Michiganders need to get a grip on how much their elected officials are being paid. BOB LaBRANT: Abolish the State Officers Compensation Commission. Replace it with an automatic Consumer Price Index (CPI) adjustment. “After 55 years, it is time to amend the Michigan Constitution and abolish the State Officers Compensation Commission (SOCC), which since 1968 […]
What’s important to think about?
THE SEARCH FOR A NEW MSU PRESIDENT
Freshman Trustee Dennis Denno will lead search for next MSU President Two weeks ago, Michigan State University Trustee Dennis Denno, a Democrat elected by voters last November, was named chairperson of the search committee seeking a new President for Spartanland. Denno said the full search committee includes a cross section of the university community, including […]
MICHIGAN REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS DISSED
Question 1): Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt (R-Porter Twp) has called for “real negotiations” if majority Democrats want to get GOP lawmakers to help pass the budget with Immediate Effect. He wants long-term debt paid down, infrastructure investment and a “sustainable, balanced budget.” Should we expect Nesbitt to get even half of what he’s calling […]
CHINESE INVADE MICHIGAN POLITICS
Question 1): As Michigan continues to lose market share in gross national product (GNP) as well as population, other countries are ready to move into the Great Lakes State seeking economic opportunity. Some of these entries seem welcome, others not so much.Norway, everybody’s favorite country, is embraced. But China? A company called Gotion with ties […]
A KENTUCKY DERBY PICK
A KENTUCKY DERBY PICK The latest chapter in “The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports” is upon us again. YES! — this year’s Kentucky Derby, the 149th, will once again be telecast (on NBC) and simulcast in Michigan, this coming Saturday (May 6). Post time is supposed to be 6:57 p.m., but you can count on […]
MICHIGAN POLITICS SCORECARD SO FAR THIS YEAR
Rating Democrats’ and Republican Performance in the Legislature; Does Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Need the GOP Anymore for Anything?; Who will win the Coming Battle over Tax Cuts and Who Deserves Credit for them? Question 1): Using an A to F scale, what grade do Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and legislative Democrats deserve for their performance so […]
PRIMARY ELECTION OR CONVENTION — WHICH IS BETTER?
Question 1): Jonathan Oosting wrote an April 11 article in BRIDGE MICHIGAN describing how the Michigan Republican Party may replace its 2024 presidential primary with a closed caucus or convention that would allow only precinct delegates or vetted Republicans to participate. Oosting reported that state GOP Chair Kristina Karamo has said that no decisions have […]
PRESIDENT FORD’S PARDON OF NIXON — WHAT REALLY HAPPENED?
AN ORDINARY MAN: The Surprising Life and Historic Presidency of Gerald R. Ford, by Historian Richard Norton Smith, will be Published This Week A long-anticipated biography of Gerald R. Ford — the only president to come out of Michigan — will be released in Grand Rapids this Tuesday, April 11, followed by a Lansing appearance […]
BLOCKBUSTER GERALD R. FORD BIOGRAPHY TO BE PUBLISHED NEXT WEEK
A long-anticipated biography of Gerald R. Ford — the only president to hail from Michigan — will be released in Grand Rapids next Tuesday, April 11, followed by a Lansing appearance by the author, prize-winning historian Richard Norton Smith, two days later, on Thursday, April 13. AN ORDINARY MAN: The Surprising Life and Historic […]
MICHIGAN INCOME TAX DROPS. WHAT IS WHITMER’S FUTURE?
Question 1): Big news! The state income tax will officially be dropped from 4.25% to 4.05% for the 2023 tax year. How did this happen? Is this rate here for keeps? As part of a $1.2 billion road funding plan enacted by a majority Republican Legislature and approved by Gov. Rick Snyder back in 2015, […]