OPINION
The Chronicle i
Ernest H. Pitt
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1974-2015
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Imagine who
could lead U.S.
best in another
911 tragedy
It was the year 2000, a presidential election year.
The campaigning was bitter, but the outcome was
even more so. Remember the hanging chads and
how the U.S. Supreme Court chose George W. Bush
as president over A1 Gore?
Then remember that about nine months after
Bush was sworn in as president, the 911 tragedy hap
pened on Sept. 11,2001.
Bush was having photo opportunities in Florida
when the attacks came. Many accuse Bush of fleeing
across the country as New York City and the
Pentagon were attacked and at least one plane was
headed to attack another target, possibly the White
House, but was stopped.
But Bush eventually emerged to take charge from
a safe place. He said the United States would fight
back, and we did, although the target was wrong.
Iraq was attacked, although that country was not
directly tied to the 911 attacks.
This coming Sunday marks the 15th anniversary
of the 911 tragedy. We are in another election year
with bitter campaigning. The Democrat, Hillary
Clinton, and the Republican, Donald Trump, are in a
tight race. We have weeks before the Nov. 8 election.
What will the outcome be?
Will the U.S. Supreme Court choose our presi
dent again? Oh, wait: There are only eight justices
working this time. The court split 4 to 4 in voting on
a stay of the 4th Circuit Court's ruling against North
Carolina's massive 2013 voting law, which means
the 4th Circuit Court's ruling striking down the law
stands. With the Republicans' refusal to work with
President Obama to name a new justice to replace
Antonin Scalia, there is no ninth justice on the
bench, as there was in 2000.
So, the Electoral College's vote probably will
decide our next president. .
Imagine what would happen if the new president
is confronted with a 911-type tragedy months after
taking office. Who would you want that president to
be?
Who could make the quick decisions to make us
safe? Who could marshal the military to fight the
enemy? Who could be able to work with Congress to
get the funding needed to help people, families and
businesses recover let alone get the money to bolster
the military in the fight against the enemy? Who
could give us hope, mourn with us and embolden us
to keep going?
Donald Trump has shown that he could not make
America great again in a time of trouble. He says he
knows more than the generals in our military. But
how can that be true when he has never fought in a
war and in fact dodged fighting in a war? How can
he show the temperament and compassion needed to
guide the United States in troubling times when dur
ing his campaign he changes what he says at the
drop of a tweet? What would he do as president
when he can't tweet like he can as a private citizen?
What would he do with the religious and ethnic
minorities? Would he put them in some kind of
camps and say that he has to find out why the United
States was attacked, so until he does, he will have to
put all minorities away?
Hillary Clinton has said she would be president
for everyone, the people who vote for her and those
who don't. She has been in the Situation Room and
worked with the military and Congress and has
already mourned with us in troubled times.
We hope there will not be another 911 -type attack
on the United States. But if there were, we believe
Hillary Clinton would be the kind of president the
United States should have.
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
GOP, Democratic
presidential
hopefuls are both
scary
To the Editor:
One candidate has "made bil
lions" saying "YOU'RE FIRED" and
"IN REAL ESTATE," on the backs of
small contractors he's bankrupted by
building his palaces and casinos.
Though running for president, he
refuses to disclose any Financial infor
mation, even whether or not he pays
taxes.
He admires Vladimir and
Saddam. He accuses his opponent of
having every character flaw he
flaunts.
Where is the media outcry for his
tax returns, conflicts of interest,
health records and foreign entangle
ments? All we know is that he's
stiffed small businesses and 'Trump
U" students, insulted Hispanics,
African-Americans, war heroes,
grieving parents, women and
Muslims, and manufactures his prod
ucts in China and Bangladesh.
On international television he tells
his opponents "to go F$#? them
selves!" He's so utterly unfit for the
presidency that he's scary!
The other candidate has released
30-plus years of tax returns and spent
her entire adult life in public service
under the grueling media spotlight -
not to become a billionaire reality TV
star, but to stand up for her family and
all American families.
Before she was asked to serve as
Secretary of State, her family estab
lished a charity that has helped mil
lions around the world and is interna
tionally respected.
She is by all measures the most
qualified candidate for President, and
one of the best-liked Americans on
earth! Nonetheless, every aspect of
her life has been under relentless,
merciless criticism, because she's
scary too! She is, after all, a strong,
smart, experienced, passionate and
capable woman.
Ann Guill
Winston-Salem
Donald Trump
doesn't speak for
this black woman,
black community
To the Editor:
Donald Trump doesn't speak for
me or the African-American commu
nity. It's insulting and offensive that
Donald Trump thinks one church
appearance will undo the divisive
undertone of his campaign.
He's played to misleading stereo
types about people of color, courted
white nationalists with a wink and a
nod, and up until now he has refused
to speak in front of a black audience.
Black America is fully aware of
what's at stake with a Trump presi
dency, and his vision for America
hardly includes us. Trump wants to
repeal the Affordable Care Act with
out even thinking through how it
would hurt African-Americans. He's
repeated by likened inner cities to
war zones, and he refused to dis
avow an endorsement from former
KKK leader David Duke four times
in one interview.
Hillary Clinton gets it. She began
her career working for the Children's
Defense Fund, where she investigat
ed segregation in Alabama schools.
Clinton helped expand Head Start,
and sponsored laws to end racial pro
filing. There couldn't be a clearer
contrast between the Democratic and
Republican candidates, and I'm
standing with her because I know
she'll stand with me.
Virgie M. Rollins, a Michigan
native
Democratic National Committee
Black Caucus Chairwoman
Detroit, Michigan
President Obama
got it right:
Sentencing reform
needed in UJS.
To the Editor:
House Judiciary Committee
Ranking Member John Conyers Jr.
(D-Michigan) and House Judiciary
Crime Subcommittee Ranking
Member Sheila Jackson Lee (D
Texas) released the following state
ments after the White House
announced the commutation of the
sentences of 111 individuals last
week:
Conyers: "We are grateful for
having worked with President
Obama to make reforms to our crim
inal justice system. Without his per
sistent leadership, this would not
have happened. It adds to the legacy
of the 44th President. This is the
right thing to do, but it is only a par
tial solution to the problem. My
position consistently has been that
Congress needs to take action to
reform sentencing laws to prevent
unfair and unjust sentences from
being imposed in the first place.
I appreciate the President's sup
port for legislation we have been
working on to reform sentencing and
other aspects of our criminal justice
svstem."
Jackson Lee: "I am encouraged
by President Obama's commutation
of sentences of 111 individuals -
who were all victims of unjust sen
tencing. Nearly all of these men and
women would have been released
and contributing back to society
already had they been convicted
under today's laws or reform propos
als. I welcome and applaud the com-,
mutations of the sentences of these .
individuals. Incarcerating people for
unwarranted lengths of time serves
no constructive purpose. The
President has recognized this, as has
Attorney General Loretta Lynch, and
I hope the Administration's
Clemency Project will continue to
address the multitude of cases in
which sentence reductions are appro
priate. Of course, the need to engage
in such a broad review of sentences
exists largely because our sentencing
laws and policies, particularly for
drug offenses, urgently need to be
changed. We need to eliminate
mandatory minimum sentencing and
let judges impose appropriate sen
tences based on the facts and circum
stances of each case, and we should
eliminate the higher penalties for
crack cocaine relative to powder
cocaine offenses. I am heartened
that there is a growing, bipartisan
recognition of the problem of over
incarceration and I hope this will
lead to sentencing reform this
Congress."
U.S. Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D
Michigan)
U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee
(D-Texas)
House Judiciary Committee
Members
Washington, D.C.
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