Senate Republicans stopped a bill that would restore emergency unemployment insurance for only three months on Tuesday. Republicans want to end the additional help for those looking for work at a point when the government never has before because they don’t believe in it. But they can’t say that. So they say we can’t afford it. They demanded that the […]

Shameless This afternoon, at the invitation of Michigan Republicans, the Koch brothers-funded corporatist front group Americans for Prosperity debuted a new attack ad aimed at Senate candidate Gary Peters. Portrayed as an anti-Affordable Care Act “issue ad”, it clearly targets only one candidate, Democrat Gary Peters and represents another example of the corrosive grip corporate “dark money” has on our […]

Educating people about available tax subsidies and Medicaid enrollment are top healthcare reform priorities right now. By the end of December, more than 6 million Americans had enrolled in a health insurance plan under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), either buying private insurance or signing up for Medicaid in a state that agreed to expand the program. We’re now midway […]

BOOM! On Thursday night, Governor Rick Snyder will spend an hour or so during his State of the State address spinning a tale about the many wonderful things he’s done for our state. We’re sure to hear many references to Michigan being a “Comeback State” which those of us who are actually paying attention know to be a myth. Progress […]

Creative strongarming? Detroit Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr has said for some time that he expects the Detroit Institute of Arts to come up with a half billion dollars of what can only be called ransom to help settle Detroit’s bankruptcy crisis. The expectation had the result of pitting the pensions of retired Detroit workers against priceless pieces of art held […]

It’s getting very deep in here… Earlier this month, I wrote about how Michigan Republicans were going to soon begin a campaign of deceit in which they attempt to convince Michigan voters that they are tax-cutting warriors determined to return budget surplus funds to the taxpayers to whom they belong. This week, House Speaker Jase Bolger began a propaganda campaign […]

Every Friday I’m posting the latest enrollment figures for the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) here at Eclectablog. Full details can be viewed daily at ACASignups.net. After the massive spike in enrollments seen in mid- to late December, regular site visitors might be a bit disappointed at the relative dearth of increases since New Year’s. There have actually been quite a […]

Ka-CHING! Back in November, the Snyder administration gave selected members of its staff in the Department of Treasury astonishingly large raises. It was needed, they said, to attract the best and the brightest to the positions (despite the fact that these people were already in these positions.) One guy, the state’s chief investment officer Jon Braeutigam, got a 90% pay […]

Groups with firmly held beliefs don’t want the rest of us making their healthcare choices. Why do they think they can control ours? A Michigan woman being denied care at a Catholic hospital while having a miscarriage because of the dictates of bishops. Another in Texas being kept on life support against her wishes and those of her family because […]

Cheering for the failure of something that helps Americans is un-American If you stop by the website of my Congressman, Tim Walberg, these days the first thing you see is a request to “Tell Us Your Story”: If you look at a little closer, the story he wants you to tell is about your experience with the Affordable Care Act. […]

The only thing we have to fear is … heartless Republicans The U.S. Senate has passed legislation that would extend unemployment benefits for 1.3 million Americans who saw it run out due to Congressional inaction in December of 2013. The bill extends the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program which provides additional weeks of benefits after state-based unemployment benefits come to an […]