Letters: Conklin will bring leadership against waste and fraud; Voter ID a no-brainer for elections

Editor’s note:The Centre Daily Times welcomes letters endorsing candidates in the June 2 primary election and will accept letters that are received by May 22. Election letters will be published through May 29. Letters are subject to editing, must be based on facts and should avoid attacks on other candidates. Letters of 250 words or fewer can be sent to cdtletters@centredaily.com.

Conklin will bring leadership against waste and fraud

Pennsylvania residents continue to be devastated by coronavirus cases and deaths throughout the state. We need honest, hardworking leaders willing to make tough ethical decisions to save people’s lives and shore up our society and economy. Democratic Auditor General candidate Scott Conklin of Centre County is the leader we need today.

Scott offers decades of small business and governmental experience. He has built consensus with many Republican lawmakers to pass important bills for families. Examples include laws combating domestic violence, including the teaching of teen dating violence in schools, and the electronic monitoring of an alleged abuser in certain domestic violence cases. He has fought against waste, fraud and predatory practices. Recently, Scott introduced a bill to suspend cost of living raises for state lawmakers and administration officials for three years in light of the coronavirus crisis impact.

Rural and small town voices matter. E Pluribus Unum: We stand united for democracy and U.S. Constitution. Let’s stand united for workers and their families, Social Security and Medicare, health care, education and the environment. Scott will support the Democratic presidential nominee and will campaign voters to come out on Election Day. Who will campaign directly in rural Pennsylvania and turn out the vote for the presidential candidate? Only Scott Conklin.

Please vote for Scott Conklin for Auditor General, who will bring leadership against waste and fraud, and help defeat President Trump who is failing to lead our nation out of the pandemic.

Voter ID a no-brainer for elections

Americans need ID when we drive or rent a car. We need ID to fly on a plane. We need ID to purchase alcohol, tobacco, firearms, prescription drugs and even many over-the-counter medications. A form of ID is required to apply for welfare and other types of assistance. It’s required to rent a house or to apply for a mortgage. A valid form of identification is basically required for anything of any importance in the United States.

So why is the use of voter ID prohibited by activist judges even when the people of a state have decided it’s needed to ensure the integrity of their elections? Why do Democrats denounce voter ID as a form of racism and fight so veraciously against it? Free forms of ID are readily available to every American. Claiming that voter ID is a means of suppressing the vote doesn’t pass the smell test. The opposition is simply a desperate attempt to hide corrupt activities.

Throughout our country’s history, Republicans extended the right to vote to minorities and women while Democrats filibustered and fought against these initiatives and enacted their Jim Crow laws. You don’t have to believe me. Any history book will confirm it. Republicans don’t need nor want to suppress anyone’s vote. That’s the ugly legacy of the Democratic party. Elections are important. They need to be legitimate. We need voter ID!

New development brings blight

Sadly, I have been observing the construction of the Toll Brothers tenement on Whitehall Road. As each uncomely structure erupts, like a metastasizing cancer, from the crowded once-lovely site, ugliness is elevated to a new height. I wonder how those who permitted this blight to be visited on our community now feel.

Keller all talk on reopening plans

In reference to Congressman Fred Keller’s op-ed posted Monday morning in the Centre Daily Times, yes, enough is enough. We are overloaded with political bickering and the partisan insouciance of those willing to sacrifice workers’ lives on the altar of the economy. So, instead of spending his time writing op-ed pieces, why doesn’t Keller really do something to help reopen the commonwealth? Why doesn’t he sit down with the governor of our state and see what he can do to help him do his job and get folks back to work productively, respectfully and safely?