Cronyism

Cronyism, Elections, Government Incompetence, Humor in Michigan, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Republicans

Calley’s Next Big Announcement!

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What will the next over-hyped roll out of critical information be???

So Brian Calley has not yet come out and said if he was running for Governor ..US Senate ..Muffin man.

He used the build up, the excitement, the hype! ..To announce a legislative effort.  The May 30 announcement at the Detroit Crony Club’s Mackinac Leadership conference brought us news that The conservative boy wonder wants to spearhead efforts for a part time legislature.

“Mackinac Island — Lt. Gov. Brian Calley is spearheading a petition drive and potential 2018 ballot proposal to make the Michigan legislature part-time and cut legislator pay, the Portland Republican announced Tuesday.”

Ballot proposal hmm?

While the idea of a part time legislature is a great idea, it is not entirely original, it does not set him apart from ‘the pack’ as Schuette beat him to the punch, and the timing is hilarious.  Political opportunism on the back of good policy is a part of Calley’s past.  He used RTW promises to get a hand picked supreme court nominee (who lost) and now after a decade of service in Lansing, and NOW it’s apparently time to ‘pull the trigger’ on this ‘necessary‘ reform.

Classic.

The announcement however, left open the speculation of whether Calley would be pursuing higher office.  His website hints at yet another big news event, telling us to come back June 1st.  Obviously, Calley has a string of announcements planned all the way to the GOP leadership conference.  Keeping us in suspense will keep us engaged with (presumably) his next campaign bid!

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Conservative News, Cronyism, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Republicans

The Good, the Bad, & the Unattractive.

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Bill Schuette begins the issues ramp up for 2018.

A partial ‘wish’ list by Bill Schuette in a recent editorial is a decent start to his gubernatorial bid.

Schuette, in preparation to take on a half dozen or more GOP contenders is capably using his AG pulpit to advance certain ideals that will probably be embraced by conservatives and GOP activists across Michigan.  Schuette, already enjoying a lead built on 30 or so years of campaigning for governor leaves little to question on 4(3?) key issues.  In today’s editorial on the Detroit News page:

First: Financial disclosure

Michigan is one of only three states that does not require disclosure of personal financial information by elected state officials. This common sense reform would provide new information to help prevent conflicts of interest in government decision-making.

We already require financial transparency from federal officials, so it is not a stretch to include state elected officials, from the governor’s office to the state legislature. I have both sponsored financial disclosure bills as a state legislator and complied with federal disclosure requirements while serving in the U.S. House of Representatives. It is not that difficult.

Personally, I don’t care how much you are worth.

But there are tells in the way your investments are made.  Add to this the cronyist environment that takes taxpayer money and pipes it through political process toward certain ‘investments,’ and a sickening reality becomes clear.

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All the Other Stuff, Cronyism, Detroit, Government Incompetence, Humor in Michigan, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion

State of the (19th Century) Art

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"And it will benefit dozens of Detroiters..."

As if last year’s defeat of the RTA tax hasn’t discouraged Penske and the rest of the pro RTA tax crowd (not to fear…it’ll be back on the ballot in less than two years), they now find themselves in the sights of the (Not So) Pure Michigan crowd!

Hmmmmm, WHY hasn’t the republican legislature repealed the law authorizing this shakedown yet?

Anyway…just a little something to bring a smile to you this afternoon.

Submitted w/o any further comment

Some of the language isn’t exactly SFW, so turn down your speakers for about a minute.

You Betcha! (7)Nuh Uh.(0)

Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Fees, Government Incompetence, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Part Time Legislature, Republicans, Taxes

Corruption or Incompetence?

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Oakland Macomb Sewer Interceptor Costs Now At $ 335 Million And Climbing, Cue The Lawsuits

The City of Sterling Heights announced on their FakeBook page Monday that they have filed a lawsuit against Macomb County over their $ 22.2 million portion of the cost for reconstructing the collapsed Oakland Macomb sewer interceptor (OMI), as apportioned by the Macomb Interceptor Drain Drainage District (MIDDD). Sterling Heights believes that the Macomb County Wastewater Disposal District (MCWDD) “did nothing to abate the conditions that likely caused the December [24th] 2016 collapse”. Sterling Heights believes their contract with the MCWDD covers the operation and maintenance of the OMI interceptor.  This may be a little tricky to prove, since the OMI is actually run by the Oakland Macomb Interceptor Drain Drainage District (OMIDDD), an entity independent of and superior to the MCWDD.

Sterling Heights’ contention is that proper maintenance on the OMI by the MCWDD would have prevented its collapse. Maybe. The OMIDDD has already spent $ 170 million on rehabilitation of the OMI since they bought it in 2009. Supposedly the entire 21 mile length was examined and rehabilitated. That rehabilitation effort ended just months before its December 2016 collapse. That collapse suggests that the OMIDDD rehabilitation didn’t do much good. Anyone care to speculate why? Your choices are corruption or incompetence, or both.

