Letters to Brian

If there’s one thing our White House correspondent has gleaned from years of Trump-era reader responses, it’s that some people still have a lot to learn

- BRIAN KAREM

When I first became a reporter, I enjoyed reading the letters to the editor.

I still get a kick out of hearing from readers. My writing often provokes both love and disdain, and I like getting responses from both sides of the political spectrum—especially when those who oppose each other politically find common ground in hating the same articles.

Today the feedback from readers often comes via Twitter, though sometimes I get emails and text messages too. I don’t always write back, but I like to acknowledge readers when I can, even if we disagree. Recently I heard from a reader about a column I wrote on President Joe Biden’s press staff.

The reader called me a libtard follower of the socialist/communist leadership of George Soros (for the record, I’ve never met the man) and claimed I am destroying our country. I should be muzzled or even jailed for my thoughts, he said. In addition, he declared that I’m behind efforts to remove gun rights and open our borders to immigration.

It was a lot to unpack.

I’ve exchanged emails and texts with people who made similar accusations hundreds, if not thousands, of times during the past five years. Most of these readers are white men and proudly shout out their love for listening to Rush Limbaugh or watching Sean Hannity on endless loops. They cannot define most of the terms they use, including communism and socialism—or the difference between Republican and Democratic philosophies. These exchanges usually go something like this:

I ask: What is a libtard?