LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

No one is above the law

Attorney Michael Cohen, left, talks to CNN freelance producer Wes Bruer as he walks in New York, Wednesday, April 11, 2018. Federal agents who raided the office of President Donald Trump's personal attorney were looking for information about payments to a former Playboy playmate and a porn actress who claim to have had affairs with Trump, two people familiar with the investigation said.

I took issue with The Blade’s April 11 editorial, “What next?”. The statement that “[this sort of thing] has never happened to a president and his lawyer” is not accurate. Previous presidents have faced several legal issues. Bill Clinton (Whitewater and Monica Lewinsky), Richard Nixon (Watergate), and Ronald Reagan (Contra affair) all had legal battles during their presidencies. They all were thoroughly investigated.

Secondly, the evidence for this raid was presented to a grand jury. The grand jury was compelled, by the evidence, to issue the warrants. The “rule of law” was followed. This raid was not executed by a rogue agency or KGB-type organization.

The definition of a “republic” states the supreme power is held by the people, not a president or, further back, a monarch. Whereas The Blade states that this investigation is an attack on the “republic,” it is actually the opposite. In a republic, no one person is above the law.

TOM SHOOK

Maumee

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Good ideas will face resistance

The Blade’s April 9 editorial, “A mall revival,” reminded me of a similar event.

In 1979, University of Toledo President Glen Driscoll made a decision to eliminate a faculty/​staff parking lot and two WWII-era wooden “barracks” type buildings in the center of the campus to create what is now known as Centennial Mall. That decision was not welcomed by many faculty and staff, and resulted in a number of very nasty letters to the president about losing “their parking lot.” The mall was finished just one year later.

So, The Blade’s comment “it seems everyone talks a good game ... but no one ever seems to get moving on plans” is a telling one. Centennial Mall happened because of strong leadership. Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz needs to get this done.

DICK EASTOP
Sylvania

Protect all free expression

Thank you for printing the very concerning essay from Juli Briskman (April 9, “Suing for the right to flip off the President”). This essay confirms what so many of us are afraid of: loss of freedom of speech.

I was born at the beginning of WWII when we fought for our freedoms. Today, we still must fight and protect our rights. So, my thanks to Ms. Briskman and my condemnation to her employer for firing her for exercising her rights.

BEVERELY RENO
South Toledo