Articles of Interest 3-28-06
Get ready folks….I expect Governor Granholm to throw everything but the kitchen sink at Dick DeVos. We’ve already heard rumors they are going to “wrap him in a Chinese flag”…what does that mean??? Cheap shots, distorted statistics, and overall one of the most bizarre games of “connect the dots” we’ll ever see. Stay tuned…why?
The latest Ramussen poll came out with the race for Governor in a dead heat. Again, this early in the process we shouldn’t get too excited, but it’s sure trending in the right direction. If you look at the link, you’ll see the rolling average numbers, which are probably a bit more reflective of reality…but the bottom line is, this is going to be a close election and the issues are on our side. To see the Rasmussen release goto:
http://migop.blogs.com/blog/2006/03/great_numbersbu.html
The Detroit Free Press cartoon in yesterday’s paper is pretty telling. This show’s why Republicans are “fired up” about the election and reflects the sad fact that Michigan voters are starting to pay attention. This Governor’s policies have been a disaster….or as Debbie Stabenow has said: “dangerously incompetent”. Help is on the way!
http://migop.blogs.com/blog/2006/03/oh_how_true.html
Efforts are on their way to repeal the Single Business Tax (SBT). If you would like to help and/or just download a petition, please goto:
Congressman Mike Rogers posted a very moving and interesting letter he received from Iraq. Written to the men and women who serve our country. I would suggest you take a minute and read it:
http://www.mikerogers.house.gov/media/pdfs/thankyou.pdf
Bill Ballenger of Inside Michigan Politics has a scrolling update of the MRG poll that was taken last week. They showed Granholm 43% and DeVos 41% in a statewide poll. For mor commentary see:
http://www.insidemichiganpolitics.com/
Zhe Clampitt, the Chair of the Redford Republican Club has started her own blog. She is a great activist who is committed to growing the party. I’ve had a chance to meet with her several times and believe she can be one of our rising stars. Follow her commentary:
http://zheclampitt.blogspot.com/
The bottom line folks, this is going to be one close election and our grassroots efforts will make the difference!!!
Saul Anuzis
Michigan wants 2008 GOP primary same day as South Carolina
By Jim Davenport, Associated Press Writer | March 27, 2006
Michigan GOP Chairman Saul Anuzis said he'd like to hold Michigan's election the first week of February, making it the third or fourth in the country, and to hold both the state's GOP primary and the Democratic presidential selection process on the same day.
http://www.monroenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060324/NEWS01/103240007/1005/ELECTION
Party head fires up voters
By: Stephanie Ariganello story updated March 24. 2006 11:12AM
Michigan Republicans did not enjoy a good election year in 2004, but Saul Anuzis is out to change that.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0328/p09s01-codc.html
Commentary > Dante Chinni
from the March 28, 2006 edition
Look to Michigan for how unemployment could affect 2008
DETROIT – The anger in this metro area is palpable. The unemployment rate is at 6.9 percent, more than two percentage points higher than the national average. The threat of a strike looms over one major auto-parts supplier. And an iconic employer, General Motors, has essentially told its hourly workers they shouldn't count on any kind of future with the company.
http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/mi/200603271.asp
Bad Legislation Looming Ahead
Governor Jennifer Granholm has recently announced plans to increase the compulsory attendance age for Michigan students from 16 to 18. She believes this will solve the dropout problem Michigan public schools are currently experiencing. She even claimed during appearances in Detroit and Clinton Townships that students would not be able to compete in the global marketplace if this increase in the compulsory attendance age doesn't occur.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060327/OPINION01/603270306/1008
Monday, March 27, 2006
Time (not) well spent
Gov. Jennifer Granholm is using her bully pulpit to argue against, well, bullies. In a lengthy press release last week, the governor urged lawmakers to pass legislation to protect students in school. Schoolyard intimidation is nothing to snicker at, but shouldn't a good principal be able to deal with bullies without a new state law?
