Articles of Interest 6-04-06
The Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce Mackinac Center ended and I think it’s clear from the press coverage Governor Jennifer Granholm kicked off her campaign in a big way, she got great press, did a very good job on stage selling he “plan”….which was little more than her old policies that haven’t worked….a press release is NOT a plan, even if you include pictures.
The Detroit News Mark Hornbeck wrote: “The one-time actress impressed an audience of several hundred business and political leaders with a polished performance at the Grand Hotel theater that was reminiscent of her best 2002 stump speeches…a launch of her re-election campaign.”
She held fundraisers and politic meetings…and most notably, Granholm’s super secret Partnership for Progress held an event where corporate execs, PACs, unions and other special interest donated $25,000 in UNREPORTABLE funds to support and influence the Granholm administration. The Governor used a never before used loophole designed for party funds to funnel money into her re-election campaign. The bigger problem is what kind of benefits are these wealthy donors getting in exchange for supporting Governor Granholm’s re-election efforts.
Michigan Republicans were well represented and we made sure our message and “alternative choice” for how to lead Michigan forward was heard. Dick DeVos, Mike Bouchard, Keith Butler, Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land, Attorney General Mike Cox, Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema, House Speaker Craig DeRoche and many other Republican leaders worked the conference participants to let them know there is a better way to do things…we just need leadership at the top to make the changes necessary.
Yesterday the Michigan Republicans completed its 3-day campaign school for state house and senate candidates and their campaign managers statewide. I had a chance to address the group before they broke for lunch. We have some great state races coming up and feel confident the House Republican and Senate Republicans will hold their majorities and be ready to work with a NEW Republican Governor as we help turn Michigan around.
Saul Anuzis
STATE STORIES
http://www.mlive.com/news/statewide/index.ssf?/base/news-7/1149243009287760.xml&coll=1
Column: Time for Michigan to get real about economic change
Sunday, June 04, 2006
By Rick Haglund
Michigan's best days could well be behind it.
Auto manufacturing no longer has the horsepower to drive wages and benefits far above the national average.
More young people are fleeing Michigan than any state in the country, except Ohio and Pennsylvania.
**********WHERE IS MICHIGAN!?**********
http://www.columbusdispatch.com/business-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/06/04/20060604-G1-02.html
Illinois under consideration for Honda plant
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Paul Wilson
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio and Indiana aren’t the only contenders for Honda’s $400 million assembly plant.
Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich met with Honda officials in recent days and discussed a site the automaker is considering in that state, said Andrew Ross, a spokesman for the governor.
http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060603/BUSINESS02/60603002
Article published Saturday, June 3, 2006
Out-of-court negotiations heat up in Delphi case
NEW YORK - Auto parts supplier Delphi Corp. and its employee unions said yesterday they are pursuing negotiations out of court as the company finished presenting its case to determine whether it will be permitted to void its labor contracts.
http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/News/articles.asp?articleID=4661
Delphi forecast gloomy
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle
NEW YORK — Things aren’t getting any better for Delphi Corp. and its U.S. workers.
Already suffering from falling demand for electrical wiring harnesses, suspensions and other auto parts it makes, bankrupt Delphi faces a sharp reduction in orders from its largest customer, General Motors Corp., in the July-September quarter.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/NEWS05/606040639/1007
LIFE AFTER GRADUATION: Seeking security
State's sluggish economy drives some grads' decisions
June 4, 2006
Vincent Westphal doesn't know what path his career will take, but he knows what he doesn't want to do:
"I personally was never interested in an automotive-type career," said Vincent, 18, who graduated Thursday from Grosse Ile High School.
http://www.record-eagle.com/2006/jun/03mack-2.htm
06/03/2006
Mackinac Policy Conference
Health costs seen as a threat
MACKINAC ISLAND — A comprehensive approach from businesses, the health care industry, the public sector and workers is needed to rein in the country's spiraling medical care costs.
