I’m registered Republican, but I can’t support Budd or Beasley

Senate election

I am a registered Republican and frankly ashamed of both parties. I can’t vote for either candidate in this U.S. Senate election. But in his commercial Ted Budd says when he’s elected to the Senate he will end Biden’s runaway spending and get control of inflation. What has Budd been doing in Congress for the past six years? He did support Pay Check Protection legislation, and Budd’s family applied for and received a $10 million loan for the family business. They got it soon after applying.

Unfortunately, dozens of N.C. small businesses weren’t as well connected. Without PPE loans many N.C. small businesses had to close and their employees lost their jobs. Can we afford a “Senator” Ted Budd?

Bruce Stoen, Durham

Marriage Act

As a soldier, I believe that unit cohesion is vital to our mission to keep America safe. Central to this endeavor is having a stable fighting force, free to focus on the challenges at hand, unburdened by undue distractions in their daily life.

When Don’t Ask Don’t Tell was repealed in 2011, armed forces members like me finally had the ability to live our lives openly. However, the Defense of Marriage Act was not deemed unconstitutional for another four years. That was anathema to the sacrosanct military principle that soldiers are to be treated fairly and as equally as possible.

As a Republican who serves in uniform and strongly supports the freedom to marry, I strongly urge N.C. Sens. Richard Burr and Thom Tillis to support the Respect for Marriage Act and strike DOMA from the books once and for all.

Ethan Leyshon, Spring Lake

NC Supreme Court

Having two daughters and a granddaughter, I’m keenly interested in how the future treats them. The N.C. Supreme Court races are critical, as rulings concerning women’s rights, voting rights and redistricting are likely. Voting in these races is crucial; they can be won or lost by the smallest margin. In 2020, Cheri Beasley lost her Supreme Court race by only 401 votes.

Early voting starts Oct. 20. I urge everyone to research the candidates and vote the entire ballot, including those running for N.C. Supreme Court. Everyone on that ballot has an impact on our lives and the lives of our children and grandchildren, so know who you are voting for.

Bonnie McCarthy, Chapel Hill

US Supreme Court

It’s time that the U.S. Supreme Court’s lifetime appointments or voluntary retirement status be brought in line with other judicial bodies. A fixed term of, say 10 years, would ensure a fresh outlook on judicial opinions while ensuring maturity in legal decisions. Perceived bias must be reined in if the public is going to accept rulings by the highest court in the land.

George Garcia, Rolesville

Abortion

Regarding “Abortions are a matter of harm, not freedom,” (Sept. 29 Opinion):

Does columnist Jay Ambrose truly fail to recognize all the irony and double-speak in his defense of the GOP’s proposed, and increasing implemented, restrictions on legal abortion? He trumpets the old saying, “The freedom to swing my fist ends where your nose begins.” Yet he “swings his fist” and hits any woman who regards her uterus as her personal space, who believes it is her right to self-determine her future, and who wants the freedom to make her own health decisions. Ambrose is correct in stating that this “hotly debated moral matter” should be up to the people — but “the people” in this case should be the women directly impacted, not state legislators.

Susan McIntyre, Cary

Wake’s homeless

Regarding “Homelessness nonprofit ‘surprised’ after Raleigh and Wake County pull funding,” (Sept. 14):

Both services and prevention are needed in our community to address homelessness. We must identify the most pressing causes so they can be addressed in the long term, but we must also provide immediate, urgent care for those in need.

The recent decision by Raleigh and Wake County to pull funding from “the lead agency for the Wake County continuum of care” with absolutely no plan in place to address the gap that will remain speaks volumes about the vision and values of our city and county government leaders on the issue of homelessness. They should be ashamed of themselves and we should be ashamed if we allow this lack of care or concern to continue.

Victoria D. Neal, Raleigh

Honoring PAs

The writer is president of the NC Academy of Physician Assistants.

October 6-12 is PA Week. Physician Assistants are licensed clinicians who practice medicine in every specialty and setting. There are nearly 8,000 of us in North Carolina. As a primary care PA, I’m seeing more patients, many of whom I haven’t seen in several years. Some are returning with diabetes or kidney disease that is more poorly controlled than when I last saw them. The percentage of patients with new onset anxiety or depression, or a recurrence of a previously well-controlled mental health concern, has skyrocketed.

PAs are a crucial part of the solution to workforce shortages crippling health care. We are working hard to ensure that all N.C. patients have access to quality health care when and where they need it.

Molly Calabria, Fuquay-Varina