Articles of Interest 7-27-06
More polls…this time the numbers flip over the other way. That’s why we are constantly warning all our activists NOT to read too much into these or any other polls this early in the race. The only poll numbers that really matter are on election day.
History has shown us, Michigan is a swing, competitive state. I want to remind you that John Engler won his first race by less than ½ of a percentage point…Mike Cox won his first race by less than ½ of a percentage point…Debbie Stabenow beat Spence Abraham by less than ½ of a percentage point…we WIN and LOSE races in Michigan on the margin.
That’s why the grassroots work we do day in and day out is so important. That margin of victory is going to come because our volunteers will NOT stop making phone calls, or knocking on doors until 8:00pm on election day. Michigan Republicans have shown time and time again, we have some of the best “ground troops” in the business.
Governor Granholm has spent over $18 million dollars (reported) in her campaigns telling her story to the voters of Michigan. Granholm Inc. has spent “tens of millions” of unreported funds pitching and spinning their lines. We have an incumbent Governor who is presiding over a “single state recession” where we continue to lose ONE job for every TWENTY minutes she has been in office.
Take note, this is while 49 other states are moving forward, creating jobs…in fact nationwide we have created over 5.3 million new jobs since the summer of 2003…just not here in Michigan under Governor Granholm.
We can do better…
Governor Jennifer Granholm began another state hosted online petition Wednesday, asking Michigan citizens to ask the Legislature to ease restrictions on stem cell research. The new petition comes fresh off the controversy surrounding the governor’s online gas petition, where signors received unsolicited emails from the Granholm for Governor campaign. I issued the following statement is response:
“Jennifer Granholm’s online petitions are quickly turning into the 2006 version of the governor’s unproductive task forces of years past. Time has proven that Granholm’s leadership by task force, by press release, and now by online petition, doesn’t work for Michigan. If this issue is truly as important as the governor claims, then Granholm needs to be a leader and get something done. L. Brooks Patterson has shown that if you believe in an issue, starting a real petition can get something accomplished.”
“I wonder how long it will take for this ‘official government petition’ to find its way to the Granholm campaign offices?”
I think this is just a blatant misuse of taxpayers dollar. It shows that this Governor is willing to do whatever it takes to get re-elected. Since Granholm first ran for public office, she has spent over $18 million “hard” reportable dollars on her campaigns. Additionally, she has used “tens of millions” of taxpayer funds for self serving political benefit. I’m betting the voters will see through this and agree with a majority of the people in Michigan…it’s time for a change! Dick DeVos is the leader we need!!!
What’s next? A bake sale for the budget? A yard sale for Medicaid funding? Get real…it’s about leadership. These are serious issues and phoney online petitions are a distraction. Frankly, this only raises the level of disappointment we all have in our state’s Governor and for the media who fails to blow the whistle on these distractions.
The Cook Political Report came out with it’s latest ratings on Governor races around the country. Michigan: “Toss Up”. The U.S. Senate races is rated: “Lean D”. Just wait until the primary is over!?!
Here is a great post on LunchBucketConservative about the Granholm/Google connection. A good read…
http://lunchbucketconservative.com/2006/07/26/google-this-granholm-campaignistration.aspx
******************************************************
New Hampshire: “NH Insider” conducted a poll to gauge support for the 2008 Presidential Primary…very interesting results:
http://migop.blogs.com/blog/2006/07/nh_insiders_pre.html
******************************************************
Check out the latest on immigration reform. Congressman Pence teamed up with Senator Hutchinson to offer another proposal to further the debate. In my opinion, clearly a step in the right direction.
http://migop.blogs.com/blog/2006/07/immigration_ref.html
******************************************************
I wonder if we should suggest that President Bush appoint Governor Granholm as head of Homeland Security? She clearly knows how to keep jobs and moving trucks from coming into Michigan???
Saul Anuzis
STATE STORIES
http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5201541&nav=menu44_1
Poll: Granholm regains lead
GRAND RAPIDS - A new poll released today shows Governor Jennifer Granholm has regained the lead over her presumed Republican challenger Dick Devos.
