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Congress must act

To the Journal editor:

Fred Jakobcic’s letter to the editor in the April 10 edition of The Mining Journal paints an all too accurate account of the direction this country is headed under the presidency of Donald Trump.

Further, the events of this past week demonstrate the increasing pace of his apparent disdain for democratic values and the rule of law. The dismemberment of the Department of Homeland Security, the testimonies of Attorney General Barr and Secretary of the Treasury Mnuchin before congressional committees which reflect their allegiance to the interests of the president rather than to their Constitutional duty to the country, and tweets designed to target a certain member of Congress as a terrorist all reflect the activities of a president who feels increasingly he can govern by autocratic fiat.

And while many of us have placed our hope on the election of 2020, the uncomfortable truth is that may be too late. Only Congress can act now to check Trump’s reckless lurch toward autocracy.

At the very least through its Constitutional mandate to serve as oversight of the presidency, Congress can demand the full, unredacted Mueller Report, its supporting evidence and Trump’s tax returns. And we can assist in making those demands if we 1) call the Office of the Attorney General (1-202-353-1555) to urge the release to Congress of the full Mueller report and 2) call the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury (1-202-622-2000) to demand the release of Trump’s tax returns.

We like to characterize our government as of the people, for the people, and by the people. Well, we the people, if that government is to survive, need to engage directly and continually with those in whose hands that government is now held.

FRANCES O’NEILL

Gwinn

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