Disappointed in lack of coverage

I was very disappointed to see that you did not cover the “Hands Off” protest rally held in Romeo on the trail bridge over M53 on Saturday, April 5. It was part of the larger national (and international) Hands Off protest that drew millions of demonstrators all over the nation to voice their opposition to the Trump/MAGA/DOGE madness.

The Romeo rally was very well-attended. I have not seen official estimates of attendance, but there were hundreds and hundreds of people there while we were there. It was a very enthusiastic, yet orderly and peaceable crowd and deserved coverage by you.

Shari Handley

Armada

Questions James’ refusing constituents

So John James refuses to meet with peacefully assembled constituents, dismissing them as “partisan, paid-for, political protestors.” How cheap and craven. He seems to have forgotten the Constitution he defended and pledged to uphold, and to whom he is accountable.

John Corrado

Clinton Twp.

Concerned about ongoing cuts

To Senator John James: I am an Air Force Veteran who served from 2011-15 while doing a six-month deployment in Afghanistan. My job title in the Air Force was Aircrew Flight Equipment which dealt with the pilots helmets, G-suits, in seat parachutes, and more. I was diagnosed with PTSD, major depression disorder, and general anxiety disorder at the Traverse City VA Clinic in 2015. I have been working with the Warren office with my VA issues that include asking to get my care services through community care due to me being scared of Ann Arbor VA.

I have concerns over what has been happening between cuts and firings at the VA and other federal organizations. There seems to be a purge happening at the federal government that veterans make up 30% of the workforce and the way the firings are happening is cruel. Between lying about employees being fired bad performing employees, telling them to pick up their stuff within 15 minutes, and then having to rehire them due to how existential their job is like Ebola prevention, employees that work at the National Nuclear Security Administration, people working on bird flu, the veteran crisis line, and so on. This is the biggest layoff of veterans that I have ever seen.

Now we have a bunch of unemployed veterans that are worried about not having an income, trying to maintain the bills, and freaking out trying to find a new job. I am concerned that cuts to the VA are going to impact my disability benefits and care.

Wait times will be longer for everything, trying to get ahold of someone at the VA will be harder, and so on. The veteran crisis line was shut down for a day or two while the suicide rate for veterans is almost 18 veterans a day and there are cuts going to the Veteran Crisis Line, too.

With the VA OIG fired, I feel it has had an impact on my VA OIG claim taking longer and with the VA OIG out, who is the watchdog of the VA now?

I heard there are going to be cuts to the USPS, which the VA uses to mail my prescriptions. This will increase the wait time of my medications to come in the mail.

The Secretary of Health and Human Resources Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is talking about getting rid of SSRIs, which is the medication that I take called Zoloft for my mental health issues. Taking away that drug will make my mental health issues worse.

I am also really concerned after watching President Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance yelling and bullying the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in their meeting on Friday, Feb. 28 2025. Ukraine was invaded by Russia but President Trump and Vice President Vance are taking the side of Putin from Russia. Why are we abandoning our allies to support Russia, which is the country that is invading Ukraine? Are we the bad guys now?

Edward Boone

Macomb Twp.