Republicans

Cronyism, Michigan, Opinion, Republicans

And it Only Took 135 Days to *Figure Things out*

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If it’s dysfunctional you seek, look no further than the Calley name.

calley-johnjpg-190d913f167f6fa2

John Calley, 26, of Lyons, was charged with failing to stop at the scene of an accident, reckless driving and failure to report an accident – all misdemeanors.

The incident occurred on Wednesday, January 28, at a Pilot gas station on State Road at I-96 in Ionia County.

REST

Go figure. Sorta appears as if they had enough time to bury the toxicology report because the broad he is running with is bad, bad juju.

She said her daughter suffered broken ribs, collapsed lungs and abrasions. She was hospitalized for a day before being locked up on an unrelated shoplifting charge. Records show she was released from the Ionia County Jail on Wednesday.

Thorpe said her daughter, who has a minor criminal record, was an “associate” of Calley. She said her daughter called him on Jan. 28 and offered to pay him for a ride from the family’s home outside Ionia. She said she doesn’t know where they were headed.

Yep. Just a “minor criminal record“.

Shannon Emily Scully, 23, Ionia, convicted of larceny – less than $200, second or… Sentenced to 10 days in jail with 10 days credit, 12 months probation and $1,115 costs and fines.

Uh-huh. Riiiiiiiiiiiiight. And, Schostak’s and Bolger’s buddy ain’t a pothead, either. Oh, wait!

You Betcha! (18)Nuh Uh.(1)

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

Well THAT Was Disappointing ..

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What at first appeared to be a reach out to get input for a post-SCOTUS ruling direction was just a scam.

Not at all surprising however.

Given that it was from team Benishek. I though perhaps he was noticing how folks have lost all respect for him, and as contrition, was reaching out to see what would make folks a little more confident in his future performance.  Gosh, maybe it was in response to my put up or shut up articles!

The email arrived with this heartfelt message:

” Jason,

With more than three decades in the medical field, I know how important it is for our healthcare system to empower patients and their doctors, not federal bureaucrats in Washington.

Too often, Washington politicians try to pass laws without talking to the people who have to live with the consequences. Any doctor will tell you that listening to your patients is one of the most important parts of medicine. I believe this is true in politics as well.

That’s why I want to hear from you.

Jason, please take my survey to let me know what you think of ObamaCare, and how we can build a better healthcare system.

Our current system isn’t working, and I know we can do better. With your support, we can fight for a bottom up healthcare system that empowers people not politicians.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts,

Dr. Dan”

So I clicked the link.   I diligently filled out the form answering the ready-made questions, and then I offered offered some “other thoughts” that were being solicited at the bottom.  I typed in:

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All the Other Stuff, Conservative News, Cronyism, Democrats, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Philosophy, Republicans, Taxes

Let Them Buy Their OWN Damned Insurance.

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We finally have a chance to tell Obama where to shove the atrocity known as the ACA, but ...

proud-of-obamacare copyThe play is set.

State Senator Jim Marleau is simply a two faced Obama sycophant.  He operates under the Republican banner, but he has presented himself as a wimpy cradle-to-grave patriarchal potlicker.  On the upcoming decision in the Supreme Court he doesn’t represent the stated GOP view that Obamacare is bad, but rather wonders aloud (sympathetically) what all the leeches in Michigan will do if their precious health care entitlements go away.  And then he suggests something must be done!

“He could have done it that way to begin with, but he wasn’t really excited about that,” said state Sen. Jim Marleau, R-Lake Orion.

“I think he’d have to. Our back is up against the wall, and we’ve got a lot of people in this state who are using it. That’s the thing. What do you do with those people?”

Let them find their own insurance without fear of penalties you imbecile!

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All the Other Stuff, Conservative News, Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Fees, Fees, Flint Water Fiasco, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

Southeastern Michigan Water Fight

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Last Act of the Detroit Bankruptcy Stumbles Behind a Wall of Secrecy

Water is Money Image 2The final Detroit bankruptcy plan established a 14 June deadline to reach an agreement transferring operating control of the Detroit Water & Sewerage Department’s (DW&SD) assets outside of Detroit to the newly created Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA). The State of Michigan, Detroit, Wayne County, Oakland County and Macomb County all signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) creating the GLWA late last year, subject to a 200-day due diligence period. Under the MoU, the City of Detroit would receive a $ 50 million annual lease payment from the GLWA while retaining full control of DW&SD assets and operations within the city. Erstwhile DW&SD customers outside Detroit were promised a 4% cap on annual water and sewerage increases for a 10 year period, which have been running above 10% per annum, in residential bills, in most Southeastern Michigan communities.

In point of fact, what has actually been occurring are secret negotiations over future tax increases across Southeastern Michigan. Water rates have become a surrogate form of incremental taxation. These negotiations will set tax fee increment rates for decades into the future. For taxpayers ratepayers who haven’t even been born yet. How are these negotiations going?

No one who knows is talking. Why?

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Conservative News, Democrats, Detroit, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Philosophy, Republicans, Taxes

A Dead Man Walking: Wayne County

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Your Least Loss is Your First Loss

Bankrupcy WC 2Wayne County Executive Warren Evans told the assembled self very important persons at the Mackinac Policy Conference last Friday that he now believes that his county government can avoid bankruptcy. “He is now comfortable with the options” was the report. Little did he know that, on the very same day, Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Lita Popke gave the County 48 hours to pay its retirees $ 49 million dollars to restore their 2010 ’13th check’ retirement benefit. Wayne County told the court flat out that it doesn’t have the money.

