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Conservative News, Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

Today’s Mystery

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SafeRoadsYes! Has A Phantom Contributor

Mystery Money

Today was the deadline for the last campaign finance filings with the Michigan Secretary of State before the May 5th vote on Proposal 1. SafeRoadsYes! filed five late contribution reports and a pre-special general report. Contributions supporting Proposal 1 now exceed $ 8 million and, as you might expect, the roster of SafeRoadsYes! contributors reads like a Michigan road constructors’ directory. SafeRoadsYes! expenditures now exceed $ 7.2 million, and SafeRoadsYes! still has more than $ 843,000 yet to be spent.  Of course there may be massive contributions yet to be made which would not be reported until after the election.

MGM Grand Casino and FireKeepers Casino contributed $ 50,000 each, presumably to curry favor with the Lansing power elites. BlueCross/Blue Shield and the Michigan Township Association each threw in $ 100,000 which was picked from your pockets by ObamaCare and your property taxes, respectively. Dick DeVos, after having his stooge knife Representative Gamrat for not supporting Proposal 1, got in late with a $ 50,000 contribution from his Alticor investment group.

Powering the Economy SRY Late Contribution Report 4-24-15There is one phantom entity in the SafeRoadsYes! late contribution reports which is worth investigating. An organization called ‘Powering the Economy’ gave $ 75,000 on 22 April. The problem here? ‘Powering the Economy’ doesn’t exist in either the Michigan LARA corporate database or the Secretary of State’s searchable PAC database. So who are they?

Best guess, the merry screw ups at the Detroit Regional Chamber have created a new ballot question PAC to replace their recently terminated – and heavily cited – ‘Detroit Regional Chamber PAC II‘ ballot question PAC. DRC PAC II earned eighteen citations from the SoS since 2013 for filing screw ups. DRC PAC II filed a dissolution notice on 02 April and paid the $ 875.00 dissolution fee on 07 April. ‘Powering the Economy’ has the same address as the Detroit Regional Chamber, One Woodward Avenue in Detroit – which used to be known as the MichCon or ANR Building before Dan Gilbert bought it. And DRC has trademarked ‘Powering the Economy’ as one of their signature catch phrases.

Somebody is ignoring Michigan’s campaign finance laws. Not just ignoring them, trampling them. But this has been a routine practice during the Proposal 1 proponents’ campaign. Our Attorney General is supposed to enforce these laws, but he hasn’t been exactly active on this front despite Schuette ostensibly opposing Proposal 1. So all we can do at this late date is tell you about another scam behind Proposal 1 and let you spike this dragon at the ballot box. Sweet revenge is $ 9 million of your opponents’ money down the drain. Vote May 5th.

You Betcha! (20)Nuh Uh.(0)

Cronyism, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

Whoo Whoooooot!

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Found on the side of some possible MDoT leased passenger cars in Cadillac today.

Vote-no-Train

I guess they need this proposal to pass so that Rick Snyder can get his train set built from Ann Arbor to Traverse City after all!  All he needs are a few transportation ‘Ho’-Scale helpers to really push this thing over the rails and onto voters.

Waiting to be ‘tagged.’

I think I can..  I think I can..  I think I can..  I think I can..  I think I can..  I think I can..  I think I can..  I think I can..  I think I can..

You Betcha! (15)Nuh Uh.(0)

Conservative News, Cronyism, Democrats, Detroit, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Philosophy, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

Are you suffering from lawn envy?

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Admit it. Your front lawn is bland.

It needs something to “jazz it up”  a little.

Lawn Gnomes won’t do the trick.

Neither will gazing spheres, solar powered lawn lights or tiny banners displaying the upcoming holiday.

Why not try this?

{Find out about the wonder item that everyone will be clamoring for below the fold}

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Cronyism, Michigan, Opinion, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Taxes

MDOT: What’s Another $4,400,000.00? It’s not Like it’s Your Money

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This is what arrogance and graft within bureaucracy looks like, folks.

The Michigan Department of Transportation is negotiating a lower lease rate for 23 passenger railcars now costing taxpayers $3,000 a day to sit idle. But the length of time the state could have to lease the cars before it can use them has doubled from two years to four years, according to a report sent to state lawmakers.

At the current lease rates, that means MDOT [taxpayers] would have to sink about another $4.4 million into lease charges before it is able to put the cars into service.

