To the Journal editor:

While smoking my pipe this afternoon, I was contemplating the current state of affairs in our nation. Sherlock Holmes once described a particularly vexing problem as needing three pipes to find the solution.

Unfortunately, I do not believe that increasing my consumption of tobacco will provide a solution to our dilemma. I do, however, have a grasp of the problems.

They are numerous.

The reckless approach to the economy, disrupting the stock market and world trade.

The destruction of a century of goodwill with our allies and the inexplicable praise of Putin.

The complete disregard for our national security by placing it in the hands of unqualified and reckless individuals. The firing of generals and admirals that the president deems are insufficiently loyal to him, when their oath is to support the constitution.

The suppression of free speech. By deporting persons of legal status and revoking their visa based on “…actions they may take or thoughts they may have” (Secretary of State Marco Rubio).

By threatening lawyers and law firms with financial penalties due to their representation of clients with views of which the administration does not agree. By targeting journalists that are critical of the administration.

By threatening to withhold financial aid from higher education institutions if they do not comply with an executive order to dismantle any program that might be seen as supporting diversity, equity, or inclusion.

The suspension of due process for persons accused of criminal behavior and their deportation to foreign prisons, including an individual deported by mistake who they claim they are powerless to repatriate.

All the above are of grave concern.

The most alarming to me is the suspension of the rule of law, ignoring constitutional protections that they regard with contempt, the dismantling of the department justice, and the firing of assistant U.S .attorneys that they believe are insufficiently loyal to the president.

In the last 24 hours, President Trump has ordered the department of justice to prosecute two former White House staffers for criticizing his administration. As the former prosecutor of Marquette County, I spent 38 years exercising prosecutorial discretion as to whether to bring criminal charges against a fellow citizen.

There are numerous factors to be considered before authorizing criminal charges that will impact a person’s life, potentially depriving them of their freedom. A person’s criticism of a holder of political office should never be the basis of charging a person with a crime.

The president’s order that the Justice Department bring criminal charges against his political enemies is an affront to all legal and moral principles upon which our country was founded.

The destruction of the rule of law undermines the very fabric of our nation and puts me in fear for our future.