You’ve probably heard the House Republicans are planning another useless vote to repeal ObamaCare. This 30-somethingth display of their impotence is the kind of sabre-rattling that appeals to GOP primary voters — the only voters they care about — while wasting our precious time and money as millions of Americans struggle to find work. Imagine if House Republicans had voted […]

“I hope that people start thinking about campaign finance in a completely different way”

NOTE: This is part two of a two-part post on Lee Fang’s new book “The Machine: A Field Guide to the Resurgent Right”. My review of the book can be found HERE.

After reading Lee Fang’s new book The Machine, I was interested in asking some questions about his research and his thoughts on a number of issues related to the rise of the corporatist conservative movement that so dominates our politics and our government today. I spoke with him on Saturday and our conversation ranged from the beliefs of the average Tea Party adherent to what the left is doing wrong in the battle for public opinion.

Enjoy (after the jump.)

A government of, by and for the big banks The second hardest thing to explain to future generations — after trying to explain how George W. Bush was “elected” twice — is why we didn’t restore Glass-Steagall after the financial crisis of 2008. For more than 50-years, this Great Depression-era reform kept our economy from inflating a massive bubble by […]

Elections have consequences and sometimes they’re permanent consequences

Lost in the shuffle of last year’s orgy of Republican overreach in the Michigan legislature was the passage of the legislation that became Public Act 297. Signed into law August, the law is described, in part, as “an act to protect the environment and natural resources of the state”. In his announcement about the signing of the bill into law with the Orwellian title “Snyder signs bill protecting sand dunes, rights of homeowners”, Governor Snyder had the audacity to say that he “worked with the bill sponsor to ensure Michigan’s dunes are protected for the benefit of present and future generations.”

The law does quite the opposite and is now getting its first customers. Click through for details.

“[T]he grit and the determination and the confidence, the certainty, the absolute commitment that this country has…is more exemplified by Detroit, Michigan than any other state in the Union.” All photos by Anne C. Savage, special to Eclectablog. Not for reuse without permission. Last night’s Jefferson Jackson dinner was a rallying point for Michigan Democrats and every speaker from former […]

Government small enough to let terrorists get away? Getting out of bed this morning, Anne said, “I feel like everything that happened in Boston yesterday was a movie I watched.” It feels that way to me, too, especially given how the 24-hour cable news coverage puts the on-screen personalities in the position of having to fill every second with jabber, […]

“All they know is that it’s a black guy.”

Yesterday’s travesty in media and journalistic fail surrounding the investigation into the Boston Marathon bombings was epic and public and brings into sharp relief how people view acts of terror and terrorists in America. I was at work when the first emails and texts started coming up on my phone telling me a suspect was in custody. Tweets revealed that CNN’s John King was reporting that the suspect was a “dark-skinned male”.

At my workplace, one of my coworkers suddenly became an expert, telling anyone who would listen, “All they know is that it’s a black guy.” Another guy, when I told him it looked like they had someone in custody, said, “I just wonder if it’s that Arab guy they were questioning at the hospital…” That guy, by the way, ended up being a witness who was injured by one of the explosions and was not a suspect.

The whole thing got me thinking about who I was hoping the culprit would turn out to be. Details after the jump.

“Chalk one up for the good guys”

Last week, I posted a piece titled “Lee Fang exposes the State Policy Network & corporate domination of public policy”. In that piece, I wrote about The Nation journalist and investigative reporter Lee Fang’s work to show how the State Policy Network (SPN) was waging a multi-pronged war to influence legislation, policy and public opinion at the state level across the country. One of the things that Fang reveals is that SPN affiliates have started their own wire services to bring their skewed version of the news to readers all over America. Here in Michigan, SPN affiliate Mackinac Center for Public Policy has done just that.

Thanks to my pals at Progress Michigan, however, today SPN and Mackinac Center lost a round in the battle to sway public opinion and government policy.

It is difficult to get Paul Ryan to understand something, when his career depends upon his not understanding it After the worst stock market crash in history, Herbert Hoover decided that more than anything the budget needed to be balanced with cuts and tax increases. Now, this was a very popular belief at the time. His opponent Franklin Delano Roosevelt […]

There’s still lots of room in the tip jar

Today is the last day of our Second Quarter fundraiser. I, for one, and happy about that, mainly because I hate begging you for money. But these are necessary to help pay for all of the things that we spend our time and money on over the year. For example, this year we’ll be heading back to the Netroots Nation conference for a week which is in California this year.

If you’d like to donate, you can use the Paypal widget after the jump, putting in what ever amount you wish and even making it a recurring donation if you’d like. If you’d rather send a check, send me an email (click HERE) and I’ll provide you with my mailing address.

As a reward for putting up with the fundraiser this quarter, there are some photos by my wife Anne C. Savage if you click through. Her photos are the primary reason that this site looks as good as it does. Enjoy.

The Michigan GOP doesn’t seem to get why Medicaid expansion is good for Michigan. Time for them to hit the books.

Medicaid expansion isn’t exactly elementary. Then again, it’s not rocket science, either.

Members of the Michigan GOP have said they just haven’t had time to look into all the details of Medicaid expansion so they can make an educated decision. For now, let’s ignore the fact that they apparently needed no time at all to examine Right-to-Work (For Less) before making it a state law. Let’s also ignore the fact that they were clearly counting on the Supreme Court to overturn the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, so they didn’t bother doing their homework.

Instead, let’s educate them on why Medicaid expansion is the right thing to do for Michigan. Follow me over the jump for details.