Tucson Speaks Out: Sept. 22 letters of the day

Racial hatred & Republican silence

It is sickening that Haitian immigrants are now threatened and cannot leave their homes or go to school because of the vile, hateful and disgusting statements coming from the former president and his neo-Nazi vice president. A few Republicans are more concerned with his friendship with somebody named Loomer, instead of being outraged by their leader's hateful and destructive statements about a group of people who have come here to make a better life for themselves and their families. One would think that any reasonable person in the Republican Party would come forward and call this out for what it is. Are they so afraid of the former guy, or do they hate all non-white immigrants?

Do they support his call for mass deportations? Then, the former president has the nerve to defile our great city and show up at the Linda Ronstadt Center spewing the same hateful language. Unless we speak out, we are as complicit as the Republican Party's leadership is.

James Robinett

Southwest side

A sad change in direction

In the 1970s, I was a deputy with the Pima County Sheriff's office and served a term as president of the Sheriff's Fraternal Order of Police lodge. The FOP's purpose then was to serve its members and the community in positive, constructive ways. The organization did not engage in political activities. I am appalled at seeing the current national FOP engaging in an endorsement of a convicted felon whose actions caused numerous police officers to be injured at the Capitol insurrection and who did nothing to stop that riotous activity.

I am saddened to think that fine organization has given in to lowering its principles by engaging in such disgusting political activities.

Ron Oberholtzer

Northwest side

No on legislative ballot propositions

Our Republican state legislators, facing vetos of their extreme bills by the Governor, have put six constitutional amendment and five statutory amendment proposals on our ballots. Everyone deserves a no vote.

These legislative propositions, among other things, would gut our citizen initiative rights (Props. 134 and 136) and right to vote on judicial retention (Prop. 137), intrude itself in the Executive branch (Props. 135 and 315), and overstep exclusive federal immigration authority (Prop. 314). They would also stiff tipped servers at restaurants in a proposition backed by restaurant owners (Prop. 138) and potentially punish both minors and trafficking victims with life sentences in prison (Prop. 313).

Don't believe the disinformation signs around town falsely extolling the benefits of any legislative proposition. Vote NO on all: constitutional propositions 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139 and statutory propositions 311, 312, 313, 314, 315.

Gail Kamaras

East side

Voter Education Guide

I received the 2024 Guide today and found the LD 17 candidate statements interesting. None of the three Republicans mentioned education, water, or reproductive rights, the top three local issues. Vince Leach seems to focus on taking over federal responsibilities by creating a state border patrol, surveillance, and state immigration policies. The other two want to keep doing what they did last term, which was to make education funding worse and send us back to the 1800s for reproductive rights.

The Democratic candidates both want to improve funding for education and to protect reproductive rights.

I'm voting for Democrats Kevin Volk and John McLean because they say their focus will be on those things that are important to my family and my children's families. I'm not voting for any Republican because none of them seem to care about anything that matters to our state.

Jerad Morris

Political words can kill

I believe women especially will look at Kamala Harris' performance and deconstruction of Donald Trump in their debate as a heroine in the future when looking back.

She burst his ego with a smile. He barked about cats and dogs being eaten by Haitians in Springfield Ohio, and, once again, set a dangerous precedent where innocent people can be harmed.

When a fool is in a position of power, his words can be so deadly.

Joseph Robinett

Reflections on the economy

It's both mystifying and disheartening to witness the number of readers complaining about inflation and pinning the blame on the Biden administration.

The truth is easily summarized in this simple aphorism: "There's no such thing as a free lunch."

Consider: in the darkest days of the pandemic, both parties worked together to issue stimulus checks to us all in order to 1. keep the economy from tanking, 2. save small businesses, and 3. spare families draconian financial consequences. While these actions accomplished those goals, obviously it also created unfortunate distortions in the economy, ie. inflation.

Ask yourself: "Did I accept the checks? Did I cash them?" If the answer is "yes," then you have forfeited the right to complain! Instead, we all ought to be grateful that our government intervened on our behalf, and that this administration was the most adept in the world in restoring stability, preventing a recession and coaxing the level of inflation back to normal levels. Let's count our blessings instead of complaining!

Alan Voelkel

Is Engel unfair to Ciscomani?

Juan if you were bipartisan, what happened to an immigration bill? Kirsten Engel's ads are truthful, so I guess the truth hurts. Your ads against her are petty, remember you are in Congress, you have a record. Your newest giddy ads are bad, you celebrated the day the Supreme Court overturned Roe in a tweet, "To Life." You are not bipartisan, otherwise immigration would not be on the ballot. Now you are holding the country hostage over the budget, because you don't trust our election process, that is so Trump. You are in step with him. People wake up and look up the Patriot Academy, he is associated with it and its beliefs. They are not my beliefs. We need a congressional person who represents all of us and not an ideology that is un-American. What happened to the Reagan and McCain Republicans? Remember the song "Smooth Operator", that is you.

Andrew Kunsberg

East side

UA finances

Re: the Sept. 12 "Departing UA president to be paid through June 2026" and "Bureaucrats shouldn't set UA president's priorities."

I question the wisdom of the Arizona Board of Regents. They have approved large financial payouts for: Dr. Robbins, Dr. Anne Weaver Hart, Dave Heeke and Lissa Rulney and others. Perhaps writing more intelligent contracts are in order. In addition, there have been significant salary increases for many deans at the U of A.

A million dollars here, a million dollars there and pretty soon we are talking about a significant amount of money. Meanwhile tuition increases again. Remember students? They are the reason for the U of A and the Board of Regents.

Art Di Salvo, U of A, '54, '58.

Northwest side

Trump voters rethinking their vote

The Trump-Harris debate opened eyes to the emotional deterioration of Trump in 2024 compared to Trump in 2016. Trump's reasoning and logic in 2024 were already questioned by his choice of JD Vance for Vice President. JD Vance is continually attempting to redefine, "create a story" (his words), or cover up the irrational plans, inflammatory rhetoric, and denial of facts of the declining Trump. The Trump/Vance policies for the economy, the border, immigration, health care, etc. have been widely criticized. Not enough has been said of the very real possibility that Vance will become the de facto or actual president should Trump continue to decline from 2024 to 2028. JD Vance has shown himself to be unworthy and unqualified to provide leadership for the country. Taking all into account, it is no wonder that traditional conservatives are refusing to vote for Trump/Vance. On September 18, more than 100 Republican leaders dropped Trump/Vance and endorsed Harris/Walz.

Mina Lichtenberger

Re: the Sept. 16 letter "Equity vs. equal."

For decades, Black farmers have been denied loans from the USDA while white farmers received billions of dollars in assistance. The USDA has admitted this practice, and a review of some of the denials have proven to be blatantly racist. Hope was offered in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Four billion dollars was provided to help distressed farmers of color. What did white farmers do? They sued to halt the program.

Finally, on July 31, the USDA announced that Discrimination Financial Assistance Program awards totaling $2 billion have been made to 43,000 farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners to remedy this discrimination.

The United States will never be able rectify the generational wealth impact that still burdens so many Black Americans as a long-standing result of slavery, Jim Crow, and subsequent unjust economic policies, but if we are to achieve our nation's pursuit of justice for all, we must continue to seek justice for those who have been excluded for too long.

Jerry Fay