(The Lansing State Journal has an editorial this morning lamenting that Michigan elections are run by partisan officials. (http://tiny.cc/0jyi9) - promoted by Eric B.)
Encouraging and interesting news comes to the state courtesy of a new white-paper from an interesting group of Republican strategists - the GOP just can't win in 2010. The article from MIRS (subscription only) is quite revealing. For instance -
A new white paper by MDJ&R Strategy Consultants takes a look at why the GOP went from controlling the governor's mansion and both houses of the Legislature before the last redistricting in 2000 to having a Democratic governor and House today. Their study of election data trends predicts neither will change hands in the 2010 election and Republicans will drop to a 20-18 majority in the Senate.
"The numbers aren't there to be successful in 2010," said Dennis DARNOI, former chief of staff for Senate Majority Leader Mike BISHOP(R-Rochester). "It's clear that the message the top-of-the-ticket candidates have been using isn't resonating. It hasn't been successful for six years."
Darnoi said the GOP has lost suburban and independent voters, particularly from the five biggest counties -- Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Kent and Grand Traverse. Only 32 percent of Michigan voters identify as Republicans, even though 40 percent say they're conservative. Republicans need an 83-county strategy, he said.
Hmm, an 83-county strategy, eh? Sounds a little familiar, kind of like a 50-state strategy implemented by the Democratic National Party in 2008? You betcha! (wink)
We've published a story today that we believe is extremely important to the outcome of the election this year. Please ensure family and friends are aware of the impact that a recent ruling on voter ID by Terri Lynn Land may have on voters -- no matter what their political ideology.
Activists say Terri Lynn Land’s policies discourage turnout, risk chaos on Election Day
The ruling provides what I personally perceive as a mechanism to harass voters at the polls. What if you've lost or gained a lot of weight, changed your hair color or style, lost your hair, had reconstructive surgery since your last driver's license or other photo ID was taken?
Yesterday in Grand Rapids I had the honor to interview two Secretaries of State, Jennifer Bruner of Ohio and Debra Bowen of California. We covered the waterfront of election reform issues, touch screen voting, election security and other issues. Go to the bottom of this post for the links to the interviews.
I also visited the National Association of Secretaries of State at the Amway Grand and had a chance to confront our Michigan Secretary of State, Terri Lynn Land, who immediately handed me off to her Communications Director, Kelly Chesney. It seems there may be a purge of Michigan voter rolls going on behind a veil of secrecy and it seems Secretary Land doesn't want to talk about it.
Nancy Bedell from MERA, www.MichiganElectionReformAlliance.org the Michigan Election Reform Alliance, had all the answers in our conversation with Land's Communication Director, Kelly Chesney, who was trying to make an argument that the reason that Chris Thomas, Director of Elections under Land, cancelled the meeting was that a letter they had received was considered "pre-litigation" which is a ridiculous argument. Nancy really knows her stuff and I think her for going to toe to toe with Chesney.
I'd like to ask Secretary Land and her Director of Elections a few questions in a sit-down interview about the purge and I'm hoping you'll help me get the interview. Please write to Kelly Chesney and urge her to get Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land and Chris Thomas to sit down for separate interviews. You can e-mail Chesney at chesneyk@michigan.gov.
Here's an excerpt of an article from Alternet.
Michigan's Secretive Approach
In Michigan, the issues are more complex. Advancement Project's Heard said there has been an overall lack of "transparency" regarding several aspects of the state's voter purge process. In 2006, he said, Michigan election officials did a statewide mailing to all voters that did not mention the mailing would be used to verify voter registration information. Still, Heard said the returned postcards were used to remove 230,000 registered voters from voter rolls within 90 days of that year's general election, which also violates the NVRA, he said.
Jan BenDor, statewide coordinator for the Michigan Election Defense Alliance, a local voting rights group, said state officials cited an April 2007 letter from the Department of Justice pressuring the state to do more to clean up its voter roll for the statewide mailing and August 2006 purge. Ten states received those letters, which critics said was a political move because the claims of sloppy voter rolls was based on outdated data, notably U.S. Census population estimates.