A panel at the Detroit Regional Chamber Mackinac Policy Conference on Mackinac Island said a multi-layered overhaul of the U.S. health care system is needed to solve key challenges of access, cost and quality of medical care.
http://www.mlive.com/news/aanews/index.ssf?/base/news-18/114941596063000.xml&coll=2
Granholm lined up for Democratic fundraiser
Governor will deliver keynote address at Ypsilanti event
Sunday, June 04, 2006
BY ART AISNER
News Staff Reporter
Republican Party gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos drew a record crowd at the Washtenaw County GOP annual fundraiser in May. County Democratic Party leaders are hoping for the same by landing Gov. Jennifer Granholm for their fundraising dinner June 17 at the Ypsilanti Marriott at Eagle Crest.
http://www.themorningsun.com/stories/060406/loc_walk001.shtml
PUBLISHED: Sunday, June 4, 2006
Funds for trail
Grants may help Shepherd with project
Sun Staff Writer
John Williams of Shepherd says he's walked "the Triangle" at the south end of his community for years, and putting a walking trail there would make it safer.
If it were safer, there would be more people on it," said Williams, a retired insurance agent. As it is now, however, he wears a reflective jacket as he walks along - and on - Chippewa Street, Shepherd Road, Federal Road and Wright Avenue in the morning.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/METRO/606040330
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Mackinac Conference
New travel ads feature 'Pure Michigan' theme
Kathy Barks Hoffman / Associated Press
MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. -- The first in a series of 30-second ads promoting Michigan tourism got a standing ovation Friday from 800 people at the Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference.
The ads, built around the theme "Pure Michigan," were designed by advertising agency McCann Erickson. They were shown during a speech by Gov. Jennifer Granholm.
http://www.theoaklandpress.com/stories/060306/loc_2006060304.shtml
Granholm enlists actor Daniels for state ads
Web-posted Jun 3, 2006
By SVEN GUSTAFSON
Of The Oakland Press
MACKINAC ISLAND - Gov. Jennifer Granholm rode out of the 2006 Mackinac Policy Conference on a high Friday, unveiling a series of new television advertisements highlighting the state's business infrastructure and tourism assets.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION02/606040551/1070
ROCHELLE RILEY: Michigan can do better at attracting
June 4, 2006
MACKINAC ISLAND -- If the Detroit Regional Chamber's annual conference here made anything clear, it's whether Michigan is the place for you.
Byna Elliott is thinking it's not. But Michigan cannot afford to lose her.
We sat on a side porch of the Grand Hotel, a columnist and a vice president at Fifth Third Bank, two activists passionate about making the state better, two mothers -- she of two, I of one. Elliott doesn't believe she can raise her children in Michigan.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION03/606040301/1008/OPINION01
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Manny Lopez:
Federal report sinks Granholm's gas rants
P oliticians are known to distort the facts and bend the truth to suit their needs. You can excuse their impulse to do so on occasion.
But some local politicians have taken it to a new level and it appears that nothing -- including a federal report that proves them wrong -- will keep them from grandstanding about the supposed evils of Big Oil.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/POLITICS/606040320/1022
Sunday, June 04, 2006
DeRoche calls for leadership change in corrections department
Associated Press
MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. -- Republican House Speaker Craig DeRoche said Friday that Michigan Department of Corrections Director Patricia Caruso should quit or be removed from her job.
DeRoche noted mistakes made during the department's handling of the case of admitted killer Patrick Selepak, who was mistakenly released from prison before going on a crime spree earlier this year.
http://www.mlive.com/news/fljournal/index.ssf?/base/news-37/1149421809322530.xml&coll=5
Lost
State trying to crack down on runaways from foster homes
GENESEE COUNTY
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
Sunday, June 04, 2006
By Ron Fonger
rfonger@flintjournal.com • 810.766.6317
Genesee County - When adult filmmakers were looking for the perfect new girl next door in 2004, they had no trouble spotting Stephanie Draheim, a freckle-faced 18-year-old from Flint.
But finding the same runaway foster child turned into a frustrating game of cat and mouse for the state Department of Human Services and an end result that state Supreme Court Justice Maura Corrigan told The Flint Journal is "very disturbing."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION01/606040543/1069
FREE PRESS EDITORIAL: An Unwelcoming State
Legislature's anti-alien fervor sends wrong signals for Michigan
June 4, 2006
The little population growth Michigan has seen in the past few years is due almost entirely to immigration. The state is earnestly recruiting foreign companies to bring jobs here, and its universities are eager for the diversity -- and tuition -- that foreign students represent.