An EPIC-MRA poll, exclusive to 24 Hour News 8 in West Michigan, quizzed 600 voters this week.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060726/UPDATE/607260448
Granholm noses ahead of DeVos
Gov. Jennifer Granholm has regained the lead she lost five months ago in the tight Michigan governor's race against Republican Dick DeVos, a Detroit News/WXYZ-TV poll released Wednesday night shows.
The incumbent governor leads 47 percent to 44 percent with 9 percent still undecided, according to a poll of 600 likely voters conducted July 19-25 by EPIC-MRA of Lansing. The poll's error margin is 4 percentage points.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006607270310
Butler uses church roots to hit down-home chord
He's a big -- make that huge -- fan of guns. He wears genuine alligator shoes. He says "ma'am" a lot and introduces himself in a deep bass voice with a slight Southern drawl.
He is more handshaker than backslapper, more preacher than politician.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060727/NEWS01/607270436/1003
WSU students to pay more
Tuition will go up 5.8% in the fall
Wayne State University was the last of Michigan's 15 public universities to announce a tuition increase for the 2006-07 school year.
On Wednesday, its Board of Governors voted 5-3 to raise rates by 5.8%.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060727/OPINION01/607270323/1068/OPINION
FREE PRESS ENDORSEMENTS: Michigan House
Openings in several key state House districts have set off some hard-fought contests across the state -- including a few that will also be pitched battles come November.
Representatives serve two-year terms and earn $79,650 a year. Here are Free Press endorsements in key districts:
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060726/OPINION03/607260333/1322
Daniel Howes: Google, ePrize jobs are small steps for Michigan economy
You know it's an election year when Gov. Jennifer Granholm, CEO of the most economically beleaguered state outside of the Gulf Coast, touts creation of a few hundred jobs -- as she's expected to do today in Pleasant Ridge.
But news that ePrize LLC plans to use loans from Charter One Bank to add roughly 450 jobs in the state over the next three years is another piece of evidence, albeit small, that Old Economy Michigan maybe, kinda, sorta can diversify and attract mobile next-generation investment that could otherwise go wherever it wants.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060725/METRO02/607250311/1009
Oakland University hikes tuition 7.9%
Typical undergrad will pay $500 more; Wayne State expected to raise its rate 5.8% on Wednesday.
A typical undergraduate student will pay $500 more to attend Oakland University beginning this fall after the college's Board of Trustees approved a 7.9 percent tuition increase Monday.
And Wayne State University is expected to follow this week with a 5.8 percent increase.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060727/OPINION01/607270303/1008
Dems' outsourcing plan should be sent packing
Better idea: Fix state with business friendly legislation
Michigan's economy isn't still sinking because jobs are being sent overseas as the governor and most state Democrats would have everyone believe.
The loss of manufacturing jobs is an issue, but only one factor of many. Michigan is losing as much to neighboring states as it is to far-away countries. Blame lies heavily with the state's onerous business tax, burdensome regulation and entitlement attitude.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060727/AUTO02/607270354/1322/OPINION03
Daniel Howes: This round goes to Wagoner & Co.
In the Aesop fable, the hare blasts by the plodding tortoise, falters and loses the race to the slow and steady one.
Can't help but see a little of the tortoise in Rick Wagoner's General Motors Corp., whose second-quarter earnings destroyed Wall Street estimates Wednesday. That should raise a fair question in the minds of GM's most serious critics: Have we underestimated what Wagoner & Co. are doing and how quickly they're doing it?
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060727/NEWS04/607270358/1005/news04
State House bills would make it illegal to coerce women into abortions
Abortion clinics would be required to screen women to determine if they have been coerced or intimidated into ending their pregnancies under legislation that passed the state House on Wednesday.
Supporters of the legislation say it is an attempt to crack down on domestic violence. But opponents say the bills are an effort to discourage women from seeking abortions.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060727/NEWS04/607270361/1005/news04
Lawmakers sign off on budget; spending bills go to Granholm
Revenue sharing to stay flat; schools will get more cash
Michigan schools are in line for more money, but most local communities will have their state revenue sharing frozen under a budget agreement that moved through the Legislature on Wednesday.
