By Bill Lewis
Charles Lindbergh is recognized as the first pilot to fly an airplane across the Atlantic Ocean from the United States to Europe. At the time, in the late 1920s, he became a national hero.
Unfortunately, he suffered personal tragedy when his first-born son was kidnapped and killed. The perpetrator of that crime was later arrested, tried and executed.
In 1932 the U.S. Congress passed the Federal Kidnapping Act, which made it a federal crime to kidnap anyone. It also became known as the Lindbergh Law. This showed that our nation considered kidnapping a very serious crime and there would be strong penalties for anyone convicted.
In the recent past, we have seen increasing cases of police officers being shot in the line of duty. I am advocating for federal law protection in the form of making it a federal crime to kill or injure a licensed police officer of any state, city or county.
Some action has got to be taken to deal with the increasing number of assaults on police. Our state and federal governments have to give strong support to our police force. If using weapons against police leads to their death or injury, it should become a federal crime. This will cut down on these types of crimes.
As there was a need in the early 1930s to make kidnapping a federal crime, there is now a need to make assaults against police officers a federal offense. The time has come to deal firmly with the problem. Our police should receive the overwhelming support of our government and the general public.
It is also time to give more attention to our police authority, so that they can give more protection to our citizens.
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The 2016 presidential race seems to be full of surprises. When Donald Trump announced his candidacy in the middle of 2015, few political observers thought he would become a leading candidate.
However, he has been leading in the polls everywhere and continues to do so. Few political insiders took Senator Bernie Sanders seriously when he first announced. However, he surprised everyone. Sanders is an excellent public speaker. He attracts a lot of young people to his rallies. He has also raised a lot of money.
Considering he is a Democratic Socialist, his rise in the polls has been a surprise, to say the least. He also speaks in a way that is interesting to his listening audience. In the case of Donald Trump, his huge financial resources are an asset.
It is interesting to note that most presidential candidates win their home states in primaries and general elections. This year may be different. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina dropped out of the Republican primary because he was doing so poorly in the polls. It was also suspected that he would lose the South Carolina primary.
This year we may have two candidates from the same state, Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton, so New York will be the focus of the 2016 presidential race.
