STATE REPRESENTATIVE  KATE EBLI (D - FRENCHTOWN TOWNSHIP)

While the majority of the field of Democrat candidates for the Presidency have shown Michigan voters their middle fingers by swearing off the Great Lakes State there are a handful of elected officials right here in Michigan who've done something more "productive" with theirs, putting them into the wind to figure out which way it's blowing.

The sad reality is far too many of our electeds seem to use this method to determine how they'll vote on an issue, being guided more by the whims and benefits of political opportunism than by adherence to a strict political or governing philosophy that their constituents can bank on each time they cast their ballots.

It's an unfortunate trend in American politics, the pandering game, as more and more Democrats follow Bill Clinton's example, floating, listless, in the middle of every issue possible until the waves of public opinion carry them one way or the other.  Take, for example, Monroe County Representative Kate Ebli.

When asked before her election last November "if you had to choose between tax incentives to encourage Michigan's auto-based manufacturing industry and emerging industries, what would you do she responded with this bit of genuine insight:

We must review each case and analyze the costs versus the benefits. Michigan must make job-creation a No. 1 priority and we must attract job-providers, regardless of their industry.

The statement only says a lot about the candidate because it says so little.  It's thirty some odd words that jumble together in the readers mind to collectively form one giant "huh?"  It doesn't give a position.  It firmly places Kate Ebli in the middle of the issue allowing her to drift when and how she pleases, providing approximately zero insight into her personal thoughts or legislative philosophy.

Ebli's made an early career of wearing the label that advances her the furthest, running as a pro-life, pro-2nd Amendment Democrat in a largely rural Monroe County.  They're positions any candidate in the 56th district needs to have to get even a passing glance from voters in the country and on the farms.

But does that make her a conservative or a political opportunist?  I'm normally not one to question a politicians motives (who am I kidding, yes I am) but do the Representative's bedrock conservative principles extend beyond the politically expedient?

If only.

Keep in mind her response on the issue of business tax cuts (remember, she didn't have a position but wanted to "attract job-providers, regardless of their industry) as we take a look at her legislative record.  

Ebli read the tea leaves on the SBT and PPT and co-sponsored legislation to provide a personal property tax exemption for industrial property to assist manufacturers.  Smart move politically.  She followed that up by lowering taxes on the purchase of an automobile.  She's making friends fast while boosting the economy with legislation that 98% of the state would roundly applaud.  

Ethanol plants, don't forget those, Kate.  They're popular so she co-sponsored a bill to provide a tax credit for ethanol plants, too.

Maybe I was wrong about her... she's building quite a record here and she DID say she wanted to help job-providers regardless of their industry.  Yeah, about that.  Not every industry is popular these days.  I mean, who really likes the waste management industry?  Not the voters.

Suddenly Ebli's penchant for job creation took a backseat to a stiff breeze of public opinion and she co-sponsored a massive tax hike on the industry.  So much for helping job makers in every industry.  Add that to her co-sponsorship of theTrial Lawyer Enhancement Act and the bill granting it retroactivity risking 540 Michigan companies and more than 30,000 jobs because big-time Democrat special interest donors demanded it and you'll start to get an idea of her "flexibility" with fiscal conservatism.

Unfortunately that was just a portent of what was to come.

Late in the month of September the Democrat controlled House of Representatives began taking votes on a massive hike to the state's income tax but it couldn't seem to go anywhere.  There were a handful of Democrats who refused to vote one way or the other, unable to make up their minds on perhaps the most fundamental philosophical issue they'll ever encounter in Lansing... to support the status quo and kill a few thousand jobs while driving families out of Michigan and making it more difficult for them to make ends meet or stand up for working moms and dads.  

Not a tough choice.  Except for the fact that Ebli relishes her union support and sure didn't want to upset any of the special interest groups who carried her to a narrow election win last November.  So she put a finger to the wind, then another, and stalled.  And stalled.  And stalled.

Suddenly the wind picked up and the special interest emails and phone calls and office visits and donor demands and union threats came with it and Ebli made a her calculation.  Kate Ebli voted YES on the Democrats $800 million income tax hike on struggling Michigan families.

Then she took those MEA marching orders and voted NO on common-sense MESSA reform aimed at taking $400 million out of the pockets of union bosses and putting it back into the classroom.

Ebli had a chance to do the right thing.  She's had the chance time and time again during her stay in Lansing.  It's her foundationless behavior and special interest pandering that makes it so important the voters make sure it's a brief stay.