Since the 2006 purge, Michigan has used driver's license databases from other states to identify another 280,000 names as apparent duplicate voter registrations, Heard said. This month, staffers for Michigan Secretary of State Land, a Republican, canceled a meeting with Heard and Michigan activists to discuss purge issues.
"We have been trying to get a meeting with election officials to talk about the issues and get their explanation," Heard said. "It's hard to say what happened with the 280,000 supposed out-of-state movers, since we can't get the info from the state."
Land's spokeswoman, Chesney, did not respond to requests to comment. However, newspapers in Michigan have quoted Chesney as saying the meeting was canceled when an information session appeared to be a precursor to litigation. Heard said Advancement Project has not ruled out filing a lawsuit.
"We have to evaluate all of our options," he said. "We are hoping the secretary of state's staff will sit down and talk about it."
It is with a heavy heart that I announce that the field of candidates for the Republican gubernatorial nomination has gone from seven to six.
Hard to believe, but former linebacker Secretary of State and current Congresscritter Candice Miller has sadly hung up her hat on campaigning for the state's highest office, according to MIRS.
Michigan Republican Party Chair Saul ANUZIS said today that based on a private conversation he had with the former Secretary of State last Monday night, she is out instead of being in.
"It has moved from very likely to highly unlikely she will run," Anuzis told the Off the Record panel after Thursday's taping.
Sheesh. And here I was sitting on the edge of my seat, biting my nails, convinced that with Candy in the race, it was going to be a sweet one. Okay, that's complete bull, but is anyone really surprised?
With Miller's departure, that means that Amway Guy Dick DeVos only has to take out buy off five other "opponents". They include -
That Guy that bought Dominos Pizza - Dave Brandon.
Ladies and Gents, meet the supporting cast of "See Dick Run and Lose, Part Deux" - 4 White Guys and the Token Dutch Female from West Michigan. And doesn't that seem just about right for our Michigan Goppers??
In an update to a story I brought you last week, the Traverse City Record-Eagle has published an editorial calling on Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land to launch a real (as opposed to toothless) investigation into alleged campaign finance violations in the Meijer-Acme fiasco.
Rodgers said that under the state campaign finance act, only the secretary of state can seek a criminal investigation of possible violations. But given Land's longtime links to Meijer and her seeming laissez-faire attitude about the whole episode, it would be a wonder if she pushed to know more than she's been told.
Every indication is that Land will send out a sternly-worded press release about the sanctity of the election process and then levy a paltry -- and given Meijer's colossal income, anything less than a few millions would be paltry -- fine.
At which time we'll all be shocked...shocked, I tell ya.
Michelle McManus doesn't get off easily, either:
Incredibly, that's also the attitude of state Sen. Michelle McManus, R-Lake Leelanau, who uttered one of those totally inane assertions that serve only to change the subject: "Campaign finance laws are about transparency, they are not about criminal action," she said. Right. Except when they are about criminal actions, of course. That's why state law, as weak as it is, allows the secretary of state to ask the attorney general to conduct criminal probes of suspected campaign law violations.
Go. Read the whole thing. The Record-Eagle's editorial staff is awesome, and the editorial is worth a read.
Enjoy your weekend. Here's your morning cup-o-links...
State Government/Legislation
BFM: Just when you thought it was safe... "The House Republicans, who wouldn't vote for cuts, wouldn't vote for revenue, wouldn't do a darn thing except get in the way, but somehow DID find the will to vote to spend that money that other people negotiated, sweated, slaved over and put their careers on the line for, are now trying to screw this all up." You can read more about the Senate's vote from yesterday to delay the service tax in this post. Susan Demas rips the House Repubs a new one in this article.
DetNews Editorial: Keep State Police crime labs open. This from the paper that thinks we could've balanced the budget with cuts alone.
Phil Power: Let people decide stem cell issue. What's at stake for Michigan regarding stem cells? "The Analysis Group, an economic research company, predicts that this investment [in stem cell research] will snowball, generating state revenues and health-care cost savings between $6 billion and $12 billion."
Lessenberry: Bridge Too Far. Jack takes a look at the whole Detroit-Windsor bridge situation. Over $150 billion worth of goods cross the Ambassador bridge each year, and with long lines on both sides of the border, a second span is clearly needed.
