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Hasn’t Maine’s secretary of state exceeded her authority by finding that Donald Trump is not qualified to be included on the state’s Republican presidential primary ballot in 2024? Haven’t Colorado and Maine set a dangerous precedent by trying to deny voters the right to vote for the candidate of their choice?
Should state officials decide for the voters whom they can vote for based on an opinion that they have rather than on criminal convictions or other due process proceedings that would prohibit candidates from running for office?
If Trump is thought to be an insurrectionist in the court of public opinion, then the voters will decide that he is unfit for office by not voting for him. Isn’t that how the system is supposed to work?
— Charles Michael Sitero, Ormond Beach, Florida
Hold Trump to account
In the article “Maine kicks Trump off ballot” (Dec. 29), Donald Trump’s campaign spokesman Steven Cheung is quoted as saying: “We are witnessing, in real-time, the attempted theft of an election and the disenfranchisement of the American voter.” I would like to posit that the real theft of an election is being perpetrated by Trump himself and his campaign staff.
Trump needs to be held accountable for his traitorous acts rather than be given a chance to run for our highest office again. An insurrectionist should not be given a chance to run for any political office, much less that of the presidency, ever again.
To allow Trump to do so would only allow him to steal votes from a qualified candidate.
— Chuck Kessler, Northbrook
Speaking truth to power
My dad once told me that the best way to reach people is to keep it simple. He received formal training as a court reporter in the Marine Corps during his Korean War service. That training would have taught him to record the facts concisely.
Such simple, concise, straightforward truth is hard to come by these days in the political arena. “Alternative facts” have proliferated since 2016, and it is difficult to discern true facts from the fictions and outright lies circulating these days.
One source of comfort and perspective has been Boston College history professor Heather Cox Richardson’s newsletter Letters from an American. Richardson began writing a daily synopsis on Facebook in September 2019 shortly after a whistleblower complaint was made public regarding former President Donald Trump’s now-infamous quid pro quo request of newly elected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump asked for Zelenskyy’s cooperation in spreading damaging narratives against 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden in exchange for the release of a $400 million congressionally approved military aid package.
Trump was ultimately impeached in the House of Representatives in connection with this phone call on charges of abusing the power of the presidency and obstructing Congress but was acquitted on both counts by the Republican-dominated Senate, as neither charge received 67 votes to convict.
In her own words, Richardson states: “Historians are fond of saying that the past doesn’t repeat itself; it rhymes. To understand the present, we have to understand how we got here.” In her newsletter, Richardson explicates calmly with straightforward explanations on contemporary events in relation to historical developments. She connects the dots between today’s politics and America’s Constitution, laws, economy and social customs. Richardson’s newsletter helps define what it means to be an American both past and present.
My dad would have loved Richardson’s Letters from an American precisely because her posts speak truth to power. As former Republican U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney expounds in her new book, “Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning,” Americans are “sleepwalking into dictatorship” if Trump is reelected in 2024.
It is imperative that we wake up to this fact. The former president has not been shy about his plans, should he be reelected; he promises to use federal authorities to prosecute his political enemies and to expand the role of the military in the U.S.
Make no mistake. Trump’s MAGA agenda is unadulterated power at all costs.
— Maryellen Spore Krammer, Palos Heights
Democrats feel threatened
I find it interesting that the Democrats’ mantra in regards to former President Donald Trump is “the rule of law.” But in regards to migrants at the southern border, the Democrats’ mantra is “ignore the law.”
Clearly, the Democrats let us all know they fear that Trump’s popularity threatens their actions.
— Jim Halas, Norridge
Lessons from news quiz
On Christmas Eve, before I sat down to watch the televised Holy Mass from St. Julie Billiart Catholic Church in Tinley Park with the children’s choir, I took the Great 2023 Chicago Tribune holiday news quiz.
Guess what happened? I learned that my retentive powers have declined. As an 87-year-old Tribune subscriber to the seven-day newspaper, my score was nothing to brag about.
Religiously, I complete the daily crossword and word search and devour all news stories, sports articles and fluff pieces. Apparently, that was not enough to ace this test.
My best score was in the Chicago and Illinois category, in which I posted 15 correct out of 30, or 50% accuracy.
In the U.S. news section, my score was five correct out of 30, or 17% correct.
In the world news section, I posted only three right answers out of 15, or 20% correct.
My overall score was 38.38 % correct. This did not make the dean’s list!
I will have to do better next year. That means managing my stress level, getting more sleep, drinking stronger coffee and trying to remember what I read.
— Alexander G. Kapocius, Orland Park
Links between subject matter
Chicago Tribune Opinion
On the Tribune’s holiday quiz, I did best in the world section, which was most substantive. I performed poorly on the local and Illinois questions, which were heavy on trivia and celebrity and sports names, to which I don’t pay much attention. I did a bit better on the U.S. news questions, which still relied on isolated facts and names; I don’t retain those so easily. I have a pretty good memory for analysis, context and stories, but not names and dates.
I most enjoyed reading this quiz and answers as a form of summary of the year’s events. I decided to try to make a new game for myself by looking for connections between seemingly unconnected subject matter.
I’ll let you know how it turns out.
— Muriel Balla, Chicago
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Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.