the Constitution, might have the courage to uphold their oaths when the ultimate moment arises, since Congressional Republicans have abandoned their loyalty to our country in exchange for loyalty to a dictator. The hope that our military might have the courage to protect us is looking less and less likely. In the past nine months, SoD Hegseth has fired and/or demoted dozens of the most senior military leadership officers. To see where this leads, I suggest looking up Stalin’s Purge and Hitler’s Purge.

Jessica Hamdan

North side

What will remain

After everything has been said about the Trump administration, these images will remain:

Mobs storming the Capitol and beating police

Gallows meant for VP Mike Pence

KKK and Nazis carrying torches in Charlottesville

Children dying in Africa due to cuts to USAID

Long voting lines because Republicans eliminated polling places

Trump plodding off in front of the Queen of England and the Japanese Prime Minister

Oligarchs and tech bros lined up behind Trump

Heavily-armed masked agents throwing brown people on the ground and zip-tying their children

AI generated Trump flying an airplane dumping poop on protesters

Boats being bombed to oblivion

Fool’s gold everywhere

Betty Ford’s “heart of the White House” being destroyed for a ballroom

Mar-a-Lago Gatsby parties while people go without SNAP

Fired Government workers being escorted out of buildings

Long lines at empty food banks

Thousands of pictures of Trump playing golf

An inflatable frog facing down Trump’s stormtroopers

7 million No Kings protesters nationwide.

Dee Maitland

Marana