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Question 1): Still another Republican last week announced his candidacy for governor — he’s Michael Markey, a Grand Haven business owner. That brings the total back to a baker’s dozen candidates for the GOP nomination, which is a record. Who is Michael Markey? Will his candidacy make a difference leading up to the Aug. 2 […]

Question 1): Gov. Gretchen Whitmer delivered her fourth State of the State message last Wednesday. For the second straight year, she scaled things back by speaking not in the state capitol but in a remote location, this time the factory floor of Detroit Diesel. How did she do? Answer 1): The headline on this speech […]

QUESTION: A three-hour joint  meeting of the Oversight Committees of the Michigan House of Representatives and  Michigan Senate last week focused on a state Auditor General’s report finding that death numbers from COVID-19 in nursing homes were higher than the death numbers reported by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Dept. of Health & Human Services. As MIRS […]

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many Americans, particularly Democrats, have become comfortable with the idea of authoritarianism. A recent Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports survey found that when it comes to the treatment of unvaccinated Americans, 55 percent of Democrats support fines, 59 percent support house arrest, 45 percent support internment camps, 47 […]

Question 1): MIRS newsletter this week quoted the late, great George Bernard SHAW this way: “If all the economists were laid end to end, they’d never reach a conclusion.” MIRS imagined that Shaw may have considered making a similar observation about attorneys, but probably didn’t want to get sued. So, let’s consider the Michigan Independent […]

Question 1): Last week, the Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission finally released its maps for Michigan’s 13 Congressional Districts, 38 state Senate seats, and 110 enclaves in the state House of Representatives. How has the ICRC done so far, and will the maps hold up? Answer 1)): Obviously, holding closed-door meetings, only to be told by […]

‘Wait, what?’ quip lead list of words, phrases to banish in 2022 THE DETROIT FREE PRESS from the Associated Press Dec. 31, 2021 SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. — The judges of a Michigan university’s cheeky annual “Banished Words List” have a message for texting and tweeting Americans: Your “wait, what?” joke is lame. The phrase […]

New post on Biggs Works and More Thoughts for the Day, December 22, 2021: AG Nessel is having a bad week. by Thomasdbiggs The week before Christmas was not a good week for Attorney General Dana Nessel.  On Tuesday, Dec. 21, a three-judge state Court of Appeals panel vacated the conviction of former MSU gymnastic coach Kathie Klages, […]

  Happy Holidays from The Ballenger Report!  

Question: According to University of Michigan economic experts, Michigan will experience a ‘nearly complete recovery’ from the COVID-19 pandemic. In the coming weeks and months, the Republican-controlled Legislature will send billions of dollars in federal COVID relief money to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for her signature. Added to that, The House, Senate and Governor’s office have […]