Speak Out 5/16/16

Minimum standards

A Speak Out contributor said Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump fail to meet even the minimum standards for the position. Look back through history and see how many other men who, at the time they ran for office, were considered totally inadequate for the position. Abraham Lincoln, for example, and Harry S. Truman come to mind. People lambaste Trump for his outspokenness, even brash talk. Well, go back and study Harry S. Truman's speeches and correspondence. There are others who were considered poor choices who also were fantastic presidents. On the other hand, there have been many "perfect" candidates who did not.

Pangs and pains

I suppose most members of our esteemed Missouri Legislature are strutting around with their chests out for considering cleaning up the bribery going on around the capital by limiting it to $40 free meals. Forty dollars is a pretty good amount for a repast to tamp down the hunger pains in those folks' stomachs. Yet it is ironic and pathetic to see that they voted down a medical marijuana plan that would have alleviated the pain, not pangs, of folks suffering from such illnesses as AIDS or epilepsy.

Powers of persuasion

Say what you want, but Donald Trump's powers of persuasion are amazing. I never thought he could convince Speaker of the House Paul Ryan to come aboard the Trump train and, presumably, favor the deportation of 11 million people, ban Muslim immigration, build that beautiful wall and establish high tariffs so as to protect American jobs.