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I am writing to express my strong support for David Russell as our next County Commissioner. I have had the privilege of working with David on various projects and can attest to his exceptional leadership qualities.
David consistently inspires trust and confidence in everyone around him. He鈥檚 known for thinking outside the box and finding innovative solutions to challenges, no matter how complex. He excels at bringing people together, valuing diverse perspectives and fostering collaboration, ensuring that every voice is heard in the decision-making process.
One of David鈥檚 key strengths is his expertise in managing budgets and streamlining processes. His experience in these areas would be a tremendous asset to our county. He knows how to allocate resources effectively and work within tight constraints while still delivering results. His practical approach and commitment to fiscal responsibility make him the ideal candidate to bring positive change to our local government.
What I admire most about David is his dedication to public service and his tireless work to improve the community. He doesn鈥檛 shy away from tough problems and always leads with integrity. He鈥檚 someone who genuinely cares about making a difference.
It has been an honor to work alongside David and witness his leadership first hand. I am confident he will bring the same level of dedication and vision to Lancaster County as our County Commissioner, and I wholeheartedly endorse him for the role.
Scott Hartz, Lincoln
Those familiar with comedian Bill Engvall know that part of his stand-up routine includes a bit called 鈥淗ere鈥檚 your sign.鈥
Interestingly, this idea came to fruition while he was performing in Omaha in the mid 1990s. It is based on his yearslong observations of people who say and do senseless things and what he felt would be a funny response when they did. His retort is to, symbolically, hand them a sign that reads 鈥淚鈥檓 Stupid鈥 as he says, 鈥淗ere鈥檚 your sign.鈥
Though derived from real-life situations, Mr. Engvall鈥檚 shtick was purely for comic effect and not meant as a literal way to bring attention to someone鈥檚 vacuous behavior.
However, considering the freely displayed MAGA clothing, bumper stickers and yard placards, some are preempting Mr. Engvall鈥檚 wisecracking and volitionally saying, 鈥淗ere鈥檚 my sign.鈥
Make no mistake, though, these are not lighthearted attempts at self-deprecating humor. These are 鈥渟igns鈥 of a hopeless lack of self-awareness or profound self-absorption.
Contrary to Mr. Engvall鈥檚 intent, these deliberate self-admissions are not the least bit funny, but rather a tragedy with grievous and potentially epic consequences for our country.
And that鈥檚 no laughing matter, folks!
Larry McClung, Lincoln
In the Business section of the Sunday Journal Star of October 6, there were two excellent articles about the impact of Donald Trump鈥檚 tariffs on the US agricultural sector: 鈥淭rade war could hit US agriculture hard鈥 and 鈥淭rump鈥檚 taste for tariffs.鈥 With agriculture being such an important part of Nebraska鈥檚 economy, it is critical that we understand the effect Trump鈥檚 tariffs will have not just on Nebraska鈥檚 economy, but the entire U.S. economy. Following are a few highlights:
1) Tariffs are a tax on imports and that tax is paid by importers (American companies) and those costs are passed on to consumers (you and me). 2) When tariffs are placed on imports from other countries, those countries will likely retaliate with their own tariffs, making American exports more expensive. This could cost the U.S. billions in lost agriculture exports. It is estimated soybean exports could drop by $15 billion ($1.15 billion in Nebraska), Nebraska beef exports $400 million and corn exports by $550 million. 3) Due to these large losses in farm income, 鈥渁 new support program would require massive funding to cover the lost export revenue that could reach tens of billions annually.鈥 4) No one wins in a trade war.
While the current administration has kept some of Trump鈥檚 earlier tariffs, a second Trump administration will devastate farm income and increase prices for all U.S. consumers. I urge you to read these articles as part of your research before you vote.
Bob Servedio, Lincoln
Snap out of it, Democrats. Take a deep breath and stop hyperventilating. Vice President Kamala Harris has maintained a consistent lead in the national polls, and no one can be certain which way the swing states are swinging until the votes are counted. Stop all the doomscrolling and go win the election.
Democratic Party guru David Axelrod fretted publicly that Harris is not doing enough barnstorming. Jamal Simmons, the vice president鈥檚 former communications director, told the Hill that, given the unknowns about how Harris鈥 race and gender might influence the vote, 鈥渋f you鈥檙e not nervous, you鈥檙e not paying attention.鈥 Anecdotally, the question readers most frequently ask me is: Why doesn鈥檛 Harris have a bigger lead?
The nation has been here twice before, facing the possibility that Donald Trump will be elected president. In 2016, we didn鈥檛 take the threat seriously enough -- hence the angst that the 鈥淣ever Trump鈥 majority is feeling now. But don鈥檛 forget 2020, when Joe Biden not only defeated Trump but also won traditionally Republican states such as Georgia and Arizona. No rule says all Election Day surprises must be bad.
There is nothing more that the polls can tell us. There is nothing much that they鈥檝e told us all along, except that the race is within the margin of error. Since August, Harris has been ahead in the polling averages. On Monday, RealClearPolitics said she was 1.7 percentage points ahead. The ABC News 538 average had her up by 2.4 points, and the Economist had her leading by 3.2 points.