http://www.gaylordheraldtimes.com/articles/2006/03/27/news/local_news/local_news05.txt
Monday, March 27, 2006
House, Senate OK bill repealing Single Business Tax
LANSING - The state House has approved legislation that eliminates the Single Business Tax in an effort to improve Michigan's climate for creating jobs and encouraging economic growth in the state.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/business/national/14201806.htm
Posted on Tue, Mar. 28, 2006
Granholm plans to sign minimum wage bill Tuesday
LANSING, Mich. - Labor union leaders were poised to claim victory when Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed legislation to boost the minimum wage for the first time in nine years.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/OPINION01/603280347/1008
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Tighten the rules for campaign donations
Sports tickets and birthday parties shouldn't qualify
Campaign finance donations ought to be used for election campaigns -- not for personal enrichment.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/OPINION01/603280348/1008
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Include guest workers in immigration reform
Make it easier for workers to fill the demand for cheap labor
L ike it or not, America is not about to deport the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants living and working in this country.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/POLITICS/603280331/1022
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Immigration bill roils Metro area
Thousands rally in Detroit after House OKs law criminalizing aid to illegal workers in U.S.
Jennifer Youssef / The Detroit News
DETROIT -- More than 4,000 protesters, many of them Detroit-area Latinos, crowded in front of The Detroit News building and WDIV Channel 4 television station late Monday morning to protest legislation that was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives that would make it legal to penalize people who employ undocumented immigrants.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/POLITICS/603280359/1022
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Granholm pushes affirmative action at civil rights summit
Fall ballot includes ban on the policy; Detroit most-segregated big city in U.S.
Brad Heath and Oralandar Brand-Williams / The Detroit News
DETROIT --Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm on Monday made another push to protect affirmative action policies in the state, saying such programs are important in creating a diverse and globally-competitive workforce.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/POLITICS/603280332/1022
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Legislators sift ideas for reform including employer sponsorship, border security boost.
Lisa Hoffman / Scripps Howard News Service
A look at the main immigration fixes on the table:
Bush plan
· End the "catch and release" of thousands of illegal border crossers who, because of a shortage of detention facilities, are let go if they promise to appear in court. Wants to increase number of holding facilities by 40 percent.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/POLITICS/603280408/1022
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Sen. Levin asks soldiers about abuse
WASHINGTON -- American soldiers, contractors and civilians who worked in the Abu Ghraib prison and at other U.S. military detention facilities have begun receiving detailed questionnaires about the use of severe interrogation tactics and the military chain of command's role in their implementation.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/ABRAMOFF_LENIENCY?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Leniency letters offer new Abramoff view
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Jack Abramoff is getting a makeover, compliments of friends who want him spared a harsh prison sentence.
Court takes up case of bin Laden driver
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Salim Ahmed Hamdan claims he is an innocent father of two young daughters and worked as a driver for Osama bin Laden only to eke out a living for his family.
Retired generals want Scalia off Gitmo case
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was asked Monday to stay out of a case involving a foreign detainee because of remarks Scalia made about the rights of enemy combatants.
http://www.livingstondaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060327/NEWS01/603270311/1002
Lawmaker supports photo ID at the polls
By Jim Totten
State Rep. Chris Ward, R-Brighton Township, believes voter fraud is a problem in Michigan and supports legislation that would require people to show photo identification at the polls.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/NEWS01/603280378/1003/NEWS
LATINOS VOICE OPPOSITION: Thousands protest immigration proposal
They oppose a hard-line plan on illegal workers
March 28, 2006
Waving flags, toting babies and chanting "Si, se puede," which means, "Yes, we can," a mostly Latino throng marched Monday in one of the largest political rallies Detroit has seen in recent years, protesting proposed legislation in Congress to mark illegal immigrant workers and anyone who supports them as criminals.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/OPINION01/603280325/1068/OPINION
Deal, No Deal ...
What would be at stake in Patterson's SBT offer?
March 28, 2006
Nobody would accuse L. Brooks Patterson of not putting his money where his mouth is. Or at least his county's money.
