Letter from Harry Levine

Columnist’s Views Are ‘Disingenuous’

You have recently published several political essays by Adjunct Professor (Wilkes University) Francis P. Sempa, most recently last week (“Why We Should Still Revere Washington’s Farewell Address”).

This essay uses Washington’s famous “obstruction of the laws” and “foreign entanglements” passages in selective, partisan ways that downplay and distort their original context and intent.

On obstruction, Washington warned against organized factions seeking to override the “delegated will of the nation” and subvert constitutional processes. Mr. Sempa turns a warning directed more appropriately at recent Trump actions into a criticism of people who are the victims of Trump’s disregard for our constitutional processes.

On foreign policy, the essay quotes Washington’s warnings about “permanent inveterate antipathies” and steering clear of “permanent alliances,” but the essay omits his qualifications: that existing commitments must be honored, that honesty in treaties is essential, and that temporary alliances in emergencies are acceptable.

If Washington were alive today, I could see him shaking his head in disbelief.

Overall, Mr. Sempa takes bits and pieces from a complex argument and repurposes them to support current partisan positions inconsistent with Washington’s broader concerns.

Mr. Sempa’s essays are case studies in dishonest writings. They engender distrust rather than dialogue.

Harry Levine
Springfield