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Trump is right to seek
lasting peace in Ukraine
President Trump correctly asserts that the Ukraine war cannot be permitted to drag on indefinitely in the delusional hope of inflicting total defeat on Russia. To continue on that path risks igniting nuclear war, an unjustifiable gamble.
Given Ukraineâs difficult military situation, continuing this war would necessitate ever more dangerous escalations. For example, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has proposed sending European troops into Ukraine under a U.S.-enforced âno-fly zone,â which would likely provoke a direct military clash with Russian troops. Even worse, French President Macron just suggested extending a French ânuclear umbrellaâ over his European allies, presumably including Ukraine, that could lead to a direct nuclear confrontation with Russia.
Escalating threats such as these only make initiating peace talks more difficult. Negotiating an agreement that moves us toward a lasting peace should be our primary goal. In order to be successful, all parties, including the Ukrainians, must participate.
Michael Dunlap
Oakland
After 1 month, is this
what we voted for?
America, weâve got a problem: A billionaire with a chainsaw and 14 kids has fired thousands of hard-working people trying to make this a better country, and he has a key to the Oval Office.
Two of a kind: This guy in Russia and the guy on the golf course want more land. One has tried for three years with hundreds of thousands of lives lost; the other wants our neighbors to the north to become citizens of the United States. Now, the âStar-Spangled Bannerâ is booed in other countries, and the American flag flies upside down in national parks. Europe supports President Zelenskyy, and many Americans show dismay as prices go up and savings go down.
One month in office, and the guy âhas just started.â Is this the country we remember and love?
Bill Chestnut
San Ramon
Department of Education
is a critical agency
I am writing to express my concern about the Trump administration seeking to eliminate the Department of Education.
Some critical functions of the department include the provision of funding to school districts serving economically disadvantaged students and students with disabilities. Plus, it provides even more funds to higher education. Also significant, it ensures that all schools receiving federal funds abide by federal civil rights laws through its Office of Civil Rights.
In lockstep with Project 2025, this administration wants to eliminate laws the department is responsible for. It proposed phasing out Title One of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which provides funding for economically disadvantaged students. Many districts now rely on that funding. If instead the states have full discretion, there will be substantial inconsistencies across our country relative to future opportunities for students. Quality public education is a fundamental step to establishing a level playing field in the job market.
Leslie Lischeske
Discovery Bay
Real goal of Trumpâs
cuts: privatization
The Trump administration is not cutting the civil service to make it more efficient, nor is it intending to make the government smaller. Itâs taking the first steps toward the true goal: privatization.
Once federal agency services begin to fall apart, their ineffectiveness will be cited as the reason to turn them over to private businesses (even though the failure was engineered). Then you can expect our government services to work just as âmarvelouslyâ as our health care systems do, complete with corporate facelessness, profit-taking from citizen services and arcane billing.
Winthrop Jordan
Berkeley
Trumpâs peace strategy
makes good sense
Re: âTrump is sticking a knife in the back of a nation seeking libertyâ (Page A6, March 6).
Writer Thomas Friedman contends that President Trump is making a bad-faith attempt to negotiate a peace between Russia and Ukraine. Friedman argues that while Trump says he feels the need to talk to both sides, he actually needs to be talking to European allies. But the parties to a peace deal are the actual combatants. If either of the combatants donât like the final product, they, and only they, can refuse or accept it. Trump might express his own opinions, but his only actual action would be a refusal to deal with people he feels are being unreasonable.
Daniel Mauthe
Livermore
The U.S. already has
a Greenland presence
Mr. Trump, we donât need to buy, take or âgetâ Greenland: Weâre already there.
Thule Air Base was created in 1951. My father worked there. In 2023, Thule Air Base was renamed Pituffik Space Base, reflecting its role in space-based missions and the traditional Greenlandic name for the region.
Trump, your ugly imperialism is un-American and hostile. Resign.
Edward Chainey
Richmond
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