An Afront to Women
President Elect Trump has every right to pick whomever he wants to be on his cabinet. It is up to the Senate to decide whether Trump’s choices are confirmed or rejected. This is the Senate’s role as detailed in the Constitution.
I know that times are changing and things that were unacceptable years ago are acceptable now. However, I cannot get past the fact that two of his nominations, Gaetz and Hegseth, have been under investigation for various sexual conduct crimes, including sexual relations with 17-year-old girl who was transported across state lines and a woman who was paid-off to keep quiet. Although, both maintain their innocence, I ask myself how can they even be considered for a cabinet position?
This is such an afront to women. It is an afront to men who treat women as equals and partners. It is an afront to parents of daughters. How does a parent explain to a daughter that it is OK for two guys to be considered for a cabinet post in the U.S government even though they have been investigated for criminal sexual conduct?
I shouldn’t be surprised considering they are being nominated by a president who was found guilty of sexual assault/rape in a civil court.
I hope the 45% of women who voted for Trump understand who they have put in office. It is not just Trump. I hope the senate will bring a sense of decency to the process and reject their nominations.
More about Gaetz and Hegseth
The Detroit News Editorial Board, who has never endorsed a Democrat for President, had this to say about Gaetz and Hegseth. Here are excerpts.
A president has a right to surround himself with a cabinet that shares his vision and will help implement his agenda. However, two of his nominees for critical positions — Matt Gaetz as attorney general and Pete Hegseth as defense secretary — are so unacceptable their names should either be withdrawn by Trump or rejected by the Senate.
Gaetz, a Republican representative from Florida, is unsuitable even to remain in Congress, let alone to assume the leadership of one of the most powerful departments of the federal government.
It is reckless of Trump to appoint a man who is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee on allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. The accusations also include accepting improper gifts, rewarding his friends with special favors and obstructing investigations into his misdeeds. While Gaetz has denied the charges, the power vested in a U.S. attorney general demands the person in that position be above even the whiff of scandal. Gaetz reeks of scandal.
With Hegseth, the concern is not with character, but with his qualifications. The 44-year-old Fox News Channel’s Fox & Friends weekend host is a former Army National Guard officer who wrote a book decrying the infiltration of woke ideology into the military. That’s apparently the primary reason Trump selected him.
The next defense secretary certainly must assure the mission of the military is to recruit, train and deploy the most able forces possible, without forcing soldiers and sailors to embrace a progressive world view…But Defense is behind only Social Security in accounting for the largest share of federal spending, at $1.13 trillion. The secretary is charged with managing multi-billion-dollar contracts and nearly three million military and civilian personnel, as well as directing military strategy and advising the president on how, when and where to deploy troops.
Hegseth is in no way qualified to handle those roles. His only executive experience was as CEO of a veterans’ advocacy organization.
The Republican-controlled Senate should establish its intention to vigorously fulfill its advise and consent role, and its independence from the administration, by rejecting Gaetz and Hegseth.
Insanity
The world of college sports is on a direct course of self-destruct. It is insane that the University of Michigan was willing to offer an 18-year-old high school quarterback from Belleville $10.5 million to attend the University of Michigan.
To put the insanity into perspective, earlier this month, the U of M Board of Regents increased President Santa Ono’s salary to $1.3 million per year starting in 2025, which is half of what they were willing to pay an 18-year-old quarterback prospect.
Unfortunately, this is happening throughout college sports. I thought it was bad when the football and basketball coaches were getting paid more than the president of the university. Now we have student athletes getting paid more than the president of the university. FUBAR!!!!!!!
The Lions
During the Lions’ game yesterday, I was driving from Petoskey to Brighton so I could help Katy and Brad with my grandchildren for three days while Katy is out of town. It has been a long time since I was able to listen to Lions’ announcer Dan Miller with Lomas Brown and T.J. Lang on the radio call for an entire game. Although I feature Miller’s calls of the game as a Video of the Day throughout the Lions’ season, it was a pleasure listening to Miller for an entire game. He paints a picture of the game, while Brown and Lang supply the sound effects.
Yesterday’s game was a butt kicking of major proportion. It was historic. The numbers bear it out.
8: Consecutive wins, the most for the franchise since 1934, which was its first season in Detroit.
2: Starts of 9-1 or better in franchise history — this year, and 1934, when the Lions won 10 straight to open the season.
46: Margin of victory, most in Lions history.
645: Total yards, breaking the franchise record of 623 set against the Cowboys on Oct. 27, 2013.
9: Where those yards rank in NFL history, tied with a 645-yard game by the Steelers in 2002.
38: First downs, the most in franchise history and two shy of the NFL record, according to Pro Football Reference, set by the Saints in 2013.
158.3: Passer rating for QB Jared Goff, his second career game with a perfect rating (and first as a Lion).
0: Punts, for the fifth time in franchise history (and second this season).
More Lions
Orchid of the Day: The Lions’ Jameson Williams and Kirby Joseph did something extraordinary on Sunday and it had nothing to do with what the did on the field. Excerpts from Jeff Seidel of the Detroit Free Press.
A short time after the game ended, Williams and Joseph left the Ford Field locker room, rushed to an event on Detroit’s west side and gave away 100 turkeys while meeting with a bunch of kids. Williams and Joseph didn’t bother to eat. Didn’t even get treatment. “No treatment, all grit,” Williams said, smiling. Think about that.
Think of everything they could have done after a game. They could have rushed out to dinner with friends. They could have gone home and nursed all the usual aches and pains after a game.
But here they were, standing up on a platform, as darkness settled over Detroit and the air started to get cold, and they were signing autographs and posing for pictures.
“I’m doing this, man, because it’s the way I was raised,” Joseph said. “We didn’t get so much support, and I ended up here man. I just want to give back to the people that support us.”
The truly cool part of this was watching the interactions between the kids and these two Lions. Because it was so genuine and real.
Two little kids came up on stage looking scared and timid. “You play ball?” Williams asked one boy. The little kid stood there, looking like he was in complete awe. “Y’all brothers?” Joseph asked, prodding for some interaction. “Same team?” Williams asked.
They were genuinely interacting with these kids. Signing autographs. Posing for pictures. Acting silly. And that’s what made it so cool.
This Lions’ team has been put together with players of character and toughness who put the team above their individual glory. They understand they represent the Detroit area, and they have felt how the Detroit area has embraced them. From Sheila Ford Hemp to behind-the-scenes staff members, they understand the importance of embracing the community and giving back. In turn, the Lions have been embraced by the community like nothing I have ever seen in this town since the 1984 Tigers.
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Quote of the Day: “I’m doing this, man, because it’s the way I was raised. We didn’t get so much support, and I ended up here man. I just want to give back to the people that support us.” Detroit Lions’ safety Kirby Joseph.
Orchid of the Day: Kirby Joseph and Jameson Williams of the Detroit Lions. See above story.
Onion of the Day: American adults for being overweight. Per the NY Times, nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, according to a sweeping new study. The findings have wide-reaching implications for the nation’s health and medical costs as it faces a growing burden of weight-related diseases.
Question of the Day: Have the Lions ever played a better game than yesterday?
Video of the Day: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Detroit Lions Game Highlights | NFL 2024 Season Week 11
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Bueno!! Boz