Defiance and suppression of testimony are marks of despot

To The Daily Sun,

This is my response to D.M. Williamson who in the Laconia Sun on Oct. 8 assumed that I must be a disciple of fascism, communism, Castroism or some other despotic form of government because as he says “apparently she has never heard of the due process of law and the presumption of innocence.”

No, Mr. Williamson, I have heard of due process and the presumption of innocence; if you go back and read the very first sentence of my letter it states, “What would you do if you knew you were absolutely innocent of a crime which you may be charged with.” The key words there are: “may be charged with.”

I would do all that I could to provide the evidence/documents that I know will exonerate me and I would welcome my witnesses to testify on my behalf and not do as Trump has, which was to block the testimony of Gordon Sondland, the U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, from speaking with investigators for three House committees just hours before he was to appear.

His defying and stonewalling Congress to submit any evidence the President has is an action that could build the case for charging him in the impeachment proceedings with obstruction.

Dictators and tyrants are often described as despots or despotic. These words are often used to describe someone who abuses power and suppresses others. They are rulers that rely on brute force or the threat of it rather than the rule of law.

We all remember some of his narcissistic quotes: “I know more than the generals,” “I alone can fix it,” and the latest one, just said on Monday, “I in my great unmatched wisdom” referring to pulling our troops out of Syria, leaving our allies, the Kurds, alone to fight the Turkish Forces with no thought as to what our allies all over the world would think of America by this uninformed, serious decision he alone made.

Sound like a despot to you?

Paula Trombi

Meredith