Sound Off

Sound Off: June 18, 2026

By Sun Herald

June 18, 2026 3:00 AM

A displaced Palestinian boy looks at the damaged building that was targeted by an Israeli strike in Maghazi refuge camp in the central Gaza Strip on May 21, 2026. Despite an October ceasefire in the Gaza war, triggered by Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, the territory remains gripped by daily violence as Israeli strikes continue, with both the military and Hamas accusing each other of violating the truce. Eyad Babae AFP via Getty Images

Sun Herald readers weigh in on local and national topics.

Spoils of war

Israel says they are not giving up land it has seized from war. That’s what it’s been about all this time.

Bennie Thompson’s words

“Republicans have made their priorities clear. They believe ICE and CBP should be terrorizing our communities and tearing families apart” This was said by U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson.

Strength

Our enemies don’t care about your pronouns. They care about strength, and that’s what President Trump is delivering.

Pinky promise

President Trump and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche insist that the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund will never be used. A federal court, however, noted that Blanche’s assurances to Congress were not made under oath, and Trump himself has expressed support for moving the fund forward despite a judge’s order pausing its creation. Yet Congress has apparently concluded that no additional legislation is needed to enforce the court’s ruling. After all, why bother with safeguards when a pinky promise is deemed sufficient? It’s not as though either man has ever been accused of making statements that later proved unreliable.

Inflation

Ok folks, give the guy a break. Everyone knows when President Trump said, “I love inflation,” he was referring to properly inflated tires. The man was simply offering automotive maintenance advice.

Normal Trump class

The fighter Josh Hokit at Donald Trump’s tacky event on Sunday showed his lack of character and the caliber of people this sort of thing attracts. After praising Jesus, he used his winning interview time to spew curse words and disparage Michelle Obama with a ridiculous, lurid statement that Trump probably loved given his history on the subject.

Who does that?

A fighting match, fighter jets flying overhead and the YMCA song played during President Trump’s birthday celebration attended by thousands. You can’t make this tea up. Oh, and some fighter said Michelle Obama was a man?

Send your Sound Offs to soundoff@sunherald.com.