Thoughts for the Day, March 11, 2025: Looking back to March 7, 1975
March 7, 1975
With all of the other things going on, this is the first opportunity I have had to acknowledge that Friday was the 50th anniversary of the murder of Leah’s mom Florence (56), Leah’s next door neighbor Cathy Prato (17), Carlos Dela Pena (15) and David Perreault (20) the son of the owner of Allan’s Jewelry Store where the murder occurred in broad daylight on a Friday afternoon, near the busiest intersection of the city of River Rouge.
The four were taken into the backroom and shot execution style for a few pieces of jewelry.
Mitch Doig, a mutual friend of Leah and me, posted last Friday on a River Rouge Facebook page, an article written fifty years ago from the Detroit Free Press about the murders. As I was sitting in my hotel Friday night in Maryland, I was reading many comments responding to the Facebook post. Many of the comments were from friends of Leah and me. Fifty years later and the impact of that day still lives on in so many people. I tried to respond and acknowledge as many comments as possible.
I was with my grandchildren in the hotel room when I was reading the Facebook post. I took the time to tell my grandchildren about Leah’s mom Florence and what a beautiful person she was. I was able to find some pictures of Florence and share them with Nolan and Kaylen. It was a special moment for me as I helped Florence’s spirit continue to live on, fifty years after her untimely death.
As Katy said, we were making memories last weekend. Being able to share pictures and stories about Leah’s mom, Florence, with my grandchildren was a very special memory for me.
*******************************************************************************************************
It’s the economy stupid
From multiple news sources.
In Trump’s first term, he regularly pointed to a prosperous stock market as evidence of his success. Many business leaders rallied behind Mr. Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign because of their belief that he would prioritize their economic interests, but now some CEOs and small-business owners are complaining about the economic pain his tariffs will bring.
In recent days, Mr. Trump’s top advisers have tried to reassure the markets and business leaders. Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary, said Sunday that there was “no chance” of a recession. Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary, was not as adamant, saying Friday that there would be a “natural adjustment” as the economy goes through a “detox period” of relying on government spending.
“The full-court press by the president and his surrogates this weekend signals they are under a great deal of pressure from people they listen to — the stock market, Republican lawmakers, and business leaders,” said Kate Kalutkiewicz, who worked on the National Economic Council in the first Trump term. She said the comments by the president and his aides suggest they don’t plan to change course in response to the growing chorus of concern.
Stephen Moore, an economist at the Heritage Foundation and former economic adviser to Mr. Trump, said the issue for the president is the timing. Mr. Moore said Mr. Trump should have waited until Congress passed tax cuts to institute tariffs. “First, let’s get the economy booming again and then let’s talk about tariffs,” he said. “I think there needs to be a bit of a priority shift.”
“It’s an effort to give the pain and the uncertainty that we’re going through at the moment some broader meaning and encourage us that we’re going to get to a better place,” said Nathan Sheets, a former Treasury official who is now global chief economist at Citigroup, of the administration’s new message. “But the bigger question is, are we really going to get to a better place?” This is my Question of the Day.
According to MarketWatch, this is the worst start to a presidential term since 2009, when the country was in the subprime mortgage crisis. Trump did not inherit an economy mired in crisis. He inherited what was, at the time, the strongest economy in the world.
If Trump would have been patient and done nothing, he would have benefitted from the continued improvement in the economy and the ongoing reduction in inflation. Unfortunately, patience is not a characteristic of the president.
*******************************************************************************************************
The potential government shutdown
The following are excerpts from an article today by Max Stier is president and chief executive of the nonpartisan, nonprofit Partnership for Public Service, an organization focused on building a better government and a stronger democracy. I find his take on the potential government shutdown informative and frightening.
With the March 14 expiration of the latest continuing resolution, we are again staring down the barrel of a government shutdown. Congress has failed its core constitutional duty to fully fund the government on time every year since 1996.
If Congress abdicates its responsibility and a shutdown occurs, it will be playing right into Trump’s hand by.