The state House and Senate signed off on agreements announced late last month by Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Republican leaders. The budget bills that cover the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1 now head to Granholm.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-31/1153925296110640.xml&coll=6
See who's Googling DeVos, Granholm
Where are people most curious this year about gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos?
Grand Rapids, Allendale and Kalamazoo, according to a new feature on Google.com.
http://www.mlive.com/news/fljournal/index.ssf?/base/news-38/115392366150600.xml&coll=5
GM gains ground but loses $3.2B
Employee buyout costs keep company in the red
DETROIT - General Motors today reported significantly improved 2006 second-quarter financial results, and for the first time since 2004, the automaker posted a second consecutive quarter of record revenue.
GM also said its global automotive operations were profitable on an adjusted basis, excluding special items, for the first time since 2004.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060726/dew014.html?.v=59
Detroit Regional Chamber PAC Endorses Candidates in the August Primary
DETROIT, July 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The Detroit Regional Chamber PAC has endorsed several candidates running for office in the Aug. 8 primary election. The Chamber PAC's endorsement is based on several criteria, including the candidate's (1) experience and qualifications; (2) proven record of accomplishment; and (3) history of support for pro-business policy.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1153925338110640.xml&coll=6
State House of Representatives
Seldom has the Legislature confronted a more challenging future. The task ahead is to restore Michigan's economy and again make the state a place where employers will want to locate and invest. Our choices for the House of Representatives in the Aug. 8 primary election in Kent and Ottawa counties are as follows.
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-18/1153927318207030.xml&coll=7
88% of eligible students taking KPS Promise
With 338 scholarship applications in hand, the administrator of The Kalamazoo Promise says that 88 percent of eligible students from the Class of 2006 have signed up.
``From Norrix and Central, I've heard from everybody except for seven kids from Norrix and four from Central,'' Robert Jorth said of the two Kalamazoo public high schools.
http://www.mlive.com/news/muchronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1153926964190950.xml&coll=8
Soldier from Hesperia killed in Iraq gun battle
People in the small Oceana County community of Hesperia are calling the death of U.S. Army Spc. Dennis K. Samson in Iraq "a tragedy."
The 24-year-old Hesperia man reportedly was killed in Iraq by enemy gunfire Monday.
National Stories
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/07/26/a_message_for_democrats/
A message for Democrats
WASHINGTONNANCY PELOSI bared fangs to show that the Democratic Party no longer has toothless gums. On national security, she said, ``When you think of women and defense and security, think of a lioness. You come anywhere near our cubs, you're dead."
On mid term election strategy, she sounded like she was warming up for the old World Wrestling Federation. ``You cannot go head to head with the president until you take him down. Take him down, make him pay, and then we can have a conversation."
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=16216
More Amnesty Fraud
Just when it looked like the Senate Republicans had finally gotten the message that the American people in general, and their own supporters in particular, are outraged over amnesty for illegal aliens, some Republican Senators have come up with yet another disguise for amnesty -- and gotten bipartisan support, including Ted Kennedy and John McCain.
Under this new plan, its advocates claim, illegal immigrants would "have to leave the country" and re-apply to come back in legally and get on a path toward citizenship. It sounds good but on closer examination it turns out to be a fraud.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14044391/
NBC/WSJ poll: U.S. pessimism on increase
Doubts about children’s future and concerns about wars weigh heavily
WASHINGTON - With congressional midterm elections less than four months away, the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds that candidates will be facing a public that has grown increasingly pessimistic, as nearly two-thirds don't believe life for their children's generation will be better than it has been for them, and nearly 60 percent are doubtful the Iraq war will come to a successful conclusion.
And there's more pessimism: Among those who believe the nation is headed on the wrong track, more than 80 percent say it's part of a longer-term decline.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14044965/site/newsweek/
Buckeye Blues
Republican candidates in Ohio are facing a very tough fall. Plus, the international semantics over a Lebanon ceasefire.
