Jacob Sullum’s column concerning the Supreme Court’s recent decision that “curtailed the powers of federal agencies” is misguided and misleading (“Supreme Court cases show how unchecked bureaucracy hurts ‘ordinary’ Americans”).
He cites a handful of cases where average citizens were harmed by a federal agency’s decision. He does not give any credit to those same agencies for the enormous benefits they’ve rendered to the U.S. population.
I’m reminded of the phrase, “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.” Have all federal agency decisions been perfect? No, but overall those agencies have done a great job protecting America’s land, air and water from pollution. They protect people from companies that want to make more money by destroying our environment.
Now that the current Supreme Court decided to void the Chevron decision (and 40 years of established law), future rules will be decided by judges and the companies that can hire an army of lawyers to pursue their interests.
Mark Kaulas, Edgewater
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We don’t want a king
Thanks to Neil Steinberg for his excellent column last week, “Words are weapons in fight for freedom. Proof of that lies in the Constitution.”
He raises some of the colonists’ real experience living under King George III, including bending judges to his will and preventing immigration the nation needed at that time.
It is also worth remembering that our forefathers objected to taxation without representation, the use of force to impose the monarch’s will and viewing the resources of the colonists as his own.
With the Supreme Court granting kingly privileges to the American presidency, do we want another king? Do we want a dictator for Day 1? Can anyone identify a dictator who only claimed those privileges for one day? Dictators and kings tend to claim privileges for their lifetime. Do we want that in ours?
Katharine Nathan, Rogers Park
Biden strikes out
Gene Lyons’ column last weekend, “Like a great pitcher losing steam, Biden has to get off the mound,” was sensitive, factual and true. Normally, I do not like sports analogies, but the baseball one fits. Lyons named all of the reasons the pundits have been saying recently: Joe Biden is too old, and he does not have the physical or mental energy for the job. He was a great president, but he should leave before he gets worse. He even hinted that Donald Trump would be lost without someone easy to trash.
But he left out one great reason for Biden to step down: The Republican high command is terrified of a new candidate. That one reason is the most important factor that Biden should consider. I would love to see them squirm.
Jan Goldberg, Riverside
Pass the baton, Mr. President
The June debate between former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden will go down as one of the most consequential days in American history. It’s not hyperbole to say world history given the ramifications of the 2024 election results (think Ukraine).
As a Democrat, I was beyond ecstatic when Biden was elected in 2020. The accomplishments of his first term have been widely credited with getting America back on her feet in a post-pandemic world.
He made historic investments in infrastructure; capped insulin to $35 for Medicare patients; signed the CHIPS and Science Act; for a time enhanced the child tax credit to deeply reduce child poverty; and capped the annual out-of-pocket cost of prescription drugs to $2,000 for seniors with Medicare Part D, starting in 2025. (No American should be bankrupted by the cost of their medicine.)
Many of these achievements would be endangered if Trump returned to the White House, along with protection of women’s reproductive rights.
So, Democrats are in a quandary. Biden’s performance in the debate was deplorable. He did the one thing he couldn’t do, and that was to look old and feeble. There is no way around this. He looked and acted like a man who would be 86 at the end of a second term. American citizens have every right to question, and even doubt, his ability to handle the pressures of a second term.
Dear Mr. President, thank you for being a historically great president for our nation when we needed it most. History will smile on you forever. But now it’s time to pass the baton.
I don’t know if you are a man who cherishes legacy. It’s hard to imagine a president who doesn’t. Either way, your legacy is cemented by your incredible first term. The one remaining sacrifice that would write your name among the greatest leaders America has ever had would be to voluntarily walk away from the presidency. Pass that baton. Give the country an alternative Democratic candidate to carry the torch to victory in 2024. The alternative is unthinkable.
Michael F. DeSantiago, Niles
Idling buses emit pollution
At 2:50 p.m. Sunday, I noticed that most of the coach buses parked along Irving Park were idling their engines, probably to maintain air conditioning. Probably a violation of air quality ordinances.
David Lafferty, Lake View
