Michigan Politics

Michigan Political considerations.

Omertà: The New Code of Michigan Campaign Finance Reporting

You Are Going to Know A Whole Lot Less The Next Time You Vote

Michael Kowall Image 2The Michigan House and Senate sent a much revised and dramatically expanded Senate Bill 571 H-3 to Governor Snyder last Wednesday. Introduced by Senator Kowall as a 12 page bill establishing some esoteric campaign finance rules for various types of PACs in Michigan, this bill morphed into a 53 page political grab bag incorporating SB 638 S-2 at the very last minute. It creates a whole new way to conceal political expenditures from public scrutiny until long after an election is over. Think of it as the mafia’s code of omertà applied to Michigan campaign finance.

Michigan’s nitwit news media are decrying the limits placed upon a ‘public body’ in Section 57(3), which prevents them from using public funds to propagandize voters on local ballot questions. This limitation doesn’t go far enough. Remember how the Michigan Municipal League, the Michigan Association of Counties, and the county road commissions pulled out all the stops for Proposal 2015-01? No prohibition against this in SB 571 H-3, but there should be. Citizens should not have to fight their tax dollars in the political arena. Section 57(3) would be a real benefit to Michigan politics if it had been extended to state ballot questions, but it wasn’t.

Now to the really devious aspect of SB 571 H-3, which our nitwit media missed. MCL 169.233(3)(a) currently requires ‘independent committees’ to report their financial expenditures on behalf of candidates and ballot questions four times a year. ‘Independent committees’ currently have to file reports on their campaign finance activities during February, April, July, and October. This is not quite a quarterly basis, but it is fairly well spaced out through the year. MCL 169.233(1) already exempts ‘independent committees’ from the regular election campaign statement reporting schedule – immediately before and after elections – required of most other committees. MCL 169.233(5) requires ‘independent committees’ to file reports of expenditures made within 45 days before a special election, but it is easy to use prepayments and accounts payable to avoid this window during most special elections. And this 45 day reporting window does not exist for regular elections. So you are only going to get quarterly reports from ‘independent committees, except in rare circumstances.

Section 33(3) of SB 571 H-3 completely eliminates the February campaign finance report for all types of committees, including independents. This creates a bastard reporting schedule consisting of two quarterly reports and one semiannual report five months after November elections.. Most political committees have to file pre and post election statements, so their campaign expenditures and sources of funds will continue to be known on a timely basis, regardless of this change. But independent committees are not required to file pre and post campaign reports for regular elections, so they will now have a six month interval after their October reports before they have to report their finances – on April 25th of the following year.

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and our next contestant…

Snowballing???

Recall Language Filed Against Meekhof

Recall language against Senate Majority Leader Arlan MEEKHOF (R-West Olive) was filed with the Secretary of State’s office for the leader’s support of the higher gas tax and the vehicle registration fee bills that came with last month’s $1.2 billion road funding package.

Frank BOERSMA of Holland, an alleged political independent, is receiving assistance from the grassroots conservative group, iCaucus, led by Tom NORTON. The same group is advising a recall attempt in Traverse City against Sen. Wayne SCHMIDT (R-Traverse City) over the same votes for the transportation package.

The stated reason in Boersma’s petition reads, “Roll Call Votes Numbers 475 and 476 as recorded in Senate Journal 100 Dated November 3, 2015; Increasing the vehicle registration tax (475) and diesel and gasoline fuel (476).”

The Board of State Canvassers are tentatively scheduled to meet at 1:30 p.m. Nov. 29 to discuss this and re-filed language on the Schmidt recall, which canvassers rejected on Dec. 14 (See “Schmidt Recall Petition Language Batted Away By Canvassers,” 12/14/15). Schmidt’s newly proposed language reads nearly identically.

Norton said he’s working with a couple conservative organizations, a tea party and another individual involved in the liberty movement. The message he’s hearing from all of the groups and individuals is the same:

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Oakland County GOP Leadership Blunders Its Way to Disgrace Yet Again

By The original uploader was Fabiopao at Italian Wikipedia (Transferred from it.wikipedia to Commons.) [CC BY 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

Last week, the duly elected members of the Oakland County Republican Party (OCRP) executive committee called a special meeting to replace a deceased member of the 8th District Committee, which is clearly permitted under the by-laws.

