Wednesday Coffee Talk/Open Thread

by: BZP

Wed Nov 07, 2007 at 07:27:17 AM EST

Lots to talk about today, so let's get right to it. News on top, election results below...

• BFM: Fire up the ballot proposal for stem cell research. It looks like more good legislation will die a slow death in the upper chamber this year: "I don't think it's going through the Senate," [Republican Senator Tom] George said. Be sure to read Jack Lessenberry's essay on stem cell research from yesterday. You can listen to his interview with Andy Meisner here.
• DetNews: Lansing's hunting break hardly that. Was Rep. Agema trying to be ironic here? "'In my opinion, the Legislature has been taking a break since March,' Agema said."
• Mike Cox: Law says benefits can only be given to a man and woman in marriage. For a state that's trying to attract young knowledgeable workers to revitalize its economy, we're sure doing a swell job of making gay citizens feel welcome here in Michigan. Be sure to read Todd Heywood's post on the ongoing Supreme Court case here.
• AP: Senate passes bills aimed at fighting mortgage loan problems. More on this legislative package can be found here.
• DFP: Services tax takes a step toward repeal."[Senate Finance] committee chairwoman Nancy Cassis, R-Novi, called the tax 'toxic' to the state's economy. She said she favors repeal and cutting the budget." Shocking, I know.
• LSJ: Senate panels votes to change lawmakers' health care, pay. "Future lawmakers would have to work 14 years to get the same level of coverage at 55 they now get in six years. The Senate panel also passed a resolution calling for cutting lawmakers' pay by 5 percent."

• LSJ: Triplett, Peters to join council in East Lansing; Baten defeated. Congratulations are in order for Nathan Triplett. It seems pretty clear that it was the blogging that put him over the top ;-)
• LaGrand for City Comm: David LaGrand Wins in Grand Rapids' Second Ward. Ditto for David LaGrand.
• Flint Journal: Williamson wins Flint mayoral race. Gee, Williamson looks thrilled in the photo at the top of this story.
• DetNews: Nativity proposal falters. This one's for Brainwrap.
• Here are the results for Ingham, Eaton, Livingston, Wayne, Oakland and Macomb Counties. More election coverage on MLive.

• DetNews: Ford to invest in its Michigan factories. More details on the Ford-UAW deal: "In Michigan, four assembly plants that produce key vehicles will see significant new investments and product commitments. Local parts facilities will receive new equipment."
• Reuters: GM to take $39 billion charge. That's a whole lotta money.
• Great Lakes IT Report: Got tech, business challenges? MSU students want to help. "As part of their spring semester course work in several communications and business classes, the students are required to work in cross-functional teams on real-world business problems. And, they just need a few more volunteer 'clients.'"
• The Conversation: Pure Michigan looks toward 2008. "Travel Michigan research shows that two thirds of all visitors to the site travel to and within Michigan, and with the site averaging 35,375 hits a day, it doesn?t take long to see how that translates into jobs and revenue for the state."
• BFM: Sunday Newspaper Sales Fall to 32-Year Low. "Ad sales are not newspapers biggest problem - content is. They need to find a way to reduce content costs while maintaining similar coverage. How can they do that? One solution is to hire bloggers."
• Ann Arbor News: Officials looking to establish Spark incubator in Ypsilanti. "David Mielke, Dean of the EMU College of Business, said the group is working with Ann Arbor Spark to find 5,000 square feet of space along Michigan Avenue, which he said should be able to hold up to a dozen "innovation oriented" start-up businesses at once."

Friday Coffee Talk/Open Thread

by: BZP

Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 07:50:14 AM EDT

Happy Friday, everyone! Have a great weekend.