The Free Press on Feb. 1 broke the news of the idle railcars, which are intended for two proposed commuter services in southeast Michigan and so far have cost the state [taxpayers] about $12 million in refurbishment, consulting [more graft] and leasing costs since 2010.

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A half decade. 5 years and the plan is – there is no plan? Despicable. To say that This Guy is an incompetent boob and complete charlatan is an insult to incompetent boobs and charlatans who are forced to somehow figure out ways to survive in the private sector.

Single Cent Snyder is a total disgrace as well is every single legislator still in office who voted for this offensive garbage, which would be forever entrenched into our state’s constitution. And, don’t forget about the embedded fraud to the tune of at least $70M more per year. Do also note that Joan “gets it” about EITC.

Remember when Two Penny Jenny was a bad idea? Ya, well, with Single Cent Snyder… It Only Gets Worse. A lot worse if figuring in this unresolved can of worms.

Second highest Sales Tax in the nation, and the ballot proposal DOES NOT guarantee monies go to roads or schools.

That is fact.
STOP-167

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Cronyism, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

MDoT Train Wreck Still Emptying Michigan Wallets

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Michigan Department of Transportation passing even more cost through to taxpayers.

Train Wreck ImageThe failure that is Kirk Steudle and the Michigan Department of Transportation continues to demonstrate that it cannot plan nor manage taxpayer funds efficiently.

RightMi.com readers might recall that the MDoT has been spending taxpayer dollars to babysit equipment that other people own. In the last few years, it has amounted to a drop in the bucket when compared to what is a bloated state budget of 52+ billion smackers, right?  But buckets eventually fill from all the droplets as we all know, and the spigot in this case is opening more.  From the Lansing State Journal:

At the current lease rates, that means MDOT would have to sink about another $4.4 million into lease charges before it is able to put the cars into service.

That line is sufficient to point out that Steudle’s comment earlier in the year was nothing more than lip service.

“These cars are costing us money right now and we’ve got to figure out how are we going to … stop the bleeding,”

As the old joke goes .. “Whats this ‘we’ s##t Kemosabe?”

 

 

 

You Betcha! (17)Nuh Uh.(0)

Conservative News, Democrats, Detroit, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Republicans, Taxes

When It Becomes Serious, You Have To Lie

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TRIP Boosts Their Lies 109% to Get Your Vote

dozer-money

The proponents of Proposal 1 never envisaged the losing position they now occupy two weeks before the vote, so their media shills have resurrected the titillating lies projections of a road builders’ organization called TRIP to bolster their case. Here are the most visceral quotes from Michigan’s two largest newspapers, demonstrating their well-honed propaganda skills:

Detroit Free Press

“Michigan’s poor roads threaten to derail its economic recovery, according to a new report by a national transportation research group.”

“The report says that 38% of Michigan roads are now in poor condition, up from 23% in 2006. It also found that 45% were listed in fair condition and 17% were listed as good.”

“The report estimates that Michigan motorists pay an average of $686 in increased operating costs, including vehicle repairs, because of the state’s poor roads.”

Detroit News

“By 2025, the share of major roads in poor condition is projected to increase to 53 percent,” TRIP said in its report. “Keeping roads in good condition by performing minor maintenance is far more cost-effective than waiting until roads are in fair or poor condition when it becomes far more costly to make needed repairs.”

“According to TRIP, driving on rough roads costs Michigan motorists a total of $4.8 billion each year in the form of extra vehicle operating costs, representing an average cost of $686 annually per motorist.”

”That’s the conclusion of a report released Monday by TRIP, a Washington-based nonprofit organization that researches, evaluates and distributes information on surface transportation issues.

The Detroit Free Press only identified TRIP as “a national nonprofit transportation research group” in this pivotal story.  They were a little more candid in a previous story, so they can’t claim not to know what TRIP is.  The Detroit News identification of TRIP was every bit as dishonest.  Only our ‘newer’ media is more truthful, if still not entirely accurate:

Mlive.com

“The annual TRIP study, conducted by a national research group funded by transportation industry interests, pegs the yearly cost at $686 per Michigan motorist.”

“TRIP findings have long been cited by road funding advocates, including Gov. Rick Snyder.”

