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RETIREE INCOME TAX I note that there seems to be a concern that retirees would flee the state of Illinois in droves if the state were to tax retirement income in excess of $50,000.
I am wondering if low-income Illinoisans would also flee the state if only their income in excess of $50,000 was taxed. James L. Buck Springfield
PHOTO ID I heard on the radio recently that our local housing authority was taking applications for subsidized housing. I was completely shocked that they were requiring a photo ID. I thought it was oppressing or disenfranchising to require the poor and minorities to require a photo ID.
This made me think of other places that the federal government requires a photo ID.
Social Security now requires direct deposit of your benefits and to set up an account.
The federal government requires financial institutions to have a photo ID on file.
To take a tour of the White House requires a photo ID. You also need a photo ID to take a U.S. Capitol tour and to get into the Department of Justice Headquarters.
To sign up for Medicaid, you need a photo ID. I believe that in itself shows that the government knows the poor have them.
The federal government and Democrats obviously know that the poor, the disabled, minorities and the elderly have the ability to get photo ID’s and that the laws and regulations they pass are not oppressing anyone, yet when a state passes a sensible law to require a photo ID to vote, the U.S government will sue them for disenfranchising voters. Many of the states actually offer photo ID’s for free.
It is obvious that one of the most important things a Democratic society can do is make sure that those who are voting are eligible to vote.
Republicans should keep pushing the voter ID laws. All adults need a photo ID to function in today’s society. It is not punishing anyone to require them.
I dream that someday the media will be honest that there is no legitimate reason to block voter ID laws. Jack Hellner Springfield
FEAR, HATRED NOT NEW Republican leaders such as Limbaugh, Beck, Coulter, Fox News etc. have preached fear and hatred for years. The result is Donald Trump. Love thy neighbor! James T. Londrigan Springfield
