I have been waiting for Rep. Tom Barrett to respond to both of the letters I have written to him.

The first was written in January and posted here as an example on how to write your congressperson and the second, sent a week ago, focused on the cancellation of REU programs.

He has not replied to either letter. He has not had staff reply. He has not addressed these issues at all.

It’s probably for the best for him to ignore us because it allows him to remain a congressperson who avoids difficult questions and issues.

A reminder that the only condition for an American citizen to run for office is age.

a form letter from barrett

Rep. Barrett did send me (and presumably the others on his mailing list) the following form letter, which he calls the “Barrett Briefing.” Not a bad name; kudos to his staff (who by the way are lovely people).

Dear Danny,

It’s been a busy week in Congress, and I want to update you on the work I’m doing on your behalf. Whether it’s fighting for Michigan families, standing up for our veterans, or holding Washington accountable, I remain committed to delivering results.

This week, I voted to support small businesses, veterans, and rural communities with several bipartisan bills, including:

• The SPUR Act, which encourages greater small business participation in the federal contracting process.
• The Medal of Honor Act, which raises the monthly pension for recipients of the Medal of Honor from $1,489.73 to $8,333.00.
• The Rural Small Business Resilience Act, which ensures that rural small business owners located in areas where a disaster has been declared have full access to disaster assistance through the Small Business Administration’s Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience.

I also helped pass a responsible budget resolution that lays the groundwork for us to deliver on our promises to lower the cost of living, secure our border, and unleash American energy. Despite the false narratives and fear mongering from some, this resolution does not cut Medicaid, Social Security, or other essential programs. You can read my full statement here:

What follows is an image that provides a partisan statement despite his claim of bipartisanship.

Barrett's statement, sent as an image for some reason

He continues:

This week, I also welcomed a few special groups from Michigan to my DC office, including the Michigan National Guard Association and Michigan Disabled Veterans Association.

In case you missed it, I also chaired my first hearing as Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Technology Modernization to provide oversight on the electronic health records system in the VA. On the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I had the chance to participate in critical committee work to advance several pieces of legislation to the House floor.

Looking ahead, I’ll be hosting my first telephone town hall on Monday, March 10 at 7:10pm. I hope you can join me! More information will be shared closer to the call. I discuss all of this and more in this week’s Barrett Briefing. Watch my full update below:

He then shares a video of himself speaking about his work in Congress, which mostly consists of the same information in the letter.

a few compliments

I appreciate his work on behalf of veterans; most of my family has and continues to serve this country in the armed forces. My support for veterans is rooted in that family history. Anything we can do to ensure their health and well-being abroad and at home is important. The difference between Barrett and myself is that I believe that everyone in this country deserves the same level of care and support that we provide to our veterans. Human health and well-being should not depend on the uniform you wear, who pays your salary, or how much money you have.

I also appreciate his work for small businesses. My mom, at different times in their lives, has run a daycare center out of her home. And we had a lawn care business for several years that my dad ran. Both ultimately closed up as the costs of running a business became too high. My parents struggled through those changes eventually returning to work for others. My parents enjoyed providing services to their community and you could see the pride they felt about their work. The conditions under which they operated the business could have been improved; maybe firstly by providing universal health care, so they could focus on their work.

I also am thankful for Barrett’s staff and their work; producing videos of “the boss” is a good idea because it makes his work more transparent. That transparency is important for the public to understand what their representatives are doing. I am able to comment on his work because of this transparency, and this is appreciated and needed.

I am also glad there will be a telephone town hall; I hope that it is well attended and that the questions are challenging. I intend to show up.

on the other hand

I am disappointed that Rep. Barrett has not addressed the major issues that we are all experiencing.

He represents MI-07, which includes Michigan State University; the largest university in our state, the university that graduates more Michiganders than any other, the university the produces the most STEM graduates in our state, and one the largest employers in the state. While he focused on small businesses and veterans, he has not addressed the chaotic federal cuts, the elimination of programs that support students, the cutting of federal positions that keep our air, water, food, medicine, and infrastructure safe.

He also did not address how we are realigning against Europe and with Russia. Some of his colleagues like Sen. Thomas Tuberville indicated that the US and Russia would decide the fate of Ukraine. I cannot think of a less informed person than Coach Thomas Tuberville. Despite having access to all the information about the situation, he seems about as knowledgeable about the war in Ukraine as my cat. Equally important is the plans by Trump to ethnically cleanse Gaza; a statement that is unbelievable coming from the US government.

He did not address that two unelected people, Elon Musk and Stephen Miller, are effectively running the federal government. The chaotic and dangerous decisions that they are making are not being addressed by our elected officials. Trump is too weak to take them on; he’s a willing puppet. Musk continues to engage in what appears to be ketamine-fueled cutting of federal programs and jobs, while Miller positions our internal and external policies to align with white nationalism. Jance Dance Vance seems just happy to be invited to big boy meetings. Ultimately, Jarth Dader is the guy in your history class who read the first 3 paragraphs of the Wikipedia article and tries to pass off that he read the whole book in the discussion section.

I’m pissed about this, obviously. We are engaged in truly anti-American activities. Or at the very least, activities that are not in the best interest of the American people.

Tom, my paternal grandfather didn’t fight Nazis in WWII so that we could align with them in 2025. My maternal grandfather didn’t fight in Korea to align with authoritarian regimes. My uncles across my family did not fight in Vietnam thinking they were fighting for the right of a few people to exploit the many. My cousins did not go to Iraq and Afghanistan to see the rise of fascism in our country. Whatever your view of American military actions (and I have critiques, baybe), the family members that we have sent to fight did so because they believed they were and are doing so for the safety and security of our country.

Our behavior at home and abroad are important. We are not behaving like a serious country with serious people in charge. We are being run by a bunch of ketamine-fueled, selfish, and disingenuous clowns. They are dangerous and they are hurting us daily.

what about the budget?

Taking Barrett’s statement above and the available reporting that is associated with the budget framework including the budget proposals that are being discussed, the data that is available, the models that are being made, and the projections that are coming out, it is clear that either he is lying to us or he is being lied to by others. Honestly, just read the news.

I am not sure who lying to whom, but the result will be the same:

• Higher taxes for the middle class, while the wealthy enjoy significant tax cuts.
• The social safety net will be dismantled, leaving children, the poor, and seniors vulnerable.
• Public services will increasingly be privatized.
• Our public institutions will face continuous erosion.
• Corporations and wealthy elites will exploit and destroy the environment.
• The safety of our food, water, air, medicine, and infrastructure will remain in question.
• Our history will be rewritten through a revisionist perspective.
• Our rights and freedoms will be steadily eroded.
• Authoritarianism and fascism will continue to rise in our country.

I am honestly not sure what country or time that Tom Barrett thinks he lives in but it doesn’t appear to be the United States in 2025.

I look forward to every public event he hosts and asking him questions about these issues.

I hope he will answer them, but I won’t hold my breath.