Under the rules of a shutdown, Trump would have wide authority to determine what activities are necessary to safeguard life and property and to target civil servants he deems should be furloughed. A shutdown is destructive in normal times, but this latest incarnation would give Trump a green light to carry out his attack on an even broader scale.
Legislation proposed several years ago by Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) attempted to address the repeated failure of Congress to fulfill its funding responsibilities and should be reconsidered. The legislation would require all members of Congress to stay in Washington, D.C., if appropriations work is not done on time; mandate an automatic continuing resolution on rolling 14-day periods, based on the most current spending levels, if funding deadlines are not met; and ban taxpayer-funded travel allowances for members of Congress.
Congress has shown no appetite for fixing the broken appropriations process and finds itself…deeply divided over spending decisions. But, even more worrisome, Congress has been unwilling to stand up to the president as he has unilaterally expanded his authority at the expense of the legislative branch and intentionally undermined the government he was elected to lead. More than anything else, we need Congress to stop this permanent shutdown and take ownership of the reform of our government.
***************************************************************************************************
Speak up and speak out.
My first email Congressman Bergman in early February was about my concern about how President Trump was strengthening the executive branch at the expense of the legislative branch and running roughshod over the Constitution and the rule of law. I asked what he was doing to address these concerns. Here is his response.
Dear Mr. Biggs:
Thank you for contacting me regarding President Donald Trump. It is an honor to serve the people of Northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula, and I appreciate your thoughts on this important matter.
On January 20th of this year, President Donald J. Trump was inaugurated as our 47th President of the United States. The American public made a statement, placing our trust in President Trump to promote policies that eliminate wasteful spending of your tax dollars, protect American citizens, and instill an America first agenda. As your Congressman, when push comes to shove, I remain committed to ensuring that Michigan's First Congressional District will always be at the top of my priorities and will keep your concerns in mind should any legislation come before me in the House of Representatives.
Again, thank you for contacting me with your thoughts. I am here to help in any way possible, so please do not hesitate to call if I may ever be of service. You can also visit my website at
http://bergman.house.gov
to learn more about the many services with which my office is happy to assist. I look forward to hearing from you again soon.
Kind regards,
Jack Bergman
Member of Congress
It is clear with this response that the Musk/Trump presidency has the Republican members of Congress following in lock step like the rats behind the Pied Piper.
Please call your members of Congress today. The U.S. Capitol switchboard is 202-224-3121. Tell the operator where you’re from and the operator will connect you to your representatives and senators. I tested this out today. It is very simple. They will ask for the congress member you want to contact. They will then switch you to that office.
*******************************************************************************************************
Quote of the Day: “Katy was right. We definitely made memories. It was a beautiful memorial service for Zane and a great weekend with family and friends. I have a great support system. Tom was right though, all hell broke lose Saturday night. I have to say for 12 hours I was mourning but not for Zane.” My sister Nancy Berge after we were all hit with some ferocious bug following Zane’s funeral on Saturday.
Orchid of the Day: My sister Nancy for putting together a great send-off for her husband Zane.
Onion of the Day: The Red Wings. Their playoff hopes are slipping away as they are amid a six-game losing streak.
Lyrics of the Day: I've got a surprise especially for you. Something that both of us have always wanted to do. We've waited so long, waited so long. We've waited so long, waited so long
I'm gonna take you on a trip so far from here. I've got two tickets in my pocket, now baby, we're gonna disappear. We've waited so long, waited so long. We've waited so long, waited so long.
If you think you know the answer, send me your answer in the comments section of the blog.
Answer to Lyrics of the Day for March 10, 2025: Layla, Eric Clapton
“Question of the Day: “But the bigger question is, are we really going to get to a better place?” asked Nathan Sheets, a former Treasury official who is now global chief economist at Citigroup, of the President Trump’s new message
Video of the Day: My go to video when things are getting the best of me.
FROZEN | Let It Go Sing-along | Official Disney UK
Feel free to share my blog with others. To receive the blog in your email, please use the subscribe button or send an email to me at thomasdbiggs@gmail.com and I will start the process for you.
✌️👊🏼