Los Angeles Times
Letters to the Editor: Our soldiers fight for democracy, not the Senate filibuster
To the editor: The politicians today who undermine democracy by supporting the Senate filibuster dishonor the memory of every American soldier who fought and died at Normandy in France and the other World War II battlefields. Those soldiers knew very well who the enemy was — and it wasn’t democracy. (“President Biden urges filibuster changes to protect voting rights,” Jan. 11)
These same politicians should be required to visit the graves of the soldiers who died in Europe defending the world against the nightmare that fascist leaders unleashed.
The gravestones at the Normandy American Cemetery stretch into the horizon in neat rows of white marble stone. They are reminders of the ultimate sacrifice these brave men and women made so future generations would have the freedoms and liberties enshrined in our democratic institutions.
These brave soldiers fought and many of them died to preserve democracy. They did not fight and die to preserve the filibuster.
Dennis Clausen, Escondido
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To the editor: This isn’t just about voting rights or President Biden keeping a campaign promise to his base. Changing the Senate’s filibuster rule to allow a simple vote on a bill protecting ballot access will safeguard our democracy, which is currently under assault, literally as well as politically.
Whatever one’s political persuasion, it should not be contested that the filibuster can be, and is being, weaponized. A carve-out for voting rights will only set a precedent for future exploitation by an opposing party.
But, will a failure to try to enact voting protections make the task of preserving our democracy a higher and steeper climb?
Dan Mariscal, Montebello
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To the editor: Biden spoke of needing to change voting rules.
So tell me, who has been disenfranchised from voting? Who, actually, was just not interested in voting? I ask because I keep hearing more and more people are voting, which makes it a lie that people are being disenfranchised.
And tell me also, if demanding an ID to vote is so onerous, why are we asked to show an ID with our vaccination cards?
Barry Levy, Hawthorne