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Letter: Complaints are just talking points

By Margaret McDonald, Vancouver
Published: April 26, 2017, 6:00am

It is hard to rebut Don Leighton’s letter (Our Readers’ Views, April 14) listing the wrongs of the Obama administration without understanding what he means by certain phrases.

“America was made to look weak.” Weak in what sense? International polls in 2008 and 2015 show increased approval of the U.S., but they don’t address strength or weakness.

“Race relations worsened.” Does he mean that bigotry and prejudice increased, or that people of color were more vocal and angry about racial injustice?

“Did not address,” referring to immigration and veterans’ health. Does this mean did not solve all problems, or produce bipartisan legislation, or stop all immigration? Obama was harshly criticized on the left for the rate of deportations during his term.

“Withdrew prematurely from Iraq.” Should Obama have disregarded the Bush/Al-Maliki Status of Forces agreement for a 2011 withdrawal?

“The stance on gay marriage changed.” True, along with public opinion.

The last three complaints, about Bergdahl, Benghazi, and Israel, are Fox talking points and have been debunked and punditized. All in all, I conclude from trying to respond to this letter that if we want to talk to each other, we need to define our terms first.

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