Too close for comfort? Sure. But imagine the reverse: If it were Trump with the margin-of-error lead. How much more uncomfortable would that be?
And though Trump did outperform his polling in 2016 and 2020, it doesn鈥檛 take a Ph.D. in statistics to know that two data points are a shaky foundation on which to establish a general rule, especially given a more recent contravening data point: the 2022 midterm election, in which Democrats did better than expected. Remember how Republicans crowed about the red wave that was going to give them control of the Senate and a huge majority in the House? Remember how that worked out for them?
So no one should be intimidated by the GOP crowing now as if Trump has already won. This election will not be decided by vibes. It will be decided by votes.
David Plouffe, the Democratic strategist who plotted Barack Obama鈥檚 2008 victory -- and now is advising the Harris campaign -- gave his prediction in an interview with New York magazine: 鈥淭his is going to be close. And this one may be close in more states than we鈥檝e seen in a long time. We could have six, seven states come down to a point, point-and-a-half. That鈥檚 probably where this is headed.鈥
That might not be ideal in terms of the Democratic Party鈥檚 collective blood pressure. But a tight contest is one that Harris should be better positioned than Trump to win.
Since Harris replaced Biden on the ticket, her campaign has raised staggering amounts of money -- more than $1 billion. That haul has allowed the campaign to open more than 350 offices with more than 2,500 staff members in battleground states alone, plus hundreds of thousands of volunteers across the country. The Trump campaign, by contrast, has outsourced much of its fieldwork to the ostensibly independent political action committees that support Trump鈥檚 candidacy, including Turning Point Action and billionaire Elon Musk鈥檚 America PAC.
In a close election, the Harris campaign should have more capacity to get its voters to the polls. Dan Kanninen, the campaign鈥檚 battleground states director, told The Post: 鈥淲e鈥檙e mobilizing voters but also persuading people. We need to persuade even our own folks -- persuade them to be engaged in the election, to understand the stakes and to take that extra step of not only voting but bringing friends and family to vote.鈥
The Trump campaign鈥檚 focus is on beating the bushes for potential supporters who don鈥檛 usually bother to vote. The Harris campaign is trying to do the same thing -- and Democrats who are spending too much time wringing their hands could do something useful by impressing on occasional voters that this election is too important to sit out.
Early voting and mail-in voting have already begun in some states. In 2020, Trump told his followers that any votes not cast in person on Election Day were suspect. Now, since this is the way so many Americans vote, Trump is trying to change his tune -- while at the same time already claiming that the vote will be 鈥渞igged.鈥 His followers have never demanded consistency from him, but he should worry that this switcheroo could leave some voters behind.
Democrats needing a confidence boost should consider that in 2016 and 2020, Trump鈥檚 share of the national vote fell short of 47%. There is no reason Harris shouldn鈥檛 have a higher ceiling. And there is no reason Democrats, instead of worrying so much, can鈥檛 go out there and help her shatter it.
Robinson writes for The Washington Post.
This year, the city of Lincoln has invested $47 million in street construction and resurfacing projects of 18 lane miles of arterial streets and 8 miles of residential streets, with another investment in streets and roadways of $87 million scheduled for the next two years.
Any drivers who have had to negotiate their way through the arterial construction over the past month have experience with the 鈥淟incoln on the Move鈥 program, funded by a quarter-cent sales tax approved by voters five years ago.
And those who live on residential streets that have been resurfaced see the benefits of the program on a daily basis.
Rightfully touted by Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird during her State of City address on Oct. 8, the street construction and resurfacing program has been an unqualified success in addressing one of the top priorities Lincolnites expect from city government.
As for public safety, the citizenry鈥檚 other top priority, Gaylor Baird reported that, including the latest academy class of 18, the Lincoln Police Department鈥檚 recruiting efforts have been able to reach 94% of its authorized strength, easing if not eliminating understaffing concerns.
A new co-responder program also will aid police by getting officers out of dealing with mental health calls and benefit those who are the subjects of the calls, who will receive the right kind of intervention through mental health professionals.
On affordable housing, another vexing problem not only in Lincoln but in most cities and even small communities across the country, the Gaylor Baird administration has helped create 2,641 units of new or rehabilitated affordable housing 鈥 more than halfway toward the city鈥檚 affordable action plan goal of creating 5,000 new or rehabilitated affordable units by 2030.
And a second round of the city鈥檚 rental rehabilitation program, which offers grants of up to $15,000 for a variety of energy-efficient upgrades to apartments in the South of Downtown area, will improve 108 units over the next year.
Those efforts, of course, cannot alone solve the city鈥檚 housing crisis. But the addition of affordable units will benefit homeowners with incomes below 80% of the area median income ($48,250 for one person, $68,900 for four) and renters whose income is below 60%.
Gaylor Baird said the city, during the past three calendar years, has also worked with developers to issue more residential building permits than any other three-year period on record.
Again, the increase in the number of building permits doesn鈥檛 eliminate the need for affordable housing.
But it, like the the street construction program and police department staffing, it is a measure of the Gaylor Baird administration鈥檚 effective efforts to address residents' priorities that will help maintain Lincoln鈥檚 consistent rankings as one of the best cities to live in in the country.