It’s a shocking and depressing fact that there are uneducated people out there who are afraid of vaccinations because they read somewhere or heard from someone that one time that vaccinations cause autism. They don’t. But that didn’t stop Republican Todd Courser from expressing his support for the anti-Vaxer community and to reinforce people’s unfounded and unscientific fears about the […]

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has been doing a LOT of bragging this year about how Michigan is the “Comeback State”. The data, he says, “is in”. However, his presentation of the data is flawed and doesn’t tell the entire story. Yes, the number of people employed in Michigan is up since he took office. However, even though Gov. Snyder claims […]

The backbone of Michigan’s industrial economy, making cars and trucks, is solid and strong. The current numbers and brisk demand for new vehicles are highlighted in two recent articles HERE and HERE. The ripple effect of a healthy auto manufacturing sector is apparent in those parts of the state that have auto-related facilities and businesses. All shifts running full bore […]

It’s not often that Republican speak the truth about their overarching agenda. They more often cloak it in palatable language that makes it more appealing and disguises their heartlessness and their true goals. But every once in awhile one of their members gives us a glimpse of what their real agenda is. Mitt Romney did it when he made his […]

Last month, I wrote about how Republican Dan Benishek, the Congressman from Michigan’s 1st Congressional District, had broken his promise not to run for a fourth term by pandering to military veterans. The true reasons for his decision to renege on his promise weren’t clear but his hypocritical pandering was blatant and nauseating. Evidence has now come to light that […]

This week the Michigan Legislature passed House Bill 4041, what they call the Parental Responsibility Act. Gov. Snyder is probably eager to sign it because it has the word “responsibility” in it and impacts only the politically powerless. The Michigan Department of Human Services will be required to eliminate cash assistance to poor families if any child in the household […]

The death of democracy? I have been traveling around China for the past week and, despite the incredible growth of capitalism here, it’s clear that the government controls much of what happens in this beautiful country. From investments infrastructure that result in modern, butter-smooth highways to the wind energy installations that surround cities like Qingdao, the government is in charge […]

Earlier this week, House Republicans held a hearing on H.B. 4052, a bill that would prohibit local governments from passing employment-related ordinances that are more restrictive than state-level laws. Although it is called the “Local Government Employer Mandate Prohibition Act”, it really should be referred to as the “Local Government Control Prohibition Act” because it strips what is commonly known […]

Given their history, it takes a lot for Michigan Republicans to do something so cruel, so heartless, so Henry F. Potterish that it surprises you. But I am confident in saying that their most recent gambit to find funding for road repairs in our state rises to that level. In an effort to race $1 billion to put toward roads, […]

Once again the Michigan Senate is moving to repeal the state’s “prevailing wage” law that has been in place for half a century, the law the Republicans once claimed would wreck the economy but which did the opposite, helping to sustain the once-growing middle class. They’re singing the same right wing anthem again, the one about saving the taxpayers money […]

Education cost study? We doan need no stinkin’ education cost study! As part of the package of legislation passed to put Proposal 1 on the ballot, Republicans agreed to fund a study of the costs to educate a child in Michigan. Democrats pushed for the study so that smart choices regarding the funding of schools can be made in the […]