Flint Journal: Halloween budget deal keeps Fenton Secretary of State office open. "[Terri Lynn Land] was only going to save $28,000 to move the Fenton office to Clarkston. It's not good business when you're bringing in a quarter of a million transactions in the last two years and $11 million brought in last year. It was a very poor people decision and an even worse business decision," Sen. Gleason said. Kathy has more over on BFM.
Michigan's Economy
DFP: Chrysler slicing 1 in 3 jobs. "There will be a level of distrust that will be introduced into the Ford negotiations that wasn't there before." Ya think?
Oakland Biz Review: New mass transit center site proposed for Troy. "The site would bring mass transit options to the north Oakland County business corridor, providing a boarding site for commuter trains, buses, rental cars and taxi service."
Oakland Biz Review: Locals push for regional mass transit in Metro Detroit. "In general terms, I would say that over 85 percent of the people I'm talking to - way more than two thirds, way more than three quarters - are very supportive of us in this region creating a true mass transit system," said Hertel, who was appointed as so-called "transit czar" in June 2006. "I'm feeling that people are not only eager to do it, they want us to move as fast as possible."
AA News: Minorities make up smaller proportion of U-M freshman class. Overall enrollment is up, but the number of incoming Black, Latino and Native American students is flat, meaning there was a 1.3% drop from last year.
Ann Arbor Biz Review: Xela Pack gets demand for eco-friendly items. "Xela Pack Inc. has produced eco-friendly packaging for two decades, but now the Saline-area manufacturer faces surging demand for packaging made from recycled materials from such diverse clients as cruise lines and the makers of herbal pet shampoo."
Local/State/National Politics
Battle Creek Enquirer: Bolger, Segal eyeing state House seats in 2008. Kate Segal, the Democratic chairwoman of the Calhoun County board, is gearing up for a run at Rep. Mike Nofs' 62nd District seat.
Grosse Pointe Dems: Bill Clinton is coming to Grosse Pointe Park! Bubba's swinging thru Michigan next Wednesday to collect checks for Hillary. Hop on over for details.
Odds & Ends
DFP: Go green? Or go blue? Come on, Free Press. Pick a side... we're at war!
Well, this is certainly good news. Hopefully we'll see some progress on the budget today. Enjoy your morning cup-o-links!
Budget Bonanza
Michigan Messenger: Budget gridlock: are term limits to blame? Celeste has a great post up with interviews from former state legislators about how term limits have affected this year's budget negotiations. Definitely worth a read.
Michigan Messenger: State shutdown could hurt small businesses, restaurants. Tick, tick, tick.
Stone Soup Musings: Two Michigans. As Kathy points out, there are two Michigans: "Those who have the money and power - and the rest of us, the ones who need unions or PACs like MoveOn in order to be heard."
GR Press: Ex-GOP lawmakers: Raise taxes. "A letter distributed to lawmakers was signed by 27 former state representatives and senators -- including heavyweights such as former Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema and former House co-Speaker Paul Hillegonds -- tells senators the budget must be cut and tough decisions must be made to raise revenue."
DFP: Bishop urges Granholm to approve budget extension. For the sake of contrast, here's what Sen. Schauer had to say about a continuation budget: "The Legislature deserves to have the weight of this situation on our shoulders until we come to a comprehensive solution. Why should we expect an extension when we haven't finished the job we were sent here to do?"
Odds & Ends
Muskegon Chronicle: Reaction from politicians to UAW strike. Hop over there to check out Rep. Mike Rogers' quote about the strike. Anyone surprised by his reaction? MI Class Notes has more.
Saginaw News: BV branch gets reprieve. "The U.S. Department of Justice stalled Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land's plan to shutter the Saginaw South branch at 4212 Dixie with a request for more records. The delay takes the process past Oct. 1, when a state provision secures another year for the branch."
Michigan Class Notes: How Many Days of the Iraq War Will Pay for Children's Health Care. Guess how many kids could get health care coverage for what we spend over 41 days in Iraq, then go check the answer.
