Letters

Ed Surgan, who bows low in his allegiance to Donald Trump, is the last person to stand for freedom here or abroad, or to issue calls to “recalibrate ‘our’ understanding of the world order” [“Stand For Freedom,” Letters, March 3].

Actually, what he is always about is imposing his world view via whatever he addresses, whether it be tragic or inconsequential. His facts are skimpy, his history skewed, his reasoning specious, his argument assertion, his biases glaring, and his self-assumed role as spokesperson laughable. His is a true marriage of minds and method with his sovereign: Trump.

He bloviates about “the greatness of our creation as a nation” but eschews what makes a nation great: tolerance, especially tolerance for opposing viewpoints. In every screed he writes, “the haters” and “Marxists,” Pelosi and Obama, Democrats, Liberals, Communists (even venerable Jimmy Carter) are invoked for him to flail against and to contrast with his unconditional defense of the right and his heroes: Bill Barr, Michael Flynn, et al.

Notwithstanding that Mr. Surgan is a lickspittle proselytizer of the most hateful, hated and hate-spewing excrescence this nation has ever produced — and the single most dangerous threat to the “freedom” Mr. Surgan purports to venerate — he soldiers on to edify us in print.

If, quoting the Irish author — and he ought to know — Finian O’Toole, the values of democracy and freedom are: “the accountability of the people in power, the consistent and universal application of human rights, a clear understanding of what policies are trying to achieve, the prevention of corrupt financial influence over political decisions, and the fundamental truthfulness of public utterances,” then Donald Trump has vilified those values beyond previous comprehension.

If added to this are respect for the law, the promise of justice, preservation of fundamental institutions of government, free and fair elections, peaceful transfer of power, and the basic tenets of national security and fidelity, then Donald Trump — and the chaos and insurrection he caused — has proven himself to be the enemy of democracy and freedom, and traitorous to boot.

Mr. Surgan lauds the “heroic struggle of the Ukrainians in 2014 to avoid being puppets of an authoritarian government,” while he consistently promotes the authoritarian wannabee Trump and the government he tried to impose, and will impose if elected again.

By trying to have it both ways, and venturing out into the larger world, Mr. Surgan has rowed his little skiff “The SS-licker Trump” into troubled waters. He hid his captain below deck in his latest letter. After all, it is difficult to mouth ideas of heroic struggles, idealism, democracy and the “price of freedom” while Trump extols Vladimir Putin for getting a country for $2 worth of sanctions.

Frances Genovese

Southampton