Letters to the Editor: Richard Nixon was bad, but Trump is far more dangerous

To the editor: Those of us who lived through and watched the news during the Watergate era when President Richard Nixon finally resigned after a drawn-out scandal over his abuse of power will also remember the “silent majority.” (“Impeaching Trump on the phone call alone won’t go far enough,” Opinion, Sept. 29)

What was apparent then and is now is that no matter how depraved the president is, he or she will always have a huge segment of the population’s support.

Trump is a much more sinister character than Nixon and also a veteran and master manipulator from his years on prime-time television. Add to that his use of social media, and we have a recipe for turmoil that we did not in the 1970s.

Nixon finally resigned despite having enough Republicans in the Senate to avoid conviction after impeachment. What’s different is that back then, we still had elected officials who put country over party. Those days are apparently gone.

The question remains: Will our constitutional democracy remain intact from this point forward?

David Novis, Santa Barbara

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To the editor: I agree with James Reston Jr. that impeaching Trump solely over his call with the Ukrainian leader will not be sufficient.

If the House is smart, it will go further.

Our taxpayer dollars have poured into Trump’s pockets. The Government Accountability Office reports that in 2017, just four trips by the president to his Mar-a-Lago resort in south Florida cost taxpayers $13.6 million. And, how about our military planes stopping at a small airport in Scotland that happens to be close to one of Trump’s struggling golf resorts?

There’s more than enough to get rid of this man who uses taxpayers to inflate his ego and his bank account.

Eileen M. Elvins, Dana Point

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To the editor: Upon the departure of Nixon, who engaged in a cover-up and then lied about it, President Gerald Ford told the country in his inaugural address, “My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over.”

It is now time for Trump to depart and to end this second nightmare, so that the overwhelming damage he has done to the world, to our country and its citizens can be mitigated.

Failure to rid ourselves of Trump will leave an indelible blot on our society.

Bill Waxman, Simi Valley