To the editor: In threatening the Insurrection Act against people protesting against ICE, President Trump is not really trying to protect his agents (“Trump threatens to use the Insurrection Act again. Could he follow through with it?,” Jan. 15). He is trying to curb free speech that he finds threatening.
Time and again, Trump has acted out of his fear: fear of outsiders with his anti-immigration policies and his absurdist threat to take over Greenland because we “need it for national security.” Fear of his own people with his cuts to benefits, especially for states that don’t toe his line, and threats to elections that might put people unlike him in office. He even fears members of his own party whom he threatens when they don’t behave the way he wants them to.
This is the behavior of a bully — someone who, out of fear, targets those who can’t easily fight back. Worse, in a supposed world leader, it’s also the behavior of a dictator.
Katie Waitman, Los Angeles
..
To the editor: I have a few questions: If the goal of the Department of Homeland Security is to apprehend, prosecute and deport undocumented immigrants who have committed serious crimes, do they have a list of suspects? If not, how do they know that there are thousands of immigrants committing crimes? If they have a list, can they use their powerful investigative tools to discover the locations of these perpetrators? Then they could actually target these individuals and arrest them. There would be no need to storm into neighborhoods and pull random people out of cars, off the sidewalk, from Home Depot parking lots.
I believe that if ICE was actually pursuing the goal of apprehending, detaining and removing “the worst of the worst,” it would have the support of the American public. Given the current ICE tactics, I don’t think you can blame people for resisting, protesting and trying to protect their neighbors. I think Americans want justice, order and peace in our communities, not masked marauders who disturb the peace and incite anger and fear.
If our federal government continues on this path, we can only expect things to get worse.
Laurie Jacobs, San Clemente
..
To the editor: Why is it that Trump wants to protect the protesters in Iran, but he threatens protesters in his own country with the Insurrection Act?
The easiest way to stop the protests here would be to remove ICE from our cities. How can he not see the obvious connection between ICE and protests, and the similarity of the protests here and in Iran?
Barbara Strout, Whittier