Media Mouse: NLRB Considering Complaint against Starbucks in Grand Rapids. Looks like Starbucks might be guilty of more union busting in GR. These guys provide health insurance to an even smaller slice of their workforce than Wal-Mart (42% compared to 47%).
Let me know if I forgot anything. Drop your links in the comments section...
Happy Friday, everyone! Just wanted to take a quick second to tip my hat to the folks at Comedy Central for purchasing an ad here on MichLib... we appreciate the support. Now, onto the links!
Legislation/Budget
Lessenberry: Higher Education. He nails it, as usual: "Unless we return taxes to some sort of rational level, we are speedily going to damage the state?s colleges and universities... We have a population less educated than the national average. A smaller percentage of our kids go to college. Our universities are forced to charge more tuition... Three years ago, a special commission found that Michigan?s only hope for the future is investing heavily in higher education, and extending it as widely as possible. What is sad is that some people still don? t get that. What is even sadder is that some of them are in the legislature."
LSJ: Michigan closer to shutdown in budget impasse. Budget talks seem to be getting worse, not better. Dillon now pegs the chances of a shutdown at 40%, while Bishop still expects the House to do all the heavy lifting: "If they're afraid to pass a tax increase, they ought to be talking to us about finding a solution that involves more cuts to government."
Gov. Granholm: State's citizens need a comprehensive solution now. The Governor reminds us that she proposed a comprehensive budget solution seven months ago, and says: "The House has pledged to work as long as it takes to get the job done, and the Senate must do the same so I can sign a comprehensive solution into law."
Speaker Dillon: House will stay as long as it takes to fix budget, protect services. The gloves, it would appear, have finally come off: "Sen. Mike Bishop refuses to negotiate, and House Republicans retreated this week when it came time to support their own plan to put a sales-tax increase on the ballot. Meanwhile, the Senate stands idle, refusing to intervene as our state hurtles toward disaster." Apparently Bishop was offered the chance to write a similar Op-Ed, but was too busy (tee time?) to do so.
LSJ: Tax boost issue sizing up as new lawmakers' first big test. Chris Andrews checks in with Lansing-area freshman lawmakers (Meadows, Calley, Bauer, Byrum, and Opsommer) about the looming tax vote.
Observer & Eccentric: The Lansing Connection with Sen. Nancy Cassis. Read all about the Senate Republicans' "reforms" that do little to fix the 2008 budget.
GR Press Editorial: No guns on campus. Here's what the GR Press had to say about the bill to allow school teachers to pack heat: "Common sense should tell lawmakers that allowing guns in school buildings or on school property, by anyone other than public safety officers, heightens the risk for innocent people to get hurt or killed."
Elections
Michigan Future: Texting boosts youth voter turnout. OMG this is GR8: "The study which relied on voter registration data from the Student PIRGs' New Voters Project and Working Assets Wireless, found that sending a text message reminder to vote provided a 4 percent boost in youth voter turnout rates."
State News: Voting changes recommended. The House has passed a no-reason absentee voting measure. Terri Lynn Land supports it. As for the Senate? (crickets chirping)
Odds & Ends
LSJ: Cyclotron evolves: MSU lab taking steps to edge competition. Whaddya know? All sorts of crazy research going on at MSU. Wouldn't it be nice if the State actually supported this sort of stuff?
LSJ: Senate bill includes $5M for extending runway at Lansing's Capital City Airport. Stabenow and Levin got some cash for the Lansing airport. Good. Hopefully this will help attract some new carriers.
Michigan Future: Automakers see greeen in being green. Like we keep saying, there's $ to be made in green technology.
Oakland Business Review: Diversification draws state manufacturing engineers. "Some 3,500 attendees are expected to attend the Society of Manufacturing Engineers' inaugural Great Lakes 2007 Conference and exposition Sept. 18-20 in Grand Rapids."
AP: Michigan GOP activist gets 5 years for sexual battery. Chalk another one up for the party of "family values."
Let me know if I forgot anything. Drop your links in the comments section...
BFM: Legislature Content to Make Michigan the "Great Late State" in Protecting Workers. Sen. Basham's smoking ban is yet another bill being ignored by Senate Republicans. Be sure to check out his post.
