Oh, the letters I get!!
Every Saturday, we peer into the Wide World of News mailbag to see what is on the minds of the grand citizenry from around the planet.
So grab a stainless steel opener and let’s see what’s up!!
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Cheers,
Mark
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Dear Mark,
Why so little coverage of the death of the Queen and the new King in a publication you call the Wide World of New?
Sincerely,
P. Bear
32 Windsor Gardens
London W9 3RG, UK
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Dear Mr. Bear (I’m assuming you are a “Mister”),
I try to stick to topics where I think I can add value. Most of my readers have access to Google New and a short-band radio, so they have the facts they need.
Playing to my strengths, I would recommend you read Paul McCartney’s great essay on his remembrances of Her Majesty, which I can summarize for you thusly:
Her Majesty is a pretty nice girl
But she doesn't have a lot to say
Her Majesty is a pretty nice girl
But she changes from day to day
I wanna tell her that I love her a lot
But I gotta get a belly full of wine
Her Majesty is a pretty nice girl
Someday I'm gonna make her mine, oh yeah
Someday I'm gonna make her mine
In England’s dreaming,
Mark
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Mark –
I know President Biden said he will attend the Queen’s funeral. What is the over/under of the number of living former U.S. presidents who will also attend?
Jon Ralston
Las Vegas
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Dear Sir,
2 (two).
Mark
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To Whom It May Concern,
What is the most interesting aspect of the Wall Street Journal’s profile of Kevin McCarthy?
Inquiring minds want to know.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
T.J. Cole
Moore, OK
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T.J.
Great question. I would go with this: If you read the piece carefully, you will see the implicit skepticism that the Capitol Hill press corps has that the Speaker-in-Waiting will hold the job for very long after January.
Only time will tell.
Mark
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Mr. Halperin,
Have Republican elected officials and candidates figured out what to do about abortion to limit the electoral damage in 2022?
Best,
RR McDaniel
Michigan
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Dear RR McDaniel,
In a word, no. The Washington Post reports on the backpedaling being down on the federal and state level on legislating, but I think the clearest indication that the GOP’s prevent defense is allowing Team Big Blue to score touchdown after touchdown comes from the response of the Republican Party’s gubernatorial candidate in your own state of Michigan to a New York Times reporter, showing the level of confusion, lack of apparent principle, and not-enough-to-please-anyone positioning of the party’s hopefuls across America:
In one sign of momentum behind abortion-rights supporters, Tudor Dixon, the Republican challenging Ms. Whitmer for the governorship, has been trying to soften her hard-line stance against abortion. After the state Supreme Court’s decision certifying the ballot measure, Ms. Dixon wrote in a tweet, “And just like that you can vote for Gretchen Whitmer’s abortion agenda & still vote against her.”
In an interview with The New York Times, Ms. Dixon said she intended to campaign on issues she hears about on the trail, such as education and crime, not abortion.
“I’m going to vote no on it, but it’s up to the people,” she said, adding that if the referendum passes, she would not fight it as governor.
“I’m running to be the chief executive of the state, and what that means is that I will enforce the laws that are on the books. And if this is what the people choose, then that’s my role,” Ms. Dixon said. “If I get elected, that’s my role is to make sure that I honor their wishes.”
Republican pollsters keep telling their clients that this issue needs to be addressed more directly, but “direct” is not a roadmap that too many have followed so far.
Mark
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Mark,
Are Chelsea Clinton and Ivanka Trump still friends?
Signed,
Philippe I. Reines
Washington, DC
PS: Please confirm the spellings of my first and last names.
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Dear Phillippe,
Mark
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Mr. Halperin,
Is it hard to pick up a football?
Grateful to you for all you do.
Sam Obisanya
London
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Dear Sam,
So sorry for your loss.
The answer is, apparently, YES:
Mark
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