Michigan Policast

Michigan Policast for Monday, July 15, 2019

* Segment one: Nancy Pelosi v ‘the squad’

* Segment two: Racism, Trump, and ‘the squad’

* Segment three: Rick Snyder and Harvard

* Segment four: Presidential primary candidates and the polls

* Segment five: Reproductive rights

* Segment six: State budget delays

* Interview: State Representative Julie Brixie on the Michigan budget

* Transcript

* Comments

Nancy Pelosi v ‘the squad’

* Amid ‘race card’ allegations, Pelosi teaches Ocasio-Cortez a math lesson

* House Democratic Caucus rips AOC’s chief of staff for criticizing lawmaker: ‘Keep her name out of your mouth’

* The Daily 202: In the era of no regrets, Acosta and Pelosi are not sorry (in which WAPO compares Acosta’s deal with Epstein and Pelosi’s comment about AOC and math)

* It’s Nancy Pelosi’s Parade

* Tensions Between Pelosi and Progressive Democrats of ‘the Squad’ Burst Into Flame

*

Michigan Policast for Monday, July 8, 2019

* Segment one: Justin Amash declares his independence

* Segment two: Trump tries to revive the citizenship question for political redistricting

* Segment three: Gas taxes go up around the country

* Segment four: The “Heartbeat Coalition” pursues an unconstitutional law

* Interview: Former state schools superintendent Tom Watkins on Benton Harbor and Michigan’s K-12 system

* Transcript

* Comments

Segment one: Justin Amash declares his independence

* Justin Amash is the loneliest member of Congress

* How Justin Amash’s July 4 bombshell is igniting political fireworks

* Freedom Caucus Expels Amash for Being Too Pro-Freedom

* Did Justin Amash leave the GOP, or did the GOP leave him?

Segment two: Trump tries to revive the citizenship question for political redistricting

* GOP paid millions to operative who pushed census question aimed to help “whites”

* Trump Admits Census Citizenship Question Is About Elections and Districting

* Food fights, line 5, SCOTUS, and special guest Mel Larsen – Segments four and ...

Michigan Policast for Monday, July 1, 2019

Segment One:  Governor Whitmer vs Lansing Republicans

* Whitmer blasts GOP for taking ‘vacation’ without road, budget deals

* GOP’s $1B road repair idea: Pension bonds

Chatfield and Shirkey have not committed to the idea but had asked the West Michigan Policy Forum to look into ways to finance additional road repairs without the 45-cent-a-gallon fuel tax hike proposed by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

…

The concept quickly met conservative opposition from Patrick Anderson, founder and CEO of the Anderson Economic Group and a former state deputy budget director in the Engler administration. Anderson argued it could violate the Michigan Constitution, break trust with pensioners and is “also a really dumb idea” from a taxpayer perspective.

* West Michigan Policy Forum – conservative thinktank proposing the pension bond

Segment two: AG Nessel follows through on her campaign promise to shut down line 5

* Attorney General Nessel Takes Legal Steps to Decommission Line 5

… an April 2018 anchor dragging incident – which ripped through several inches-thick steel cables – brought that threat home in a very real way.  Although Line 5 was damaged – not ruptured – in that incident because the anchor hit a section lying directly on the bottomlands, if the anchor had dragged across the bottom of the Straits in an area where Line 5 is elevated, the likely result would have been a complete rupture of Line 5.

