Wharton Sinkler: Citizens deserve truth, accountability from government

To The Daily Sun,

Let’s not have another government shutdown. We badly need some compromise and reconciliation.

But we have a president who is bent on “retribution." He’s unleashed masked ICE troops, equipped for a military operation, on Democrat-led cities. Their brutal policing has included point-blank pepper-spraying into protesters’ eyes, and lethal shootings, the latest in January, of a man who was down and disarmed. This must stop. The dialogue we need is not possible in the midst of violence. We need truth and accountability.

Democrats also have a need for a path forward on immigration policy and enforcement. They should acknowledge that broadly opposing almost any immigration law enforcement is not a viable position. For proof, just look at the outcome of the 2024 elections: overly permissive immigration policies became a huge liability for Democrats. To be fair, Democrats tried to negotiate bipartisan immigration reform, only to have Republicans, at Donald Trump’s behest, scuttle the resulting bipartisan bill. Now with emotions running high it will be harder to compromise and reconcile, but Democrats must keep trying for realistic approaches to immigration, and how it should be enforced. It seems unhelpful to declare sanctuary cities as enforcement-free zones. Why have laws if the government doesn't enforce them? Immigration is really tough, with high potential for cruelty. But blanket allowance of abuses of our laws will backfire.

It’s a mess. The Trump administration has badly mismanaged things due to their “us versus them” approach. Republicans in Congress, if they love their country, must step up to compromise with Democrats, and offer concessions to chill the justified anger over the violence and killing. Congress must work to stop policing abuses, and hold administration officials, including President Trump, accountable for the badly mismanaged ICE operations and inflammatory rhetoric. And please, for all of us, keep the government running.

Wharton Sinkler

Sandwich