July 26, 2006 - With just over three months until Election Day, White House political adviser Karl Rove hit the campaign trail Tuesday in Ohio, hoping to rev up voters in a state where polls show President George W. Bush and the GOP is in real trouble. Bush’s top political aide was the guest of honor at a $100-a-plate luncheon in Columbus to benefit county parties in central Ohio, a state that is viewed as ground zero in the GOP’s attempts to maintain control of Congress.
A poll released over the weekend showed that Sen. Mike DeWine, a moderate Republican who has notably distanced himself from Bush on the campaign trail, is running 8 percentage points behind his Democratic opponent, Rep. Sherrod Brown. Other Ohio Republicans are in trouble as well, including GOP gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell, who is running 20 points behind Democrat Ted Strickland. Bush, whose approval ratings linger in the low 30s in the state, is scheduled to campaign for Blackwell in Ohio next week.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0727/p01s01-ussc.html
New troops at US border, but the task is vast
SAN DIEGO AND ALTAR, MEXICO – Spc. Anthony Maielli of the National Guard is posted in the back of a pickup truck, parked on a San Diego hill called Arnie's Point. He points the lens of a giant infrared scope, which will allow him to see when darkness falls, south over the US-Mexican border.
"We're here to be another set of eyes and ears for the border patrol," says the guardsman. He is one of 4,500 reinforcements who have arrived since mid-May to help seal the 1,920-mile swath of the land stretching from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. His role: Spot illegal border-crossers and alert the border patrol.
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/20291.php
Women govs, including Napolitano, favored
Janet Napolitano, along with five of her gubernatorial sisters, is twice as likely as male governors seeking re-election this fall to keep her job.
Their numbers are small, but women governors stand out as better than their male counterparts at drawing crossover voters, dealing with the opposition party and winning re-election.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/26/AR2006072601495.html
Simmering Rage Within the GOP
My weekend visitor was one of the founders of the postwar Republican Party in the South, one of those stubborn men who challenged the Democratic rule in his one-party state. He was conservative enough that in the great struggle for the 1952 nomination, his sympathies were with Sen. Robert Taft of Ohio, not Dwight D. Eisenhower.
He has lived long enough to see Republicans elected as senator and governor of his state and to see a Republican from the Sun Belt behemoth of Texas capture the White House. His profession won't let him speak with his name attached, but he is sadly disillusioned.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/26/AR2006072601815.html
Overseas Tensions Force Bush to Change Direction
The latest crisis in the Middle East has disrupted President Bush's plans domestically and internationally at a sensitive juncture, reopening divisions with allies abroad and jeopardizing attempts to restore public confidence at home, according to officials, analysts and diplomats.
The discord at a conference in Rome yesterday over a proposed cease-fire in Israel and Lebanon underscored the widening gap between the United States and Europe over how to stop the fighting. And the images of mayhem from the two-week-old war, combined with the rising death toll in Iraq, have further rattled a domestic audience that polls show was already uncertain about Bush's leadership.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/27/washington/27energy.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Senate Passage of Energy Bill Appears Assured
WASHINGTON, July 26 — The Senate moved closer on Wednesday to passing a bill that would expand energy production in the Gulf of Mexico.
A procedural vote of 86 to 12 allowing the debate to begin signaled wide support for opening up large new tracts for drilling. Thirty-one Democrats and one independent joined all but one Republican, Olympia J. Snowe of Maine, in the early test vote, usually a strong indicator of a bill’s potential to pass with bipartisan support.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/27/opinion/27doran.html
Cold, Hard Facts
Chicago
IN the debate on global warming, the data on the climate of Antarctica has been distorted, at different times, by both sides. As a polar researcher caught in the middle, I’d like to set the record straight.
