Trump's Economy

When I was a boy, Mack Trucks were made in Allentown by Mack. Mack made everything, save the tires.  But even then, the parts and trucks weren't made in the same factory. The parts were made on S. 10th Street, and the trucks were assembled at Lehigh and S. 12th Streets.

General Motors now makes their vehicles in Michigan and Canada. The parts move back and forth across the border during the assembly process. Having a strong economy and partner to our north was always considered a plus, before our new emperor's reign began January 20th.

Our previous leaders, called presidents, had advisors on such matters as foreign policy and economy. Our current emperor has sycophants, whose vocabulary apparently only consists of compliments. So, while the red hats applaud their leader's strength, their stocks and assets go down, and their food gets more expensive. 

ADDENDUM: By late Tuesday afternoon, the administration was already announcing that the tariffs would be modified on Wednesday. Another announcement concerned reinstating some jobs cut last week by DOGE. Considering that this is Trump's second rodeo, only the most diehard partisans could applaud these false starts and uncertainly. Freshman Republicans should rent, rather than buy in the DC area.

Pinsley's FOMO Bigger Office Show

Mark Pinsley has been running for a bigger office than he holds since starting out as a South Whitehall Commissioner. I can't even recall how many offices he has run for, but currently he is Lehigh County Controller.

On March 12, he is conducting a meeting to explain the proposed Federal Budget. This Pinsley Promotion will take place in the Commissioner Chamber at the County Building at 7th & Hamilton. If such a transparent political opportunist should be using public space is questionable, but apparently not by Executive Armstrong or the commissioners....never mind, this local blogger will point out the misuse of a public facility.

The federal budget is a work in progress. What it will end up being is anybody's guess, but how it will filter down into Lehigh County is even beyond a guess. But, there is no guess why Pinsley is having the meeting. The only valid question to ask on March 12th, is how many of our tax dollars is this latest Pinsley self promotion costing the taxpayers?

Principles First

In a post last week I mentioned Principles First, an alternative convention to the CPAC sycophants dancing with Trump last week. The participants at the counter meeting yet have no tent. They're hoping not to become Democrats. They know a third party fares poorly, but the Trump side-show isn't the same Republican Party that they can relate to. But even the most disenchanted among them couldn't have imagined the Trump/Zelensky meeting on Friday.

By late Friday afternoon, all the click-baiters on media and the social media undercard were analyzing the brawl. Those on the right side of the ring said that Zelensky wasn't respectful and appreciative. Those on the left side said that Trump and Vance tag-teamed their guest. Assuming that the European and world media would be more objective about what happen, most, with Hungary being the exception, agreed that Zelensky was the abused party.

Getting back to the Principles First tent looking for a label. I think that after hearing the Lindsey Graham types rattle on Friday night that Zelensky should resign, some more thoughtful Republicans will be coming out of their zombie trance and start looking toward the future. The super-partisans are praising Trump for putting America first, and his peace before endless wars. That raises the question, was the ambush coming Zelensky's way, regardless of what he said or didn't say? Either way, Trump's tantrum(s) lowered our esteem on the world stage. Trump later trying to defend himself after the meeting in a red hat, may have been a sight too far, even for the partisans.

The Crucifixion of Gavin Holihan

Gavin Holihan was the last assistant district attorney to forever DA Jim Martin. When Martin retired in 2023, he recommended Galvin as his replacement. Martin was a Republican, and Holihan ran on the Republican ticket for the position.

This year state representative Josh Siegel announced his candidacy for County Executive, and Holihan endorsed him. Siegel is a rather progressive Democrat, and that endorsement caused the local Republican Party to censure Holihan. Holihan claimed that as a state rep., Siegel was aggressive in bringing extra funding to local police departments. Holihan making the endorsement before he knew who the Republican candidate will be, only further annoyed his party.

Now, I do remember Siegel as an activist years ago, marching in Allentown with the Defund The Police group. His DNA is too progressive for my vote come November, but I believe that Holihan, regardless of his party affiliation, is entitled to make an endorsement based on his knowledge of a candidate. Meanwhile, back at the local Republican Party, individual party members are demeaning Holihan as a betrayer, weak, and rat.  Ironically, the Republican overreaction has given Siegel another talking point for his campaign. But worse for the Republicans, their censure of Holihan has generated more publicity for Siegel than he could have ever generated on his own. 

photo above taken by Lee Ann Smith, concerning apartment building at the Immaculate Conception Church Cemetery

Republicans In Opposition

As a conservative independent, over the years this blog's audience trends Republican. The recent blog posts' comments, correspondently,  paint us in a golden era. While Democrats seem to have a wider range of  philosophy, from center left through liberal to progressive, the Republicans run a tighter ship. Differences in philosophy elicit labels, such as RINO,  even traitor.

As an independent, I'm disappointed at the lockstep occurring. However, there was a Principles First convention last week for the disenchanted Republicans, if only attracting about 1,200 attendees. Although no real game plan of action was formulated, I found the convention encouraging. 

Trump publicly made the cabinet subservient to Musk on Wednesday, by asking any cabinet member with an issue to speak up then and there, in front of the media. Musk is now established as the ramrod or foreman of Trump's Team. Loyalty remains the absolute requirement for the new Grand Old Party.

Space X and The Resolute Desk

As I revealed here last year on the blog, I have rented a small satellite office on the Space Coast. It's a small room on the upper story of an older building. While sparse with just a desk and cot, I do have a large window facing east..While I can't see the ocean, I can see the rockets fired from Cape Canaveral arching upwards.

In 2024, Elon Musk's Space X shot up 138 rockets carrying thousands of satellites for numerous companies and countries. For such a titan to be standing over the Resolute Desk, is unprecedented in American history. Usually presidents protected themselves with firewalls against such appearances. Once upon a time, Musk would have been a suspect for the Anti-Trust watchdogs. Musk's conflict of interest as a hyper-adviser, with Space X and NASA contracts, could only be ignored by Donald Trump, no other elected official would be so oblivious. 

The Republicans are calling the Trump/Musk association visionary. They're calling all Trump's appointments creative and what's needed to fix the ship of state. In reality, they're demoralizing the departments, and marginalizing the concept of qualifications. I would like to be able to differentiate between partisan and credible Republicans, but so far, the latter has not appeared. That delay to properly describe the emperor, will come back in 2026 and 2028 as a penalty at the polls.