To the editor:

Lots of interesting headlines in the news.

Here’s the title of a recent Wall Street Journal Editorial on Trump’s proposed tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China: “The Dumbest Trade War in History.” You don’t want to know how much slapping tariffs on Canadian lumber and autos will do to the price of a home or car.

And maybe you saw Trump standing next to Israel’s prime minister at the White House the other night saying the U.S. would take over Gaza and push the people into neighboring states. Egypt, Jordon, and Saudi Arabia all oppose the idea.

This follows on the president’s talk about taking back control of the Panama Canal and Greenland, also opposed by their respective peoples.

If you are collecting social security or have Medicare or Medicaid, you may be interested in Heather Richardson’s “Letters from an American” column from Feb. 4. She writes that Mark Elez, a 25-year-old Musk engineer without a security clearance, has been given direct access to the Treasury Department systems to write codes affecting 20% of the U.S. economy. This means he has the ability to change payments to social security and veterans’ benefits, among other programs.

Did anyone vote for Elon Musk in November? He’s already shut down America’s most important foreign aid institution — USAID — which, for example, operated hospitals in Gaza and provided medicine for those suffering from HIV in South Africa, a program that saved countless lives.

This is effectively a coup. Unless these actions are undone, the U.S. Constitution no longer matters and we have lost our democracy.

Kirk Peterson

Lake Clear