President must leave if we aim to continue our world 0) leadership
The resignation or impeachment of President Bill Clinton is essential in order for the United States to remain the major player in the world political theater.
With each passing day, the office of the president, while occupied by Mr. Clinton, grows weaker and weaker. How can the citizens and leaders of foreign countries look to us for guidance when our president looks us in the face and lies repeatedly and emphatically?
As democracy spreads throughout the world and threats against democracy grow increasingly vehement, the need for a strong, effective, respected and trusted world leader is more important than ever.
President Clinton's resignation or impeachment would no doubt be a sad day for the nation, but it would also be a proud day. Mr. Clinton's exit from the presidency would show the world that the American people cannot and will not tolerate a weak leader who cannot be trusted. The framers of the Constitution allowed for impeachment because they knew not every elected president could live up to the requirements of the office.
It makes me proud to live in a land where ineffective and untrustworthy leaders can be removed from office and replaced without massive restructuring, political upheaval or revolution. It says a great deal about the strength of the American people and the faith they have in their system of government.
Tyler Buck
Towson
Clinton must be punished for his false testimony
President Clinton's proclivity to cover his missteps in life with lies is dangerous to our country. He now has the unmitigated gall to tell the citizens of this country that lying under oath is not perjury.
Perjury is a criminal offense that is normally punished under the law. Regardless of the status of his presidency and the status of any possible impeachment hearings to determine if his presidency should be terminated, he should be punished for giving false testimony under oath.
William L. Engle Jr.
Ellicott City
Glendening turn on Clinton almost constitutes treason
In my 40 years of voting, I have always voted for my party. Not so this election. Gov. Parris N. Glendening lost lots of votes over the slot machine issue, but turning against President Clinton like he did almost constitutes treason.
M. Bee Crivello
Baltimore
Democrats will go down on controversial abortion
If the Democrats want to sink faster than the Titanic, they will make abortion the main issue in the gubernatorial race. Tremendous amounts of polling have been done on the partial-birth method of abortion, and all have revealed an overwhelming belief by the American people that this method of hedonism should be banned.
The original supporters have stated that they originally lied and the method is used more often than they testified.
If Gov. Parris N. Glendening is ready to sink his ship, he should paint himself clearly aligned with a woman's rights to have her baby aborted when the child is near full term.
Substantial evidence exists that this procedure is more dangerous to the mother than live birth. The goal is not to help the mother but to have a dead baby.
There is nothing about this procedure that is not barbaric.
It frightens me that our governor is quoted in your paper as saying, "It's an attack on the right of a woman and doctor to make this fundamental decision." Marylanders do not support this barbaric procedure.
Laura E. Albers
Sykesville
Steinberg backs Sauerbrey because integrity is issue
In his tirade about Melvin A. "Mickey" Steinberg's "betrayal" of Jewish Democrats by endorsing Ellen Sauerbrey for governor of Maryland, Michael Olesker cunningly avoided any mention of Mr. Steinberg's principal reason for doing so, Gov. Parris N. Glendening's lack of integrity ("Steinberg's move betrays Jewish Democrats in Md.," Sept. 22).
Mr. Glendening's record in this regard is awful. A budget surplus that he claimed to have left Prince George's County turned out to be a huge deficit.
Upon discovery by The Sun, he was forced to disavow sweetheart county pension benefits he had secured for himself and his cronies.
When he was caught on a corporate junket to New York to raise campaign money from a company seeking to do business with Maryland, he maintained he was not aware that the company was bidding on a state contract.
His handling of the appointment of Louis L. Goldstein's successor was characterized by disgraceful duplicity. And the list goes on.
Mr. Olesker's late grandmother surely knew what he appears to have forgotten. Jewish tradition and culture exalt integrity.
Barry C. Steel
Towson
Republican voter unsure of where Sauerbrey stands
Once again I will be forced to throw two names in a hat, and draw a winner.
Ho hum.
Four more years of Gov. Parris N. Glendening will surely make me crazy, but at least the Democrats turned their ticket into a winner.
What did Ellen R. Sauerbrey do? She sided with a third-place loser and a moderate more closely related to Sen. F. Vernon Boozer, who lost. It scares me that she wants to win so badly she compromised every position on her ticket. She could have won with her same ticket as 1994.
As a Republican, I vote for people with both feet on the ground. I voted for Charles I. Ecker for that reason. Ms. Sauerbrey must let her party know what this splintered ticket stands for.
Dwain Wolf
Baltimore
Suggestion to keep Hampton tearoom alive
It was with great sadness that I read of the decision to terminate the lease of the tearoom at Hampton ("Hampton Mansion's tearoom to become another piece of history after Dec. 31," Sept. 15). However, I understand the concerns of fire that are raised with such an important building.
Before a final decision is made, I would like to make a suggestion that would allow the genteel atmosphere of the existing tearoom to remain at Hampton without endangering the house.
The reconstructed Orangery is underused. Built in the 1970s with all the modern conveniences, it would be an ideal location for the tearoom. The large windows provide magnificent vistas of the gardens and the house. Who would not want to linger over lunch or a glass of lemonade with such a view?
Anyone who has visited the gardens and houses open to the public in Great Britain knows that the obligatory tearoom on the grounds is a welcome amenity for weary visitors. Even in the United States, more and more museums have a "museum cafe" in the complex.
The Walters Art Gallery and Baltimore Museum of Art are two such examples in Baltimore.
With Hampton's relatively remote location, it also needs a cafe.
Hampton is embarking on ambitious plans that will greatly transform the park, making it a destination for thousands more tourists each year. I strongly encourage the preservation of the tearoom, which has been an important part of Hampton's history for nearly half a century.
W. Peter Pearre
Baltimore
I was very upset to read about the closing of the tearoom at Hampton Mansion. It seems outrageous for a federal employee to be able to move into Hampton and decide to end such a long-standing Baltimore tradition as the tearoom.
The "fire hazard" excuse seems far-fetched since, presumably, the kitchen has passed fire and other inspections for many, many years.
But I believe that the worst offense is against the family that has run the establishment for the last 40 years or so. What are they to do after having worked so long and taken so much pride in a job well done? Shame on the selfish act of the superintendent of the National Park Service, which runs the mansion.
Carolynn E. Murphy
Sparks
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Pub Date: 9/27/98