* AG Nessel’s Summons and Complaint against Enbridge (pdf)

* Enbridge response to Michigan Attorney General’s Legal Filing

* Enbridge Line 5 Backgrounder and Timeline (pdf from Enbridge)

* Michigan AG Dana Nessel files lawsuit to shut down Line 5 in Mackinac Straits

* Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel moves to shut down Enbridge Line 5

* Oil & Water Don’t Mix response to AG Nessel legal action

*

Michigan Policast for June 24, 2019

Segment One: Donald Trump kicks off (continues?) his re-election campaign

* Trump’s 2020 re-election rally signals 2016 strategy may be used again

* ‘We Are Going On to Victory.’ President Trump Officially Kicks Off His 2020 Reelection Campaign

* Michigan Democrats Challenge Trump on His Broken Promises to Autoworkers

“If you care about the future of the auto industry in Michigan, you shouldn’t vote for Donald Trump, since he clearly doesn’t work for you.  Despite his promises to bring jobs back, factories have closed and Michiganders have suffered under his watch. He may be relaunching his reelection campaign tomorrow, but we know four more years of Donald Trump will be four more years of the same broken promises.” ~State Rep. Darrin Camilleri 

* Trump claims auto manufacturing has boomed during his presidency — it hasn’t

* Jobs on hold for Michigan auto parts maker as Trump tariffs loom

* Trump faces failing strategy on auto jobs as he heads to Ohio

* Fiat Chrysler opening new Detroit plant in $4.5 billion plan

The automaker’s injection of money and jobs into the Motor City contrasts sharply with news from rival General Motors Co., which announced plans to shutter its Detroit-Hamtramck plant next year and plans to close four others in the U.S. and Canada. … The company also said Ram heavy duty pickup truck production will stay in Mexico, despite a previous announcement that it would move to a factory in Warren.

* Trump’s views on the US auto industry are childish and intended only to rally his supporters

Ohioans should now see that the emperor has no clothes, that his sound and fury signify nothing — or whatever literary cliché best captures the sad reality that a gigantic global corporation was somehow going to bend its business to the task of getting 51% of the Buckeye State to reelect the president.  ~Matthew DeBord

Trump’s angry, blatantly untrue tweets and false promises about the @GM plant closures won’t do a thing to bring back jobs for thousands of autoworkers like Dnitra—the jobs he promised to save in the first place. pic.twitter.com/rYs2sttYnH

— CAP Action

Michigan Policast for Monday, June 17, 2019

Segment One: Gender gap, inequality, and policy priorities for women

* Poll: Republicans see equality for women. Democrats don’t.

* 12 charts that explain the record-breaking year women have had in politics

* Why Are Men Still Voting Republican?

* Misogyny has become central to the Republican mission — and the GOP is dying as a result

* It is impossible to ignore the defection of women voters away from the GOP

* 12 charts that explain the record-breaking year women have had in politics

Segment Two: The census and Michigan

* Gov. Whitmer Signs New Executive Order to Create Census Complete Count Committee

* Michigan launches census committee amid concerns of minority undercount

* 2020 Census Research, Operational Plans, and Oversight

* Related Policast – Bernie visits Michigan, Mayor Pete could be President, Michigan outlaws cyberbullying, and Gilda Jacobs talks census

* State Senator Adam Hollier

Segment Three: Flint water crisis legal reboot 

* Mich. Prosecutors Drop Charges In Flint Water Investigation, But Promise New Probe

* Dana Nessel’s office drops charges in Flint water contamination case

* Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel Explains Dropping Charges in Flint Water Crisis Case

* Why Michigan’s Attorney General Office wants a do-over in Flint

* Flint Water Prosecution Team Expands Investigation Based on New Evidence, Dismisses Cases Brought by Former Special Counsel

Michigan Policast for Monday, June 10, 2019

Segment One: John James takes on Gary Peters

* Gary Peters – 4th-most effective Senator in the minority party in enacting and advancing legislation

* Gary Peters for Senate – US Military service

* Gary Peters – 2014 Senatorial General Election Results

* John James – 2018 Senatorial General Election Results

* State OKs incentives for Northville Township tech center, Detroit logistics company

* DETROIT CRISIS A CRIMINAL HOAX?

Over the past few weeks, the Council has also voted to give 10 and 15 year Renaissance Zone tax credit extensions to the James Group International/OJ Land Development and 1208 Woodward, LLC, in exchange for a guarantee of —ELEVEN JOBS.

