Regarding Daniel Henninger’s “Biden and Nothingness” (Wonder Land, Oct. 14): Assertions that the $3.5 trillion spending bill will “cost nothing,” the border with Mexico is “closed” and the evacuation of Kabul was a “success” reflect more than wishful thinking. They reflect the manipulation of truth for the sake of power. In presidential politics, it’s not what’s true that matters. It’s what passes for true. That’s because the battle for the retention of power is seen as a battle for control over the truth. This should be cause for alarm. Reality, the theologian Paul Tillich observed, is what we have to adjust to because...

President Biden speaks with reporters in Washington, Oct. 18.

Photo: JONATHAN ERNST/REUTERS

Regarding Daniel Henninger’s “Biden and Nothingness” (Wonder Land, Oct. 14): Assertions that the $3.5 trillion spending bill will “cost nothing,” the border with Mexico is “closed” and the evacuation of Kabul was a “success” reflect more than wishful thinking. They reflect the manipulation of truth for the sake of power. In presidential politics, it’s not what’s true that matters. It’s what passes for true. That’s because the battle for the retention of power is seen as a battle for control over the truth. This should be cause for alarm. Reality, the theologian Paul Tillich observed, is what we have to adjust to because we discover it will not adjust to us.

Warner Davis

Collierville, Tenn.