So adamant is the Oakland County executive about a repeal of Michigan's Single Business Tax that he is offering the state a $1-billion loan to tide things over until the coffers are refilled by what Patterson forecasts will be a surge in business activity once the SBT is history.
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/
Posted at 05:00 PM ET, 03/27/2006
Bush and Cheney: Fundraisers in Chief
Even as the poll numbers for President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney continue to drag, the 2006 fundraising pace of the White House's top officials has quickened considerably.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/video/2006/03/27/VI2006032700529.html
Bush Speaks on Immigration Reform
March 27, 2006
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/27/AR2006032700684.html
Senators Back Guest Workers
Panel's Measure Sides With Bush
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, March 28, 2006; Page A01
A key Senate panel broke with the House's get-tough approach to illegal immigration yesterday and sent to the floor a broad revision of the nation's immigration laws that would provide lawful employment to millions of undocumented workers while offering work visas to hundreds of thousands of new immigrants every year.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/27/AR2006032701474.html
FEC Rules Exempt Blogs From Internet Political Limits
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, March 28, 2006; Page A03
In a unanimous vote yesterday, the Federal Election Commission left unregulated almost all political activity on the Internet except for paid political advertisements. Campaigns buying such ads will have to use money raised under the limits of current federal campaign law.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/27/AR2006032701386.html
'527' Legislation Would Affect Democrats More
Proposals Seek to Limit Groups That Provide Millions
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, March 28, 2006; Page A03
In 2001, when Karl Rove first outlined plans for a $50 million get-out-the-vote program, his PowerPoint presentation made one point clear: The effort would be a "joint project of the White House and the Republican National Committee."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/27/AR2006032701837.html
Tougher Enforcement May Jeopardize Support
GOP, Democrats Both Stand to Lose
By Michael A. Fletcher and Shailagh Murray
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, March 28, 2006; Page A04
Both Republicans and Democrats risk alienating coveted supporters as they attempt to find the right balance between toughening enforcement and expanding legal opportunities for millions of low-skill foreign workers to take jobs in the United States.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/27/AR2006032702036.html
After Abramoff, Nats Fear It's Out With the Hill Crowd
By Thomas Heath
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, March 28, 2006; Page A01
The Washington Nationals were a big hit on Capitol Hill last year. The return of a professional baseball team to the city after 33 years provided a new venue for lobbyists to entertain members of Congress and their staff at RFK Stadium, just 20 blocks east of the Capitol.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/27/AR2006032701509.html
Russian Intelligence
When it comes to his friend Vlad, President Bush always seems ready to forgive and forget
Tuesday, March 28, 2006; Page A22
YOU'D THINK that evidence that a supposedly friendly country had delivered detailed military intelligence to an American enemy at a time of war would quickly provoke a reaction from the U.S. government: at the least, a demand for a full explanation, followed by a reassessment of relations with that country. But that's not how the Bush administration handles Vladimir Putin's Russia.
http://www.mlive.com/news/statewide/index.ssf?/base/news-7/1143153605294140.xml&coll=1
State's child abuse-prevention efforts falter
Monday, March 27, 2006
By Sharon Emery
Lansing Bureau
LANSING -- Budget cuts, staff shortages and growing needs among financially struggling families have forced Michigan's child welfare system to all but abandon abuse and neglect prevention efforts and instead focus on cases where children already have been harmed, child advocates say.
http://www.mlive.com/columns/aanews/index.ssf?/base/news-0/114347227861500.xml&coll=2
Let's look for answers on child abuse, neglect
Blacks disproportionately represented
Monday, March 27, 2006
It's easy to shrug off statistics. But when the numbers represent children, we need to think long and hard before we turn away.
http://www.mlive.com/columns/aanews/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1143474082127220.xml&coll=2
Don't tie states' hands on food safety
Senate should kill industry-backed bill - sponsored in House by Rogers
Monday, March 27, 2006
The U.S. Senate should oppose a bill that would override state food safety and labeling rules in favor of federal standards. States should be able to impose tougher standards and have the ability to react quickly to food safety concerns.