And here comes the state Legislature doing its darndest to make sure that all foreign nationals feel unwelcome in Michigan, are branded noncitizens and discouraged from trying to make a life here. You'd think being non-American was un-American. If you seek a xenophobic peninsula, look about you.
http://www.mlive.com/news/bctimes/index.ssf?/base/news-1/114941615486070.xml&coll=4
English does just fine without pandering or political protection
Sunday, June 04, 2006
English only spoken here.
Of course it is.
English is the common, unifying language of our nation.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-2/114940294925060.xml&coll=6
Reading between the lines
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Abill to make English the official language of Michigan is an unnecessary and potentially divisive measure. English is the dominate language in Michigan -- and the nation -- and in no danger of losing that pre-eminent status.
Anyone who wants to advance economically or academically here needs to learn English. No one knows that better than immigrants who fill English language classes wherever they are available, and who know that English is the key to better jobs and a better life in their adopted nation. The vast majority of immigrants learn English or make sure their children do. Also, those who want to become American citizens must be able to read, write and speak English as part of the naturalization requirements. Those are excellent and adequate incentives to learn the language.
http://www.mlive.com/news/bctimes/index.ssf?/base/news-7/1149329821296830.xml&coll=4
City Commission expected to vote Monday on plan to cut police, firefighter jobs
Saturday, June 03, 2006
By TIM YOUNKMAN
TIMES WRITERS
Bay City Police Officer Jennifer Peter is expecting a baby in September.
Until now, she also expected to have a job.
Peter is one of six officers in her department - along with six firefighters - to receive a pink slip from the city. Her employment will end June 30 if the Bay City Commission approves the cuts during its Monday meeting. Commissioners are expected to finalize the city budget for the 2006-07 year that begins July 1. The meeting is at 7:30 p.m. at City Hall.
http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060602/NEWS01/606020314/1002
So long, Southwestern
Katie Oliveri
The Enquirer
Tears were contagious Thursday, and so were the laughs and smiles.
Mixed emotions filled the hallways of Southwestern Middle School, and hugs were given freely as students, teachers and staff said goodbye to their home away from home.
http://www.wlns.com/Global/story.asp?S=4974196&nav=0RbQ
Michigan landfill to stop taking Toronto sludge
TORONTO A Wayne County landfill says tells Toronto it will no longer take its treated sewer sludge after August.
The Carleton Farms facility in Sumpter Township says residents are griping about the stench.
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/columns-2/1149416985119250.xml&coll=7
Will Promise potential be realized?
Sunday, June 4, 2006
It's far too early to tell if The Kalamazoo Promise will spur economic development in the Kalamazoo area.
It's too early to tell if the housing market will flourish because of it.
It's even too early to see if it will reduce the dropout rate at Kalamazoo Public Schools' Kalamazoo Central and Loy Norrix high schools.
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-18/1149416753119250.xml&coll=7
Class of 2006 taking advantageof unprecedented opportunity
Sunday, June 4, 2006
By Julie Mack jmack@kalamazoogazette.com 388-8578
At age 15, Nakela Powe was living on the streets, hanging with a bad crowd and looking at a future that was no future at all.
That was then. This is now: Powe graduates this
week from Kalamazoo Public Schools' alternative-education program and in the fall starts at Kalamazoo Valley Community College, part of the first group to receive scholarships.
http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060602/NEWS01/606020316/1002
Residents march against prostitution
Stephanie Antonian Rutherford
The Enquirer
When a man stops along Capital Avenue and picks up a prostitute, he isn't just paying for sex — he's likely helping support the woman's drug habit, which will support the drug dealers and criminals in Battle Creek.
That's the belief held by members of local activist group STOP, or Supporting Those Oppressed by Prostitution. And they say they aren't going to let prostitution's dangerous cycle continue in Battle Creek.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION03/606040352/1271
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Nolan Finley
Swap term limits for part-time lawmakers
M issing from the poobah pow-wow on Mackinac Island last week were the big swinging studs of the state Legislature.