* Republicans Just Scored A Strong Recruit In The Michigan Senate Race

* John James pursues second run for U.S. Senate in Michigan

* Inside Elections Senate Ratings

* Cook Political Report Senate Ratings

Segment Two: Elliot-Larson Civil Rights Act 

* Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act (pdf)

* Hoadley Calls on Legislative Leaders to Take Next Step – Expand the Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act

* AG Nessel issues statement on expansion of Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act

* State Democrats continue call to expand Michigan’s civil rights protections to include LGBTQ people

* Whitmer, lawmakers to push anti-discrimination bill for LGBT community

 

Segment Three: Presidential politics

* Jay Inslee to talk climate action at Detro...

Michigan Policast for Monday, June 3, 2019

Segment One: Mackinac Policy Conference 

* Fact-checking Gov. Whitmer’s fuzzy marijuana math to fix the roads

* Whitmer signs auto insurance reform law at Mackinac Policy Conference

* A link to keep — 50 NAMES TO KNOW 
IN GOVERNMENT – Top government officials in prominent public-facing and behind-the-scenes roles at the Capitol, in the governor’s office, state departments, county governments and Detroit City Hall. Great work by @chadlivengood and @crainsdetroit

* Gov. Whitmer’s Take on Mackinac Policy Conference ’19

* Michigan Senate Majority Leader Predicts ‘Serious Voters Remorse’ Over Legalized Pot

* AP Interview: Nessel blasts GOP-proposed cuts to her budget

* Shirkey pushes ‘22 ballot initiative terminating term limits

* TERM LIMITS: THE BEST OF INTENTIONS GONE AWRY – Amy Kerr Hardin on how term limits have done more harm than good

* Gov. Gretchen Whitmer makes another push for 45-cent gas tax hike

 

Whitmer graphic on road funding alternatives at #MPC19 pic.twitter.com/L1sMc5EZSl

— Jonathan Oosting (@jonathanoosting) May 30, 2019

Segment Two: Impeachment and the Michigan Congressional Delegation

* Most Michigan Democratic reps not ready for impeachment — for now

* Justin Amash May 23 Twitter thread on Mueller’s report in Thread Reader

* Justin Amash May 28 Twitter thread on Barr’s false narrative around the Mueller Report in Thread Reader

* REPUBLICAN REP....

Michigan Policast for Monday, May 27, 2019

Segment One:  A ‘historic’ accomplishment – auto insurance “rate relief” for all Michigan drivers

* This fantastic episode of MIRS Monday features audio from House Speaker Chatfield, Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, and Governor Gretchen Whitmer. It also has a good segment with State Representative Isaac Robinson discussing his disappointment with how he thinks the legislation will affect Detroit.

* Michigan no-fault deal stops rate setting based on gender or education level

* Dan Gilbert could launch ballot petition on auto insurance: What it could mean

* Michigan’s new deal on auto insurance premiums: 10 things to know

* Bill to lower auto insurance OK’d by Legislature, sent to governor

The deal provides five options for drivers on the level of personal injury protection coverage they want. Under the deal, keeping the current unlimited coverage option would guarantee a 10% rate reduction in PIP coverage, which makes up about 50% of a typical insurance bill.

The other options include:

A 20% reduction in PIP rates for $500,000 in coverage

A 35% reduction for $250,000 in coverage

A 45% reduction for $50,000 in coverage

And a 100% reduction for senior citizens and drivers who have qualifying health insurance, such as Medicare or private insurance.

Segment Two:  AG Dana Nessel issues opinion that the lame duck ballot law is unconstitutional

* Anti-abortion petition groups face uncertainty after Nessel opinion

* Nessel Opinion Determines Portions of 2018 Election Law Unconstitutional

* Constitutionality of 2018 PA 608, amending Michigan Election Law [online copy of Nessel opinion #7319 ]

* Michigan bills would toughen rules to get proposals on ballot [coverage from the lame duck session 2018]

* Michigan AG: Lame-duck ballot drive law is unconstitutional

Want laws to withstand constitutional scrutiny? Pass better laws. R’s believe in strict construction of the Constitution. Until they don’t.

