Library-goers read near the stacks at the Fresno County Central Library on Mariposa Street in downtown Fresno on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. The proposal to privatize the Fresno County Public Library threatens 115 years of public service and free, safe community spaces.
Thaddeus Miller
tmiller@fresnobee.com
Keep the library public
“Fresno Supervisor Bredefeld’s push to privatize library is distressing | Opinion,” (fresnobee.com, July 19)
Privatization of the library system in Fresno County is a bad idea. The Fresno County Public Library is 115 years old. It has been a public entity the entire time.
Libraries provide more than books to our communities. They provide a free, safe space to be. They provide classes (crocheting, gardening and chess, for example), and the librarians are trained to provide safety to people seeking it.
Fresno Supervisor Garry Bredefeld’s claim that privatizing the library will make up a budget deficit is patently false. The only part of the library budget that comes from county funds is the head librarian’s salary and benefits. Every other service, salary and benefit is paid by Measure B, a sales tax approved by voters.
Shannon Wise
Fresno
Reject SAVE Act, restore voting rights
“U.S. Supreme Court lets Voting Rights Act ruling take effect ahead of schedule,” (fresnobee.com, May 4)
August marks the 61st anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 — a monumental law built on the patriotic principle that every American citizen deserves an unhindered voice in our democracy. Yet, some politicians are proposing the SAVE Act to save us from a threat that is almost entirely mythical.
Supporters of the act insist that it stops noncitizens from casting ballots. But even the conservative Heritage Foundation’s own voter fraud database found fewer than 100 cases of noncitizens voting out of well over a billion votes cast over several decades.
Our problem isn’t noncitizens voting; it’s that roughly 35% to 40% of eligible American citizens don’t vote. Instead of making voting easier, the SAVE Act requires documents — like original birth certificates or passports — that millions of ordinary Americans simply do not have.
Disenfranchising legitimate American voters over a nonexistent problem isn’t voter security; it is un-American, un-patriotic and an insult to our intelligence.
Let’s honor the Voting Rights Act by opening the doors to voters and encouraging them to reject the SAVE Act.
Eric Peterson
Santa Rosa
Corruption continues
“Senate confirms Todd Blanche as new attorney general,” (fresnobee.com, Aug. 8)
The attorney general must be independent from the president and committed to upholding the rule of law. Todd Blanche’s unyielding loyalty to President Donald Trump makes it clear that he cares about neither independence nor the rule of law.
Blanche has helped Trump transform the Department of Justice into a department of revenge, retribution and corruption. As attorney general, he will continue to enable this regime’s rampant illegalities.
Paul Bacon
Hallandale Beach, Fla.
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