Feed Me!

 

Thank Goodness that we have the Republican Party doing such an exceptional job overseeing the way our road taxes are being spent.

I’d hate to find out what would ever happen if they didn’t follow through with their fiduciary responsibilities of making sure that everything was spent properly.

{Continued below.}

So here’s the Michigan road situation so far.

Despite the Michigan Budget going up some $1.4-billion from FY 14-15 to FY 15-16, Senate Republicans “could not” find $1.4-billion in new spending for Michigan’s Roads.

“Nope! Uh-uh! Nothing left in there for us to cut”, opined Senate Majority Leader Meekhof. A sentiment paraphrased by other Republicans like Kowall, Zorn, Shirkey, etc. as the spoke to the press before, during and after jamming through a 15-cent gas tax hike with the aid of Lil’ Guv Brian (“the conservative voice” inside the Snyder administration™ ) Calley.

Strange that the Michigan House didn’t have the same problem when they passed their proposal. Although to be fair, their sources of funding are on equally shaky ground.

And then there is this.

By now you’ve heard about the millions of dollars literally flushed down the toilet by MDOT to pay for trains that are literally gathering rust in storage while they figure out how to get their “high speed rail” (not to be confused with “You must be high, if you think this rail system will ever work without massive taxpayer subsidies rail!…A.K.A. Detroit’s M-1 Rail system) working.

Well, get this.

About two years ago, the big brains at MDOT felt that doing something as simple as mowing the lawn was too hard along I-696 just outside of Detroit.

So, in a “Well,- it’s-not-as-if-it’s-our-money-we’re-spending” moment, they literally ripped out all of the grass along the edge I-696 from I-75 to I-94 and replaced it with “shrubbery”.

 

As they mutually patted each other on the back for a job well done, (“just look at all of the money we’re going to save by not mowing the lawn”), no one bothered to consider whether or not their landscaping job was appropriate for the environment along the route it will be adorning.

 

 

 

Grab a hold of your chair because the results may shock and surprise you…it wasn’t.

Just like MDOT’s other screw-ups (along with the fact that MDOT Director Kirk Steudle still is drawing a regular paycheck), the landscaping WAS NOT suited for the areas around the freeway and will now have to be replaced at a cost of almost a half a million dollars.

Gosh!

Oh, Senator Meekhof?

Senator Kowall?

Senator Shirkey?

Senator Zorn?

Any of your guys who voted for that gas tax cramdown?

I’ll even entertain a response from Sen. Virgil “gangsta wannabe” Smith?

{Insert sound of hearty Michigan-bred Cricket noises here}

Oh, well.

Speaking of insatiable appetites for Michigan Taxpayer Money…did you hear the latest problem with the Michigan Senate Republican’s road plan?

Despite having an actual “proof-of-concept” roadway in place for 50-years (a roadway constructed below ground level, which was eventually replaced because if was too small for the volume of traffic it carried), MDOT is now balking at the idea because (from The Detroit News):

But longer-lasting highways would “cost a lot more money” by requiring wider right-of-ways and raising road levels to make water drain faster away from the base of a roadway, said Curtis Bleech, pavement operations engineer at MDOT.

Ummmmm, yeah?

I’m not sure if they think that we have very short memories, or if we just take everything that Team “r” says as gospel…just because it’s coming from Team “r”, but this is getting more and more insulting as time goes on.

Grab some popcorn and stay tuned.

And don’t forget to hold on to your wallet tightly!