Are the American dream and the welfare of the people in jeopardy?
Forty-three Northwest Missouri State University students recently had their visas revoked by the United States Citizen Immigration Services. They were told to leave the country immediately.
So long, American dream.
- Phil Smith, Kansas City
'Salus populi suprema lex esto,' Missouri's motto appearing on the state seal and flag, translated from Latin to English is: 'The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law.'
From their current actions, members of the General Assembly seem oblivious to the motto's existence and meaning.
- Nancy M. Ehrlich, Independence
Most Americans want to end the practice of changing our clocks twice a year and make either Standard Time or Daylight Saving Time permanent. But which one?
The arguments from sleep experts and the medical field are that Standard Time best aligns with our human circadian biology and is better for our physical and mental health as well as our safety. The argument that Daylight Saving allows the enjoyment of an extra hour of sunlight at the end of the day is supported by the recreation industry as well as convenience stores and others.
Although that 'extra' hour of sunlight year-round might sound lucrative, permanent Daylight Saving Time was tried during the energy crisis in 1974 and was rescinded after only 10 months because of the extreme dark mornings in mid-winter. In Kansas City, permanent Daylight Saving would result in the sun not rising until almost 8:40 during the last half of December and much of January. Even the current practice of Daylight Saving for eight months of the year results in unnecessary darker mornings in early spring and late fall.
It's time to return to permanent Standard Time, which has served humankind well since time immemorial. Contact your representatives in Congress, as they will ultimately decide.
- Thomas Harries, Lenexa
In his April 14 column, 'Please keep your obvious pronouns out of my emails,' (7A) David Mastio quotes White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt: 'Any reporter who chooses to put their preferred pronouns in their bio ...'
'Reporter' is a singular noun. 'Their' is a plural pronoun. Leavitt violated her own preference. The correct albeit awkward usage to follow the practice Leavitt prefers would be 'his or her.'
Pronouns are a weak part of speech, often used as a crutch to avoid clarity. Avoid pronouns at all costs.
- Michael Grimaldi, Kansas City
Contrary to what you might have heard, a Real ID is not required to drive or vote. A Real ID will be required only if you want to travel by plane. This change is designed to further reduce the possibility of terrorism with air travel.
Also contrary to what you might have heard, it's not that difficult to update your existing driver's license or non-driver ID. Just go to the DMV with your birth certificate or passport, Social Security card, a utility bill and voter registration card. You'll need a marriage certificate or divorce decree if your last name has changed. This serves as a reminder always to save such documents.
And you might as well go ahead and do it now, just in case more places require a Real ID in the future.
Let's get Real.
- Kevin Lindeman, Kansas City
Editor's note: Visit dor.mo.gov/driver-license/issuance/real-id for a complete list of acceptable documentation to obtain a Real ID.
Based on the oath of office, the president is compelled to, 'preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.' Recently, however, the Supreme Court ruled that the president cannot be held legally accountable for actions taken in the performance of 'official duties,' in effect placing the president above the law.
The president's continued roundup and arrest of undocumented people, coupled with no judicial oversight, has resulted in an unprecedented constitutional stalemate of sorts. Since the president can't be held legally liable, the courts seem to lack authority to compel the president to legally comply. Meanwhile, a timid Congress seems unwilling to step into this constitutional crisis, while our allies express astonishment and dismay.
These events strongly suggest that all of us are at grave personal risk from a lawless and contemptible president.
- Phil Anderson, Manhattan, Kansas
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New York Times
18 minutes ago
- New York Times
Canada coach Jesse Marsch condemns U.S. treatment, ‘lack of respect' for Ukraine
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Boston Globe
39 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Trump may win the fight over the tax bill. But Musk is built for the long war.
But while Trump still dominates the short-term politics of the Republican Party, Musk holds a very different kind of power, one that may ultimately outlast Trumpism. He's younger. He's vastly wealthier. And unlike most political rivals, Musk doesn't need a seat in Congress or a friendly Fox News hit to wield influence. He owns the platforms. He runs the systems. And his companies are increasingly intertwined with the United States' future — from space exploration to battlefield communications. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up This feud didn't erupt out of nowhere. Musk had reasons to be angry. First, the 'Big Beautiful Bill' Advertisement This isn't just a policy spat, it's a power struggle. Trump is playing to win the moment. Musk is building for the long haul. Advertisement Let's start with the obvious: Trump tuns 79 next week. Musk turns 54 at the end of June. Trump is focused on one last political chapter. Musk is laying groundwork for the next several decades. That generational difference shapes everything else. Trump's power is political. Musk's is infrastructural. The president can rally public opinion, bend Congress to his will, and weaponize regulatory agencies. But Musk operates on another level — embedding his companies into the very systems the government depends on. SpaceX is now central to NASA and Pentagon operations. Starlink powers military communications in Ukraine and is quietly becoming indispensable for disaster zones and geopolitical hotspots. Even Tesla, for all its recent volatility, helped create the EV market and still shapes infrastructure policy. If Trump wants to punish Musk, he has tools — the SEC, federal contracts, and regulatory pressure. Heck, one Trump ally believes Trump has reason to deport Musk back to his native South Africa. But the irony is that Trump's own administration might need Musk more than Musk needs Trump, particularly in the next moment of crisis. Then there's media. Beyond the powers of the presidency, Trump's strength is performative — rallies, TV hits, the occasional viral clip. Sure, he also has Truth Social, but that is a niche network. Musk, by contrast, owns the algorithm. As the proprietor of the much more mainstream X (formerly Twitter), he doesn't just post. He shapes the feed. He bans journalists, elevates allies, and controls what trends. But their falling-out signals a deeper shift on the American right — a movement once held together by Trump's gravitational pull is now already fragmenting. One can see that just in the fights over the Big Beautiful Bill. Musk represents a rising faction: tech-aligned, anti-woke, post-party, and less interested in governing than in redesigning systems altogether. Advertisement Of course, Musk is no model of discipline. His erratic tweets and ideological zig-zags make him an unreliable political force. But that's precisely what makes him dangerous. He's not a senator. He claims he is not a donor anymore. He's not trying to be president and, well, he is constitutionally ineligible anyway. Instead, he's trying to shape what the presidency needs. Trump still knows how to land a punch. But Musk might is laying claim to the terrain on which the next generation of political power will be fought. So yes, Trump can still win this fight over a tax bill. But Musk is playing a different game. He's not trying to win a news cycle. He's trying to build the operating system for what comes next. James Pindell is a Globe political reporter who reports and analyzes American politics, especially in New England.


The Hill
43 minutes ago
- The Hill
Johnson expands size of Intelligence panel to give Stefanik spot
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