Letters for Wednesday, April 8

Baumgartner gaslighting voters for re-election

Michael Baumgartner called the recent No Kings Rally “ridiculous.” He claimed that “President Trump is the furthest thing from a king.”

I would remind the congressman that kings start (and end) wars when they “feel like it.” Kings also levy tariffs according to their daily whims. Baumgartner would also have you believe that his “king’s” “Big Beautiful Bill” is good for Eastern Washington, when actually, the bill overwhelmingly benefits billionaires at the expense of regular working people. As for our local farmers, the “king’s” tariffs have made their jobs harder and have resulted in the need for billions more in bailout money (just like the “king’s” first term).

At his recent fundraiser, Baumgartner toasted Trump and proclaimed what an outstanding job he’s doing. Somehow the representative has misconstrued his own job from “check and balance” to “cheerleader.”

Here are a few recent examples of Trump’s actions that Michael Baumgartner was either OK with, or afraid to comment on: Trump’s threat to Democrats – “Now with the death of Iran, the greatest enemy America has is the Radical Left, Highly Incompetent, Democrat Party!” This targets nearly half of Baumgartner’s constituents, yet no response from him. Trump’s public comment on Robert Mueller’s death – “Good, I’m glad he’s dead.” No outrage at all from Baumgartner.

Character matters. Honesty matters. Decency matters. These are the qualities that true leaders must possess. Michael Baumgartner has either forgotten this, or he thinks that we have forgotten. Come November, we must all remember – vote for Carmela Conroy!

John Cross

Spokane

Important to fight voter fraud

I appreciate Rep. Michael Baumgartner’s support for photo ID to vote, proof of citizenship to register, and ensuring that voter rolls only include citizens, as included in the SAVE America Act, requirements supported by the majority of Americans.

Especially frustrating is when opponents only seem interested in criticizing it rather than working with our congressman and others to improve the bill. In a recent Spokesman-Review article, Sen. Maria Cantwell’s comments were typical of Democrat leaders in failing to propose anything that would increase our confidence that only eligible citizens can vote.

Even if election fraud is limited, with all of the hacking, scams and fraud that target personal information and the billions of dollars stolen each year in our country, we need to continually look for ways to enhance election security.

It is important that Americans have confidence in our elections. In a March 2026 PBS News poll confidence in a “fair and accurate election” this year has dropped by 10% to 66%.

When opponents criticize the SAVE America Act and say that proof of citizenship would be too hard for many to obtain, they fail to mention that the bill provides alternatives such as the following:

“(2) REQUIREMENT IN CASES OF NAME DISCREPANCIES …

“(B) provides, through a process established by the State …

“(ii) an affidavit signed by the applicant attesting that the name on the documentation is a previous name of the applicant.

Gretchen McDevitt

Spokane

What’s better than wind?

Whitman County Commissioner Chad Whetzel doesn’t believe that solar or wind are viable long-term energy producers. What does he suggest as an option? Coal, maybe a nuke?

Does the Trump family own any land in Whitman County and doesn’t want the view spoiled for future golf courses?

Ted Wert

Sagle