The Wayne County Commission voted yesterday to tap most of the last remaining funds in the County’s much abused Delinquent Tax Revolving Fund, however Warren Evan’s subsequent veto threat all but assures that this summer’s county property taxes will increase 1.23 mils to pay this judgement. This property tax increase will not even require a vote of affirmation under the Headlee Amendments to the Michigan Constitution, because it is pursuant to a court order.

’13th checks’ are a devious method of looting pension funds which began in the 1980’s, in Michigan. When some Michigan public pension funds earned more than their targeted rate of return in a year, say 8%, the ‘surplus’ earnings got doled out to retirees in the form of a 13th check.  These 13th checks could amount to far more than the pension fund’s actually surplus.  Retirees never had to give back their prior 13th check payments when the pension funds dialed up a big loss, so the 13th check was an opportunistic form of looting – not an equitable form of risk & gain sharing. This practice has occurred in state pension plans, county pension plans, and city pension plans across Michigan. The particular problem in Wayne County is that Robert Ficano stripped his pension funds of the 13th check payment funds in 2010 to make his books look better. Worst of all, Wayne County’s pension funds are only about 44% funded and their OPEB’s (retiree medical care, etc.) are essentially unfunded.

Wayne County’s accounting is nebulous, to be charitable. A read of their 2014 CAFR (22 MB document, it took a lot of lipstick to make this dead pig look good!) shows that the County is carrying forward an unassigned deficit of $ 82.8 million, and only got it down to this awful level by diverting $ 91.7 million from their dwindling Delinquent Tax Revolving Fund to their General Fund in 2014. Then, depending upon whom in Wayne County government you are talking to, Wayne County is still losing another $ 4 – $ 5 million each month.

This amounts to something over $ 50 million per year.

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All the Other Stuff, Conservative News, Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Part Time Legislature, Philosophy, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

How about this for Plan “B”.

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Or, the “Right Michigan Solution for Fixing Michigan Roads”.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that. Soon enough, you’ve got the makings of a pretty good framework to work within.

If you’re really a Conservative, that is.

If not…well click below for more.

{Continued below the fold}

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Cronyism, Democrats, Michigan, Opinion, Part Time Legislature, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

She Must Mean Terminating and Prosecuting Kirk Steudle

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Well, Boobus Michiganderus in CD-12 who elected her, go ahead, explain to the rest of us what the barking moonbat is trying to convey.

Because both the Senate, and House Transportation Committees sure as hell are not doing their jobs when it comes to roads and boondoggle trains? For that matter, this guy, closely aligned with Steudle, and his *special department* sure makes a habit of stumbling around with his thumb up his ass on trains, roads, and other MI-GOP payola, too.

Flushing-MoneyBottom line. From how a rational mind reads Debbie’s brassy statement is not much different than what our state legislators are doing now: throwing more money at a problem without cutting the wasteful ineptness and blatant corruption within MDOT.

You see otherwise? Drop a comment below.

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Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Republicans

Because Michigan’s First Congressional District Is Supposed To Be Stupid

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Its as-if this is the first term for the third term Dr. Dan Benishek

benishek-mailThe picture at the right came in this morning

When opening it, I sat for a moment snickering at the sheer audacity of the Benishek re-election team in sending such a message in the fifth year of his ‘service’ to Michigan’s CD1 voters.  Suggesting that Dan Benishek  would raise a finger to fight for us is a hoot.

“We must raise $5,000 this month to show Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats that we will be ready for the fight ahead in 2016”

Nancy Pelosi?

Gosh Dan, this is the second session in a row (third starting) where the congress has been held by Republicans.  Truly, it is terribly embarrassing that you have not figured out that the opponent is actually in the executive seat.  Its been over 4 years Doctor B, and you haven’t yet lived up to a single promise made in 2010 with regard to the ACA, immigration, and a litany of other issues where you actually have some say.

While Dr. Dan fights Pelosi and the other shadows in the halls of congress, the EPA is shutting down our power, regulating our puddles, and the Liar in chief is going to import ISIS into Michigan with the help of our worthless governor.

Way to be on guard Mr. “We don’t control the money”

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Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Part Time Legislature, Philosophy, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

Mackinac Policy Conference At The Grand Hotel: Protect Your Wallet!

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Detroit Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference 2015 Starts Today - You Won't Like The Outcome

Is that a donkey in front of the Grand Hotel?

Is that a donkey in front of the Grand Hotel?

Later today Michigan’s Self Very Important Persons start checking in at the Detroit Regional Chamber’s 2015 Mackinac Policy Conference held on Mackinac Island. At $ 2,150 per person for Chamber members and $ 2,925 for Chamber wannabees, average Michiganders will not be much in evidence. The attendees list reads like the last itemized contribution report for SafeRoadsYes!, along with the clueless Michigan politicians who endorsed Proposal 1.

The Detroit Regional Chamber’s “Vision and Pillars” for the 2015 Conference is innocuous enough, but the Conference’s agenda is far less oblique. A host of left luminaries and crony capitalists orbiting Michigan government will be plotting higher taxes, bigger spending, and more vexatious regulations.  When they are not drinking.

The official agenda is all about Detroit, Michigan schools, alternative business subsidies, and the roads, but there is also the transformation of Detroit Water & Sewerage Department into the Great Lakes Water Authority lurking in the background. Roads are the most interesting part of the official 2015 Conference agenda, given the near universal support for Proposal 1 amongst the attendees. Despite touting ‘vision’, expect the Conference to endorse new taxes over improved efficiencies and better engineering.

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