Need term limits Former Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison recently appeared in Columbia to have a Pints and Politics conversation with The Post and Courier’s state government and politics editor, Schuyler Kropf. While Harrison called out Republicans and boosted Democratic efforts, it was his comments about people running against incumbents that caught my attention. He said that he wouldn’t want to discourage young people from running, but they should look for spots where no one else is running. This politician-for-life model is partly to blame for our entrenched political polarization, and it leads to an impenetrable elite political class. We need term limits for all of our elected officials.

Drainage a local issue Metro columnist Brian Hicks’ Wednesday commentary on Mount Pleasant losing federal funding for its Old Village drainage problem perfectly illustrates the need for DOGE and large cuts to the federal government. A local drainage problem surrounded by something-point-something million-dollar houses should be paid for by the owners of those properties and the town in which they live. Hicks rightly points out that there are projects like this all over the country. Why should we send our hard-earned money to the federal government, diluting its spending power as it’s laundered through layers of bureaucracy, then have to ask that it gets sent back to us? More could be done with lesser means and better results if communities were the ones responsible for solving their own problems. The federal government has a role to play in interstate infrastructure and commerce, but not in local issues like this one. I’m confident that Mount Pleasant will find a way to replace the $5.5 million, which the column notes could be roughly the value of just one of the Old Village properties that may be affected.

Better tariff policy The best thing that could happen to President Donald Trump is for the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that he does not have the power to unilaterally apply his tariffs to various countries around the world, especially in a time of peace. I believe this will happen. I do not think Trump has ever had the courage to admit to being wrong, so he can blame the situation on the courts. An appropriate tariff policy should be brought on gradually over a period of at least three years, and the tariffs should go up slowly. Currency changes should also be taken into account, to keep countries from devaluing, and Congress should approve the tariffs. The biggest objection I have to moderate tariffs is that they would be used to tax the middle class to pay for tax cuts for the rich. I find this immoral.

Send us your letters What’s on your mind? Join our community conversations and let your voice be heard by writing a letter to the editor. Letters can be a maximum of 250 words, and are subject to editing for clarity, tone and libel. They must include the writer’s name and city for publication, and a daytime telephone number for verification. Email your submissions to [email protected] or fill out the form on our online portal .