American lives aren’t
a priority for president
To a great degree, our lives are in the hands of President Trump. Yet Trump doesn’t value our lives. Look at his actions since January.
In December, we knew a pandemic was possible, yet Trump at first denied there was a problem, then minimized the problem, and never really mobilized a plan to protect us. Even now, he says it’s “under control,” while America leads the world in cases and Americans die every day.
In March (possibly before), Trump disregarded an intelligence briefing that Russia offered bounties for the lives of American troops.
Following deaths of Black Americans at the hands of police, Trump was ready to use lethal force to make Americans stop lawful demonstrations.
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And finally, Trump endangers his own loyal supporters by holding huge rallies at which even minimal personal protection is not encouraged.
The only American life Trump cares about is Donald Trump.
Kathy Suagee
Benson
Hobbs fighting
for fair voting access
Arizona’s secretary of state, Katie Hobbs, deserves praise for requesting that the U.S. Supreme Court deny an appeal by Attorney General Mark Brnovich to uphold Arizona’s ban on ballot harvesting. Brnovich wants to solidify a 2016 law, HB 2023, that results in discarding votes that are “harvested” or brought to the poll by another as well as those cast in the wrong precinct.
Judges in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed that HB 2023 affected minorities disproportionately because of unreliable mail service and all Arizona voters as well by discarding votes at incorrect polling sites. In addition, the Secretary of State’s Office has been sued previously on the matter, making the current secretary of state the logical office to decide the law’s legality.
The result of this law has critical implications for the upcoming election, and I urge Arizona voters to support Hobbs in her efforts.
Roger Shanley
East side
Immigrants wouldn’t come if US was racist
The left and Biden argue that America is fundamentally racist. If that is so, then why do so many millions around the world still clamor to come here? Haven’t they heard how evil we are?
Something does not compute! Just last year about 900,000 people, mostly Central Americans, were apprehended at the southern border trying to illegally enter our country. They, and others, flee from poverty, and political and religious persecution and know America is still a place of freedom and opportunity.
New immigrants including Asians, Indians, Pakistanis, Blacks from the Caribbean and Africa, Latinos from Mexico and elsewhere, come here, and most do well as they are not ingrained with an attitude of hopelessness and defeatism. They want to work hard, provide for their families, not waiting for the government to do it for them.
If America is so racist, then why do we continue to allow almost a million, mostly nonwhite, immigrants legally into the country every year? Think about that!
Ric Hanson
Northwest side
Trump is stoking flames of division
I admit coming close to freaking out these days. Each morning I check the Arizona Daily Star to see what new crisis is upon us. In less than four years, Donald Trump has made the USA irrelevant on the world stage. We are laughed at and ignored, allowing China and Russia to gain ground, which they are happy to do.
Listening to the two speeches on the holiday meant to celebrate our democracy, Trump came as close as possible to calling for civil war between the left and the right, making Democrats the evildoers that need to be taken down. This should have been the moment, finally, when America comes to terms with the inequality for all, not to demonize nonviolent protesters.
I’m not done: Instead of doing anything to lower the curve, he is spending his time at dangerous parties for himself, while not allowing Dr. Anthony Fauci or the CDC to go public. So, whose side is Donald Trump really on?
Ginia Desmond
Downtown
Glad Romero acted
on ‘thin blue line’
I write in support of Mayor Regina Romero’s decision to overturn the permit to paint a “thin blue line” in front of the TPD headquarters. While some people interpret the blue line as a symbol of support for the police, it has also been co-opted by white supremacists as a symbol of support for racism and police brutality against the Black community.
There were “thin blue line” flags alongside the Confederate flags and swastika flags at the infamous Charlottesville “Unite the Right” neo-Nazi rally in 2017. The fact that the person who proposed painting the line in Tucson has a history of racist posts on social media makes me especially concerned that he did not apply for this permit in good faith. We should not want this symbol to be associated with our city or our Police Department, and I am glad that Romero took action.
Ed Hendel
West side
Mask scolding
doesn’t work
Masks are now a necessity. They are scientifically proven to lower the transmission of disease, and most government agencies recommend the public to wear them. Why aren’t we all wearing masks? People see mask mandates as government micromanaging our daily lives and violating their constitutional rights.
However, masks should be worn whether or not they are mandated. Wearing a mask is like wearing a helmet or a seat belt. We should stop bickering about something that intrinsically benefits our communities.
Now, we still see instances of people heavily resisting and using force to compel people to wear masks. Instead of using force, we must try to use consideration. Scolding and beating someone without a mask will only make them more resistant. Instead, give a person a face covering and educate them about the benefits.
Our county is deeply divided on many issues, but wearing masks should not be one of them. Wear a mask and save lives.
Wesley Peng
Downtown
Trump, Biden don’t see America the same way
The Fourth of July gave us stark choices for electing the next president. Donald Trump, who believes in America being a great country, or Joe Biden, who sees a flawed and systematically racist country. There was slavery at the time of the Constitution, but our Framers wisely placed mechanisms within in it to allow for future change.
Trump aligns more with Ronald Reagan’s vision of America as being a shining city on a hill. Biden seems to align with the left in that we were never a great country, are full of injustices, inequalities and racism. Before the virus pandemic, Black unemployment was at its lowest in decades and wages were rising. Would that happen in a racist society?
Thanks to Trump’s tax reform, opportunity zones were created in depressed urban areas to stimulate small-business growth. Does that sound racist? I would argue that Democrats and their government dependency policies have kept Black lives stagnated, in bad schools, in poverty and with no hope for the future. Biden will continue that!
Michael Wayne
Midtown
Conover what we need in a county attorney
Re: the July 4 article “Ballot initiative seeks to give AZ judges flexibility from mandatory sentencing laws.”
Thank you, Barbara LaWall, for articulating the need for reform in the Pima County Attorney’s Office. I absolutely think that judges should be given more discretion in sentencing. I also think that privatizing prisons has incentivized mass incarceration and had a devastating impact on families of poor and ethnic minorities.
Consequently, I will be voting for Laura Conover to bring a fresh perspective to the County Attorney’s Office. She will protect victims as well as all the residents of Pima County.
Barbara Tanzillo
Downtown
Make Conover
top prosecutor
Kudos to Sarah Garrecht Gassen and the Arizona Daily Star Board for “trying something new.” On July 1, they invited the three Democratic Pima County attorney candidates — Laura Conover, Jonathan Mosher, and Mark Diebolt — to interview via Zoom. The candidates fielded questions from the chat box.
By seeing and hearing them virtually, I have found my candidate, defense attorney (cum prosecuting attorney) Laura Conover! Her calm, confident demeanor stood out in her determined plan to run as a reform candidate for Pima County attorney.
Born, raised and educated here in Tucson where she intends to stay, Laura is fluent in Spanish; her character and values truly shine in her candidacy motto “Sano y Salvo” — keep our community “Safe and Sound.” Elect a talented, committed woman!
Deborah Clifford Gessaman
Northwest side
