So many events, so many questions remaining
If you’re a political junkie like me, this is without a doubt an incredible time to be alive. It is truly amazing that within a time frame of eight days we had an assassination attempt on a presidential candidate, an upbeat national convention and a sitting president dropping out of the race.
First, we had what was likely going to be a typically loud Donald Trump rally in the small town of Butler, Pennsylvania, just north of Pittsburgh. What could possibly happen in Butler, given that most Trump rallies are in larger venues with bigger crowds and more Secret Service?
Perhaps Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle believed fewer agents were needed around a small town, especially given that a large NATO gathering and a Joe Biden rally, headed by Jill Biden, had just concluded the same week as Trump’s. Suffice it to say, if that was her thinking, she was certainly WRONG!
More on the assassination attempt later.
Not quite 48 hours after the Butler fiasco, the Republican convention began and was, in perhaps my biased opinion, the most positive and upbeat convention I have ever seen. It pretty much concluded with Hulk Hogan ripping his shirt off. Now who wouldn’t smile at that?
Two days later, Biden packed it in; the first time a president had done so since Lyndon Johnson in 1968. I’ve been wondering for a long time why Biden campaigned out of his basement in 2020, and now suggest that the case could be made that perhaps he was already in mental decline.
So now he’s out of the race and Kamala Harris, aka Cackles, seems to be the presumptive candidate. If the Democrats push for anyone else, we all know the race card will explode.
Her biggest decision was to choose far-left Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, whose handling of the Minneapolis riots in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death was a disaster. The overall dollar damage to the city’s business district was in the millions.
And before any Barack Obama fans think it would have been a great idea to run him as her vice presidential pick, you might want to read the last sentence of the 12th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It reads: “But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of vice president of the United States.” So sorry to rain on that “wishful thinking theory!”
Now back to the scary events of the Butler mess. The longer the fallout of this goes on without concrete answers as to how this could have happened, the more questions and suspicions we have.
For example, we now have videos of this assassin walking across the roof, as well as using a rangefinder, both without questions from anyone in charge of Trump’s safety. Oh, and now we learn that even with a $3.1 billion budget, the secret service on-site allegedly didn’t even have walkie-talkies.
So at this point, at least for me, I fear that even though I in no way think this was a planned assassination attempt by Trump’s political enemies, it looks to me like the Secret Service “let it happen.”
I fear as usual we’ll never know!
Dave Price, Sykesville
Let’s examine Kamala Harris’ record
This is in response to Tom Zirpoli’s recent column “Outsmarted by Biden and burned by Vance.” Zirpoli says Republicans are trying to sell Kamala Harris as a diversity hire and we all knew Republicans would be playing their sexism and race card.
Zirpoli should be elated, not criticizing Republicans for pointing out the obvious. After all, Democrats preach DEI ideology and intimidate the government, industry, academia, the military, etc., to bow down to its doctrines and quotas. But once they accomplished advancing people on their skin color and/or gender they want to hide it, because DEI by definition, is racism and sexism.
I remember how Harris became Joe Biden’s vice president. During the 2020 Democratic primary, Harris was the first presidential candidate to end her campaign early in December 2019, with zero national delegates.
So, why did Biden pick the least popular candidate? Biden campaigning in 2020 did not say he wanted a VP based on merit, ability or accomplishments. He specifically said he wanted a black woman.
He said that because Black female activists in the Democratic Party (including Stacey Abrams of Georgia and Alma Adams of North Carolina) demanded Biden pick a Black woman for vice president. So, Biden chose Harris because of her skin color and gender. So, who is really playing the sexism and race card?
Harris “dated” married California State Assembly Speaker Willie Brown in 1994-1995, who appointed her to two political posts in California, getting her into politics. She served as San Francisco district attorney (2004-2011), California attorney (2011-2017) and as a California senator (2017-2021). Just look at San Francisco to see how her policies work.
She was appointed border czar by Biden in March 2021, but now she is lying about being border czar, just like she lied to NBC’s Lester Holt about going to the border.
Harris has allegedly lied about Biden’s mental condition for years. She accused Associate Supreme Court Justice Bret Kavanaugh of gang rape. She believed Jessie Smollett was attacked by MAGA and supported saying it was a modern-day lynching. She tweeted to chip into the Minnesota Freedom Fund to post bail for the George Floyd 2020 rioters. She accused the border patrol of whipping illegals, etc.
With the country over $35 trillion in debt and our adversaries (China, Russia, Iran etc.) more aggressive, including two wars, what are Harris’ policies?
She wants Medicare for all residents (not just citizens); wants government health care for all (no private health insurance); wants government-paid child care and paid family leave; wants to re-imagine (defund) the police; and wants to eliminate ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), etc.
Carl Burdette, Westminster
Has ‘leftist’ columnist even been to Venezuela?
I cannot believe what I am reading, how a “columnist,” as he thinks he is, writes an article in regard to the Republican presidential nominee stating if Donald Trump is elected the United States will start looking like Venezuela.
I am just surprised that a man who is supposed to have a college degree and some awards could even think about this type of situation.
Let’s look at Trump’s past administration. We had a great economy — gas prices, food prices and overall prices were way lower than this current regime.
We didn’t have more than 10 million illegals coming across our border and getting all types of monetary ” handouts” from woke mayors and governors, while our own citizens, as well as veterans, were suffering. They had to come in and be vetted so we wouldn’t have terrorists coming in and destroying our country and murdering U.S. citizens.
People didn’t have to work two to three jobs to make ends meet, while illegals got nothing but everything free.
Zirpoli is just another leftist who thinks Trump is all for the rich and wants nothing to do with the middle class and below. Trump, as I mentioned, made things easier to purchase and still have money left for some treats. So how is this like Venezuela? I doubt if Zirpoli has ever been to Venezuela to be accurate in what he says.
If he wants to make a remark at people who act like the leaders in Venezuela just look at the Democratic ticket, one group he has yet to criticize in the last four years. He is like all the Democrats who blame their bad doings on Trump and the GOP.
Trump would have never let Russian President Vladimir Putin invade Ukraine or other areas like the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris crew. China and other enemies wouldn’t be laughing at us like they are under Biden-Harris.
Now you have another, but more leftist pair in Harris and Tim Walz. Harris has done nothing in three-plus years besides giggling at remarks she makes. Now she has a partner who watched his major city burn down, then was rescued by Trump by sending in the National Guard instead of his doing it.
Zirpoli would probably love to see this pair be your leaders and he can watch the country go down the tube. He would say nothing, as he wouldn’t be able to express his anger against Trump, who would have nothing to do with it.
If Zirpoli doesn’t like a person who has helped our country like Trump did, then get out! Believe me he wouldn’t be missed at all, just like all the other leftists like Whoopi Goldberg, Barbra Streisand and others.
Pat Bussard, Westminster
