Driven out
I see that Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman has finally been driven out of the Army by President Donald Trump. I don’t know if Vindman was a hero, but he earned both a Purple Heart and a Combat Infantryman Badge.
He was driven out by the same Trump who has said exactly nothing about how his great pal, Vladimir Putin, has been paying the Taliban cash to murder American soldiers in Afghanistan.
What kind of a country allows an obese draft dodger to harm our soldiers in such an evil and cowardly way?
Dennis Baird
Moscow
Abandoning seniors
President Donald Trump is once again showing his commitment to the elderly. He and Attorney General Bob Barr have joined a lawsuit before the Supreme Court to repeal Obamacare and all its onerous provisions.
But, while not widely known, this would eliminate prescription drug discounts for seniors in the doughnut hole. They were instituted as part of Obamacare.
Using his amazingly brilliant mind, Trump concluded that this will make the Medicare budget look great next year, due to a rise in the senior mortality rate as a result of:
1) seniors being unable to pay these increased drug costs.
2) his decision to ignore the coronavirus pandemic.
In addition, drug companies will be applauding the boost to their profits (oops, sorry, I meant boost to the economy).
Win, win, right?
Hoax? Call and ask his toadies (oops, sorry, I meant your representatives), Cathy McMorris Rodgers or Russ Fulcher.
Get their honest answers. And while you have them on the line, be sure to ask where you can see the details of the president’s medical insurance plan.
Mike Franek
Clarkston
Merkel has it
Thursday’s CNN news story featuring quotes from German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s is worth repeating.
“(President Donald) Trump, as well as Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, must have felt his ears burning when the German chancellor demolished their approaches to the coronavirus in a speech Thursday.
“As we are experiencing firsthand, you cannot fight the pandemic with lies and disinformation any more than you can fight it with hate or incitement to hatred,” Merkel said. “The limits of populism and denial of basic truths are being laid bare.”
Merkel and Trump were destined to clash. A former scientist (Merkel has a Ph.D in quantum chemistry), she is cool, cautious, self-contained, fact-oriented and quiet despite her toughness. Trump is — none of those things.”
Steve Koehler
Grangeville
Return land to the tribe
The recent Supreme Court decision regarding Native American land in Oklahoma raises a question for the Nimiipuu.
Would this be a good time to seek Nimiipuu jurisdiction over the former home of Chief Joseph in Wallowa County.
It belonged to them until settlers started building homes and taking it over without any legal standing. It belongs to the tribe and should be sought.
David Weston
Dallas, Ore.
Do it for others
Ask yourself: “Would I hand my wallet or purse to a complete stranger for safe keeping?”
If you answered “no,” then why on Earth would you trust your health and that of others to complete strangers?
That’s exactly what you do when you don’t wear a mask in crowded places during a pandemic.
For those who claim their constitutional rights are violated by mask orders, have you forgotten about seat belt laws, hard-hat required areas, cellphone use while driving laws and speed limits? There are many more examples.
The Constitution does not give you the right to do whatever you want when your safety and that of other is jeopardized. Enough said.
Russell Gee
Lewiston
Do your job
The Asotin County Public Health administrator says his job is to do nothing to enforce the governor’s order to wear masks.
What are we paying him for if not to enforce health standards? This cowardly passing of his responsibilities onto private business owners is reprehensible. Do what you are paid for; enforce the health regulations. Private businesses have been hurt badly while you continue to draw a handsome salary. Do your job.
Jane Risley
Asotin
