Letters to the editor: Regular people must be able to run for office – Ames Tribune

Letters to the editor| Ames TribuneFaith and helping

In response to Hector Avalos'sopinion article ("Imagine if we all offered emotional, physical help to those who need it," Jan. 29) I would like to think that being a person of faith does not exclude or prohibit helping others. On the contrary, in many, if not most cases the two go hand in hand.

Renate Dellmann, Ames

I am fed up with the obscene costs of elections and the nauseating levels of political spending.

Nationally, $14 billion was spent on the 2020 elections, with $234 million going towards the Ernst/Greenfield Senate race, the most expensive campaign in Iowas history.

Its no wonder that Americas politics have been overwhelmingly dominated by the ultra-wealthy and well-connected. Sohow can you and I, ordinary people with modest means and good ideas, ever hope to run for office?

Well, finally there is corrective action!H.R. 1, or the For the People Act is a bill introduced in Congress to strengthen voting rights, reform ethics laws, and change campaign finance for the better.

H.R. 1 fundamentally transforms the way that candidates raise money. It addresses dark money, requiring political organizations to disclose big donors. It also establishes a 6x1 matching system for small-dollar donations to presidential andcongressional campaigns, with funds coming from a surcharge on settlements involving corporate wrongdoing (think Wells Fargo or Purdue Pharma).

Reforming money in politics amplifies support from regular people, so that many more of us can run for office without chasing mega-donors. Iowas representatives should vote for H.R. 1.

Susie Petra, Ames

It was once a strength of our country to have a First Amendment that encourages free speech and vigorous debate. A place where all sides of an issue are heard and expressed. But now those who profess to be the most progressive among us wish to stifle debate. When some or many disagree with them concerning the Ames Schools' Black Lives Matter campaign, they are dismissed as racists and bigots. No thought goes into a response like that. It's reflexive and implies that the person with an opposing opinion is ignorant and doesn't deserve to be heard. We have moved from political correctness to the cancel culture. Where are we going as a country? How long before our First Amendment rights have been shredded and we become a totalitarian state like Russia or China?

James Baker, Ames

See original here:

Letters to the editor: Regular people must be able to run for office - Ames Tribune