18-05-2025
Trump's proposed PBS and NPR budget cuts will damage excellence in broadcasting
Dear Canada ― it's Michigan here, and we have a proposal for you. We would like to secede from the U.S. and become your eleventh province. Heck, we'd even settle for fourth territory.
As your next-door neighbors, you already know us well. And we have so much in common — Lake Huron, Lake Superior the Ambassador Bridge, as well as Gordie Howe and his bridge. Once we join the family, you won't have to worry about the cost of car parts crossing those bridges. You will get loads of great cherries, plenty of milk, Vernors ginger ale and the whole Better Made snack line.
Furthermore, nowhere else can you get two peninsulas in a single deal. On a practical level, this would be more efficient than building a wall to keep us out. And wouldn't it be fun to beat President Donald Trump at his own game? Think about it.
Your neighbor,
Susan Ewart
Lansing
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I'm surprised Trump hasn't banned the Bible from government libraries. Probably because he's never read it and doesn't know how woke it is, and that by his definition, Jesus was a loser.
Bill Richardson
Riverview
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Robert Rolls' letter lacked insight into what a president's role is. ("U-M President Santa Ono lacked the stomach to stick around," Detroit Free Press, May 6).
Leadership. Ono was a one-of-a-kind leader who was recognized by many, and this was shown by his contract extension. It was not enough, though.
The U-M Board of Regents had to butt into the president's role of leadership. In so doing, they forced a quality leader to move on. Thank you, (U-M Regents) Mark Bernstein and Jordan Acker.
Rolls likes to portray Ono as a scared, shallow leader, which is far from the truth. It is not necessary to pick fights that need not be.
Michael L. Kruchkow
Gladwin, Michigan
It's baffling that public broadcasting is under attack. Recent attempts to cancel federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (which partially funds PBS and NPR) will damage a national organization devoted to excellence in delivering high-quality news and information access.
CPB employs a long form news format that is factual, balanced, highly trusted, and very strong in its local programming emphasis. Imputations that NPR and PBS are somehow politically biased are unfounded, as demonstrated by Federal Election Commission unanimously dismissing a recent complaint of bias and illegal electioneering against NPR, finding the network engaged in a "legitimate press function."
And it's incredibly cheap. Efforts to cancel CPB funding are especially confounding considering CPB serves 99% of the U.S. population, yet federal funding for public media accounts for less than 0.01% of the federal budget, amounting to about $1.60 per person per year. This is decimal dust.
CPB is an amazing value. Excellence should be rewarded, not harmed.
Bob Santer
Northville
President Donald Trump's decision to cave to roll back PFAS protections for drinking water is a shameful and dangerous capitulation to industry pressure that puts Michiganders lives at risk, as PFAS has been linked to a wide array of health problems including cancer, low birth weights, and reduced vaccine response. ('Trump administration rolls back some PFAS standards in drinking water, delays others,' May 14, Detroit Free Press.) With more drastic cuts to the EPA proposed, key Michigan members of Congress like U.S. Rep. John James have remained silent. Make no mistake: Siding with Trump and the polluters over Michiganders will have grave consequences.
Alex Beauchamp
The writer is the Northern Region Director of Food & Water Watch and a resident of Grosse Pointe Farms
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trump, Canada, PFAS, PBS, U-M, NPR | Letters