http://www.mlive.com/columns/fljournal/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1143471153323250.xml&coll=5
Cleanup funds
It pays for Michigan to keep brownfield program going
FLINT
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
Monday, March 27, 2006
Budget woes and a sluggish economy are forcing the state to trim or eliminate many programs, but funding the Clean Michigan Initiative should remain a priority.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1143474407146520.xml&coll=6
Knowing our boundaries
Monday, March 27, 2006
Michigan doesn't have to fear a shooting war with Ohio or dig trenches along the Indiana border. But the state should be ready to defend itself in court, where modern-day border skirmishes have been fought.
http://www.mlive.com/news/sanews/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1143469349259980.xml&coll=9
George Bush, unvarnished
Monday, March 27, 2006
OPINION OF THE WASHINGTON POST
President Bush should hold more news conferences. In his hour-long exchange with reporters at the White House on Tuesday, he was considerably more effective in explaining and defending his commitment to the war in Iraq than in the three carefully worded speeches he has delivered in the past week. In his sometimes blunt, sometimes joking and sometimes unpolished way, he sounded authentic -- no more so than when he was asked what had become of the "political capital" he claimed after the 2004 election. "I'd say I'm spending that capital on the war," Bush replied.
Bill to Broaden Immigration Law Gains in Senate
Published: March 28, 2006
WASHINGTON, March 27 — With Republicans deeply divided, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted on Monday to legalize the nation's 11 million illegal immigrants and ultimately to grant them citizenship, provided that they hold jobs, pass criminal background checks, learn English and pay fines and back taxes.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/28/politics/28intel.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Iraqi Documents Are Put on Web, and Search Is On
By SCOTT SHANE
Published: March 28, 2006
WASHINGTON, March 27 — American intelligence agencies and presidential commissions long ago concluded that Saddam Hussein had no unconventional weapons and no substantive ties to Al Qaeda before the 2003 invasion.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/28/politics/28radiation.html
Testers Slip Radioactive Materials Over Borders
By ERIC LIPTON
Published: March 28, 2006
WASHINGTON, March 27 — Undercover Congressional investigators successfully smuggled into the United States enough radioactive material to make two dirty bombs, even after it set off alarms on radiation detectors installed at border checkpoints, a new report says.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110008151
For People and Planet
When will companies start accounting for environmental costs?
BY AL GORE AND DAVID BLOOD
Tuesday, March 28, 2006 12:01 a.m. EST
Capitalism and sustainability are deeply and increasingly interrelated. After all, our economic activity is based on the use of natural and human resources. Not until we more broadly "price in" the external costs of investment decisions across all sectors will we have a sustainable economy and society.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pdupont/?id=110008113
Kyoto? No Go.
How to combat "global warming" without destroying the economy.
BY PETE DU PONT
Tuesday, March 28, 2006 12:01 a.m. EST
Did the 1970s mark the beginning of an ice age? Scientists and the press thought so. In 1971 Global Ecology forecast the "continued rapid cooling of the earth." The New York Times reported in 1975 that "many signs" suggest that the "earth may be headed for another ice age," and Science magazine that this cooling could be the beginning of "a full-blown 10,000-year ice age." It seemed sensible because, as NASA data show, there was indeed a 30-year, 0.2-degree Celsius cooling trend from 1940 to 1970.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/NEWS04/603280325/1005/news04
Published March 28, 2006
Ingham County commissioner seeks House seat
By Chris Andrews
Lansing State Journal
Ingham County Commissioner Don Vickers kicked off his campaign for the state House on Monday, touting experience in business and public schools.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/NEWS01/603280335/1150
Published March 28, 2006
Eagle man laid to rest: Hundreds salute soldier's proud service, ready grin
Man killed in Iraq 'always there if you needed him'
By Hugh Leach
Lansing State Journal
GRAND LEDGE - Hundreds of family, friends and military members turned out Monday to honor and remember Army Cpl. Nyle Yates III, a "good kid" with a memorable grin.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/OPINION01/603280314/1086/opinion
Published March 28, 2006
Priorities: Child protection efforts shrank as pols spent on themselves
A Michigan House committee is gearing up for a political brawl over state files in the Ricky Holland case. Lawmakers say they are entitled to more information from the state's children's ombudsman to perform their legal duties.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060328/OPINION01/603280315/1086/opinion
Published March 28, 2006
Checks, balance: Congress, exercise your oversight
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow recently backed a revision of the Patriot Act that gives federal agents far too much power to snoop and with far too little oversight. The Lansing Democrat argued it was the best possible compromise.