This is now a Michigan wide story because our state government will be providing at least $ 5 million of the $ 75 million repair costs for the December OMI collapse. The much debated $ 3 million legislative grant and another $ 2 million from MDEQ.  That $ 75 million is just the current estimate, for the currently acknowledged deterioration of the OMI. Given the Granholm Administration’s role in suckering Oakland and Macomb counties into the OMI purchase, the State of Michigan probably has a lot more responsibility.

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Conservative News, Cronyism, Democrats, Elections, Government Incompetence, Liberty, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Rent Seeking, Republicans

And THIS is what we get when the republican party controls the House, Senate & White House???

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If Pres. Trump fails to veto this, I easily see him a being a one and done president.

Perhaps yesterday’s coverage of the May Day “celebrations” touched something inside of Congressional republicans?

Perhaps the were “channeling their inner Obama™”?

Whatever the reason, sometime over the past few days, Congressional republicans clearly demonstrated some severe cognitive dissonance with the American Voter (to say nothing about the election results from last November).

More below…

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Cronyism, Government Incompetence, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Part Time Legislature, Republicans, Taxes

New Michigan Commemorative License Plates

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Buy TWO and put one on the front to show that you like higher taxes!

The newest fundraising license plates being issued by the Secretary of State are out!

Celebrating the most recent progressive era of Republicanism in Lansing, the official Budget Year Commemorative Series is now waiting to adorn your vehicle.  From the more modest budget of $48 Billion to the latest greatest manifestation of politics unhinged, you too can let folks know how you love those high gas taxes, expansion of Obamacare in Michigan, and a full blown explosion of cronyism!

Each plate series carries the Snyder-Calley forward budget for each service year, along with the total taxpayer dollars spent to provide such things as school bailouts, constituent payola, medical welfare, and so-much-more!  The special plate fee is peanuts compared to the Michigan Catastrophic Claims premiums, the registration price hike, or the continued overcharging for income taxes!

Be sure to order extras for the kids!  (cause they’ll be paying for it long after you are gone)  For each plate sold, the Secretary of State will contribute $50 to the ‘Sanctuary State Fund,’  or a secret slush fund for the next couple of Senate leaders.

Exclusive License Plate series with budgetary increases shown below the fold.

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Conservative News, Cronyism, Elections, Government Incompetence, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

Michigan republicans should just concede the next election to the democrats right now.

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Really! I’m a conservative just like the rest of you. Pinky swear!

Lil’ Guv Brian Calley, accompanied Gov. Snyder to Macomb County this week at the Macomb Chamber Alliance luncheon, and after a predictable speech on their successes in office, “teases” a potential run for Michigan Governor.

No, I’m not going to drive up web traffic to his soon-to-be campaign site by posting any links to it here.

..

Honestly!

This is the best that the republican kakistocracy can do?

So far, Team “r” has a candidate who supported bailing out Detroit and giving local governments the opportunity to drive themselves even further in debt by floating bonds to pay for promises they made to their employees which they knew they couldn’t possibly keep.

Now we’re seeing a candidate whose conservative philosophical leanings are questionable, at best.

Does Snydercaid, Common Core or using the power of state government to pay for his own daughter’s autism coverage ring a bell to anyone here?

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Conservative News, Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Fees, Fees, Flint Water Fiasco, Government Incompetence, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Republicans, Taxes

Rip Off

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Weaver/McCormick Flint-GLWA Deal Transforms Water From Obscene Tax To Outright Theft

Flint Mayor Karen I Love Rizzo Weaver and Great Lakes Water Authority CEO Sue McCormick have reached a 30 year deal for Flint to purchase water from the Great Lakes Water Authority. The City of Flint had signed up to purchase its water from the nascent Karegnondi Water Authority in March 2013 and the State of Michigan concurred in April. Everyone in Flint City government, save one councilman, has agreed to source Flint’s water from the KWA. Even Mayor Weaver. Until this week.

The Weaver/McCormick deal has GLWA paying Flint at least $ 7 million a year to cover Flint’s share of the bonds issued to finance the KWA. A total of $ 210 million over the 30 year contact period.

Where will that $ 210 million come from?  GLWA is not the Federal Reserve, they cannot just create money out of thin air. GLWA will extract the money from the victims ratepayers in the other communities it ‘serves’.

Mayor Weaver and CEO McCormick will transform GLWA water rates into yet another exaction imposed upon most of Southeastern Michigan to subsidize Flint. Without any input from those victims ratepayers. A blatant fee as tax evasion of Headlee. Governor Snyder, of course, approves wholeheartedly.

This is government theft, Headlee evasion, and a rich fount of future corruption.

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Michigan, Michigan Politics, Rent Seeking

Solar Powered Failure

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Same scat - different day.

Here’s to still and cloudy days

There must be a class in our taxpayer subsidized higher education system that trains government employees for subsiding business ventures that cannot survive on their own.  A preparation of sorts for the most productive work in Michigan state government.

A123 systems, LG Chem, etc..  Energy is the hot topic, but renewable energy has gotten a stake of the treasury in the past few years.

And to date, it has never been completely debunked as being a future solution for diminished resources.

That’s OK actually.  Under certain circumstances, renewable options provide ways to solve all manner of the issues.  Lawn lighting, roadside signs, or limited use for the cabin in the woods, all of which can be effectively served with solar, or other off-the-grid generation

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