Following the rules down to the letter, I prepared an email that called for the special meeting. It received the 30+ endorsements from members that were needed to conduct the meeting. The membership agreed upon a date and time, and business was narrowly focused on filling the 8th District vacancy.

This sounds simple enough, right? But in the twilight zone freak show that is the modern-day Republican Party, nothing can ever be easy. It’s always gotta be like pulling teeth. It always has to be a nightmare. And this was no exception.

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Bakers Green Acres Update

The farm was 'raided' yesterday .. well almost.

The state of Michigan is hypersensitive, particularly to Baker, and his operation.

Though yesterday’s ‘raid’ became less than eventful, it reminds us that the jackboot bureaucracy is always waiting for the slightest screw up by those whom it deems its ‘enemy.’ Mark is appreciative of those who on a moment’s notice showed up to witness.

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Enabling Is Bad M’K?

We reward the spoiled attitudes that have destroyed Detroit.

bailoutsBlame game.

From Capcon:

“The Democratic-controlled State Board of Education recently released a statement that appears to blame Michigan’s state government for the Detroit school district’s crippling debt. “

Full stop.

That’s a little like the stories of parent blaming McDonalds for their fat kids.  Below, are just a few of RightMi.com stories covering the incredible generosity of Michigan’s taxpayers under current GOP control.

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Fast and Loose in the Michigan Senate

Switch Subsidy Bill Passage Was A Senate Rules Violation

David Knezek ImageIn their slobbering rush to deliver tax breaks for one very specific data center last Thursday, the Michigan Senate violated its own rules regarding the consideration of appropriations bills. The Knezek amendment to SB 616, S-1:

Enacting section 1. The legislature shall annually appropriate sufficient funds from the state general fund to the state school aid fund created in section 11 of article IX of the state constitution of 1963 to fully compensate for any loss of revenue to the state school aid fund resulting from the enactment of this amendatory act.

converted SB 616 into an appropriations bill according to the definition in Michigan’s 1963 Constitution, in its Article IV, Section 31.

Michigan Senate Rule 3.602 requires:

“Any bill requiring an appropriation to carry out its intended purpose shall be considered an appropriation bill (See Constitution Article IV, Section 31). Appropriations bills, when reported back to the Senate favorably by a committee other than the Committee on Appropriations, shall, together with amendments proposed by that committee, be referred to the Committee on Appropriations for consideration.

Michael Kowall Image 2Senator Kowall moved a suspension of the Senate Rules after the noon recess on Thursday to bring nine bills on to Third Reading, including SB 616. From Senate Journal 106, page 1910: “be placed on their immediate passage at the head of the Third Reading of the Bills calendar.” was his motion. Senate Journal 106 indicates that his request was passed by a majority. This allowed final action and passage on SB 616 in the Senate that day.

Reading the record, it would appear that Senator Kowall was suspending Rule 3.207 to consider SB 616 and the eight other bills which had been placed on to ‘General Orders’ that morning for final passage under ‘Third Reading’, out of normal order. Senate Rule 3.207 requires a one day delay between the ‘Second Reading’ (‘General Orders’), and the ‘Third Reading’ (‘Final Action’). Suspending this prescribed one day delay is a common practice when time is of the essence.

Senator Kowall had already moved that morning, before recess, to place SB 616 and the same eight other bills then under ‘Committee Reports’ (‘First Reading’) under ‘General Orders’ (‘Second Reading’), so they could be on that day’s calendar. Also out of normal order, but again a common practice when time is of the essence.

But did either of Senator Kowall’s two suspension motions suspend Michigan Senate Rule 3.602?

Is Michigan Senate Rule 3.602 a fundamental rule as defined by Mason’s Manual of Legislative Procedure? Mason’s is the underlying body of rules adopted by the Michigan Senate when their own rules are mute on an issue.  Fundamental rules cannot be suspended according to Mason’s and all the other accepted bodies of parliamentary rules.

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Why Schmidt???…

Why recall Wayne...

