Not only are Senators Stabenow & Levin asking Michigan Governor Rick Snyder to reconsider his imposition of Emergency Managers on cities around the state, 66 elected officials, all Democrats, have sent a letter of their own (pdf). Although we come to this matter from a variety of differing perspectives and ideologies, we all share in the belief that applications of […]

In a letter to Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, Senators Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin are urging the governor to reconsider the Emergency Manager law, citing constitutional concerns and its divisive nature. December 14, 2011 Govemor Rick SnyderP.O. Box 3001iLansing, Michigan 48909 Dear Governor Snyder,We are writing to express our concern regarding the state’s Emergency Financial Manager law. We are deeply […]

In the increasingly likely event that Michigan Forward and Stand Up For Democracy secure enough petition signatures for the referendum to repeal Public Act 4, the law immediately goes on hold. This leaves the question “what now?” Will the previous law go back into effect or, because PA 4 replaced that law, will there simply be no law allowing for […]

Today the Michigan Senate Government Operations passed an S-1 substitute bill to SB 0865 on to the full Senate. The bill creates a transition team that will be assigned to municipalities and school districts under the control of an Emergency Manager. From the Senate summary: The bill would create a new act to do the following, with respect to a […]

Since his election last year, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder has played the good cop/bad cop game to perfection. While he stays above the fray and issues calming and non-threatening platitudes, his Republican colleagues in the legislature enact a conservative agenda with a rapidity that Democrats can only marvel at. Time and time again, Snyder has talked about how a particular […]

With the news that Michigan Republicans are already writing legislation to replace the Emergency Manager law if it is stopped by the referendum petition drive being conducted by Michigan Forward, many of us are concerned that they will put an appropriation into the bill. If this is done, it will make the law “referendum-proof” because Michigan law prohibits referendums on […]

My, my. THIS is interesting. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is reviewing whether the state of Michigan can legally appoint an emergency manager to oversee the Motor City’s finances, Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, said late today. Conyers said he spoke to Holder about his request that the government move to block the law. “(Holder) said, ‘I’ve got my lawyers working […]

Today we get some unsurprising news: Michigan Governor Rick Snyder’s poll numbers are crashing. Less than 20 percent of Michigan residents believe Gov. Rick Snyder is doing an excellent or good job running the state, a survey to be released Monday afternoon shows. The Fall 2011 State of the State survey conducted by the Institute for Public Policy and Social […]

A couple of things happened this week in the Governor’s office that I think were good moves and I commend Governor Snyder for them. First, earlier in the week, he signed legislation that moves all school board elections across the state to November of even-numbered years. This is a smart move that will save money and will encourage far higher […]

Apparently Michigan Governor Rick Snyder didn’t get the memo. From a Mackinac Center-sponsored event a couple of weeks ago, here is the Governor speaking about keynote speaker Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels during his introduction: But when people were talking about people that should run for president, Gov. Daniels … really would have been an outstanding candidate. Again, I’ll be blunt, […]

The Detroit Free Press characterizes a move by the Michigan Supreme Court as a “victory” for Governor Rick Snyder. The reality is that it is a solid defeat for the 99% and a “victory” for the 1%. The Michigan Supremes basically said it’s okay to tax seniors’ pensions but not okay to raise taxes on the 1%. A divided Michigan […]