We all face consequences of Trump’s J6 pardons
Massapequa Park, L.I.: “Promises made, promises kept.” That was President Trump’s slogan during 2016-20. Apparently, it is this time as well. During the 2024 campaign, he said he would pardon the insurrectionists of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol on day one. I call them insurrectionists because they have been given due process and found guilty of violence against the government by a jury of their peers.
Well, he pardoned them. But now the important question is then what? What does this act of promised retribution (remember his statement: “I am your retribution”) on the part of Trump accomplish in the long run? Let’s see what these pardons, making it OK to attack police, will produce. It puts dangerous criminals out on the street, like the leaders of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, who are vowing to arm and form militias — to do what? We will see. It will put law enforcement personnel in danger on all levels. It instills fear in law-abiding citizens. It will likely put more guns on the street, endangering innocent civilians. It made fools of Pam Bondi and JD Vance, who claimed that each case would be considered with regard to violent actions against police, which would negate a pardon. One of the pardoned was serving 20 years for sedition. If you don’t believe me, look it up. The fear instilled by these pardoned individuals may affect future elections.
On a positive note, it may enlighten law enforcement departments as to who is really in their corner. And it does nothing to reduce the price of eggs and gasoline, another of Trump’s day one promises. Linda Maria Frank
Fraudulent audits
East Meadow, L.I.: To Voicer Freddy Sacco: Elon Musk and DOGE aren’t auditing us. They are just looking at things that Trump and MAGA Republicans don’t like and are calling it fraud with no evidence whatsoever in order to invade our privacy, eliminate any program that helps victims of disasters or developing nations, and to potentially eliminate Medicare and SNAP, Social Security and Medicare (which we the people have paid into our entire working lives) and to eliminate business regulations, allowing Musk to commit real fraud. So turn off Fox News and Newsmax. Richard Skibins
Red line
Valley Stream, L.I.: As a subscriber to your paper, I have to give you fair warning: If you ever refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, I will have to cancel my subscription immediately. Allan Canino
Regional feature
Brooklyn: That body of water should be called the Gulf of North America. It is international waters and bordered by three countries: Cuba, Mexico and the United States. Martin Selbst
Killed by Israel
Staten Island: Voicer Charles Tal has the gall to take Voicer Rose S. Wilson to task for not mentioning Hamas using Gazans as human shields. Wouldn’t that make Gazans hostages and pawns? Does being held hostage by terrorists somehow justify the murder of 40,000 innocent Gazan women and children? You went on to cite atrocities committed in the name of religion for 2,000-plus years by other religions as further proof of Israel’s justification for committing war crimes. Seriously? Putting lipstick on this pig doesn’t change what we know to be the truth about this genocide, so stop trying to prove otherwise. Ellen Settanni
Dairy’s downfall?
Milwaukee: On Valentine’s Day, the White House posted on X, “Roses are red / Violets are blue / Come here illegally / And we’ll deport you.” The National Milk Producers Federation asserts: “Immigrant labor accounts for 51% of all dairy labor, and dairies that employ immigrant labor produce 79% of the U.S. milk supply.” Losing undocumented farm workers would greatly disrupt rural economies throughout the U.S. Although it is nearly impossible to fill these jobs with American workers, it is illegal to knowingly hire an “unauthorized alien.” Some mistakenly believe that the H-2A visa program can accommodate any undocumented agricultural worker. However, it is only for temporary or seasonal employees, so undocumented dairy workers are ineligible. Sadly, rather than insisting on comprehensive immigration reform, as well as humanizing those who seek a better life, many seem to favor placing shackled and downcast human beings on military transports and flying them back to countries they fled. Terry Hansen
Voice of the youth
Jamaica: I must thank you for Saturday’s Voice of the People, where teenagers, young adults or whatever they want to be called gave their insights on how they feel about the world, school, adults and cost of living. This should be done more often. They have the right to voice their opinions too. Again, thank you, it was very enlightening. Charlene Black
Marketable skill
Staten Island: I agree 100% with Voicer Nayaa Addai about schools no longer teaching cursive. Apparently, fewer than half the states still teach it. I recently saw an ad where the U.S. National Archives is searching for volunteers who can read cursive to help transcribe and classify more than 200 years’ worth of U.S. documents. Those records range from Revolutionary War documents, field notes of Charles Mason of the Mason-Dixon Line, immigration documents from the 1890s, Japanese evacuation records and the 1950 census. They referred to reading cursive as a “superpower.” I also wonder how one does their signature. Gina Ottrando
Curious target
Huntington, L.I.: Re “Trump’s DOJ subverts justice” (editorial, Feb. 16): The Daily News states that the rule of law keeps prosecutorial decisions free of politics. Did you protest when Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump for inflating the value of his assets? Do you believe that he is the only businessperson she could find who engages in this behavior? Does the Daily News really believe that Trump would have been charged with 34 felony counts by District Attorney Alvin Bragg if Trump were a liberal Democrat? Andrew Cuomo said this about the case: “If his name was not Donald Trump and if he wasn’t running for president… I’m the former AG of New York, and I’m telling you that case would’ve never been brought.” Tom Saracco
Decide at the polls
Brooklyn: Full disclosure, I’m a friend and fan of Harry Siegel, but his column “New Yorkers don’t need a ‘hero’ to oust Adams” (Feb. 15) sums up the bigger problem facing our republic. The race for mayor begins in a few weeks, but instead of Mayor Adams’ record, the focus has been on the prosecutors who pursued him. As Siegel points out, this is for the voters to decide, which is the reason for elections. America is not a democracy, it is a republic, and in order for a republic to survive, it needs to have an election. When a prosecutor intervenes in that process, it impacts the end result. Consider the role Jack Smith played in the 2024 election results. John O’Hara
Try a woman
Sedro-Woolley, Wash.: If I had to make a song called “Albany’s Calling,” I’d make damn sure that Andrew Cuomo did the voiceover. Who wants Cuomo as mayor of New York City? Who wants to party like it’s 2021 all over again, with hordes of cyberbullies made from Russian and Iranian factories as good as Shahed drones aimed at Kyiv, Ukraine? At least NYC has a Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Lindsey “Boss Lady” Boylan. I would encourage every journalist to read “My story of working with Governor Cuomo” and draw your own conclusions about rolling the dice with Cuomo. NYC would be far better off hanging up the phone on Albany and having Boylan in charge. In politics, if you want something said, ask a white male because we all can quote fellow white men. If you want something done, ask a woman. Joe A. Kunzler
Disagreeable
Brooklyn: When Marcus Stroman was with the Mets, he was always involved in some kind of drama, getting into arguments with opposing players for no viable reason. Now he is saying he won’t pitch in the bullpen for the Yankees. He is being paid $18 million this season and as usual, he still isn’t happy. He isn’t nearly as good as he thinks he is. Maybe it’s the short man’s syndrome. Dennis Burge