12231453_1517169498596422_1600511783_nI posted the MIRS article on our filing of petition language to recall Senator Wayne Schmidt to a certain local talk radio host when it came out to see if he was interested in it…His response…Why???…

After Prop-1, the Senate primary campaign against MacMaster, the red light cameras, and now the gas tax, he asked WHY???!!!…

PastedGraphic-1Granted, I’ve only lived up here for a measly 24 years, but during that time I was unfortunate enough to get to know Schmidt and how he operates from his stint in House District 104…been following the guy ever since…enough to know how arrogant, condescending, and downright hypocritical the man is…  Wayne Schmidt is the establishment GOP poster boy, “groomed for leadership” and a “team player” (ask George McManus)…His campaign ads boast of his “conservative values”…his voting record screams progressive liberal!!!…Wayne Schmidt never met a tax or fee he didn’t like, vote for or actually sponsor…He thinks the State should own far more land than it already does, and that the people in Lansing know far better than the folks in CD1 how to run a railroad (pun intended)…He calls himself a Republican, but votes like a Democrat, perhaps if our effort is successful he can take the opportunity to switch parties…

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State Of The State Program Guide Contest Announced

Pure Michigan student creativity unfolding before our eyes.

sotsprogramcoverdesigncontest_cropHey kids, get your art skillz on!

The Michigan State of the State address by governor Rick Snyder is coming soon!  You can watch him get away with breaking the law, tell little white lies (or little dark ones), and learn how much you are already in debt in under two hours!  Gosh, what a treat! (or a trick)

But wait, there is more!

From the Michigan State Department of Propaganda comes a new contest: Design The State of the State Program Cover!

“Students can submit their designs today through Jan. 3. The top five designs – judged by their creativity and originality – will be announced through social media on Jan. 5 and posted on Snyder’s Facebook page. The winning design will be determined by which one receives the most ‘Likes’ on Facebook by the end of the day on Jan. 8.”

Gosh what fun!

To make it easier for our precious snowflakes, here is what the winning entry should look like.

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Lie of the Month: “We’re talking about introducing an entirely new industry to Michigan”

Pandora's Box Has Been Opened

Pandoras Box Image 2Actually, no. There are at least 28 third party data centers already up and operating in Michigan. The House Fiscal Agency thinks there are 40, but didn’t specify them. None of these 28+ existing data centers required the tax breaks just reported out of the Michigan House Committee on Tax Policy to get up and running.  But Switch SuperNAP does? Why?

The promoters of Switch SuperNAP’s tax break package launched their campaign back in November with a heavy emphasis on the ‘new industry’ angle. This whopper seems to have been originated by Switch’s spokesman Roger Martin:

“It is a tough issue,” Switch spokesman Roger Martin said. “There’s no question about it. We’re talking about introducing an entirely new industry to Michigan, something that is the future of this country and of this world. It’s a good, vigorous debate.”

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TAKE ACTION! SB 306 could raise Federal Taxes 40%!

It sets up an interstate compact to use YOUR taxes to force a Constitutional Convention that will raise Federal taxes 40%!!!

Signing_of_Constitution+ Hi–Blast needed on Michigan’s SB306 (again!)…it’ll be up for a vote this time…This is a bill to bind Michigan to an interstate compact to pay a staff to force other states to option in on a constitution convention supposedly to pass a Federal Balanced Budget Amendment. There are many problems.

FIRST, there is no guarantee a ConCon will be limited to one issue, or that it will be bound by the ratification. More than 600 times it has been tried and each time dropped when folks realized the risk. Sec. of State Thomas Jefferson pursued it in 1796 and when the Jay Supreme refused the opine that such a convention could be limited to one issue. James Madison was alarmed when two states were calling for and Art V ConCon just a year after the Constitution was ratified. It dawned on him that this provision slipped through and was very dangerous. If a ConCon was too dangerous when Washington was President, John Adams VP, Hamilton and Jefferson in the Cabinet, Madison in the Senate and Jay on the Court, how much more dangerous would it be now with an electorate that chose Obama twice, and a political class that puts in congressional leadership people like Pelosi and Reid and Republican capitulators like McConnell and Boehner/Ryan?  It is WAAAY too risky. The Constitution needs to enforced not gutted

SECOND, this compact allows Governors to name the delegates and binds that the delegate from first state to ratify (South Carolina) will chair the ConCon. It seeks to bind states and the Congress in ways contrary to the Constitution and Art. V and sets other criteria that will not stand up to current Constitutional authorities. Under Article V states petition but Congress calls a convention and will set criteria. The same Congress that will not limit spending.

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