Just a reminder that this afternoon, starting at 4:00 p.m., there will be a protest march on the Ann Arbor-area home of Governor Rick Snyder. Word has it that, in addition to scheduled speakers, the Reverends Al Sharpton & Jesse Jackson are also in town for the event. Here are the details from my original post that also had an […]

My friend Bruce Fealk, Michigan Rising Communications Director, got the ball rolling on this one: Today, January 13, 2012, is the last day for signatures for the recall of Governor Scott Walker in Wisconsin. For 260 days, the Solidarity singers have been singing in the Rotunda and outside the Capitol in Madison, WI. Today I asked Chris Reed, the leader […]

I wrote recently how a recent audit of Benton Harbor’s finances revealed that they not only are not out of debt, they still have a sizable deficit. Michigan Citizen has more on this with interesting commentary from Detroit accountant Greg Frazier. What Frazier says suggests that Joe Harris, so-called savior of Benton Harbor, is actually a crappy accountant. “The issue […]

This is from the terrific blog Defend Wisconsin A photo of a billboard in Janesville, Wisconsin, featuring a smiling Scott Walker, was captured on camera and posted as a pic on Facebook. Besides a smiling Scott Walker, the billboard states in Walker-campaign font: Scott Walker Creating Jobs for Wisconsin. Below, the billboard asks the readers to call Governor Walker and […]

This morning I wrote about Perry schools being threatened with a state takeover, a city in a county with only 0.5% African Americans. They aren’t the only ones. Suttons Bay is in the “Pinky” of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. The Suttons Bay school district is facing an Emergency Manager, as well. Superintendent Mike Murray says the district planned to get state […]

This is so damn patronizing. Flint Emergency Manager Michael Brown has issued an order restoring City Council meetings which he had previously cancelled. Here’s the agenda of the meetings (unless Brown modifies it): Call to Order by the Council President Roll Call by the City Clerk Pledge of Allegiance Presentation of Minutes Report by the Emergency Manager and/or his designee(s) […]

Not unexpected, just another drop in a torrent: Governor Rick Snyder has declared a financial emergency in Highland Park, and will appoint an Emergency Manager. Gov. Rick Snyder today said he would appoint an emergency manager to oversee the financially troubled Highland Park School District – just hours before state officials announced they are reluctantly giving the district a $188,000 […]

Much of the outrage about Public Act 4, the Emergency Manager law centers around its disparate impact on minority school districts and cities. But this law may be coming to city or school near you even if it’s not a so-called “majority minority” area. Take a look at the data that was assembled by Progress Michigan to see how obvious […]

At the moment, as egregious as the Citizens United Supreme Court decision was, it’s still illegal for corporations to give directly to candidates or political parties. If the GOP has its way, that will end. The century-old ban on corporate donations to federal political campaigns should be junked as unconstitutional, the Republican National Committee argued in a legal brief filed […]

There were some interesting revelations in statements made to day by Jay Carney, President Obama’s Press Secretary relating the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Recall that in the bill to extend the middle class income tax break, Republicans put in a requirement that he give his ruling on it by next month. Follow me over the orange squiggledegibbet for what went […]

It’s not often that I’m scooped in the blogosphere on news about Michigan’s Emergency Managers but, if I’m going to get scooped, I’d rather have it be by Laura Conaway at The Maddow Blog than anyone else. Today she reports that Benton Harbor Emergency Manager Joe Harris removed Marcus Muhammad as Mayor Pro Tem and replaced him with Sharon Henderson. […]