162 search results for "gas tax"

Liberty, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Part Time Legislature, Philosophy, Republicans

Ad Hoc Ad Interim

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As badly as we need this done, do we care why he’s doing it, or even whether he gets the credit?

“If Hitler invaded Hell, I would at least make a favourable reference to the devil in the House of Commons.” (Winston Churchill, to his private secretary, Jock Colville, on June 21st, 1941, the evening before Operation Barbarossa)

Churchill was well known for being a consistent and vociferous opponent of communism, and had often spoken quite unfavorably about the Soviet Union, and particularly of Joseph Stalin (who was well-known even then as the brutal monster that honest history records). However, in seeking to stop the menace of Hitler’s Nazi Germany, Churchill was willing to adopt an ad hoc “enemy of my enemy” approach, and initiated the Anglo-Soviet Agreement for joint action against Germany.

Given much of the recent hullabaloo regarding a badly-needed grassroots initiative having been likely co-opted, by a moderate opportunist apparently seeking a means to advance his political ambitions, and given that I have personally stood directly in the path of those ambitions at least twice in the past seven years, what I’m about to say is going to sound exceedingly strange, but I’m going to say it anyway.

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You Betcha! (20)Nuh Uh.(1)

Conservative News, Cronyism, Elections, Fees, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Part Time Legislature

Political Self Perpetuation

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Making The Democratic Process In Michigan Just A Little Bit Less Democratic With A 21st Century Poll Tax

Representatives Steve Marino, Tommy Brann, Julie Calley, Kimberly LaSata, and Jim Lilly have just introduced six bills, HB 4745 to HB 4750, to increase filing fees for various down ballot political offices across the State of Michigan by 50% to 300%.  These are the fees prospective candidates can pay to get on the ballot in lieu of filing nominating petitions.

As you might expect, the highest (300%) filing fee increase proposed applies to candidates for State Representative (and Senator).

The kicker here? The filing fee is also no longer refunded to the runner up.  So running for political office in Michigan just became more expensive exclusive.

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You Betcha! (13)Nuh Uh.(0)

Conservative News, Elections, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Part Time Legislature

So, what’s the catch?

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Is it just me, or is anyone else waiting for the other shoe to drop?

LG Calley made one of his two big announcements this week.

The second is still anyone’s guess. Will he be running run for governor? Will he run for US Senate?

We’ll know that one on Thursday.

But this one is a real head scratcher.

{I’ve got more after the fold}

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You Betcha! (8)Nuh Uh.(0)

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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Michigan Politics

The Game Within the Game…

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Connecting the Dots in Michigan...

The “Gang” at the signing of the Gas Tax laws…

The Game Within the Game…

Connecting the dots in Michigan…

Anyone paying attention to what has been going on in Lansing for the past decade or so may be thinking the same thing: Our State government is out of control…and totally unaccountable to the people they are supposed to represent…

After Jennifer Granholm promised to “blow us away”, she did…laying the foundation for government cronyism by establishing the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, basically a slush fund which the government uses to pay back friends and donors with State contracts…The absolute best example of this would be the new Senate building, sold by a former MEDC Commissioner to the State for three times its appraised value…

Now comes Senate Bill 97, designed to expand this practice right down to the Township level…This bill (http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2017-2018/billintroduced/Senate/pdf/2017-SIB-0097.pdf) authorizes any government authority to designate taxing authority to any private business or group that develops infrastructure for health care, transportation, or ‘other’ development purposes…It also includes the use and enforcement of ‘eminent domain’…Think about that for a minute…

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You Betcha! (13)Nuh Uh.(1)

Fees, Michigan, Taxes

Fear The Stupid

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No matter how crazy some tax scheme is, never underestimate the power of stupidity in large groups.

So we thought Michigan’s newly implemented gas tax was bad?

Sure, the road tax puts us at the most expensive gas tax level in the country.  And because of the idiocy of OUR large groups in Lansing, it even protects itself for inflation!  But even so,  our absurd taxation scheme has been relegated to second place in absurd tax schemes.