For good reason. There aren't any.
Term limits have emaciated the state House and Senate, leaving bodies once ruled by giants now populated by political pip squeaks, feared by none and respected by few.
http://www.mlive.com/news/fljournal/index.ssf?/base/news-37/1149420027273070.xml&coll=5
Powers grad now reporting from Iraq
Correspondent once an intern at Journal
FLINT
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
Sunday, June 04, 2006
By Kristin Longley
klongley@flintjournal.com • 810.766.6249
On the day Flint native and Powers Catholic High School graduate Sarah Childress arrived in Iraq, she received an initiation into life as a war correspondent: Two CBS journalists were killed and another critically injured in a car bombing not far from Childress' new home.
The already somber mood in the Baghdad house she shares with other journalists has become even more grim since the incident Monday, said Childress, a former reporting intern for The Flint Journal.
http://www.mlive.com/news/jacitpat/index.ssf?/base/news-17/114941565145850.xml&coll=3
It never gets easier for families watching soldiers leave for war
Sunday, June 04, 2006
By Lindsay VanHulle
lvanhulle@citpat.com -- 768-4945
She had watched her husband leave for Iraq before, so Elena Smallwood knew what to expect.
That didn't mean it would be any easier the second time.
"I'm probably going to break down and start bawling," said Smallwood, 21, of Pinckney.
NATIONAL STORIES
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BUSH?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Bush backs amendment to ban gay marriage
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush on Saturday backed a resolution to amend the Constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman even though the idea has little chance of being passed in the Senate.
"Ages of experience have taught us that the commitment of a husband and a wife to love and to serve one another promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. "Marriage cannot be cut off from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening this good influence on society."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/02/AR2006060201519.html
Bush Re-Enters Gay Marriage Fight
Two Speeches Set Pressing Senate To Vote for a Ban
By Peter Baker
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, June 3, 2006; Page A04
President Bush plans to wade back into the emotional debate over same-sex marriage for the first time in his second term beginning today with a pair of speeches pressing the Senate to approve a constitutional amendment next week defining marriage as the union of a man and woman.
Bush, whose opposition to marriage between gay partners helped power him to reelection in 2004, has remained largely silent on the issue since, much to the consternation of conservatives who complain he has not exerted leadership. Now, with midterm elections approaching, he is returning to a topic that galvanizes an important part of the Republican base.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060603/OPINION01/606030316/1086/opinion
Published June 3, 2006
[ From the Lansing State Journal ]
To The Point: Careful what you say
OK, it's an election year, and that means political parties are especially blind to their own hypocrisy.
Take, for example, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which this week scolded Michigan U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow for casting anti-worker votes on recent immigration reform. The NRSC says Stabenow, a Lansing Democrat, voted against the best interests of U.S. workers.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/politics/50thdistrict/20060603-9999-1mi3busby.html
Busby on defense, says she misspoke
By Dani Dodge
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
June 3, 2006
If an election can turn on a sentence, this could be the one: “You don't need papers for voting.”
On Thursday night, Francine Busby, the Democratic candidate for the 50th Congressional District, was speaking before a largely Latino crowd in Escondido when she uttered those words. She said yesterday she simply misspoke.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/POLITICS/606040333/1022
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Stolen personal data includes some active-duty personnel
Hope Yen / Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- Personal data on up to 50,000 active Navy and National Guard personnel were among those stolen from a Veterans Affairs employee last month, the government said Saturday in a disclosure that goes beyond what VA initially reported.
VA Secretary Jim Nicholson said in a statement that his agency discovered after an internal investigation that the names, Social Security numbers and dates of birth of up to 20,000 National Guard and Reserve personnel who were on at least their second active-duty call-up were "potentially included."
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CIA_LEAK?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Libby to get limited classified info
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A former White House aide facing perjury charges will get only a prosecutor's summary of classified documents assessing the damage to national security from the leak of a CIA officer's identity, a federal judge ruled Friday.
