\u201cI don\u2019t think about Americans\u2019 financial situation.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\nRecently I received an email from my elected representative in full support of the billion-dollar ballroom that Donald Trump has planned for the White House. There was no mention of empathy or actions to assist many Americans struggling with the cost of gas, groceries, healthcare and more.<\/p>\n
The priority is clear. One must protect their political career as We The People remain on life support.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Kathy Ojeda, Merritt Island<\/p>\n
Trump IRS settlement is alarming<\/p>\n
The reported settlement discussions involving Donald Trump\u2019s lawsuit against the IRS and Treasury Department should alarm every American, regardless of political party.<\/p>\n
We are witnessing the extraordinary spectacle of a sitting president pursuing a personal lawsuit against agencies controlled by his own administration. Even more troubling are reports that the Department of Justice may consider a taxpayer-funded payout and possible limits on future IRS audits involving Trump, his family, or associated businesses.<\/p>\n
Think about what that means. The executive branch could potentially use public money to settle a lawsuit benefiting the very person who now heads that branch of government. At the same time, lawful tax oversight could be negotiated away for politically connected individuals.<\/p>\n
Whether technically legal or not, the appearance of conflict of interest and self-dealing is overwhelming. The IRS is supposed to enforce tax law equally. Audits are not political bargaining chips reserved for ordinary citizens while the powerful receive exemptions.<\/p>\n
This issue goes beyond Donald Trump. If Americans begin to believe that presidents can use the machinery of government for personal financial or legal protection, public trust in federal institutions will erode even further.<\/p>\n
No elected official should ever be above independent oversight or equal application of the law.\u00a0 Let your elected officials know your thoughts.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Albert Chastain, Orlando<\/p>\n
Is a coastal city at \u2018point of no return\u2019?<\/p>\n
I just want a livable future for myself and my generation.<\/p>\n
A new study has found that the city of New Orleans has reached a \u201cpoint of no return\u201d on climate change. The researchers conclude that the city could be underwater by the end of this century, and it\u2019s not an exaggeration to say that cities and towns on the Florida coast could suffer a similar fate.<\/p>\n
Southern Louisiana is plagued by coastal erosion, rising sea levels, and stronger and stronger hurricanes. These issues have been exacerbated by the operations of oil and gas companies along the coastline, and efforts to hold them accountable for these impacts have been met with staunch opposition from state leadership and the industry. The study is in the April issue of the journal Nature Sustainability.<\/p>\n
According to the researchers, even if we stopped global warming today, New Orleans is beyond saving and that relocation of residents should begin immediately. They recommend that federal, state and local leaders take a proactive approach to relocation and support infrastructure build-out in safer areas further north.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Elsy Shallman, Loxahatchee<\/p>\n
You can submit a letter to the editor by sending it by email to insight@orlandosentinel.com<\/a> or by filling out the form below. Letters are limited to less than 250 words and must be signed (no pseudonyms nor initials).You must include your email address, address with city and daytime phone number for verification. Letters are subject to editing for clarity and length.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"UCF booing was fearful response In response to \u201cUCF graduates boo \u2018tone deaf\u2019 speaker who praised AI as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":270057,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[1205,482,139,141,140,109,76410],"class_list":["post-275176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-letters-to-the-editor","tag-opinion","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-social","tag-social-opinion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=275176"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275176\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/270057"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=275176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=275176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=275176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}