色多多

Democrat politicians and liberal newscasters are now coming out of the woodwork to reverse (or ignore) their previously stated denial that former President Joe Biden had any mental acuity issues when he was in office 鈥� and that it鈥檚 time to move forward.

You need not be a political savant to know that moving forward for the Democrats will require significant change. They need newer, younger leadership. The party needs to move more to the political center from the far left. And they need to develop a new platform and policies that are more relevant to voters.

To be successful, these changes must be accompanied by some commonsense thinking and actions. The Democrats should stop constantly attacking Trump and calling him Hitler. It hasn鈥檛 worked to date. And 鈥渘ot Trump鈥� is not a positive statement about plans or ideas that the Democrats have to offer.

The Democrats need to do a better job of listening to and understanding voters while minimizing the erroneous influence of the progressive Democratic coastal elites.

They also need to 鈥渙wn鈥� issues where the Republicans are vulnerable and where Democrats have substantial credibility: child care, health care, education and social issues.

The Democrats need to join the Republicans on issues where bipartisanship makes sense. Demonstrating the ability to work with Republicans is an optic that will serve them well in the midterm elections.

If the Democrats want to retain and maintain power, they need to stop putting 鈥渟pin鈥� on everything that doesn鈥檛 go their way, or with which they disagree. American voters are too smart and hardened to buy into all that nonsense. They should also stop obfuscating with Trump comparative 鈥渨hataboutisms鈥� and operate in a much more transparent way.

It鈥檚 all an uphill battle to be sure. But as Trump has demonstrated, uphill battles can be fought and won.

Bruce Kelley

Henrico

Richmond lucky to have Scott Morris

I would like to thank and congratulate Scott Morris, director of the Richmond Department of Public Utilities, for his comprehensive and thorough memorandum to City Council on our struggling water system earlier this month.

Morris is laying out a solid path forward. Though lengthy, complicated and expensive, Morris鈥� 10-year plan is frankly realistic 鈥� no excuses, no politics, no games.

It won鈥檛 be easy, it won鈥檛 be fast 鈥� but most importantly, it won鈥檛 be just another stop-gap Band-Aid. We are indeed as he put it, 鈥渜uite literally, rebuilding this plane while flying it.鈥� We are lucky to have him as our pilot.

Ellen LeCompte

Richmond

Hold elected leaders accountable for messaging

As a citizen who values open, honest communication from our elected leaders, I am increasingly concerned about the tools they use to reach us.

Our representatives in Congress and our president list social media sites on their official governmental websites. They regularly post messages, updates and report official actions on platforms like Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Truth Social, Instagram and YouTube 鈥� sites owned by powerful corporations, individuals who have donated to politicians, a 鈥渟pecial government employee,鈥� or in the case of Truth Social, an elected politician.

These platforms don鈥檛 just relay messages 鈥� they filter and amplify them through algorithms designed to keep us scrolling, not informed. Studies show these algorithms favor sensationalism and reinforce ideological echo chambers regardless of accuracy.

When our representatives rely on these platforms, they send our attention 鈥� and our trust 鈥� through systems that may distort their messages and enrich political donors and politicians. Their use of these platforms represents a clear conflict of interest.

This isn鈥檛 about silencing anyone or rejecting technology. It鈥檚 about fairness, transparency and restoring the integrity of public discourse. Our representatives should model the kind of communication we expect in a healthy democracy: open, nonpartisan and accountable.

I urge our elected officials to post all official updates first on their .gov websites; make use of their franking privilege; offer email, newsletter and RSS options; and consider using apolitical alternatives like Mastodon or Bluesky. Further, I encourage them to discontinue the use of biased and conflicted platforms until they are no longer in office. These changes wouldn鈥檛 limit access 鈥� they would enhance it, ensuring that every constituent has equal, unfiltered access to the information they need to make informed decisions.

If you agree, please write to your elected officials. Let鈥檚 hold our leaders to a higher standard 鈥� one that respects both the message and the medium.

Bob Falk

Gloucester

Set an age limit for the presidency

I admire and respect old people. At 81 I am one. But recent reports about former President Joe Biden鈥檚 declining mental acuity during the latter part of his term and President Donald Trump鈥檚 incoherent, demented and delusional rantings make me think we should consider a constitutional age limit on the office of president.

Now the 25th Amendment to the Constitution was designed as one way to address the fitness issue, providing for the vice president and cabinet to certify to Congress that the president is unable to perform her or his duties. Sadly, it appears that former Vice President Kamala Harris and the cabinet did not do their duty. Equally saddening, given President Trump鈥檚 insistence on loyalty to him as the first requirement for the vice presidency and cabinet, it seems highly unlikely that Vice President JD Vance or cabinet members would ever act, no matter how bizarre the president鈥檚 behavior.

The first three articles of the Constitution impose a minimum age limit to hold office: 25 for the House, 30 for the Senate, 35 for the presidency. Arguably these are arbitrary, as setting a maximum age would be.

I don鈥檛 know what the upper age limit should be but we need to debate it and take action. Arbitrarily, I suggest we begin the discussion at 65 as the oldest age for someone to become president. If the president served two terms, she or he would leave office no older than 73.

Please join me in urging Congress to address this issue.

David Shufflebarger

North Chesterfield