If Michigan were to follow the lead of Philadelphia (which I think could somehow happen), every six pack of coke 16.9oz bottles would have $1.52 tacked on.  Every Pepsi 8 pack would have $2.03 added on.

And Gatorade?

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You Betcha! (11)Nuh Uh.(0)

Conservative News, Cronyism, Michigan Politics, Republicans

Executive Mayhem in Oakland County: Theresa Antionette Gives Second Helping of Cake After Delegate Slaughter

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Yesterday, the Oakland County GOP Executive Committee (EC) met for the first time since the delegate allocation count was slaughtered by the arbitrary dictate of Chairwoman Theresa Mungioli. This meant that 503 spots were cut for the August 2016 election, and now hundreds of engaged delegates are going to be disenfranchised during an important Presidential election year. The people who will be tasked with ensuring Republican victory in November have been effectively slapped in the face.

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You Betcha! (13)Nuh Uh.(11)

Michigan Politics

Our Last Chance Dance…

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Buying the Future...

Most folks think we elect our governments, we do not…

Let’s look at this through the lens of reality for just a moment, and hope it sinks in…Money buys power, which in turn buys more money, through the trading of favors…Both parties hand pick their candidates for primary elections, which would appear to be ‘normal’ on its face, but they also provide these people with a well oiled mechanism not only to win, but also to destroy any and all competition…This was demonstrated with devastating effectiveness in the 2014 37th District Senate primary…Republican establishment lobbyists and support groups attacked Greg MacMaster with hideous ads and heralded the ‘virtues’ of Wayne Schmidt as a true ‘conservative’…When confronted (personally, by me) with the blatant lies and pandering of the campaign ads, Wayne simply said “I didn’t put those out.”…So I guess that made it just fine with him…

PastedGraphic-1There was also this mailer (again, “I didn’t put those out,”) that our ‘conservative’ Senator-to-be used to encourage ‘crossover’ voting in the primary…

Please note that the “League of Conservation Voters” (responsible for this, and many radio and TV ads) is NOT a ‘conservative’ organization, but Senator Schmidt had no problem embracing this support…and refuses to reject it and its venom…

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

Cronyism, Fees, Michigan, Michigan Politics, Opinion, Part Time Legislature, Philosophy, Proposal 15-1, Taxes

Time to Light These Clowns Up

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Someone needs to impress upon the MRP legislative and executive leadership that “NO” means “NO” . . . period.

Roughly nine months ago, We the People of Michigan, by a record-breaking 4-to-1 statewide margin, told our elected nobility in Lansing “HELL NO” on a proposed tax increase, which they’d tried to sell as a road proposal, but which the voting public saw clearly as a political sausage job that produced a cronyist’s grab bag of goodies. Thus, every single county in this state, without exception and in no uncertain terms, clearly delivered a mandate-level message that we are no longer interested in extending the legislature a taxpayer-funded line of credit, until such time as they get their spending priorities in order. You would think that a statewide vox populi shellacking, with a turnout rate typical of the biennial congressional primaries, would clue in the GoverNerd, and the rest of the MRP/MIGOPe professional political establishment, that We the People are done being their ATM.

You would think that . . . but you would be wrong. Six months after that ballot box rejection, while most of us were tucking our children into bed (or monitoring local election results), the lords and barons in the Michigan Legislature essentially told we the proletariat that our opinion is irrelevant, and that “no” really means “don’t ask again” – which, of course, they didn’t – by passing a “road funding” tax package that was nearly identical to the core of Proposal 15-1, less the elements required to force it onto the ballot. In doing this, they flatly rejected the clear will of the people, imposed through legislative fiat that which they couldn’t persuade the electorate to publicly ratify, and took yet another step toward government by aristocracy.

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You Betcha! (31)Nuh Uh.(6)

Michigan Politics

and our next contestant…

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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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You Betcha! (9)Nuh Uh.(0)