Attorney General Dana Nessel is planning on bringing criminal charges against 10 people including former Governor Rick Snyder, former Director of Health and Human Services Nick Lyon and Snyder aide Rich Baird for their role in the Flint water crisis. Former Director of Health and Human Director Jim Haveman, who I know personally and have tremendous respect for is quoted in the Detroit News as saying, “If Gov. Snyder can be prosecuted, any public official can be prosecuted,”
This prosecution is a slippery slope. What is preventing a superintendent of schools from being prosecuted for cutting the schools security for financial reasons even though the director of security asked them not to for safety reasons and then a student is seriously harmed because of the lack of security. What if a mayor reduces winter maintenance of roads in the city because of financial concerns and then a car slides through an intersection and causes a major accident in which someone is killed. Can the mayor be prosecuted?. Where does it stop? I don’t know the answer, but I feel like Attorney General Nessel’s move is politically motivated.
In the latest order from Robert Gordon, Michigan Director of Health and Human Services, restaurants and bars are to remain closed until February 1, 2021 due to Covid-19 concerns. I have been supportive of Governor Whitmer for most of her decisions on Covid-19 but I do not agree with this one. I can see keeping bars and the bar areas of restaurants closed because people tend to congregate especially after consuming alcohol. However, I see no reason to keep restaurants closed that do not serve alcohol and do not have areas for people to congregate. I am confident private restaurant owners can set up the proper procedures and safety protocols to assure the safety of their patrons and prevent the spread of Covid-19.
President Trump was impeached for a second time today. One of only three presidents who have been impeached, he is now the first to ever be impeached twice in a term. In fact he has been impeached twice in less than a year. Unlike the first time, when votes to impeach followed party lines, the vote today included 10 Republicans, including two from Michigan, who voted to impeach. It now goes to the Senate for trial. A trial that will probably not start until Trump’s term has ended.
Michigan’s men’s basketball team let the sports world know they are for real with their 23 point victory last night over 10th ranked Wisconsin. The final score does not reflect the thumping that Michigan administered. At one point in the second half Michigan was ahead by 40 points at 69-29, the largest deficit a Wisconsin team has ever had in a B!G game in their long history. With their win last night, Michigan became the first team in college basketball history to beat three ranked teams in a row by at least 19 points. Per the Detroit News, the winning margins don’t tell the complete story of how dominant Michigan was against Northwestern, Minnesota and Wisconsin. In each game, the Wolverines stepped on their throats and never relented, building leads of 29, 37 and 40 points. Before we get to excited, we need to remember that last years team started 9-0 with impressive wins against ranked teams of Iowa State, Gonzaga and North Carolina. Michigan then struggled to play 500 ball for the rest of the season.
Also from the Detroit News. WJR-AM (760) host Frank Beckmann announced Wednesday he will retire from the radio station in March.“It’s been a great run here at WJR over 48 years,” he said.
A Detroit native, he was a news reporter in 1972, later became a University of Michigan football play-by-play man for 33 seasons and has been hosting his own conservative-oriented show that runs 9 a.m. to noon on weekdays. After Ernie Harwell returned full-time to radio, Beckmann moved from radio to the TV booth on WKBD, working Tigers games from 1999-2003. His partners included Al Kaline for three years, Lance Parrish for one and Jack Morris for one. He was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2008 and into the Michigan Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame. His columns ran weekly in The Detroit News for several years, until 2015. His last show will be March 26, he announced on his morning show.
Frank Beckmann has been part of my mornings or evenings for the better part of 40 years. I got to know Frank a little bit when he MC’d the Mott Golf Classic and we played in the same foursome for nearly 10 years. Since then I have kept in touch through text messages. I am always amazed how he will respond to a text in the middle of his show. Frank dedicates much of his time to charites including the Wounded Warriors Project, The March of Times, and Kali’s Cure.
Stay safe. Wash your hands regulary. Social distance. Wear your mask.
Quote of the Day: “There is no such thing” Frank Beckmann, after me describing myself as a fiscally responsible liberal.