Texas right to act on border control
Regarding the border standoff between Texas and the federal government, Eugene Robinson thinks the “President has a duty to uphold the Constitution — even by force” (Opinion, Feb. 4).
The problem is Biden’s so out of practice that he may not be able to muster the fortitude to uphold the Constitution.
I assume Robinson is referring to the progressives’ ‘living’ Constitution. The one that supposedly allowed Biden to neglect securing our southern border or that Biden thought would allow a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for private businesses or allow him to provide broad-scale forgiveness of student loans.
It is frequently said that our Constitution is not a suicide pact. And when the federal government’s negligence or intentional dereliction of duty jeopardizes a state (or the entire country) and its people, those parties have the natural right and duty to protect themselves.
And if Robinson wants to cast such actions as “foolish political machinations,” just know that the fools are those allowing our country to be overrun by illegal aliens.
GREGORY MARSHALL, MARIETTA
Efficiency incentives would help meet power demands
Regarding “State lured data centers; now it needs juice” (AJC, Sunday, Feb. 4), the U.S. Department of Energy reported that though there are now 2.5 million EVs plugging into the grid, electricity consumption has remained flat since the Great Recession, mainly due to gains in efficiency.
Efficiency incentives paid by Georgia Power would be far cheaper than capital investment in massive power plants. I see many homes and businesses with room to improve, and the gains in efficiency could be huge if we truly got on board with doing the right thing. Other utilities are using more affordable “demand flexibility” solutions, such as Vermont’s Green Mountain Power putting batteries in people’s homes, filling them when demand is low and discharging them when demand is high. You could also make everyone pay variable rates reflecting supply and demand.
It’s how everything else we trade is bought and sold, and it would drive innovation through decentralized solutions seeking the lowest rate possible.
JOHN E. DUKE, COLLEGE PARK
