Clemens: Laying out some facts about Donald Trump

Mr. Jeff Hague’s Opinion was void of fact checking (“Biden to blame for much of nation’s problems"). Yes, Donald Trump is entitled to due process. He was not entitled to make up new rules of how to reverse an election loss that led to many of his 91 felony charges. They will have to invent a new deck of cards for him to be absolved of these charges if he is convicted. One way to create that new deck is for him to win the election and pardon himself. That is not inconceivable. Some may call it dirty pool or a stacked deck of cards.

Thank you, Mr. Hague, for pointing out exactly what President Joe Biden actually said compared to what Mr. Frank Daniels claimed the president said in his Opinion titled, “Weak leadership causes death of three service members.” Mr. Daniels erroneously claimed that “President Biden told the world that a ‘minor’ invasion of Ukraine was OK.” Once again, I repeat, that was a false assertion by Mr. Daniels. There is no such thing as a “minor invasion” in any dictionary. An invasion typically involves a larger force with a strategic plan aiming for longer-term control or annexation of a territory, which is exactly what the Russian military’s goal was.

Mr. Hague correctly pointed out that Biden suggested at a news conference Jan. 19, 2022, that there was a split among NATO members about how to respond if Moscow took action that stopped short of sending its troops across the border. Biden referred to this as a “minor incursion.” An incursion is typically viewed by the international community as a minor violation potentially addressed through diplomacy. In contrast, an invasion results in wider condemnation, leading to conflicts or wars. Biden concluded by saying that “what you are going to see is that Russia will be held accountable if it invades. And it depends on what it does.” Biden once again took the “leadership role” in NATO by pointing out what the alternative strategies would be if Russia invaded Ukraine.

In conclusion, it is difficult to understand what Mr. Hague’s definition of a far-left liberal is. President Trump raised the federal deficit more than Biden did during his four years in office. Eighty percent of the $1.9 trillion tax cut passed by the Republicans went to the richest people in the nation. Biden advised in his State of the Union speech that we have a thousand billionaires in the country, and they pay an average of 8.2% in taxes. These tax deductions for the richest among us are far-right conservative policies.

In closing, we can sustain present Social Security payouts if every Social Security recipient that makes over $400,000 a year, as Biden suggested, pays more taxes to sustain this program. If that notion is perceived as far-left liberal by Mr. Hague, he may not be differentiating the forest from the trees.

Bill Clemens

Magnolia

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