Auchter's Art

Much has been said about Governor Whitmer and her more, shall we say, nuanced approach to the Trump 2.0 presidency. The reality is, Trump is running the federal government like a monarchy, and he's the king (or the emir or the crown prince — it's clear he was in his element on this week's Middle East tour). So what is a governor to do if she needs to get stuff done? Bend the knee, butter him up, and at least appear to give him what he wants. And apparently it works.

I was listening to Michigan Public (naturally) when I heard the story about the Michigan House of Representatives passing a bill last week that would require state agency hiring decisions to be based on merit. Here's what caught my attention: The bill passed with nearly complete bipartisan support — all but one representative voted for it. Whoa! That level of agreement between Democrat and Republican politicians seems ... unlikely. Turns out, there was agreement on the vote, but not really on the intention.

Game 6 of the Detroit Pistons series with the New York Knicks takes place after my deadline for this, so by the time you read it, future me will either be a bit happier or a bit sadder than current me. Either way, let's go Deee-troit basketball.

I am particularly proud of the simple, clear message behind this week's cartoon: If you're implementing policies that consistently tank the market, then maybe don't implement those policies. No need to overthink it.

The behavior of our elected representatives is often more uncomfortably reflective of our own behavior than we would necessarily like it to be.

Is it not clear at this point that the fate of our economic system should not be subject to the whims of a single person? This has been like watching great-grandpa, who never drove a car, trying to parallel park a Winnebego on a city street. Yeah, he's got the biggest vehicle and may eventually get it into a space. But there is gonna be so much damage. And so many enemies.

A common criticism for an editorial cartoon: "It's not funny." The common response from an editorial cartoonist: "You're right." That's because the main goal of an editorial or political cartoon (a good one anyway) should be to stir a thought or even start a conversation. Humor can help, but it isn't necessary.

Abraham Lincoln famously described our particular form of government as "of the people, by the people, for the people." So it seems to me that if we slash and cut and terminate all of the "people" parts, there will be no constitutional republic left. And a real danger of it perishing from the earth.

I think there is a deeper issue, and it disturbs me more that the capricious behavior of Secretary Linda McMahon and the Trump Administration actively dismantling the department: They seem to care more about their ideological victories than they do about the actual students. Much more. If, in fact, they are thinking about students at all.

The situation with the Line 5 oil pipeline that runs through Michigan isn't the most topical issue I could have picked this week. It's more of an ongoing issue that (I hope) most Michiganders are familiar with. The point I'm attempting to make, however, is extremely topical. And that topic is: propaganda works.