For millions of people who are uninsured or can’t afford to buy insurance on their own, the day has come: You’re somebody. If you’ve lived without insurance or, like me, pay exorbitant rates because you buy individual insurance or have a pre-existing condition, October 1, 2013, is a day to celebrate. It means you’re no longer a nobody in the […]

Don’t feed the seagulls. Last Thursday, Democratic candidate for governor Mark Schauer ventured into the lion’s den and made a campaign appearance in conservative Howell, Michigan in Livingston County. From the reports that I’ve seen, over 100 people showed up which is remarkable because (a) we’re still 13 months out from the election and (b) there are people who would […]

It’s easy to make a fool look foolish As I mentioned earlier the other day, Michigan Congressman Gary Peters pledged to donate his salary to charity if Republicans were successful at shutting down the government. The story took an interesting turn when, earlier this evening, Luke Russert tweeted this little tidbit about Texas Senator Ted Cruz: Ted Cruz will copy […]

“Why won’t you compromise on our refusal to compromise?!” – House Republicans That’s gonna leave a mark So, this is hilarious. After five years of Republicans refusing to compromise on just about everything and doing all they could to impede any initiatives President Obama put forward, including their own, we get these sorts of comments from GOP leadership regarding his […]

Michigan’s Republicans are STILL trying to take health insurance from 470,000 Michiganders The New Yorker‘s Ryan Lizza has a great piece breaking down “Where the GOP’s Suicide Caucus Lives.” The Suicide Caucus is a convenient monicker for the 80 House Republicans who persuaded  Speaker Boehner pass legislation that adopted Senator Ted Cruz’s defund Obamacare scheme. They are the same House […]

#SaveTheArt Earlier this month, in the dark of night, a giant dragon sidled its way up to the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA). It belched out a giant plume of flame which ignited a gas-soaked sign on the front lawn of the museum which spelled out the phrase #SaveTheArt. The scene was the artistic creation of Detroit artist Ryan C. […]

The cavalry is coming! The cavalry is coming! [Image by Anne C. Savage, special to Eclectablog] The Obama adminstration will be in Detroit today and bring with them $300 million in new federal and private investments, much of which is designed to eradicate blight and foster an environment of rehabilitation. The delegation is led by chief White House economic adviser, […]

“The House GOP’s debt limit bill isn’t a serious governing document…It’s a cry for help.” House Republicans are pretty clear what they want in exchange for not crashing the U.S. economy and maybe even the global economy by not extending the national debt limit: everything. Via Ezra Klein at the Wonkblog: The House GOP’s debt limit bill — obtained by […]

Legislation would allow taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny placement based on moral or religious views. At any given time, Michigan has 14,000 children in foster care — children who need good, stable homes. Yet Michigan legislators serving on the Michigan House Committee on Families, Children, and Seniors passed three bills out of committee today that could prevent these children from […]

“Why have to work through all of the messiness of this thing called ‘democracy’?” I have written extensively about Michigan’s “Education Achievement Authority”. It as formed in September of 2012 as an interlocal agreement with Eastern Michigan University as a school district comprised of Michigan’s most failing schools. Originally it had 15 of Detroit’s worst schools. New legislation, House Bill […]

Omahgosh! Who woulda thunk it??? You are NOT going to believe this. It turns out (are you sitting down?) that the Snyder administration (I still cannot believe this is true), through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, gave wildly inflated job creation numbers to the state legislature last spring. INORITE???! The Legislature was told April 1 that companies that received grants […]