Current & Pending Legislation

• Sen. Hunter to Senate Republicans: Support Must Come Soon. Part Three in the Senate Dems' Top Ten series. Hop on over to BFM to check out Sen. Hunter's post about various consumer protection efforts.
• LSJ: Anti-bullying bill stalls in Senate. Anyone else notice a pattern developing here?
• LSJ Editorial: Tax credit: Republicans shouldn't blame poor for budget mess. "Cassis should drop this punitive bill and use her time for more productive pursuits for all the people of Michigan."
• Sen. John Gleason: Don't let fleeing criminals outrun stricter sentencing. Following the death of a Flint police officer during pursuit of a fleeing suspect, Sen. Gleason (D-Flushing) introduced legislation that, "will make all offenses of fleeing and eluding a mandatory minimum sentence of imprisonment for two years."
• Conservative Media: SOS plays politics with branch office closings. House Dems fight back: "Later in the day on Wednesday, the House passed House Bill 4492 that will thwart Land from continuing to play politics with the further closing of branch offices and inserts some accountability. The bill reorganizes funding for SOS branch offices from a single line item to numerous line items. The bill could potentially restrict the ability of the Secretary of State to reorganize branch office operations."

Elections

• Capitol Journal: Congressional election ratings. Derek weighs in with his assessment of where all of the Michigan Congressional races currently stand.
• Peters for Congress: Republican Bloggers Target Peters. Jordan is really going to bat for Gary Peters, and is asking folks to chip in $9 for the 9th district.
• Walberg Watch: For and Against a Schauer Candidacy. Fitzy weighs the pros and cons.

Odds & Ends

• State News: Blocking blog site shows political bias. Nice to see my alma mater's student paper sticking up for the blogs. More editorials like this, please.
• DFP: Arrest the hysteria on sentencing. "Patterson's ridiculous rant in the Detroit News reflected the kind of divisive rhetoric he built a career on as county prosecutor. For pure hyperbole, he managed to outgun Attorney General Mike Cox, who earlier tied some of the proposed changes to terrorism, and a Michigan Sheriff's Association official who predicted murder and mayhem. Let's take a chill pill and look at the facts." Zzzzing!
• Auto Blog: Buick ties Lexus in quality. This is pretty cool. The Buick Enclave is built locally in Delta Township (near Lansing).
• AP: State, union begins talks on next contract. Eggert reminds us that Mike Bishop wants to balance the budget on the backs of state workers: "Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, has said workers should not get scheduled pay increases in the last fiscal year of their current contracts to help save money."

Did I forget anything? Drop your links in the comments section...

Are Mike Cox and His Minions Mind Readers?

by: Michael Motta

Wed Jun 13, 2007 at 23:22:21 PM EDT

Here, with some minor edits, I reprint most of a comment I made in the Lansing State Journal's online forums.

Will Carl Levin Face Any Republican Opposition?

by: Senate 2008 Guru

Thu May 31, 2007 at 13:51:21 PM EDT

Carl Levin's Michigan Senate seat should be one of the safest up for re-election in 2008.

CQPolitics just profiled the seat, labeling it "Safe Democratic."  The profile offered as potential Levin challengers:

There are some prominent Republicans mentioned as possible 2008 candidates, though, who could give Levin a stronger test than usual were any of them to run. They include 8th District Rep. Mike Rogers, Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land and state Attorney General Mike Cox. None of them is expected to run.

In addition to these names, the wives of prominent Michigan Republicans, Michelle Engler and Jane Abraham, have seen their share of speculation.

So, what's the latest gossip?  Who do you think will get in the Senate race?  Or do you expect that Carl Levin and his hefty campaign war chest will face only token opposition, if any?

