by Pa Rock
Citizen Journalist
Monday, September 7, 2026: Labor Day, a day set aside as a federal holiday to honor our nation's working men and women - and children.
I thought it might be appropriate today to shine a light on a group of American workers who are better known for skipping work than they are for showing up. I'm speaking of members of the United States Congress, and , in particular, the US House of Representatives. Out of 250 total days so far this year, the House has been in formal session 118 days. Even excluding weekends and holidays, time some American workers traditionally get off, 118 days of actual work in more than eight months is still a nice deal.
Members of Congress get paid for their travel to and from their districts, a per-day expense allowance of up to $79 with no receipts required, as well as whatever nice things lobbyists provide in order to make them feel at home while they conduct the nation's business - and some, like my congressman, even get free accommodations while in Washington, DC, by sleeping in their offices, a sweet, untaxed perk.
My congressman, Jason Smith, a Republican from Missouri's large, rural 8th congressional district, is the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, the group which writes tax law and keeps the lobbyists happy, and from that perch he often manages to get himself on television - but generally only on friendly, right-wing news programs where he is able to carry water for Trump while answering "softball" questions and not getting tripped up by those tricky real journalists. In his weekly email newsletter which some of his constituents receive (myself included), Jason touts his chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee (ad nauseam!) and never fails to brag about the news shows that he has appeared on that week, where he self-promoted and regurgitated the Trump administration's talking points.
Until the latest newsletter which came out this morning, Jason's missives almost always contained blurbs about his appearances with Maria Bartiromo on one or another of the three business-oriented news programs that she hosted for Fox. Maria got her butt fired earlier in the week for an egregious act of disloyalty toward her employer after it was revealed that she shared confidential company internal communications with officials at the White House. Maria carried water for Trump one too many times, and it finally washed her away.
Maria Bartiromo's demise is something Jason Smith should study and reflect on. If the golden aura of Trump is diminishing at Fox, chances are a large swath of America is souring on him as well. The coming midterm elections will generate numbers that will prove or disprove that assertion, and the numbers will ripple across Missouri's ruby red 8th congressional district as well. It will be interesting to see if Jason Smith's victory percentage drops this November over past election cycles.
The major focus of Jason's newsletter today was the US-Canada trade war, a war initiated by Donald Trump, a point Jason forgot to mention, and a war which has hit close to home, even in Missouri's 8th congressional district, a point he did mention. In the lead article in his newsletter, "Canada is Choosing Politics Over People," Jason led with the following paragraph - which sets the tone for the entire misguided piece:
"Farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers across Southeast and Southcentral Missouri have spent years on the losing end of a trade relationship that was stacked against us. For far too long, Canada has gotten the benefit of the doubt while our producers and businesses paid the price. And our families, in particular, have paid the price as Canada has worked to protect its own domestic industries at our expense. That's why I'm so supportive of President Trump working to level the playing field and return fairness to our trading relationships."
Where to begin!
Did Canadians destabilize a once peaceful and productive international relationship by issuing bellicose threats to annex the United States and make it a Canadian province? No Jason, that was Donald Trump snorting a threat to annex their nation and make all of Canada one US state. Trump wasn't a diplomat speaking to help his country work through issues with another sovereign nation, he was a schoolyard bully bellowing nonsense threats to attract coverage on social media.
Did Canada begin a trade war with the United States, Jason? No that misadventure began with Donald Trump imposing import tariffs on countries around the world, often without rhyme nor reason, including countries where we already had established trade agreements in place - like the United States, Mexico, and Canada Agreement (USMCA) which was enacted in 2020 during Trump's first administration - an agreement that his administration helped to create!
Is Canada responsible for the rise in the prices of diesel and fertilizer which are of massive importance to Missouri farmers, Jason? Of course not. Those are a direct result of Donald Trump's war of choice against Iran - a country that posed no direct or imminent threat to the United States. Trump's now-stalemated war on Iran has also raised the price of gasoline for every American, with prices reaching a high-water mark of a national average of $4.14 a gallon just today. A big part of the income from our labor on this Labor Day is going for gas - and the rising price of gas and diesel (now an average nationwide of $5.90 per gallon!) raise the price of groceries - just like Trump's tariff's also raised the price of groceries.
Americans know what is going on, Jason. There is a bogeyman out there, but it's not Canada. You need to wake up and catch up.
When that chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee goes away in January, it won't be Canada's fault, Jason. You'll have Donald John Trump - the politician with the tariffs, the bully who thought he was a generalissimo and could run a war, but couldn't, and the dilettante with the ballroom and the big arch - to thank for that.
Donald Trump totally owns the mess the United States is currently in, not Canada. The Canadians aren't coming to the United States this year to spend their vacation money. They are at home, kicked back, munching on popcorn, and enjoying our insane reality show that is happening below their southern border!
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