Kobach on trade, Pence in KC and NATO spending levels

On the other foot

Anyone notice the irony of the liberals now complaining about the possibility of activist judges? They are complaining that judges might rule on their personal feelings instead of the law.

Where have they been?

Larry Dickstein

Lone Jack

Kansas first?

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach said, “I think we have to back the president up and see what happens” in regards to President Donald Trump’s trade war. (July 7, 4A, “Colyer, Kobach back Trump as trade war farmers feared begins”)

Didn’t Kobach recommend waiting to see what happened with former Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback’s tax experiment?

Kobach also said, “The chief executive of the United States has got to be able to have a stiff upper lip and not waver in order to get what the country needs out of this negotiation.”

It is easy for a wealthy New Yorker to risk Kansas agricultural profits for the possibility of benefits mostly to Wall Street. Trump has a long history of losing others’ money. And he is not willing to reveal his tax returns to demonstrate his business acumen — and to shed light on how the trade wars might benefit him.

Do not forget his quivering lip when he found that lifting sanctions on Chinese telecommunications company ZTE could help his bottom line.

It is hard to understand why Kansas leaders advise us to support exactly the type of person who brought us the 2008 recession. New Yorkers did very well on that deal. And Kansas not so much.

Richard Whitehouse

Olathe

Not a waste

I found Melinda Henneberger’s July 11 column, “Claire McCaskill’s no-win vote on Brett Kavanaugh,” interesting. (15A) But I must take issue with her implication that a no vote on Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court would be a waste of McCaskill’s vote and would increase the likelihood of Attorney General Josh Hawley winning Missouri’s Senate seat.

Speaking only for myself, I vote for what candidates stand for — whether they are true to their own values. That requires a strength of character and must not be confused with slavish party allegiance or political expedience.

I believe McCaskill is just such a strong force and was elected on that basis, among others.

What’s good for Missouri? Certainly not Kavanaugh, just as President Donald Trump isn’t good for Missouri.

Despite the rhetoric about Roe v. Wade, even Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has said it was a mistake not to let the state-by-state referendum continue. There are larger issues.

Kavanaugh will be confirmed with or without McCaskill. Please don’t suggest she not vote her conscience.

Katie Linder

Prairie Village

Level playing field

If the president thinks our NATO allies are taking advantage of us by spending only 2 percent of GDP on defense, as a retired U.S. Army colonel, I have an easy solution: Just align U.S. spending on defense to match NATO countries by reducing our spending from 3.6 percent of GDP — not including things such as nuclear weapons or the Department of Veterans Affairs — to 2 percent. (July 12, 1A, “Trump pushed NATO allies to boost their spending”)

Then we could devote an extra $270 billion every year to the infrastructure plan the president proposed then abandoned.

Richard J.

Randolph III

Lenexa

Our own thing

Did I miss something? We African-Americans have been cooking barbecue for as long and as well as any people in this country. Why do we need to be validated by people who have shown they have no desire to include us? (July 9, 9A, “It’s time to diversify the Barbecue Hall of Fame”)

Let’s form our own African-American barbecue hall of fame and get on with our lives.

James E. Carr

Kansas City

Behind the curtain

The Star’s coverage of Vice President Mike Pence’s visit to our city showed friendly crowds accepting his speech, which launched criticisms at Sen. Claire McCaskill’s voting record. (July 12, 1A, “VP Pence tears into McCaskill, shrugs off disruptions at KC event”)

Hopefully, folks will critique McCaskill’s record through the eyes of the common good and democratic ideals, and find that tax breaks for the wealthy, rollbacks on health care for pre-existing conditions and anti-worker and anti-education policies deserve a no vote.

Pence made no mention of the debacle on the southern border leaving numerous children separated from their parents, the administration’s pro-Russian sentiments or the many corruptions connected with this administration — ousted EPA chief Scott Pruitt being the latest — or a Supreme Court nominee who may believe the president is above the law.

Thankfully, most people are not not fooled by such visits.

JoCele McEnany