Letters: A felon is disqualified from voting

On November 6, 2024By Littum

No vote, but a criminal could run for president

Does the irony of this strike any other readers?

“Fla. High Court may hear voter case,” an Oct. 26 Herald-Tribune article cites the case of a man who, because he committed a sex crime 35 years ago, voted “illegally” in 2022.

The constitutional amendment approved by Florida voters in 2018 allows felons to vote, but excludes sex offenders and murderers.

The case of this one man has bounced back and forth in the courts and has cost at least tens of thousands of dollars for Gov. Ron DeSantis and his henchmen to “target the alleged voter fraud by convicted felons.”

Yet a man convicted of sexual abuse and convicted of 34 felonies is allowed to run for president (“Jury Finds Donald Trump Liable in E. Jean Carroll Civil Sex Abuse Case,” May 9, 2023) ?

Too bad the law-and-order Florida lawmakers didn’t step up to support a federal law that would ban sex offenders from running for president. If they had, we wouldn’t be in our current national situation.

Vote for the only sane person on the ballot.

Joyce Edleman, Venice

Learn from the past: Don’t exclude immigrants

We have heard a lot about immigration in this political campaign.

Former President Donald Trump wants to kick out all illegals, about 11 million people who work and live in this country. We do not get more details about the feasibility and consequences of such a drastic policy.

Let’s revisit history for a brief moment and talk about Chinese Exclusion Act. Passed in 1882, it suspended immigration of Chinese workers (skilled or unskilled) with severe consequences.

There was a labor shortage, Chinese society became isolated, and discrimination against Asians grew. Not the most glorifying chapter in our history.

The Exclusion Act was not repealed until 1943. But it could be revived to end all immigration for Latinos or, as Donald Trump so elegantly put it once, immigration from “s——-” countries.

The rhetoric is always the same:

“They” are taking our jobs.

“They” are not to be trusted.

“Our white civilization is in danger.”

We should not again fall into the trap of excluding people who simply need to live. We should admit our past mistakes and not listen again to the ugly cries of white nationalism.

Christine Deutsch, Sarasota

Regulations equal quality and safety

In an Oct. 29 guest column, Peter Dyga — executive director of the Associated Builders and Contractors Florida East Coast Chapter — expressed his desire for a president who would dramatically reduce government regulation (“Trump’s focus on cutting red tape would help businesses”).

I understand his perspective: less regulation equals more profit. But as a consumer, I am interested in safe, high-quality products, even when the short-term costs are higher.

There are many examples that affect the entire spectrum of our lives – from building codes to medical efficacy to food and water quality to vehicle safety. I have seen many cases where inadequate regulation has had disastrous consequences.

When Florida introduced stronger building codes, ie. more regulation, in the early 2000s, dramatically improved the hurricane survivability of homes, including mobile homes. Builders did not like the new rules because they increased construction costs.

My house was built in 1999. A major national insurance company would not insure my home because it was not built to the new stronger standards.

While some builders put quality first, I know from personal experience that not all are competent. Regulation helps offset incompetence.

In January 2001, the Herald-Tribune published a full-page article about the lessons I learned about quality problems that build homes. Reasonable regulations equal accountability, quality and safety.

Joe Harb, Lakewood Ranch