The Concord Monitor (N.H), June 18:
Donald Trump has finally done it. After years of teasing presidential runs, the Donald has announced that he is an official candidate for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination in 2016.
With the primary field crowded with an abundance of qualified candidates, some might wonder if Trump is a crucial addition to this contest.
He probably isn’t.
But his brash style, outspoken opinions and take-charge personality are a welcome diversion during this all-too-long primary season. (In case you’re counting, there’s about seven months left.) And if he’s interested in performing well in New Hampshire, here are some pointers.
First, he needs to be here. Trump can’t run for president from the tower that bears his name. He needs to meet New Hampshire residents face-to-face. He should talk to them, and he should listen. Committing to this kind of run would help show that Trump is a sincere candidate, not someone just out to boost his brand.
Even in a state as politically astute as New Hampshire, people appreciate politicians of any ideology showing an interest in their day-to-day lives and concerns. Bill Clinton forged such a connection with the state’s voters during his first presidential run, and it has served him and Hillary Clinton well in the decades since.
Secondly, Trump might want to develop some policy specifics. Saying that he has a secret plan to defeat ISIS and that his business experience qualifies him to make America great again doesn’t cut it. No one is asking for him to become a scholar from the American Enterprise Institute. But the ability to talk policy specifics will be an important way to show that he’s committed to making a real contribution this political season.
Finally, he should just be himself. Trump doesn’t need this piece of advice, but a little bit of gusty bravado will provide a refreshing counterpoint to the multitude of sensible men and women, all with sensibly styled hair, who have declared their presidential intentions so far.
Make no mistake: Trump is a formidable contender. His wealth, his populist stances (he is one of the only Republicans who says that entitlement programs shouldn’t be reformed or trimmed) and his fame are all considerable assets. And his placement in recent polls suggests he will shortly be debating the race’s frontrunners.
This state listens to and welcomes all of those making an honest run for leader of this nation. Many pundits have criticized Trump for not being serious enough. With this announcement, he’s finally shown himself willing to put his opinions and beliefs on the line in an election. Like Ronald Reagan and Ross Perot before him, Trump’s personality and charisma are a large part of his appeal. But he must include ideas and opinions of substance, as they did.
The challenge is formidable, but he seems eager to try.
Welcome to the race, Mr. Trump.
The Boston Globe (Mass.), June 18:
In a long-awaited encyclical released Thursday, Pope Francis was blunt and to the point: Irresponsible abuse of the environment is a “violence of the human heart,” poisoning soil, water, air, and wildlife. In a 192-page letter, Francis endorses prevailing science, which holds that human activity creates greenhouse gases that cause global warming. Fittingly, he called for transformation, “for changes in styles of life, of production and consumption, to combat this warming.” His call should be heeded, and should come as a spur to action to those who sit on the sidelines.
Francis is not the first Catholic patriarch to voice concern for the environment. His predecessor, Pope Benedict, said climate change should be “of grave concern for the entire human family,” and was called the “green pope” for installing solar panels on Vatican facilities. Before Benedict, Pope John Paul II blamed consumerism and waste for the “senseless destruction of the natural environment.”
But most official papal messages on the environment and climate change have been tucked within a wider range of issues, targeted to environmental conferences or issued on fleeting “world days” dedicated to the environment, peace, or food. It has never been the sole focus of an encyclical ”“ the teaching letter considered to be the Catholic Church’s strongest pronouncement on an issue, and meant to be incorporated into the ethos of daily living for the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics. With a population that size, encyclicals are also intended to influence global morality.
The timing could not be more critical, with the Paris climate talks looming. Several nations have sent carbon emission reduction pledges to the United Nations in advance of the summit, including President Obama’s pledge of 28 percent by 2025 for the United States. China, after negotiations with the United States, says its carbon emissions will peak in 2030, and the European Union has pledged a 40 percent reduction by 2030. But two new analyses this month, one done for the Guardian newspaper and another Monday from the International Energy Agency, warned that current and anticipated pledges are not yet enough to hold the earth under a 2-degree Celsius rise in temperature, compared to preindustrial levels.
Pushback from some Catholic officials has already begun, especially in the United States. Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the retired archbishop of Washington, told The New York Times that the environment is not a top priority for American bishops, saying, “They don’t understand the complexities.” But the pope should hold firm.
Climate change, originally fueled by Western industrialization and consumerism, is quickly emerging as an issue of justice. Poor, low-lying countries have few resources to protect themselves from its effects. In January, in an obvious prologue to his encyclical, Francis said man has “slapped nature in the face.” This encyclical is a powerful statement about how to begin addressing the damage.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
