Divide Over John Ashcroft

* Re “Ashcroft, Under Fire, Vows to Uphold the Law,” Jan. 17: George W. Bush’s campaign platform of bipartisanship means little if John Ashcroft is confirmed as attorney general. It is not a question of whether he will uphold the law. It becomes a question of how far to the right can the president-elect go from his “middle of the road” campaign. Especially after the campaign debacle that left him without a true mandate. This nomination does not lend itself to bringing the two parties together. I suspect that search-and-destroy politics will rule as they have the last eight years, and the next four years will be bumpy indeed.

DENNIS COLE

Glendora

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Robert Scheer wonders why there is not a single Republican senator, let alone more Democrats, willing to condemn Ashcroft (Commentary, Jan. 16). The answer is quite simple. Discrimination for employment based on religion is against the law. What should be considered is Ashcroft’s ability to do the job of attorney general, not his religious beliefs, as the law demands.

Scheer may be deeply troubled by Ashcroft’s faith but that cannot ever be a reason to deny Ashcroft a government job. To do so would not only break our antidiscrimination laws but would set a dangerous precedent for all Americans of various religions.

JOHN and EDEN WYATT

Woodland Hills

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On “Ashcroft Not Likely to Bend on Key Beliefs,” Jan. 14: Why would a man bend on his basic beliefs? And if he did, why would anyone want him as attorney general?

On Jan. 13, concerning Ashcroft and the “no king but Jesus” quote: What Ashcroft said was conventional, mainstream stuff. Our country was founded by religious people, mostly Christians, who rebelled against a king. Ashcroft, a Christian, was speaking to Christians [at Bob Jones University]. The 1st Amendment guarantees Christians the right to refer to Jesus and also to worship him.

GEORGE W. CARLYLE

Newport Beach

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As a Christian and a professor of Christian doctrine at a church-related university, I am appalled at Ashcroft’s understanding of the origins of U.S. sovereignty. Ashcroft misinterprets the historical record by saying that the colonial response to imperial tax collectors of “we have no king but Jesus” indicates a religious basis for the American revolt against the British. Were that true, the victorious colonists would have established a theocracy, not separated church from state as they did.

Ashcroft denigrates those whose moral lives are grounded in something other than religious dogma. He confuses the Declaration of Independence, noble document though it is, with the Constitution, which is our actual basis of government. He incorrectly declares that the U.S. was founded not just on religious authority but a specifically Christian one. And he fails to grasp that civil authority not only has value but must bring together the various value systems, whether religious or not.

Yes, faith can inform our political process, but it must not determine it. Ashcroft has stepped over the line and should not be confirmed as attorney general.

SARAH S. FORTH

Los Angeles

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For the first time in eight years we have the opportunity to have an attorney general who has integrity, backbone and the character to uphold the law. That’s why the radical left-wing extremists (including Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.) are up in arms.

BEN POWELL

Northridge

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It seems professor Jack M. Balkin uses selective criteria to try to make his point (“Bush’s Negative Mandate Narrows His Nominees,” Commentary, Jan. 12). He states that since Bush did not win the popular vote, the Senate “should hold Bush to his promise to represent all the people.”

Well, how about the Senate representing its own people? Bush won 30 states. Hence, if we adopted Balkin’s standard, Bush would have, if the Senate represented the views of its own people, 60 votes. Hardly a negative mandate, correct? Therefore, I fully expect to see an article published in The Times by Balkin lamenting the senators who chose to buck the interests of their constituents.

MICHAEL JACQUES

Stanton