Michigan Politics

Michigan Political considerations.

Heretic-The conservative case for voting “democrat”.

Will conservative Republicans continue to fall for the football pulled out routine of the past?

thCross posted from Muskegon Pundit

(Note-This discussion does not include the Presidency or national candidates. Because of unique Presidential powers, “best of the worst” is our only option)

In August of this year, the MSM reported the death of longtime democrat Senator Jim Jeffords. Coincidentally, his death was one week before the Florida primary election which elected Charlie Crist as the democrat nominee for governor.

It occurred to me that, not long ago, both men were respected republicans. A review of their political activities shows they were not just turncoats. They were hardly even moderates. They were liberals hiding under the cloak of the republican party.

And it worked…for them.

How’d that work out for us republicans?

You Betcha! (18)Nuh Uh.(4)

Weekend Reader

logo-sphereBill Johnson – Chasing Redevelopment Rainbows Without a change in the way Detroit leadership thinks, ‘promise zone’ funding is throwing resources away.

AFP Michigan – ‘Frugal Ads’ Factually questionable.

RTLMI Blog – Filthy Abortionist Actually I thought My title was better.

Spellchek – Islamist Terrorism Strikes The Heartland of America  Two things: Radical Islam = BAD, Armed folks = GOOD.

FedUp USA – Classical Capitalism turned Crony Capitalism Given our state has more than its share of cronyists., well..

Watchdog Wire –
Talk Like a Pirate Day? – Part Time legislature anyone?

The Shekel – Post Office Does It Again – And we wonder why they are perpetually in the red? (no really we don’t)

You Betcha! (5)Nuh Uh.(1)

Sacking Tea

Is the handwriting on the wall for the tea party movement in Michigan?

The saying “the handwriting is on the wall” has as its source an incident in 539 BC, recorded for posterity in Daniel 5, in which King Belshazzar of Babylon is plainly told that he has been weighed in the divine balance and found wanting, that the days of both his kingdom and his life have been numbered and brought to an end, and that his empire will be divided between the Medes and Persians then advancing on the city. The concept survives in modern English idiomology to imply that circumstances are such for a person or organization that it is now clear that their ultimate failure is to be expected, or at best will be effectively impossible to avert.

Given the thorough pasting that the constitutionalist insurgency endured in Michigan last month, as a statewide aggregate, it wasn’t exactly a leap for reporters and pundits (likely working from a coordinated set of talking points courtesy of the Michigan Republican Party old guard) to insert dramatic prophecies of impending doom for the tea party movement into their headlines and opinion pieces. David’s missive and Jason’s observation notwithstanding, I don’t think it unreasonable to ask the question: Given the significant events of last August, let alone the past 5-1/2 years, is the tea party movement on the verge of becoming just another footnote in Michigan political history?

You Betcha! (16)Nuh Uh.(1)

Yer ‘Back Door’ Is Open

Michigan's Speaker attempts to hang on to his working capital by working around the fringe.

james-bolger-322370dbb048d092Presumably making it acceptable for Jase Bolger to accept the $100,000.00 from Pro-Homosexual millionaires, he offers butter for the burn.

Pretending that he opposes the changes in the Elliot Larsen Civil Rights Act proposed by Dems, he offers a fig leaf. From M-Live:

“Bolger is exploring the possibility of pairing an Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act amendment with a Michigan version of the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), which aims to limit laws that would substantially burden a person’s free exercise of religion.

“I believe our society’s got to get this right, and we’ve got to get this right more than we’ve got to get it now,” Bolger, R-Marshall, told MLive. “That right, for me, is one that respects and protects individual freedom and religious liberty. It’s just so much easier to say than to do.”

Right. Individual freedom.

Though there has never been a case that any of us can recall where a person was told; “No you cannot go schtoop your friend because you are the same gender,”  its critical that we protect that freedom.  Even though most of us are perfectly willing close our eyes, and let the deviancy play itself out with the shortened life spans, and emotional destruction that envelops such behavior.

If a ‘Religious exemption’ is all it takes, then everyone who has conscience could claim it as a reason if sued by a queer who are butt-hurt over losing the apartment, job, service, smile, etc., that they want.  Right?  Certainly that clears things up to take the pressure off.

Until we realize they still have a platform from which to launch a lawsuit.  Bolger is playing the same dangerous game that the Vichy GOP has been playing for years, resulting in a corrupted party, with heavy internal fighting.

Dumb move.

 

You Betcha! (9)Nuh Uh.(1)

Gosh! They Ask

OK Teach. This is what your dues pay for.

Why is the MEA losing members hand over fist?

Could it be because even sans a single debate between Gary Peters and Terri Lynn Land, they pick Peters; the Democrat?  And without a hug fest tournament with Rick Snyder and Mark Schauer, they choose to embrace The Democrat over the fake Republican.  And lacking a single face to face political death match between Democrat Phil Belfy and ..um liberal, Wayne Schmidt, the choice is Democrat.  Even Jerry Cannon, a Democrat, gets the love while Republican Dan Benishek is strangely absent from the MEA ‘preferred’ collection below.

MEA-Dems

The Traverse City MEA office adorned with signs of a singular political plank

Naw..  The appearance of the MEA office as a branch office of the local Democrat party is purely coincidental.

You Betcha! (8)Nuh Uh.(1)

They Just Don’t Learn

Why does the Michigan Republican Party leadership insist on doubling down on stupid?

Unless you sit on the MIGOP Policy Committee, the only clue most of us had that this was happening was a four-sentence news brief at WKZO (590 AM, Kalamazoo) – reported nowhere else according to Frontloading HQ – published a week ago on Monday night:

March 15th, 2016 appears to be the likely date of the Michigan Republican presidential primary in the next election. The Michigan Republican Party’s Policy Committee approved the date, which is the earliest a primary can be held without losing delegates to the Republican National Convention.

If a candidate wins over 50-percent of the statewide vote, he or she will be awarded all of Michigan’s delegates. If the winner has less than that threshold, the delegates will be split up based on the vote.

Which, initially, left me a bit at a loss for words. Apparently, someone was praying that this wasn’t going to get noticed. Of course, that raised the question of “why” . . . and a cursory review of the details provides us with a quite predictable answer.

You Betcha! (22)Nuh Uh.(3)

Michigan Open Carry to initiate lawsuit against K-12 school district

Michigan Open Carry is going on the offense!

In a closed session, the Board of Directors for Michigan Open Carry has voted to partner with a plaintiff who was threatened with trespass for open carry of a holstered pistol at a public school. Details are going to be sparse for now given that the suit will be filed in two months (a strategic decision by the BoD).

You Betcha! (14)Nuh Uh.(0)

Sure. Why Not?

Conservatives may have a choice in the 11th Congressional district after all.

Kerry_BentivolioNothing says I love you like “I’m not going anywhere, thank you very much.”

David Trott has a few extra bucks lying around I am sure.  The foreclosure king’s self funded primary netted him a win over under-financed Kerry Bentivolio in the August primary.  But what the heck, Kerry still has signs, and is an incumbent congressman.  Its not a stretch to say that he COULD pull off a write in win, if people can learn how to spell B-E-N-T-I-V-O-L-I-O in time for the general election.

MLIVE is reporting:

He told MIRS on Monday that he and his family will write in his name on the ballot in November and that he is still considering filing for an official write-in campaign.

Write-in candidates in Michigan have until Oct. 21 to file declaration of intent forms for the November election.

“I’m trying to decide whether to send my opponent a congratulations or receipt for the purchase of the 11th Congressional District,” Bentivolio told MIRS.

This guy is OK in my book.

You Betcha! (24)Nuh Uh.(4)