Satcher wants to block free and fair elections in Manatee County

Elections supervisor wrong for the job

The developer puppet, Supervisor of Elections James Satcher, spells big trouble for Manatee County. He is disenfranchising voters and politicizing his role − and he has only been in the position a couple of months.

He recently followed the authoritarian playbook by not allowing an election for one of the open School Board seats. Gov. Ron DeSantis will decide for us with an appointment.

Satcher is also trotting out his one-trick-pony argument blaming “the left” for the push to get voters to change their political affiliation so they can vote against him in the Republican primary.

Maybe he doesn’t realize, or perhaps he doesn’t care, that the voters only have Republican candidates in his race so the primary decides the winner. And maybe there are lots of us who want the highly experienced Scott Farrington to take over this important post.

Satcher may be the incumbent (only because he was appointed by DeSantis) but Farrington is the obvious choice. For a free and fair election, vote for Farrington, former chief of staff in the elections office.

Kristina Skepton, Bradenton

Ten Commandments don’t belong in school

Re the June 26 letter advocating the placement of the Ten Commandments in public schools:

The writer is “informed” by a 1970s seminary course and some 1930s textbooks. I’m informed by history and the U.S. Constitution, which makes it clear that the government cannot push or favor any religion.

She suggests the Ten Commandments can be taught because they are nonsectarian “history,” when in fact the first four command us to believe in God.

She suggests the founders believed it was “self-evident” there was “nature’s God.” Perhaps, but they still insisted the government could not require this belief. Many did not practice a religion and were opposed to the “establishment thereof.”

The writer posits the founders’ belief in God led them to state “all men are created equal.” Wrong. To them, “men” meant white males of a certain class. Most of the founders enslaved people and engaged in human trafficking. They wrote a Constitution that did not prohibit slavery.

The author suggests our rights come from God, when in fact our rights are earned by the sacrifice of people fighting for their rights.

The writer gets right that “our Constitution is enduring American law,” yet advocates violating the very first amendment.

Robert J. Catineau, Sarasota

GOP stands in way of immigration reform

Several months ago, President Joe Biden successfully negotiated a bipartisan immigration reform package that was set to be passed by Congress. The legislation was stalled by House Republicans at the request of former President Donald Trump to force immigration to become a GOP election issue.

In the absence of congressional action, Biden announced an executive order to address immigration concerns. In response to Republican claims that his executive order was an “election ploy,” the president declared, “I will work with anyone to solve these problems. That’s my responsibility as president. That’s our responsibility as Americans.”

I would add it’s also the responsibility of the U.S. House.

Under the new policy, undocumented spouses of American citizens will be shielded from deportation and given a pathway to citizenship and the ability to work here legally. The policy would help people who have been living in the U.S. for more than a decade.

“We’re a nation of immigrants,” Biden said. “That’s who we are.”

It’s true. All of our families, at some point, traveled here from somewhere outside the U.S.

Cheryl Huber, Port Charlotte

Court decision safeguards Americans online

In rejecting a challenge to the authority of the federal government’s ability to communicate with social media companies on issues related to harmful and manipulated information, the Supreme Court demonstrated levelheadedness by safeguarding Americans from the dangers of malformation.

The court’s choice to turn down the plaintiff’s allegations of being victims of government-backed censorship preserves the ability of independent researchers, civil society groups and the government itself to collaborate on protecting national security and acting to prevent the digital amplification of maligned foreign influence operations.

Ill-intentioned bad actors who subvert the information ecosystem often do so for personal, political or financial gain, and cannot be permitted to put the well-being of Americans communities at risk without repercussions, including fact-checking and removal from digital outlets.

Oscar Portillo, Sarasota