— Dana Nessel (@dananessel) April 1, 2019

Segment Three:  The Julian Assange indictments — what does this mean for the free press?

Michigan Policast for 5-20-2019

Segment One:  State House Representative Larry Inman

Walt, Christine, and Amy run through a handful of hot topics in this episode, starting with the troubled State Representative Larry Inman.  Inman, who represents 104th District of Grand Traverse County, has been indicted for extortion and Amy gives us the details on this one.

* State Representative Larry Inman Indicted – Press Release from Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Michigan

* Inman Indictment document (pdf) on DOJ web site

* Michigan House of Representatives site for Larry Inman

* Indicted Michigan lawmaker Larry Inman: ‘Text messages can be taken out of context’

Inman went on to text, “it’s not worth losing assignments and staff for $5,000,” and “you need to get people maxed out,” according to the indictment. “People will not go down for $5,000, not that we don’t appreciate it.”

* GOP lawmakers deny knowledge of Inman’s alleged bribery scheme — great comprehensive article by Detroit News

* Northern Michigan Representatives Calling For Rep. Larry Inman to Resign

* Larry Inman’s Political Summary on Vote Smart

* Gov. Whitmer calls cash-for-votes allegations against lawmaker ‘very disturbing’

Segment Two:  Forced birth / anti-choice forces in Michigan

Note from Christine – The Maternal Infant Health Program is what I am referring to in this segment as one of the ‘stop-gap’ programs that are defunct or inadequately funded. I was speaking from my experience covering the Shiawassee County Health Department several years ago when it cut prenatal care from its programs. Prenatal care was a required service of local health departments, and the Shiawassee Dept had allegedly stopped this service illegally. The service has since been restored.

* Michigan House Bill 4320 (2019)

* Senate Bill 0229 (2019)

* STATE POLICY UPDATES: Major Developments in Sexual & Reproductive Health from the Guttmacher Institute

*

Michigan Policast for May 13, 2019

Opening audio:  Trump and kooks.  wtf?

Walt, Amy, and Christine kick off the show with a conversation on free speech on campus.  What’s protected?  Where does Title IX come in?  And why can’t these folks figure out the difference between “free speech” on, say, Facebook, and “free speech” on a public campus.  Amy has all the coverage here.

* What is Title IX?

* Title IX Frequently Asked Questions

* When Colleges Confine Free Speech to a ‘Zone,’ It Isn’t Free

* DOJ’s investigation of Northern Michigan University’s self-harm policies leads to settlement

* Northern Michigan U. Compensates 4 Who Were Threatened With Punishment for Speaking of Suicide

* Violence erupts on MSU campus as Richard Spencer speaks

* White nationalist Richard Spencer blames violent protesters for small crowd at MSU

 

 

 

Segment two covers the Democratic Presidential candidates and their approach to healthcare. Medicare for all? Does private insurance have a place in a universal single payer society?

* Where 2020 Democrats stand on Medicare-for-all

* Bernie Sanders Unveils ‘Medicare for All’ Bill

* Your ‘Medicare for All’ Questions, Answered

* They Said It – React To “Medicare For All” Push – “Would Bankrupt Us For A Very Long Time,” “You Can’t Just Pull The Rug Out,” “I’m Not There” – features commentary criticizing Medicare for all, compiled by a group dedicated to preserving/strengthening private insurers and employer-based healthcare.

* Getting to Medicare-for-All

* Democrats Have No Safe Options On Health Care

…Democrats are heading into the 2020 election cycle with a serious edge on an issue that has the potential to mobilize their base. But if the candidates pitch big, sweeping changes to the health care system without addressing voters’ concerns ...