Lights were out, bills are up, and a lot of folks around here are just done with it.

On today's Daily Detroit, Norris and I talk through the long Fourth of July weekend that turned into days without power for hundreds of thousands of people across metro Detroit — including me.

As it seems like every year living in a Detroit neighborhood, I deal with 3 to 4 days in a row without electricity.

From there, we zoom out. We talk about DTE's grid, why it seems like storms knock out power every year, and the growing conversation around a ratepayer bill of rights and the Michigan Money Out of Politics (MMOP) petition.

We ask what would it look like if major state contractors couldn't pour money into campaigns? A

We also kick around whether our politics could work differently (although we know the change would be hard legally to pull off): calendar windows for campaigning like other countries have, hard caps on campaign cash, and even making Election Day a holiday.

In the back third of the show, we answer listener questions about what to do with your ballot now that Mallory McMorrow is out of the race, including how and when you can spoil a ballot and get a new one.

As always, I'd love to hear how you're experiencing all of this. The outages, the bills, and the politics around it. Email me at [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 313‑789‑3211.

And follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get shows.