Monday Coffee Talk/Open Thread

by: BZP

Mon May 21, 2007 at 07:02:17 AM EDT

• Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood: Rogers uses threat MO to attack respected colleague. "If anyone can tell me what funding Rogers has brought back to the 8th Congressional District I would sure like to hear it. Rogers appears to be fitting into his role as the minority quite well, and after being a cheerleader for Bush’s ill-conceived Iraq fiasco, he now appears to be serving it in a new role as the attack dog." Capitol Journal has more.
• LSJ: Celebrate plans for 1,000 new jobs, but work's hardly done. "The Demmer and Spartan Motors investments seem to be in part stimulated by military contracts, which reflect our historic manufacturing base ... the Dowding investment appears to reflect a new frontier in our manufacturing sector focusing on alternative energy systems ... It would appear from these announcements that we are to some extent maintaining some aspects of our historic manufacturing strength while building for the future. That is a very encouraging sign in these times of significant global economic transformation."
• LSJ: E.L. Art Festival draws 70,000-plus over 2 days. Another nice turnout at the E.L. Art Festival. I went on Saturday, and it was about as busy as I had ever seen it.
• DNews: Officials: Auto theft prevention funds 'raided'. Mike Cox and Mike Bouchard are all worked up about a $4 million "raid" of a state fund designed to fight Michigan auto theft. So let me see if we have this straight. It's okay to yank $300 million away from the 21st Century Jobs Fund, but $4 million for an auto theft prevention fund is somehow over the line?
• Michigan Liberal: 9th District Breakfast. In case you missed it, be sure to check out Jordan's diary: "The 9th District Congressional Committee has decided to dedicate their ENTIRE energy and resources to defeating Joe Knollenberg. This narrow focus is no cause for concern, given the Oakland County Party's strength in down ticket races. The 9th District Committee will work to train precinct captains and volunteer canvassers. I am truly proud to say our party leadership understands the need for grassroots organizing and door to door contact."

Wednesday Coffee Talk/Open Thread

by: BZP

Wed Apr 18, 2007 at 06:07:25 AM EDT

• WOOD TV : House Democrats advance own budget-balancing plan. WOOD has the details on the House Dems' budget plan, which they started voting on last night.
• DFP: Arts advocates to protest moratorium today. Today's rally at the capitol gets a nice write-up in the Free Press.
• MEDC: Business Expansions, Community Redevelopments to Create, Retain 4,237 Jobs. More news like this, please.
• Stone Soup Musings: Taxation is a moral issue. "Polls here in Michigan show most of us want these same things, but few of us are willing to pay for them. We all want something for nothing these days, but that's just not realistic. We have to change our way of looking at taxes, and we also have to change the way we tax people, especially here in Michigan." Bravo, Kathy!
• Conservative Media: Blogosphere was buzzing about the queen of hate’s appearance. The Comm Guru has a nice summary of all the blog buzz this whole Ann Coulter thing has generated over the last few days. Of course, let's not forget that he's the one who has been relentlessly following this story for several weeks now. Keep up the great work, Guru!
• LSJ: Judge throws out charges against Michigan lawmaker. Mike Cox, take a bow: "'I don't think the attorney general has come close to proving guilty knowledge ... on the part of this defendant,' said Ingham County Circuit Judge James Giddings."
• Among the Trees: Too stupid to survive. Another thoughtful post from Eric about the state of the environmental movement. Definitely worth a read.
• Battle Creek Enquirer: Granholm's statement on Virginia Tech shootings. Pretty self-explanatory.
• State News: Poison at the root. Be sure to check out Mike Ramsey's column about Michigan State's YAF chapter from today's paper. He's got more about the Spartan Spectator over on his blog.

Monday Coffee Talk/Open Thread

by: BZP

Mon Apr 16, 2007 at 06:03:06 AM EDT

• AP: Lawmakers explore tax idea for community colleges. "Republicans are moving to quash the idea, saying government should focus on reduced spending rather than tax increase proposals while trying to balance the budget." We've heard this one before, but as Gov. Pingree reminded us yesterday, the anti-tax drones are finally on the run.
• DFP: Potholes can place a hit on your wallet. Here's another one for the anti-tax crowd: "So when you hit that big pothole, unless you've got a justifiable reason it wasn't your fault, you'll be stuck with the repair bill minus deductibles that generally range from $250 to $1000, Cain said." One way or another, Michigan residents are paying for our crumbling roads.
• Stone Soup Musings: No help with your shut-off notice? Thank a Republican. Good catch by Kathy: Emergency aid for utility bills is almost gone.
• Observer & Eccentric: Cox gym scrapped. Maybe they finally figured out that there's a YMCA four blocks from Cox's office.
• Conservative Media: Cleary University continues to defend racist remarks. The Guru makes a great point here: "With the recent firing of Don Imus for an alleged racist remark, it also seems unbelievable that Cleary continues to defend Coulter and she's not being held to the same standard, whose racist and hateful remarks in the past make Imus pale in comparison." And look who's defending Ann Coulter now... why, it's our good ol' pal, Mike Rogers!
• No on Joe: Where Did Knollenberg's PAC Contributions Really come from? The No on Joe folks paw through Knollenberg's Q1 Campaign Finance statement.
• Walberg Watch: Walberg 1Q Fundraising. Same thing for Walberg.
• Walberg Watch: Skubick on Joe Schwarz. Fitzy combs through Tim Skubick's column about Joe Schwarz from last Friday. I agree with Fitzy here... I'd be shocked if Schwarz pulled a switcheroo, but it's the only way the guy would have a prayer at winning his old seat back.

