An incompetence that’s too crazy to be fiction
Visby, Sweden: Were a film producer to read a script in which top national security officials invite a leading journalist to a super-secret meeting designing a top-secret response to terror activities in the Mideast — an accidental invitation whose recipient is never tasked to provide proof of his entitlement to attend — they would undoubtedly reject it as unrealistic. Yet, that is essentially what occurred.
When this grossly negligent blunder was revealed, the unbelievable lies included Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth claiming the detailed plans were not really classified and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard having a total memory lapse about what she recalled from the Signal group chat. One sees the typical stages of mishandling such events by the administration: 1) It never happened; 2) If it did happen, there is absolutely no problem; 3) If there is a problem, it is all Joe Biden’s fault anyway. The utter lack of logic is ignored in hopes that the problem will just go away — which appears unlikely as congressional hearings are underway!
I’m reminded of a story: A salesman has a flat tire outside an insane asylum, and when he changes the wheel, the lug nuts roll out of the hubcap and into a storm drain. A man standing inside the fence says, “Just take one lug nut off each of the other wheels and use those three to mount the spare tire.” The salesman says, “Wow, what a great idea. Why are you locked up in an asylum?” The inmate replies, “Because I’m crazy — but that doesn’t make me stupid, too!”
Administration officials are worse off than the inmate — they are crazy and stupid! Eugene Elander
Reckless endangerment
Brooklyn: It’s amazing how far the Maggot Party, Fox News anchors, N.Y. Post columnists and President Trump’s cabinet will deflect, deny, defend and lie about the security breach. They were caught red-handed with a witness, Jeffrey Goldberg, and (liquor cabinet member) Hegseth lying about classified attack plans. Hegseth blaming Goldberg for the breach is like a drunk driver in an accident blaming the passenger for the accident. The cult membership all say it was a “perfect” chat, yet when Hillary Clinton had a private email server, they were all screaming to lock her up. Three years and 10 months to go for this nightmare to end. Don Adler
Typical denials
Brooklyn: Trump should stop lying and trying to pull the wool over our eyes. We know he sends us left when he actually goes right, hiding true facts. They should all be fired. Really putting America at possible war. Carmen Lugo
Junior leaguers
Williston Park, L.I.: Re “Leaking secrets” (editorial, March 26): Casey Stengel once said of the early N.Y. Mets, “Can’t anyone here play this game?” He could have been talking about today’s Republican Party. John P. McGuire
Getting in early
Box Hill, Australia: It seemed that Usha Vance, wife of Vice President JD Vance, was going to visit Greenland for a cultural visit, then with National Security Adviser Mike Waltz to receive a briefing on Arctic security issues. Probably a bit boring, but that’s the nature of a politician’s wife’s role. Now JD is coming along and it means the visit is more formal. As an official visit, they are heading into an unfriendly country and may not be well-received, unlike at home where everyone loves them — or that is what they’re told. Maybe there is a completely different reason for the couple to visit together. They could be looking for a nice, cheap house before the country becomes another American state and house prices surge. It’s probably a farcical suggestion, but so are many of the other proposals coming from the Trump administration. Dennis Fitzgerald
Magic hat?
Brooklyn: Does Elon Musk think wearing his black MAGA hat gives him more authority, especially over Trump? Charlie Pisano
Show ’em how it’s done
Dayton, Ohio: Re “Giving in to presidential bullying” (editorial, March 24): While cowardice is contagious, so is courage. Kudos to Perkins Coie and the Institute of Peace. Trump will always be a bully, but if he meets more resistance, he will be a less effective bully. That’s the best we can hope for from the Putin wannabe. Vic Presutti
Responsible decision
Briarwood: I applaud Sen. Chuck Schumer for crossing party lines to vote no on shutting down the government. He is a true leader and thinker, not pandering to AOC and The Squad. His decision was in the best interest of the country. Patricia Nuzzi
Puzzled out
Manhattan: The March 20 Boggle (words starting and ending with “A”) listed the answers aria, area, amoeba, agenda and ammonia. However, “anemia” can also be formed. That word, though, is in Crossword II, 57 across (blood condition). The puzzles are terrific, and so are the editorials, sports, reporting and comics (notably “Pearls,” “Zits” and “Blondie”). Thank you for your time and consideration. Daniel Stevens
History calls
Manhattan: On March 25, 1911, 146 workers — mostly young Jewish and Italian immigrant women — perished in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. They died because their lives were valued less than the profits their labor generated. But from that tragedy came one of the greatest progressive grassroots movements in history, securing workplace protections. Today, we face threats to the very democracy that drew many of the immigrant women who perished in the fire to America. Attacks on voting rights, immigrant communities and labor protections echo the injustices our founders at the Workers Circle fought over a century ago. We can not afford to be bystanders. Just as Clara Lemlich and Rose Schneiderman organized after the fire, we must mobilize now. Grassroots power — through protest, advocacy and solidarity — remains our strongest weapon. The fight for justice is never over, and history demands we rise to the challenge once again. Ann Toback, CEO, The Workers Circle
Destitute
Commack, L.I.: Every day I read the Daily News, I see how concerned you are about the whole prison population, but I never see how concerned you are about the homeless population. John Flanagan
Heavily tarnished
Manhattan: Much like that summer horsefly you swat at and never seem to eliminate, Andrew Cuomo reinvents himself from villain to persecuted would-be mayor, lying that the federal government ordered him to send COVID patients back to nursing homes, killing more than 6,000, when no such mandate existed. Although Harvey Weinstein was convicted of sexual assault on the testimony of his victims, Cuomo’s victims, although believed by prosecutors, needed corroboration: New York justice, of course. And there’s his $5 million payout for a book praising his “accomplishments” in fighting COVID-19 — illegally partially written by state employees — when we know about those thousands who died unnecessarily. He helped write the directives addressing those deaths to cover up their extent. With all this, he is now the Democratic frontrunner? At what point is this city too far gone to be saved? John Brindisi
Favorable focus
Bronx: In “Is Cuomo the one to beat for City Hall?” (op-ed, March 21), “Be Our Guest” contributor Bradley Tusk exhausts every permutation of the factors that will shape the coming mayoral primary. Scott Stringer, Brad Lander and Jessica Ramos are candidates who are unmentioned. To this reader, Tusk’s analysis favors a win by Cuomo. The slant of his op-ed is consistent with my expectation that the Daily News has already decided to endorse the former governor. Although Speaker Adrienne Adams is named as an entry in the first sentence of the piece, nowhere else is there any explicit reference to why she may be a very viable choice to emerge from the ranked-choice mayoral sweepstakes. I don’t think this omission was unintentional. Fred Smith
Unholy act
Kew Gardens: How in the year 2025 do we still have people who believe they can perform a baptism in their home (“Ma held in bath ‘baptism’ death,” March 23)? They are not ordained clergy and their home is not consecrated ground. It seems organized religions foster ignorance in their parishioners rather than educate. Religion is as bad as politics. Jeff Pullen