U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton also said lawyers for I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby must settle for a prosecutor's version of information contained in secret government documents that describe CIA officer Valerie Plame's employment history.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/02/AR2006060201090.html
Libby Suffers Setback In Document Request
Judge Calls Certain Papers Immaterial
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, June 3, 2006; Page A04
A federal judge yesterday rejected a bid by I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby to see a range of classified government documents that he asserted are needed to prepare his legal defense against charges of obstruction of justice and lying to government investigators.
U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton's decision amounted to a setback for Libby's defense strategy.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/R/RUMSFELDS_FUTURE?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Rumsfeld toughs it out as debate roils
WASHINGTON (AP) -- When Donald H. Rumsfeld became defense secretary in 2001, he posted a chatty list of rules to live and work by on the Pentagon's Web site. "Rumsfeld's Rules," as they were called, are long gone now. But two of them in particular resonate during this time of war and recrimination.
-"Reserve the right to get into anything, and exercise it," says one, written long before Rumsfeld helped to steer the United States into war in Iraq.
-"Be able to resign," says a second. "It will improve your value to the president and do wonders for your performance."
U.S. troops cleared in Ishaqi raid probe
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A military investigation into allegations that U.S. troops intentionally killed Iraqi civilians in a March 15 raid in a village north of Baghdad has cleared the troops of misconduct, two defense officials said Friday.
The investigation concluded that the U.S. troops followed proper procedures in raising the level of force as they came under attack upon approaching a building where they believed an al-Qaida terrorist was hiding, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the results had not been publicly released.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION03/606030307/1008/OPINION01
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Michelle Malkin:
The truth about Haditha: It's grist for anti-war zealots
D emocrat U.S. Rep. John "Cut and Run" Murtha thinks he knows the truth about Haditha -- and he has been blabbing it to every last cable show host that will host him. The loose-lipped former Marine has accused troops of wantonly killing some two dozen civilians, including children, "in cold blood" in the terrorist stronghold in Iraq last November. There are two ongoing military investigations into the incident itself and the actions of higher-ups in the Haditha aftermath.
Let me repeat that: The investigations are ongoing. Not complete. Official reports aren't expected for several weeks.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION01/606040549/1069
ANOTHER POINT OF VIEW: At Haditha, find truth no matter how terrible
June 4, 2006
Americans already feeling bogged down in Iraq now face the prospect that U.S. Marines murdered 24 unarmed civilians in the western town of Haditha.
The criminal investigation is still pending, but all indications are that the allegations, if true, could damage America's honor even more than the U.S. abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/03/AR2006060300710.html
In Haditha Killings, Details Came Slowly
Official Version Is at Odds With Evidence
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, June 4, 2006; Page A01
At 5 p.m. Nov. 19, near the end of one of the most violent days the Marine Corps had experienced in the Upper Euphrates Valley, a call went out for trucks to collect the bodies of 24 Iraqi civilians.
The unit that arrived in the farming town of Haditha found babies, women and children shot in the head and chest. An old man in a wheelchair had been shot nine times. A group of girls, ages 1 to 14, lay dead. Everyone had been killed by gunfire, according to death certificates issued later.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/04/opinion/04sun1.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
A Hard Look at Haditha
The apparent cold-blooded killing last November of 24 Iraqi civilians by United States marines at Haditha will be hard to dispose of with another Washington damage control operation. The Iraqi government has made clear that it will not sit still for one, and neither should the American people. This affair cannot simply be dismissed as the spontaneous cruelty of a few bad men.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/02/AR2006060201539.html
Iraq Is Europe's Business, Too
By George Robertson
Sunday, June 4, 2006; Page B07
LONDON -- There is something rather surreal about the transatlantic world today. There are completely separate debates about Iraq ongoing on either side of the ocean and they simply don't connect.
There is now an elected government -- of all the factions -- in Baghdad, and it is struggling to get a grip on security. But too many European leaders are simply standing back from what stares them in the face as if any spillover from Iraq was a problem for America and not for we Europeans.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/R/RUMSFELD?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Rumsfeld takes aim at Iran, Russia, China
SINGAPORE (AP) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld branded Iran as the world's leading terrorist nation yet hoped Tehran seriously would consider incentives from the West in exchange for suspending suspect nuclear activities.
