Whoa. A mainstream media figure gets it. John Avlon, senior columnist at Newsweek and Daily Beast contributor asks, in a piece for CNN, “Are Republicans at war with reality?”. So here’s what I learned watching Thursday night’s Republican debate: States’ rights should rule the day, unless you’re gay. Small government is the rule unless a rapist impregnates his victim. Loyalty […]

Nice job, GOP. The Dow Jones Industrial average dropped more than 500 points today, one day after the index staged an impressive late day rally erasing a more that 200-point drop to end the day in the black . The 512-point plunge makes Thursday Aug. 4, 2011 one of the top 10 worst days in Dow history in terms of […]

It’s oh-so-much easier to get things done when you have both houses of the Legislature and the Governor’s office in your control. Today, Michigan Republicans showed just how much easier it is. Both the state House and Senate completed passage of the various packages of budgetary bills this week and, today, in a wham, bam, thank you, ma’am flurry of […]

I’m pretty stunned by this. Last fall, the voters approved “Proposition B”, a bill that puts stronger regulations on so-called “puppy mills”, breeding facilities that prioritize cranking out large numbers of puppies over the welfare of the animals themselves. Last week, Republicans in the Missouri House of Representatives overturned the will of the voters by passing a bill to reverse […]

Seriously, who are these people and what have you done with my Democrats? These people appear to have a clue about how to effectively deliver their message with a *punch* and succinctly frame the debates of the day. Here’s Congressman Joe Crowley of New York. You won’t want to miss this. Here’s the message in total: LAST FALL THE AMERICAN […]

There’s more to this than meets the eye. Snyder, Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville and House Speaker Jase Bolger are expected to confirm a compromise that would phase in Snyder’s proposed tax on pensions and delay by one year a scheduled decrease in the income tax. The proposed deal would phase in the planned income tax for public and private […]

Oh. My. Lord. To read the lefty pundits today, you would think that President Obama had changed parties overnight, handed over the keys to the Oval Office to the resurrected body of Ronald Reagan, and hitchhiked back to his hometown in Kenya/Moscow. After stepping in and helping to broker a deal to keep the government from shutting down, something members […]

Last December the Republicans in Congress held unemployed Americans hostage in order to secure tax breaks for the nation’s über-wealthy. It was a strategy that worked because Democrats, including President Obama, were unwilling to sacrifice the welfare of our most-vulnerable citizens simply to win a political battle. Once again the country finds the GOP in a hostage-taking situation. In order […]

Yes, you read that right: outlawing workplace safety rules. Governor Rick Snyder has, apparently, identified one of the chief reasons Michigan businesses aren’t successful and why businesses refuse to come to Michigan: they are afraid we’ll pass a law requiring businesses to implement ergonomically safe workplaces. Well, they need not worry anymore. Today, Snyder signed a bill outlawing laws that […]

If you want to get a clear picture of the differences in between the two main political parties, you need look no further than Michigan this week. The differences between the parties could not be clearer … or starker. This week Democrats called for a state constitutional amendment that would guarantee workers the right bargain collectively. Private AND public workers. […]

UPDATE: Barb over at the Eclectablog Facebook Page suggested that we keep updating the list below so if you have something to add, email me at eclectablog at gmail yada yada and I’ll include it! Borrowing a phrase from the inimitable Bob Cesca, but, honestly, have the Republicans really gone over the edge? Have they really lost their schpadoinkle??? Just […]