TRIP obligingly released a raft of new lies in a series of press releases on Michigan roads at the Detroit Regional Chamber (a kindred IRS 501(c)(6) organization, more on this below the fold) on Monday. These stories are an update to TRIP’s January 2014 lies which we covered in January. The comparable examples of TRIP’s 2014 lies (since removed from the web) are:

  • An inadequate transportation system costs Michigan residents a total of $7.7 billion every year
  • Driving on rough roads costs Michigan motorists a total of $2.3 billion annually in extra vehicle operating costs
  • Driving on rough roads costs the average Detroit urban area motorist $536 annually in extra vehicle operating costs
  • Driving on rough roads costs the average Michigan motorist $357 annually in extra vehicle operating costs

TRIP’s 2015 report on Michigan annual excessive vehicle costs is a $ 2.5 billion (or $ 329 per motorist) increase above their 2014 lies projections.  A 109% increase above their 2014 lies.  Far beyond any assessment of the 2014 to 2015 deterioration of road & bridge conditions in Michigan – even the totally bogus PASER ratings.  Since the $ 2.3 billion (or $ 357 per motorist) 2014 TRIP number didn’t move you to vote for Proposal 1, the new and improved $ 4.8 billion (or $ 686 per motorist) lie is expected to change your mind on Proposal 1.  They think you are that dumb.

So is TRIP a “nonprofit transportation research organization”? Sounds like an independent, credible source – right? Do the adjectives ‘nonprofit’ and ‘research’ give you a high level of confidence in their pronouncements?  Does ‘organization’ or ‘group’ give you the impression that hundreds of researchers are assessing road conditions across the country?  Perhaps you should dig a little deeper than our lazy, lying media scribes.

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Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Proposal 15-1, Republicans, Taxes

Another One Bites The Dust

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Good news from Northern Michigan Republicans.

STOP-167About a week ago, someone told me that first congressional district Republicans were considering passing a resolution in support of Proposal 15-1.

I thought it strange, and frankly I had my doubts on how long I could tolerate such craziness if it was true.  Especially given the resolutions saying “NO” to 15-1 by delegates for most of the county parties which make up the first district. In fact, Grand Traverse County passed a resolution that was voted on by delegates and passed unanimously Feb 5.

My first instinct was spot on.

No worries in the first district.  Following the lead by the county parties within, and several other Republican districts without, the passing of a “NO” statement on 15-1 was easy at a 21 to 2 vote count.  Well done first district Republicans.

The resolution as passed is below the fold.

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Cronyism, Michigan, Opinion, Proposal 15-1, Rent Seeking, Taxes

So… Safe Roads, yes?

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Michigan traffic deaths fall 8% in ’14

Even the helmet-less motorcyclists strawman numbers are down. So much for the alleged ‘untouchable’ $18,000,000,000.00 *fund* that Lansing politicians are protecting for their insurance industry lobbyist friends, huh? It’s on the table for discussion now, governor Snyder.

You also have noticed that Snyder’s Martin Waymire, and McLellen is now pushing the repair cost meme, right?

GasTaxRegistrationFreesHikeDave Waymire, a spokesman for the Safe Roads Yes ballot committee campaigning for the measure’s passage, said most residents do not claim itemized deductions on federal returns. Crummy roads cost drivers an extra $539 a year in vehicle operating costs [Snyder’s people really cannot keep their figures straight, can they?] due to repairs, tire wear and increased fuel consumption, according to the proposal’s proponents who cite a report from the transportation research group TRIP [another quasi-governmental organization like PASER – that’s a Fact].

“Many Michigan residents today pay a hidden tax for our poor roads by virtue of [incompetency bordering criminal intent] the high cost of repairs that are incurred due to potholes, extra wear and tear on their vehicles,” Waymire said. “If you consider the hidden tax [or the BIGGER hidden tax on top of the 16.7% hike that is Proposal 1], which our opponents refuse to acknowledge, this is a substantial [Zero] savings for Michigan.”

Stop-100Another “unadvertised feature” of the plan is that taxes on fuel sold for boats, off-road vehicles and lawnmowers would rise significantly because the fuel would not be exempt from the sales tax, Anderson said. The new 7 percent sales tax [hike of 16.7%] would only be removed from fuel used to operate motor vehicles on public roads, raising compliance issues [see Here and Here] since the vast majority of fuel is sold by gas stations without regard to whether someone is filling up a car, boat or gas can, according to the nonpartisan Citizens Research Council of Michigan.

“Some promise it will be fixed. It’s not fixed now, so we included it,” said Anderson. He said he is not a “fan” of Proposal 1 but when his research company crunches numbers, “we do them straight.”

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You do realize that you are being lied to by Snyder’s cabal of *safe roads yes* pushers, right?

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