Editor’s note: This story originally ran in The Smoky Mountain News in November 2018 following Politics Editor Cory Vaillancourt’s trip to Georgia to meet President Jimmy Carter.  The former president died Dec. 29, 2024.

There, in Sumter County, Georgia, not far from the Alabama line lies the tiny town of Plains (pop. 784), a most unremarkable place home to a most remarkable man. 

To the Editor:

Not being particularly tearful yesterday (Dec. 29) was a terrible moment for me. It was the day that marked the passing of President Carter, a man of unsurpassed moral integrity.

When I asked a friend in the north of England what people there think of our recent election, he did not hold back. 

“The chief reaction here generally is one of utter incredulity,” he wrote. “There’s a sense of bewilderment at the number of people, apart from his most rabid supporters, who could actually vote for the creature, allied to a sense of wonder at a political and legal system which could allow it to happen.” 

To the Editor:

The 2024 presidential election revealed one thing in crystal-clear, proof-positive, light-years beyond any reasonable doubt comprehensibility, that the ability and capacity of the average American voter to simply (but so importantly) distinguish between fact and fiction, the ability to grasp (and choose confidently) between truth and falsehood, the aptitude necessary to seek out and determine right from wrong, to diligently and with purpose contrast good and evil, and lastly, the ability and the practiced competence to differentiate and choose the honorable from the dishonorable — no longer exists. 

So here we are, days away from this pivotal election, and here’s a word of advice: take a deep breath, relax, and let the system play out as it’s intended, because we won’t know who our next president is until days after Nov. 5. 

To the Editor:

Former President Donald Trump is known to be an admirer of autocratic rulers, particularly President Xi Jinping of China. According to CNN, when Trump heard that Xi was about to be gifted a constitutional amendment that would eliminate term limits for the president, Trump was reported to have said “He’s now president for life, and he’s great.

To the Editor:  

You have done something rare in American politics putting the needs of the country above your own by ending your run for a second term.

To the Editor:

Donald Trump’s association with and love of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has taught him and his cohorts how to prepare mentally for a fight.

To the Editor:

The biggest threat to American democracy that no one is talking about is waiting in the wings, ready to be rolled out as soon as a “conservative” (MAGA) Republican presidency is voted in.

To the Editor:

Recently Donald Trump spoke at the NRA convention and promised to roll back gun control measures enacted under Biden and fire the head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.