Rick Perry, secretary of Oops, is running away as fast as he can.

The worst thing is that I have become inured to it all.

Fred Polvere

Yonkers

To the Editor:

Re “U.S. Deal Lets Erdogan Keep Troops in Syria” (front page, Oct. 18):

Vice President Mike Pence capitulated to all of Turkey’s demands and received nothing in return. Abandoning our partner in fighting ISIS was followed by the searing, abject betrayal through a deal that gave Turkey Kurdish lands it seized, along with an assurance that the Kurds would retreat.

The “cease-fire” is merely Turkey giving the Kurds five days to comply before re-engaging in war. Our honor and reputation are now buried under the rot of President Trump’s perfidy.

Nancy Ganz

Newton, Mass.

To the Editor:

Re “E.U. Envoy Testifies That Trump Delegated Policy to Giuliani” (news article, Oct. 18):

Really? We’re to believe that Gordon Sondland, the United States ambassador to the European Union, didn’t know that Hunter Biden was involved in Burisma when Rudolph Giuliani demanded that Ukraine investigate the company, and that Mr. Sondland believed President Trump’s claim of wanting nothing from the Ukrainians?

Is Mr. Sondland lying, or is he just so incompetent that he doesn’t know basic information about a country in which he’s involved — though I don’t know why the ambassador to the European Union would be involved in Ukraine, which isn’t even an E.U. member.