Should politicians remain professional or show they are 'real people'? Readers discuss.
Politicians should be more real
Unlike Robert (MetroTalk, Wed), I love that home secretary Shabana Mahmood told a heckler to 'f*** right off'. It’s the least these boring, pointless idiots deserve. I want British politicians to be more real, to show their individuality instead of being part of the homogenised blobs we always get lumbered with. Whether you agree with their politics or not, you have to admire female MPs of Asian and African descent. Unlike male British MPs (the majority of whom are completely ineffectual) Mahmood, Kemi Badenoch, Suella Braverman, Zarah Sultana, Diane Abbott and Priti Patel are passionate and fearless and deserve respect for that alone, especially when successive British governments are dominated by a tiresome, infuriating, cowardly political groupthink. Stefan Badham, Portsmouth
Trump has thrown MAGA supporters under the bus
Sadly, I believed Donald Trump when he said he would 'drain the swamp' in 2016. What the US president appears to have learned in those four years of his first term was it is more advantageous to be in the swamp – and this time round he’s doing just that. Everything he’s doing is about power and wealth for the few and less for the people – and he’s thrown his Maga supporters under the bus. Now we have his protégé Nigel Farage eyeing the same power and wealth over here. Roger, Wolverhampton
Is Trump making himself a laughing stock on purpose?
Owen’s defence of his claim that the US would welcome a third Trump term – should he be able to exploit a constitutional loophole – is as laughable as his claim that the president 'might pretend to be a dunce' (MetroTalk, Wed). He says opinion polls pointing to Trump’s unpopularity are as credible as those saying he would lose the last election. Owen thinks Trump is making himself a laughing stock on purpose as he tanks his popularity by staging illegal wars, insulting the Pope, or trying to silence his critics, all while trying to position himself as the 'President of Peace' and a free-speech crusader, etc. This is a president showing a cognitive decline who has to have his staff applaud for him whenever he puts his signature down on an executive order. Owen may not be willing to, but more and more Americans are waking up to the disaster that has been Trump’s scandal-ridden second term – not least his ties to the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, which he is so desperate to distract us from. Matthew, Birmingham
British is not 'workshy'
Regarding all this talk about 'workshy' Britain (MetroTalk, Mon) and the number of people claiming long-term sickness benefits. People working at Jobcentres see more welfare claimants than anyone else and know the system better than anyone else. I can tell you that they don’t think people on welfare are 'workshy' or 'gaming the system'. Jobcentre staff seem pretty confident that the vast majority of the people they work with are entitled to what they claim, and the staff get very frustrated when the benefits system stops paying people what they need and deserve. I know this because I’ve been talking to many of these workers as I go through the long and difficult process of starting a new welfare claim – my old one was stopped due to circumstances I couldn’t control. Thankfully, I had a cushion to fall back on. Lots of other people aren’t so lucky – some of them end up homeless, and then it’s very hard to get any help at all. Caitlyn, Nottinghamshire
Having kids was the worst financial decision I ever made
Corl (MetroTalk, Tue) is right in saying that if you really want kids then you find a way to pay for them. As a father-of-three, I can safely say that it’s the worst financial decision I ever made and the best thing I ever did. There’s a huge amount of state support out there, from child benefit to subsidised nursery places, but it does take sacrifice and I think that’s what people who choose not to be parents are no longer prepared to accept. Chris H, London
Grammar police
Regarding Today In History (Metro paper, Tue) and the 'mutiny on HMS Bounty' in 1789. A gentle reminder that when you mention people within ships, you either say 'on board' or 'in' and never 'on'. Antony Hemans, West Sussex