In January 2002, a research paper about Antarctic temperatures, of which I was the lead author, appeared in the journal Nature. At the time, the Antarctic Peninsula was warming, and many people assumed that meant the climate on the entire continent was heating up, as the Arctic was. But the Antarctic Peninsula represents only about 15 percent of the continent’s land mass, so it could not tell the whole story of Antarctic climate. Our paper made the continental picture more clear.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/27/opinion/27thu1.html
Shrugging Off Trade Promises
It’s easy to shrug off this week’s collapse of global trade talks. Amid the killing in Iraq and Lebanon, a war of words over “de minimis subsidies” and “amber box” payments seems esoteric at best. But the damage to the world’s poorest countries, which will now be denied their promised access to global markets and a chance to compete, will be enormous.
So will be — and should be — the resentment toward the world’s richest countries. Much of that blame ought to be directed at Europe and the United States, which again decided that the political clout of their farm lobbies outweighed their leaders’ repeated promises to do more to end global poverty.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110008707
A Few Questions
Why does the president call the secretary of state "Condi"? And what exactly is his philosophy?
Why does President Bush refer in public to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as "Condi"? Did Dwight Eisenhower call his Secretary of State "Johnny"? Did Jimmy Carter call his "Eddie," or Bill Clinton call his "Maddy," or Richard Nixon call his "Willie" or "Hank"? What are the implications of such informality?
I know it is small, but in a way such things are never small. To me it seems a part of the rhetorical childishness of the age, the faux egalitarianism of the era. It reminds me of how people in the administration and Congress--every politician, in fact--always refer to mothers as moms: We must help working moms." You're not allowed to say "mother" or "father" in politics anymore, it's all mom and dad and the kids. This is the buzzy soft-speak of a peaceless era; it is an attempt to try to establish in sound what you can't establish in fact.
http://www.washtimes.com/national/20060727-125514-4341r.htm
Court refuses to define marriage
The Washington Supreme Court yesterday narrowly upheld a state law banning same-sex "marriage," saying both the Legislature and the people have the authority to withhold from or grant marital rights to homosexual couples.
Justice Barbara A. Madsen, writing for Chief Justice Gerry L. Alexander and Charles W. Johnson in the 5-4 decision, said, "The solid body of constitutional law disfavors the conclusion that there is a right to marry a person of the same sex.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/07/26/republicans.bush.ap/index.html
Bush OK with slam by GOP candidate
President still backs Maryland's Steele, spokesman says
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Although Maryland GOP candidate Michael Steele says he probably wouldn't want President Bush stumping for him, the White House said Wednesday that Bush still is backing Steele in his bid to win a Senate seat.
"Look," said Bush spokesman Tony Snow, "the president understands what politics are about. And he wants Michael Steele to be elected as senator."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/07/26/domestic.spying.ap/index.html
Bush administration urges updated wiretap laws
WASHINGTON (AP) -- As debate continues over the legality of President Bush's wiretapping program, the administration pressed Congress Wednesday to ease decades-old surveillance restrictions to catch up to the technology of the Internet age.
But Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee countered that legislation updating the 1978 law covering such monitoring -- the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) -- is tilted too far in favor of Bush since it would also award a secret court jurisdiction to determine whether the current program is legal.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/26/AR2006072601497.html
Kidnapping Mexican Democracy
MEXICO CITY -- To illustrate the "ad terrorem" method by which truth was imposed in totalitarian societies, Polish philosopher Leszek Kolakowski told a story: Two girls race each other in a park, the one who is behind repeatedly proclaiming at the top of her lungs, "I'm winning! I'm winning!," until the one in the lead gives up and runs crying to her mother, saying: "I can't beat her, she always wins."
Minus the ending, something similar is happening in Mexico. After a model Election Day (free, orderly, peaceful) during which 41,791,322 Mexicans voted, their votes tabulated in 130,477 polling places by 909,575 citizens, the PRD (Democratic Revolutionary Party) candidate for president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, lost by a margin of 0.57 percentage point to Felipe Calderón, candidate of the National Action Party (PAN).
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/26/AR2006072600806.html
Deadliest Day for Israel in Lebanon
AVIVIM, Israel, July 27 -- More than 100 Hezbollah fighters staged a fierce ambush on Israeli ground forces entering the Lebanese border town of Bint Jbeil before dawn Wednesday, killing at least eight soldiers and wounding 22 with gunfire, mortars and antitank missiles.
