Letters to the Editor: What will it take for Republicans to give up on Donald Trump?
To the editor: Yes, most Republicans so far have preferred to shrug off the House committee’s investigation of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Any findings that conclusively fault former President Trump for facilitating the insurrection would scuttle the GOP’s chances in upcoming elections. (“Bigger holes keep appearing in the ‘Big Lie,’” Opinion, Dec. 17)
It wasn’t always this way. Some 47 years ago, few Republicans disregarded the gravity of President Nixon’s abuses of power. After Nixon’s release of his “smoking gun” tape recordings, GOP leaders urged him to resign. A few days later, he did.
One big difference with the 1970s explains why integrity seems so lacking among many of today’s politicians: That decade was not deluged with politically skewed news outlets and social media sites that enable rampant disinformation and delusional groupthink to influence party leaders.
We can only hope that former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ release of text messages sent on Jan. 6 and the weeks before will prove as promotive of justice as the release of Nixon’s recordings did.
Devra Mindell, Santa Monica
..
To the editor: As we approach the one-year anniversary of the assault on the Capitol, and as the House Jan. 6 committee advances its investigation into the insurrection, one thing is clear — the thugs that temporarily prevented Congress from fulfilling its constitutional duty of confirming then-President-elect Biden’s victory were not the only subversives who attempted to overturn the 2020 election.
The list is long and includes members of the Republican Party in Congress who encouraged others to participate in the bungled coup.
Should Republicans regain control of Congress in the 2022 midterm election, it may be too late to halt America’s march toward autocracy.
The electorate, shackled by measures in a number of states that make it extremely difficult to sway elections, must be unencumbered to function legitimately. It is time to end the filibuster and enact the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
Our democracy may not survive otherwise.
Jim Paladino, Tampa, Fla.
..
To the editor: Perhaps Time magazine should have named the “Big Lie” as its person of the year for 2021
Mike Aguilar, Costa Mesa
