Tag Archives | Mackinac Center

UPDATED: Education supporters plan huge grassroots rally at Mich Capitol June 19th, teacher unions & media confused

By on June 11, 2013 in Education, Events, Media, Teachers

Grassroots power in action!

NOTE: This post has been updated. See below.

A little under two weeks ago, my pals that run the Facebook page Save Michigan’s Public Schools announced a rally to support education and teachers in Michigan. Their page is the premier online resource for all things education in our state. It was started by Ann Arbor educator Rochelle Noel and former state House candidate from Traverse City Betsy Coffia. Being grassroots organizers in the most basic definition of the word “grassroots”, Rochelle and Betsy and their passionate team of volunteers chose to pull off their June 19th rally on their own without reaching out to the two biggest unions in Michigan, the Michigan Education Association (MEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT).…


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Hamtramck gets an Emergency Manager, Mackinac Center thinks Detroit’s Emergency Manager is doing just fine

By on June 4, 2013 in Detroit, Emergency Managers

Another one bites the dust

Yesterday, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder declared a financial emergency in Hamtramck, Michigan. As I’ve written about before, this will be Round Two for the culturally-diverse city. They had an Emergency Financial Manager, Lou Schimmel, back in 2000 when John Engler was governor.

Hamtramck (spelled correctly, pronounced “Ham-TRAM-ick”), is rare in that the city actually asked the state to initiate the financial review process that would lead to an EM. It’s a small city with just over 22,000 residents yet it has an over $3 million budget deficit.

At least one Hamtramck city council member has blamed union for at least part of Hamtramck’s problem, what I wrote back in April is still true:

These are not problems caused by unionized workers.…

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State Policy Network affiliate Mackinac Center denied opportunity to influence the news you read by Progress Michigan

By on April 17, 2013 in Conservatives

“Chalk one up for the good guys”

Last week, I posted a piece titled “Lee Fang exposes the State Policy Network & corporate domination of public policy”. In that piece, I wrote about The Nation journalist and investigative reporter Lee Fang’s work to show how the State Policy Network (SPN) was waging a multi-pronged war to influence legislation, policy and public opinion at the state level across the country. One of the things that Fang reveals is that SPN affiliates have started their own wire services to bring their skewed version of the news to readers all over America. Here in Michigan, SPN affiliate Mackinac Center for Public Policy has done just that.

Thanks to my pals at Progress Michigan, however, today SPN and Mackinac Center lost a round in the battle to sway public opinion and government policy.


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Lee Fang exposes the State Policy Network & corporate domination of public policy

By on April 9, 2013 in Conservatives

It’s much worse than you think

I was recently contacted by journalist Lee Fang and asked to review his new book The Machine: A Field Guide to the Resurgent Right. I received the book yesterday and hope to have a full review out in the next couple of weeks.

As a lead-up to the April 24th release of his book, Fang has published a stunning piece at The Nation titled “The Right Leans In”. I call it stunning because it shows just how much power the corporate-funded right has amassed in shaping public policy in America, operating primarily at the state level. If you thought our biggest problem was the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), you are quite wrong. ALEC is simply one piece of an intricate network formed to push the conservative agenda and turn it into laws and public policy across the country. Fang’s piece is essential reading for every progressive in the country.

Click through for much more.


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Wisconsin anti-union group helping fund Right to Work for Less drive in Michigan

By on December 10, 2012 in Labor

Coming soon to a state near you

Lee Fang over at The Nation has a great piece up titled “Pro–’Right to Work’ Groups In Michigan Outspend Union Counterparts”. In it, he shows how anti-union groups are dramatically outspending pro-union anti-Right to Work for Less groups in Michigan.

Details on this and so much more after the jump.


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Congressman Sander Levin asks IRS to look into tax filings of right wing “policy house” Mackinac Center for Public Policy

By on April 21, 2012 in Conservatives

If you’re going to take over our state, you at least need to file the paperwork

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy has long been the “policy house” for far-right conservatives in Michigan. Much like the national American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), their purpose in life is to create anti-union, pro-business policy and to assist in getting legislation passed that makes their policy law. In the process they work diligently to shape public dialog and the opinions of lawmakers in pursuit of their goals.

This is not a secret. They do it publicly and are brazen in their efforts.

Michigan Representative Sander Levin sees what they do as lobbying, which it is. He has proof and is now asking the Internal Revenue Service to look into the tax filings of this non-profit group which claims they do no lobbying. Rep. Levin sent the IRS a letter asking them to investigate…


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Monday afternoon Emergency Manager news round-up – UPDATED

By on January 30, 2012 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers

Anyone wanna buy a sewer?

Lotsa Emergency Manager tidbits to report today.

  1. Highland Park schools Emergency Manager takes the reins
    As I reported last Friday, a new Emergency Manager has been appointed in Michigan, this time it’s the Highland Park school district that has been taken over. You can read about Jack Martin HERE. He’s also on the team that is looking over Detroit’s finances which has raised some eyebrows.

    UPDATE: A community group has formed to oppose the imposition of a Emergency Manager for Highland Park schools:

    Community leaders opposing Highland Park Schools new emergency financial manager held a news conference Monday to make sure their thoughts were known.

    2. …


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The Republican hypocrisy in Michigan’s charter school debate – UPDATED

By on December 14, 2011 in GOPocrisy

A couple of weeks ago, I spent about 20 quality minutes in the Green Room of Fox News Detroit with Nolan Finley, the Editorial Page Editor of the Detroit News. In that short time, I got to listen to him debate charter schools with another guest. His main and emphatic argument, one echoed by most charter school proponents, is that charter schools are necessary because they force the public schools to compete and, in the process, become better.

This is a seductive argument and I can understand why it appeals to conservatives and maybe even some non-conservatives. The capitalistic model is a strong part of our American culture.…


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Rick Syder: “Not on my agenda” or “The GOP made me do it”

By on December 13, 2011 in Emergency Managers, Michigan Republicans, Rick Snyder

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 piece of legislation or how a particular issue is “not on his agenda” only to sign that legislation shortly thereafter when the Republican-dominated legislature sends it to him.

241 bills signed into law (pdf) as of this week and only one veto.…


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More Dem threats against conservatives? Or not?

By on April 2, 2011 in Uncategorized

I’m sorry, but I am having a very hard time believing that this is actually coming from liberals:

A free-market think-tank at the center of a controversy over Freedom of Information Act requests to labor-studies departments received a series of death threats and bomb threats Thursday night and early today.

Personnel at the Midland-based Mackinac Center for Public Policy reported the five calls to the FBI and the local police. Spokesman Michael Jahr told the Free Press they appeared to come from one or two women and made repeated references to “The Rachel Maddow Show” on MSNBC.

~SNIP~

Four of the messages appeared to be from the same person.

…


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