The pressure on President Biden is ratcheting up when it comes to his Israel/Gaza policy. The pressure is now coming from key Democratic Senators. See the following from various media sources.
Joe Biden should use his leverage and the law to pressure Israel to change how it is prosecuting the war in Gaza. Chris Van Hollen, the Democratic senator from Maryland said, “We need the president and the Biden administration to push harder and to use all the levers of US policy to ensure people don’t die of starvation,”
On Friday, Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), one of the highest-ranking Jewish officials in the U.S. government, said Israelis need to call new elections to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who, Schumer said, “has lost his way by allowing his political survival to take precedence over the best interests of Israel.” Schumer, who is a strong ally of Israel and who also blamed Hamas for the crisis in the Middle East, warned that the deadly toll on civilians in Gaza under the policies of Netanyahu’s government is “pushing support for Israel worldwide to historic lows. Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah.”
I believe Biden and his administration is making this more complicated than it is. It needs to be clear to Netanyahu that he changes his ways or the money for his war on Hamas ends. Biden is letting Netanyahu have it both ways and that is unacceptable to me and many more people who support the people of Israel, but do not support Netanyahu and his tactics.
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Per the Detroit News Editorial, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer carved out a clear position on government transparency by proposing to slash the budget for the one office in Lansing that holds lawmakers to account.
The governor’s spending plan would cut funding for the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) by $8.3 million, or 28% of its budget. It’s a smack in the face to calls for greater government accountability in a state where transparency is notoriously weak. The OAG is the last line of defense. It should be fully funded.
The cuts to the OAG Whitmer wants are a fraction of the proposed $80.7 billion budget for 2025.
The OAG performs myriad constitutionally authorized functions, including auditing state agency finances and performance. Critically, it conducts a $3.2 million annual statewide single audit that renders Michigan eligible for federal aid.
Whitmer’s proposal puts that funding at risk.
The Office of the Auditor General’s performs an important function for taxpayers. It reviews the process and procedures within our state government and verifies whether departments are following the state’s policies and procedures. It was the OAG who uncovered the more than $10 billion fraud that occurred in the state’s unemployment agency.
The OAG are the internal eyes and ears that help keep our government on the straight and narrow. In my years in various finance roles, I came to greatly appreciate the value of a strong internal audit staff. The examples of issues that were discovered and resolved before they became too big and embarrassing, happened many times during my career.
For a state that is 49th in public transparency, the state can ill afford to cut the funding of a department that has saved the state billions. By cutting this funding, the governor is exposing the taxpayers to greater risk of fraud and inappropriate spending. This budget cut should not occur.
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It was not a good week-end for the University of Michigan men’s football and basketball teams.
On Friday, Juwan Howard was relieved of his duties as the head coach of the men’s basketball team. On Saturday, the recently hired defensive line coach for the men’s football team, Gregg Scuggs, was arrested for allegedly operating a vehicle while intoxicated. According to various reports this is not the first or second time this has happened to Scruggs.
After last year’s embarrassing hiring of Shemy Schembechler, you would think Head Coach Sharrone Moore and Michigan Athletic Director, Warde Manual would do a better job of vetting coaches before bringing them on board. The Onion of the Day goes to Scruggs.
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The former president has said a lot of things since 2015 that I have discounted to him being a big blowhard. However, some of things he has been saying recently I can no longer ignore. He is telling us what he is going to do as president, and we cannot afford to ignore these warnings.
Here are some recent quotes from the former president.
“Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s gonna be a bloodbath. That’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country,”
“I don’t think you’re going to have another election in this country, if we don’t win this election… certainly not an election that’s meaningful.”
When he told the Proud Boys to stand down, I was appalled but I didn’t take him seriously. Then January 6, 2021, happened. At this point, we ignore him at great risk to our democracy.
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Leah and I traveled to Detroit on Thursday to see the play “To Kill a Mockingbird”. As usual the Fisher Theater was spectacular, and the Fisher Building is an absolute gem. The high ceilings, the marble floors, and woodwork are stunning.
Although Richard Thomas was off sick for the evening, his replacement in the lead role as Atticus Finch was outstanding. It is a wonderful story which has great meaning today. The play takes place in the 1930’s. On the way home I said to Leah, “If we had seen this play in the 80s or 90s I would have said that the country had made great progress since the play was written. However, I feel the progress has been lost in today’s political environment.”
A big thank you to my daughter Katy, her husband Brad, and Alaina, Nolan, and Kaylen. The tickets were a gift from them for our 50th anniversary from last August.
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Quote of the Day: “If it’s not a big deal, don’t make it a big deal. That’s kind of like my motto.” Max Clark, 19, Detroit Tiger first round draft pick, after a 71-year-old Tiger fan backed into Max’s corvette at a stop light.
Orchid of the Day: The play “To Kill a Mockingbird”. It was worth the drive to Detroit from Petoskey.
Onion of the Day: Michigan defensive line coach Greg Scruggs was arrested for allegedly operating a vehicle while intoxicated early Saturday morning in Ann Arbor.
Question of the Day: Will any of the B1G men’s basketball teams make it to the sweet 16.
Video of the Day:
“Margaritaville” 🍹🏝🦜 Tribute to Jimmy Buffett from Terry Fator (youtube.com)