http://www.humaneventsonline.com/article.php?id=13539
Our Borders Pose National Security Risk
by Sen. Bill Frist
Posted Mar 27, 2006
The situation at our borders is a threat to national security. Thousands enter our country illegally each year. Some border crossers seek to take advantage of American opportunity to create a better life. Others, however, come to exploit American openness to do us harm. It is not at all far-fetched to assume terrorists may try to infiltrate our nation as a part of the stream of migrants, criminals and drugs flowing through our porous borders. Regardless of their intent, we must respond to unlawful border crossings with swift action.
http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/032806/immigration.html
March 28, 2006
GOP to stress immigration reform
With Senate Republicans debating the next course of action on immigration reform, GOP leaders in the House are hoping to get out in front on the issue by reminding voters that they have already passed a series of tough bills to crack down in illegal immigration.
http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/032806/bean.html
March 28, 2006
House Republicans target Bean but K Street backs Dem
Illinois Rep. Melissa Bean’s aggressive courting of K Street may put her opponent Dave McSweeney at a disadvantage this week when he comes to town to raise money among corporate PACs.
http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/032806/nuclear.html
March 28, 2006
Agents slip by security with nuclear material
Undercover government investigators using fake documents successfully passed through security measures at several ports around the country with enough raw materials to make two “dirty” nuclear bombs.
from the March 28, 2006 edition
A new corps mobilizes over immigration
Latinos are uniting as never before to oppose immigration proposals in Congress.
| Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor
GREELEY, COLO. – For the Latinos of this northern Colorado farming community, it was the final straw.
from the March 28, 2006 edition
Candidates want Bush's cash, sans Bush
Republicans welcome the funds he can raise for their campaigns, but are wary of his low popularity.
| Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
WASHINGTON – As the 2006 congressional campaigns get into gear, there are two George W. Bushes traveling the country.
One, the fundraiser, is welcome anywhere, anytime. Since January 2005, the president has set a record pace in raising cash for Republican campaign committees and individual candidates - $88 million at 26 events.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0328/p02s01-usfp.html
from the March 28, 2006 edition
Delays turn to stalemate over Iran's nuclear ambitions
But sense of urgency eases at the UN, as the US continues to work the diplomatic front with Tehran.
| Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
WASHINGTON – What was supposed to be a quick discussion in the United Nations Security Council to solidify international opposition to Iran's nuclear program has turned into a stalemate.
MIRS Capitol Capsule, Monday, March 27, 2006
Patterson Offers $1B For Granholm's Signature
Oakland County Executive L. Brooks PATTERSON has offered to give the state a $1 billion loan if Gov. Jennifer GRANHOLM signs a bill to eliminate the Single Business Tax (SBT) by the end of 2007.
She turned down Patterson's offer.
"The governor asked him, who was going to pay interest on the loan," Granholm Press Secretary Liz BOYD told MIRS today. "She also asked what was to happen if the tax cut doesn't work (in terms of bringing in new revenues) just as some past tax cuts haven't worked."
In the past Granholm had pledged to veto the bill, HB 5743, unless an alternative tax levy was forthcoming.
However, in a news release today Granholm appeared to have laid down some "safeguards" under which she would sign the bill.
The news release states in part that:
"I call on you to finish the job," Granholm said. "Pass legislation now that fully protects vital services like education, health care, and public safety and that also guarantees that businesses will pay their fair share of taxes without forcing Michigan families and citizens to shoulder new tax burdens.
"I will not sign House Bill 5743 in its current form,