The Businessman and the Broom

                                              

I've been asked if I've ever received any responses to my letters to my congressmen. Yes, all fairly generic. Rep. Chuck Edwards responded recently to one of my complaints about the tariffs:

 Our president’s background as a seasoned businessman has provided him with the expertise necessary to skillfully negotiate new trade agreements to advance American interests, and I am fully supportive of his efforts to put America’s economy first. These actions have already proven effective: over 70 countries have reached out to the White House to express interest in facilitating trade negotiations.

While we may have different viewpoints on this matter, your thoughts, passion, and conviction with which you have articulated your stance is noted and respected. Through such open and honest exchanges, we should be able to work toward a more informed and balanced understanding of the issues that affect us all.

Oh, Chuck. A seasoned businessman, is he? With multiple bankruptcies and a history of stiffing creditors, he may be seasoned but is he moral? Is he making decisions for the good of the country or to line his own pockets and those of his friends and family?

I'm reminded of a business man on our rural community who ran a little country store during the Depression, giving credit to local folk in need of staples. He did so well out of his business that he ended up acquiring multiple properties in the little settlement from customers who couldn't settle their bills.

Many years later, his son bragged on his daddy's business acumen. "Daddy always had a new broom leaning against the counter and when folks came to reckon up what they were buying on credit, Daddy always counted the broom in the reckoning. Sometimes the customers caught it, but mostly they didn't. Daddy must of sold that same broom hundreds of times. He was a sharp dealer, Daddy was."

A seasoned businessman, no doubt.