Re: Josh Heath, commentary, March 26.
Mr. Heath, perhaps inadvertently, picked an interesting day on which to publish a column asserting that the press needs to be protected from criticism, criticizing President Trump, and asserting that our political leaders “need to use their power with wisdom and [not] try to persuade constituents to chase paranoid delusions.” We have just spent two-plus years on a “paranoid delusion” created by the media and Democrat politicians alleging Trump collusion with Russians. After thousands of man hours and tens of millions of dollars spent on an investigation that involved over 500 witnesses, thousands of document searches, etc., the special prosecutor, who up until this point both sides of the political aisle have praised as fair and obviously thorough, issued a report in which he stated that no American colluded or conspired with the Russian efforts to affect the 2016 presidential campaign, including President Trump and the members of his campaign.
During that period the press, or at least much of it, breathlessly serenaded us with news reports, commentators and “experts” who repeatedly provided us with false news stories, and false assertions that the president was a Russian agent; that the president colluded with Russians; that the president was a Russian troll/puppet — take your pick; and that the president was a traitor. All the while Democrat politicians insisted that the evidence of collusion was “in plain sight,” It must be nothing short of a miracle in Rep. Adam Schiff’s mind that the Mueller investigation failed to stumble upon all this evidence in plain sight, despite what can only be described as almost “Herculean” efforts to do so.
I happen to agree with Mr. Heath that our politicians need to use their “power with wisdom,” and to not persuade their “constituents to chase paranoid delusions.” Where I disagree with Mr. Heath is that perhaps his time would be better spent taking a closer look at his side of the political spectrum — the Democratic Voices side — who have led us down this path. I know Trump is hardly a saint, and I readily admit he has his failings. (I have been around for every administration since the Truman administration — I do not recall any saints, and certainly the Clinton and Obama administrations do not meet that profile). I wonder if Mr. Heath can bring himself to say the same about Adam Schiff, Hillary Clinton (the person who started this entire charade by hiring a British ex-spy to collude with the Russians in producing a fabulist dossier), and even Katie Hill, who has voted to take away our right to free speech under the guise of taking “money out of politics.”
Mr. Heath needs to look at the press as it is currently constituted and see that it has its flaws, which Americans, even the president, are free to criticize.
In that connection it is no answer to say to the other side of a discussion that its concerns are “paranoid delusions.” Respect for our fellow citizens requires that we engage them in a meaningful, fair-minded discussion of the facts. The point is not to shut down the discussion. The point is to persuade, like recognizing that thousands of illegal immigrants are crossing our border, asserting false asylum claims, and being released into our country, on a promise to return for a hearing, which almost none of them do.
Instead of asserting that it is a “paranoid delusion” to be concerned about these events, Mr. Heath should simply say what he thinks about this problem (perhaps that it doesn’t matter because illegal immigration is down or in his opinion is good for our country), so we can have a discussion about whether and how to address the issue.
Stephen Maseda
Valencia