Saginaw News: No-smoking sections don't work. Guest columnist Bill Kalmar makes the case for Sen. Basham's smoking ban by arguing that no-smoking sections are ineffective.
BFM: Asking reservists called to active duty to resign from the Legislature is anti-military. The Comm Guru takes a look at Sen. Valde Garcia's legislation that would allow lawmakers to pick their own fill-in if they are called to active duty in the Reserves or National Guard for more than a year.
Ann Arbor News: Lawmakers take aim at texting while driving. "House Bill No. 4982 - introduced in June - would ban people from using cell phones 'to initiate a call, answer a call, listen to or engage in verbal communication through the drive, or type, send or receive a text message or an instant message.'"
Conservative Media: House Democrats will move budget bill Wednesday. The House Democrats have already passed more than half of the state budget, and the Senate is expected to finally start moving bills today.
BFM: Senate Republican SOD for 8/21 - Gloom and Doom Republicans. To say Michigan Republicans see the glass as half empty might be the understatement of the century.
Michigan's Economy
BFM: New Tech Center Coming To Northville Township. The Governor's trip to Sweden is already netting jobs for the state. BFM has the details.
The Conversation: Jobs Mission: Sweden & Germany - Day 2. The Governor pops in with an update on her second day in Sweden.
LSJ: Old Town leading in IKEA race. Want to help Lansing's Old Town Commercial Association win a $50,000 "Main Street makeover" from Swedish home furnishings retailer IKEA? Hop over to this site, sign up (it only takes a minute), watch their video, and cast your vote. OTCA is currently in the lead, but by a slim margin. Let's help put them over the top!
LSJ: Higher cost of MSU has students scrambling. Thanks for the hike, Mike!
Morning, everyone. Just wanted to kick things off with a shout out to our most recent BlogAd sponsor, ED in 08 (it's the one above/below the leopard ad). The stated goal of ED in 08 is, "to ensure that the nation engages in a rigorous debate and to make education a top priority in the 2008 presidential election. We hope that candidates will offer genuine leadership rather than empty rhetoric and tell voters how they intend to strengthen America’s schools so all students receive the education they deserve."
Considering the way college students here in Michigan have been getting manhandled by all the recent tuition hikes (thanks to you-know-who), this is definitely something I think our readers might be interested in. Show them some love for supporting MichLib.
Anyway, enough chitchat... on to the links!
Current & Pending Legislation
My Left Pinkie: Unclear on the concept, Senator? The Left Pinkie is gearing up for the looming Right to Work for Less fight.
Derek Melot: Always time to party. Are the presidential primary bills as important to the future of our state as the budget? Derek doesn't seem to think so: "While Michigan lawmakers can't seem to find the money to fill a $1.8 billion budget hole, or service cuts of the same size the public wouldn't riot over, time is spent on nonsense like Senate Bills 624-25."
BFM: Privatization kills union and 40 jobs. The Comm Guru, on the Howell Public Schools Board of Education's vote to break the custodians' union: "Granted, this case of privatizing is not part of any Republican conspiracy, but overall it fits right into their mission to break unions. Republicans in both the House and Senate have bills pending to make Michigan a right to work for less state, and if that fails, a rightwing extremist who specializes in fraudulent and deceptive petition drives is marshaling money and resources to launch a petition drive to place it on the ballot."
Budget Battle
BFM: Granholm slams Legislature on budget stall. The Governor is heading to Sweden and Germany to bring jobs back to Michigan. As for the legislature... "Not only are they Absent in August, they haven't even set a calendar for September yet."
Detroit News: Stop playing games on state reforms. The Lt. Gov doesn't mince words in this excellent Op-Ed: "If ever there was a time to move beyond political gamesmanship in Michigan, it is now. The Senate Republicans insist -- with good reason -- that government reforms are key to resolving the budget crisis in Michigan. But if they believe their own rhetoric, it is time for them to finally pass government reforms."
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.
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!
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...
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?
It is with a heavy heart that I announce that the field of candidates for the Republican gubernatorial nomination has gone from seven to six.
