To the editor: There should be no debate between President Biden and former President Trump. A man is president of the country; the other is under multiple criminal charges. (“Biden and Trump agree to debates: June 27 on CNN, September 10 on ABC,” May 15)
In a court of law, Trump is innocent until proven guilty. But he doesn't get that pass in the political arena, where he is convicted of insurrection along with people like Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee.
Seeing Trump next to Biden fosters a sense of equivalence between the two men, when there is none. Everyone knows what happened on January 6, 2021: Trump whipped up an angry crowd to stop the counting of electoral college votes that would make Biden's victory official. The insurgents have no options or opportunity to debate the winners.
Should we have given Bernard Madoff time to justify how he defrauded investors of billions? He was a criminal who did not deserve our attention or respect.
Trump doesn't deserve our attention or our hug either. He attempted to impose mob rule over the rule of law. He attempted to elevate himself as an undisputed leader. He tried to kill our nation and for that reason we should prevent him or, better yet, imprison him if he is convicted.
Trump has no place on a dais alongside the legitimate president of the United States.
J. Michael Atherton, Dover, New Hampshire
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To the editor: Before agreeing to debate, Biden should have insisted on one condition: that Trump publicly admit that he lost a fair election in 2020. By not doing so, Biden is normalizing seditious behavior.
Kelly Gallagher, Santa Ana
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To the editor: To prevent this year's presidential debates from being absolutely unwatchable and infuriating, as they have been recently, the networks need to have microphone control.
They should turn on a candidate's microphone only when it is their turn to speak and turn it off immediately afterward. This would avoid interruptions and the generally disorderly behavior we have seen in previous debates.
Linda Garris, Marina del Rey