Stupid Freep story "Pumps up" my anger

by: Jon K

Tue Apr 10, 2007 at 11:55:01 AM EDT

The freep story starts out well, with a fact; the AG office is doing something stupid.  But two facts in a row is way too much to handle:

But it's Democrats who are exercised over Attorney General Mike Cox's plans for a gym, noting that the state faces a $686-million budget shortfall and that Cox plans to let go of 21 full-time secretarial and clerical workers, effective April 20.

Here's the kicker though:

Brewer, clearly relishing his scoop, lambasted Cox for planning to spend "tens of thousands of dollars to build a personal gym on the floor near" Cox's office.

Here's my own "scoop" for the free press: private citizens have tips, journalists have scoops.  When a citizen has a tip, a good thing to do would be to do a bit of research on that tip and write a story, that way you can get a scoop and then maybe people would buy your paper.  When journalists write stories about citizens getting "scoops", it makes me not want to buy your paper.

If the editors decided that the AG buying a gym was a story, they should have had a writer research it a bit and write a story on it.  When you just take a press release and rehash it, you're a fool.  And the more snarkery in your story, the more foolish you look.  If you start writing stories, I might start buying your paper.

Tuesday Coffee Talk/Open Thread

by: LiberalLucy

Tue Apr 10, 2007 at 09:12:29 AM EDT

Mike Cox backs losing horse

by: Eric B.

Tue Apr 03, 2007 at 13:31:00 PM EDT

Michigan's own Atty General Mike Cox had signed onto the case ... on the EPA's side (bottom paragraph).

Perhaps you're thinking, "Hmmmm, Michigan, automakers ... kind of linked."  And, you'd be right.  However...

Did Mike Cox Conspire To Manipulate AG's Nomination?

by: robertparker777

Sun Mar 18, 2007 at 08:46:01 AM EDT

After serving the summons and complaint upon Mikey Cox, certain discovery documents have been propounded upon him, one of which is the Request For Admissions, in this document, Cox is asked to admit, under oath, certain things, like does his marital infidelity constitute a crime under Michigan Law and to admit that he has not been prosecuted for same.  Another asks Cox to admit that extortion is a crime that suffices for impeachment under Michigan law?  Another asks Cox to admit that he, or a member of his campaign team had discussions with Mike Duggan, relative to the nomination process of the Democratic Party's AG nominee. Another requests that Cox admit that violations of federal RICO statutes are a sufficient basis for impeachment under Michigan Law. Not to mention that his office initiated a criminal felony prosecution based on fraud.

If the House Judiciary Committee decides to take this matter up, the Request For Production of Documents provide a viable blueprint for public hearings on the issue of whether the present Attorney General, Mike Cox, should be impeached for crimes & misdemeanors as well as corruption in office under MCLA 6.1?

This reminds me of former President Nixon's astonishing re-election only to resign, shortly thereafter, in the face of certain impeachment by the House of Representatives for his activities related to Watergate. Very interesting similarities...So what does Mike Cox's future look like?

I, for one, can't wait to see what his responses will be since they must be provided "under oath".
Stay tuned for the next exciting, nail biting adventure in COXGATE!!!

robertparker777