To the Editor:
Re “Texas Abortion Gets Approval, in a Rare Case” (front page, Dec. 8):
A Texas judge has ruled that enforcement of Texas’ abortion ban would be “shocking” and a “genuine miscarriage of justice” in the case of a woman whose fetus has been diagnosed with a fatal condition and, if carried to term, would put at risk her life and future ability to bear children.
An additional aspect of the case, however, is equally disturbing and needs to be emphasized. Texas’ abortion ban contains an exception for pregnancies that pose a risk of death or “substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function.” Yet, the court noted, Texas’ attorney general refuses to provide “any clarity” as to how that exception will be interpreted.
Leaving women and their physicians in this legal limbo is unconscionable. A long-established doctrine known as the “rule of lenity” requires courts to interpret an unclear criminal statute in a way that favors the defendant. Even more fundamentally, an unclear statute that fails to give fair notice of what is prohibited or permissible is “void for vagueness” and violates the 14th Amendment’s due process clause.
Because Texas refuses to give women and their doctors fair notice, the courts should invalidate the statute and condemn the attorney general’s abdication of his responsibility as a law enforcement officer.
Stuart Altschuler
New York
The writer is a lawyer.
To the Editor:
That I should feel some joy that a woman has been granted her abortion, as if it were a win in the face of Texas’ misogynist abortion laws, makes me shudder. That a woman must ask a judge to grant her a right over her own body, that the judge has more power over her reproductive decisions than she does, is simply beyond belief. It takes my breath away as I feel transported to another time in history.
Kerry Reynolds
Buffalo
To the Editor:
We had a more personal response than usual when we read this article. Thirty-five years ago, when our daughter was born, she was quickly diagnosed with trisomy 18, the genetic condition of the Texas family’s child.
We felt many deep emotions, and struggled to learn as much as we could and be guided by the medical knowledge shared with us by our physicians and hospital specialists. With compassionate guidance from those physicians and nurses, and the review by the hospital’s ethics committee, we made the very difficult decision to ultimately withdraw necessary life supports and allow our daughter to die peacefully in our arms.
We remember and celebrate our daughter every day, and we are thankful for the compassionate process that we were afforded in making a difficult decision. Those processes are still available, and invaluable for all involved when facing such reproductive and life support decisions.
We are deeply pained for the Texas family that is being forced to go through such a public and judgmental process in reaching their difficult decision.
David E. Jose
Mimi Lepreau Jose
Indianapolis
Aid to Ukraine, and a Rise in U.S. Isolationism
To the Editor:
Re “With U.S. Aid in Doubt, Ukraine Is Scrambling to Do What’s Needed” (news article, Dec. 8):
U.S. aid to Ukraine, as well as support for Israel and Taiwan, is being held hostage by a resurgence of isolationism not seen since the 1930s.
We have lived through a relatively peaceful, prosperous period of American history. Republicans in the Senate and the House, as well as some other Americans, have forgotten that prosperity does not come without security.
Ignoring authoritarians does not improve our security or prosperity. It emboldens dictators like Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin to fill the leadership vacuum left by America’s unreliable leadership. European instability will be inevitable if Mr. Putin’s empire-building tendencies are not kept in check by a strong coalition of democratic nations.
President Biden understands that if we lose our reputation as a reliable partner and a beacon for democracy, we will pay dearly to regain that status, if it is even possible.
We need to remember the lessons learned in the 1930s and not repeat the mistakes of isolationism. We need to support Ukraine now!
Kristie K. Shappell
La Crosse, Wis.
To the Editor:
Re “G.O.P. Blocks Bill to Fund Ukraine, Rebuffing Biden” (front page, Dec. 7):
Conservatives may think they have rebuffed President Biden by not funding Ukraine, but the reality is that it is our country that is being rebuffed. Funding comes from the United States, not from the president.
A democracy, Ukraine, is fighting a dictator. If we do not support Ukraine’s fight, then we are supporting its enemy. Perhaps the conservatives are trying to paint a picture of what they want our country to look like.
Stephen T. Schreiber
Princeton, N.J.
Targeting the Media
The statement echoes Mr. Trump’s own recent comment that the media is “a true threat to democracy.” Such public statements, including Mr. Patel’s mention of potential criminal charges, are both appalling and extremely concerning for our already fragile democracy.
As Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt have shown in their book “How Democracies Die,” “readiness to curtail civil liberties of opponents, including media” is one of the cardinal signs that predict future authoritarian behavior in political leaders.
Any threat of criminal charges for reporters — and thus implicitly of jail time — should be of urgent concern to all Americans.
John Martin-Joy
James T. Hamilton
Dr. Martin-Joy is a psychiatrist and the author of “Diagnosing From a Distance,” a study of psychiatric comment on public figures. Mr. Hamilton is director of the Stanford Journalism Program and the author of “Democracy’s Detectives: The Economics of Investigative Journalism.”
To the Editor:
Re “For Republican Governors, Civics Is the Latest Education Battleground” (news article, Dec. 1):
As a former teacher of government in a diverse St. Louis County high school, I strongly believe that Republican governors don’t understand the importance of teaching mandatory civics courses in middle and high school.
The U.S. Constitution should be at the forefront of our curriculums so students can learn the entire history of our country, the separation of church and state, our system of checks and balances, and voting rights for all citizens. They need to understand that democracy is fragile and that it requires compromise and their participation to keep it alive.
With this knowledge, the chaos exemplified by former President Donald Trump and today’s dysfunctional U.S. Congress could hopefully be avoided in the future.
Barbara Shapiro
St. Louis
