Looking Back, Looking Forward

Looking Back - President Biden and VP Harris Reflect on the Accomplishments of the Last Four Years

 With the Inauguration yesterday it’s worthwhile to pause and take stock of all that has been accomplished in the last four years under a Democratic White House.

With that in mind, the Biden Harris administration released a series of videos with the President, the Vice President, and others in the administration, reflecting on moments from the last four years. If you’ve not had a chance to see them they are worth a bit of your time.

We’ve gathered those videos into a YouTube playlist for your convenience. Click here to access the playlist of ten videos from the Biden Harris administration. We’ve also backed up these videos to our shared drive, where they can be viewed as MP4 files, anticipating that at some point they’ll be archived. Find that shared folder here.

Two of our favorite videos are the longer ones, where the President and Vice President reflect on photos taken over their time in the White House.

President Biden reflects:

Vice President Harris reflects:

Also available in the Youtube playlist is the President’s Farewell Address delivered last Wednesday:

Looking Forward - Where Do We Go From Here?

Pictured above - Hundreds of people assemble around the Reflecting Pond on the National Mall in Washington DC as part of the nationwide set of People’s Marches (Photo source - AP Photo / Jose Luis Magana)

Yesterday Donald Trump was inaugurated for a second term as President, and is bringing a far more radical team with him into his administration. The attempts to carry out the Project 2025 agenda are already underway, with Day 1 Executive Orders issued yesterday to begin the work. Four years of Trump chaos lies ahead of us.

Despite this there is still hope. And it lies in each of us. Many demonstrated that hope this past Saturday by assembling for People’s Marches across the country, including right here in Houghton County.

But it’s not just hope the marchers demonstrated — it’s power. As our Presidential candidate Kamala Harris often said in her campaign speeches last fall, our voice is our power. And, especially now, with the challenges another Trump presidency represents, we need to make our voices heard.

There have been many gallons of ink (physical and virtual) spilled by pundits in dissecting what went wrong in the last election. We may never have a definitive answer, but one thing we know for sure is that the success of our ideas, our candidates, and our democracy depends on actions each of us take right here at home.

In the next four years we’ll have plenty of battles to wage — plenty of opportunity to make our power felt — locally, and at the state and national level too. These include County Board members to be elected, a Governorship up for grabs, and a US Senate seat to defend.

That’s why we encourage all of you who are not yet members of your local Democratic Party to please join us. There are more readers of this newsletter than are members of the HCDP. Some of our readers live outside of Houghton County, but if you are a local reader and are not yet a member of the HCDP, that would mean yours is an unheard voice in our midst. Please consider that, with what we face over the next four years, now is not the time to let the power of your voice continue to go unused.

Your voice and your power, together with those of your neighbors and friends. Collectively, we can be a more potent force for good.

Please consider becoming a member, attending our meetings, and taking action with us over the next four years. We are stronger together.

Michigan Democratic Party Spring Convention February 22

The Michigan Democratic Party’s Spring 2025 Convention will take place Saturday, February 22 at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center.

At the 2025 Spring State Convention, Michigan Democrats will gather by congressional district to elect district officers and members to the State Central Committee. On the Convention floor, Democrats will vote by congressional district to elect a Chair and two (2) Vice-Chairs of the State Central Committee.

All members of the Michigan Democratic Party are encouraged to attend the 2025 Spring State Convention.

The MDP Spring 2025 Call to Convention can be found here.

The 3rd annual MDP Rural Caucus Summit will be held next April 10th through the 12th. The Kewadin Casino and Resort in Sault Ste Marie will once again be the venue. Top keynote speakers are expected again next year, along with training sessions on running for rural office, rural party building, messaging, and much more.

REGISTRATION FOR THE SUMMIT OPENS FEBRUARY 1ST

News Of Note

NEWS ITEMS OF INTEREST TO HOUGHTON COUNTY DEMOCRATS

• Governor Whitmer’s “Road Ahead” Speech: Governor Whitmer kicked off the Detroit Auto Show with an economic speech she called her “Road Ahead” speech, delivering a message consistent with her seven years as Governor - calls for bipartisan solutions to get things done for the people of Michigan. Find the full speech here: Up North Live

• Convicted Felon: President-elect Donald Trump was sentenced Friday in his New York felony hush money case. The judge in the case declined to impose any punishment, in essence confirming his conviction but acknowledging the reality that jail time would not be viable due to Trump’s responsibilities in his new Presidential role. Find a recap of the case and conviction here: USA Today

• Speaker Johnson Caves to Trump: Last week House Speaker Mike Johnson, apparently at the request of Donald Trump, removed the GOP chairman of the powerful House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio. Trump apparently does not like that Turner was a vocal supporter of assistance for Ukraine and held other policy views that put Turner at odds with Trump. The move by Johnson represents the continued acquiescence to the Presidential branch of government by the leader of one half of the Legislative branch. It would appear that Donald Trump has now effectively become the Speaker of the House as well as President. More here: The Hill

• Government of the Billionaires, by the Billionaires, for the Billionaires: Reports surfaced last week that Elon Musk, one of, if not the, richest man in the world, who spent lavishly on the Trump campaign (upwards of $250 million dollars), is being rewarded with an office in the White House complex (though not in the White House itself). Yestereday we learned that he’s been given an official White House email address as well. Who else remembers the days when Republicans tried to denigrate President Obama with unfounded talk about “Chicago style pay to play politics”? Find more here: Musk’s White House Complex Office: The Independent, Musk’s White House Email Address: The Hill 

• Musk’s “Nazi Salute” Welcomed by Neo-Nazis: Speaking of Elon Musk, his awkward, straight-armed gesture at the gathering of Trump supporters last night was immediately called out by many observers as a Nazi salute. Whether he meant it that way or not we can’t say, but one set of people are “eating it up”. More here: Wired

• Whitmer Signs Bills Into Law: On Thursday Governor Whitmer signed 16 bills into law. These bills were among the last passed through last session’s Democratically controlled state legislature. “I am proud to sign these commonsense, bipartisan bills into law that will help Michiganders keep more money in their pockets so they can stay warm and safe,” said Whitmer. “From supporting affordable housing initiatives to ensuring Michiganders can take advantage of apprenticeship programs, these bills will build on our work to lower costs and ensure everyone has the support they need to ‘make it’ in Michigan.” More here: Michigan Advance

• Whitmer Vetoes Bills: On Friday the Governor vetoed 13 bills sent to her by the Democratically controlled legislature. The vetoed bills included ones that would set up parolee ID programs, expedite petition signature verifications, and create penalties for businesses that don't inform the state of plans to outsource a call center. More here: Detroit News

Governmental & Community Meetings

TODAY, TUES JAN 21

The Laurium Village Council meets tonight at 6 PM in the Council Chambers of the Town Hall. More info can be found on the Village's website.

The Calumet Village Council meets in a Work Session tonight at 6 PM. More information, including the Zoom link for remote attendance, can be found on the Village’s website.

WED JAN 22

The Houghton City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The Meeting Agenda can be found in the Searchable Document Center of the Council's website.

This newsletter is paid for with regulated funds by the Houghton County Democratic Party, and is not authorized by any candidate or candidate committee.

Contact us by email at [email protected] or by text or voicemail at 906-523-1233