Rumsfeld, attending an annual security conference, also took aim Saturday at Russia and China for allowing Iran's involvement in a group that he said has stated opposition to terrorism and extremists.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/02/AR2006060201536.html
Bush's Gamble On Iran
By Jim Hoagland
Sunday, June 4, 2006; Page B07
President Bush handed Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and German Chancellor Angela Merkel a significant foreign policy victory and put new distance between himself and Vice President Cheney with last week's decision to dangle the carrot of U.S. participation in talks with Iran. But it is a victory of process rather than of substance and could still come undone.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/03/AR2006060300237.html
Rice Key to Reversal on Iran
Expected Failure of International Effort Led to U.S. Turnaround
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, June 4, 2006; Page A17
At the end of March, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice flew to Europe and had unusual, one-on-one conversations with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Jacques Chirac and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. She also attended a meeting in Berlin on Iran at which the Russian and Chinese representatives denounced the idea of sanctions to halt Tehran's drive toward a nuclear weapon.
http://www.startribune.com/587/story/471151.html
Gingrich is delegates favorite of 2008 presidential race
McCain and Giuliani seen as too moderate in straw poll.
Dane Smith, Star Tribune
Last update: June 03, 2006 – 12:17 AM
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was the easy winner of a straw poll Friday night that tested 2008 presidential candidate support at the Minnesota Republican Party state convention.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/03/AR2006060300538.html
Ethics Issue May Not Rouse 11th District
Challenger of House Republican From California Perceives Indifference Among Voters
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, June 4, 2006; Page A06
Enraged by what he saw as corruption in his own party, a 78-year-old legend of Republican politics emerged from retirement this year to challenge House Resources Committee Chairman Richard W. Pombo for California's 11th Congressional District seat.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DEMOCRATIC_CHAIRMEN?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Prospective Democratic chairs all liberal
WASHINGTON (AP) -- If the chips fall right for Democrats and their party seizes control of the House, President Bush's agenda on Capitol Hill would fall into the hands of some of his most dogged opponents.
It's not just would-be Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, but a boatload of Democrats newly running committees who would determine what legislation gets debated and which programs and agencies get scrutiny.
So who are the chairmen to be?
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/sunnews/news/opinion/14732049.htm
Posted on Sat, Jun. 03, 2006
GOP's courting of blacks failing
CLARENCE LUSANE
Almost every year now is "the year of the black Republican," according to party strategists. This year's gang includes gubernatorial longshot candidates Ken Blackwell in Ohio and Lynn Swann in Pennsylvania. Two U.S. Senate hopefuls are Michael Steele in Maryland and Keith Butler in Michigan.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION03/606030312/1008/OPINION01
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Thomas Sowell:
Only liberals don't anticipate more revenue from tax cuts
The New York Times of May 21 featured estimates of how much revenue the federal government is losing as a result of tax cuts, more than $50 billion over a five-year period. Meanwhile, a front-page story in the Wall Street Journal reported the government as receiving "a surge in unanticipated revenue coming from the rich."
There is no contradiction between these two stories. The Times reported estimates, while the Wall Street Journal reported what actually happened. Moreover, there is no real difference in outlook between the writers who wrote these two stories.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SCOTUS_CASE_SHORTAGE?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Supreme Court Justices hearing fewer cases
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Chief Justice John Roberts said last fall he would like to see the Supreme Court take up more cases. So far, however, his arrival has had the opposite effect.
Justices are running well behind in filling their argument calendar for the term that begins in the fall. They have accepted 18 cases, compared with 27 by this time last year and 32 in 2004.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060604/OPINION03/606030305/1008/OPINION01
Sunday, June 04, 2006
George Will:
Bush's court appointees pay off
I n 1892, when First Amendment jurisprudence was in its infancy, Oliver Wendell Holmes, then a justice on the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, said a policeman "may have a constitutional right to talk politics, but he has no constitutional right to be a policeman." Holmes had a flair for aphorisms, the clarity of which sometimes gave them excessive sweep. What he meant in the case of a policeman fired for collecting money for a political committee was that government has a right, for reasons of efficiency, to discipline an officer for speech that, had it been made by a private citizen, would have had constitutional protection.