Later Wednesday, another Israeli soldier was killed near the Lebanese town of Maroun al-Ras.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/07/26/congress.iraq/index.html
Iraqi PM to Congress: Baghdad wants to be regional stabilizer
Top Senate Democrat drops Iraq-Israel issue
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Iraq's prime minister told Congress on Wednesday that his nation wants to play a role in Mideast stability and to encourage dialogue to solve international conflicts.
In an address to a congressional joint meeting, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki did not directly discuss the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah or respond to Democrats who had called on him to condemn Hezbollah and to apologize for denouncing "Israeli aggression."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/BUSINESS/07/27/japan.madcow.ap/index.html
Japan lifts U.S. beef imports ban
TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- Japan's Agriculture Ministry on Thursday formally approved a resumption of U.S. beef imports following a ban in January due to concerns about mad cow disease, a ministry official said.
The ministry's mad cow advisory committee approved resuming imports and the government planned to official announce the move later Thursday, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity per ministry protocol.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/07/27/iraq.main/index.html
Baghdad explosions kill 27
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- At least 27 Iraqi civilians were killed and 100 wounded after an attack involving a car bomb, mortars and Katyusha rockets was staged in the Karadda section of central Baghdad Thursday morning, Iraqi emergency police said.
Police said one of the residential buildings in the mixed commercial-residential area was hit by a Katyusha rocket and witnesses on the scene said they saw the building collapse.
MIRS Capitol Capsule, Thursday, July 27, 2006
John Reurink (517) 482-2125
Granholm Sets Up Embryonic Stem Cell Research Petition
Gov. Jennifer GRANHOLM is asking citizens to sign her online petition urging state lawmakers to pass legislation that would lift the state's ban on embryonic stem cell research.
Granholm put the petition up less than a week after President George W. BUSH vetoed a bill that would have designated some federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.
"While President Bush is building up walls in Washington to block this life-saving research, we have the opportunity to tear them down in Michigan," Granholm said. "By easing the research restrictions, we can tap the full power of modern science to combat debilitating and life threatening illnesses while reducing the cost of health care and supporting our emerging life sciences sector."
Granholm wants the state Legislature to pass three House bills that have been introduced by Rep. Andy MEISNER and subsequent Senate bills introduced by Sen. Gretchen WHITMER (D-East Lansing), Bev HAMMERSTROM (R-Temperance) and Shirley JOHNSON (R-Troy). These bills would lift the state's ban on stem cell research.
"Talented researchers and businesses around the world are working right now on cures to many of our most common and debilitating illnesses," Granholm said. "The treatments and cures made possible by this research could have an enormous impact on the Michiganians who live with these illnesses and the family and friends who care for them."
The sate Republican Party (MRP) characterized the petition drive as "yet another controversial online petition. "
In addition, MRP Chair Saul ANUZIS referred to another Granholm petition drive, her gas petition drive, in which her campaign through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) obtained the petition signatures and then allegedly used them to send out campaign information.
"Jennifer Granholm's online petitions are quickly turning into the 2006 version of the governor's unproductive task forces of years past," Anuzis said. "Time has proven that Granholm's leadership by task force, by press release, and now by online petition, doesn't work for Michigan. If this issue is truly as important as the governor claims, then Granholm needs to be a leader and get something done. L. Brooks PATTERSON has shown that if you believe in an issue, starting a real petition can get something accomplished."
For a while state Democrats were trying to put together a coalition that would start a petition drive to get the stem cell issue on the ballot. However, Meisner said the coalition could not come up with the $2 million to launch the effort.
"I don't expect that that is going to happen this year," Meisner said.
Meisner said the petition effort fell by the way side for a variety of reasons.
"Part of it was money (and) you don't want to do something like that and lose the cause. We don't want to set the issue back at all in this state," Meisner said.
The plethora of issues already on the statewide ballot was one deciding factor for Meisner to place the effort on hold.
Now the focus will shift to pushing for a legislative vote. Meisner does hope for a vote on his legislation before the November election either in the House or the Senate, which is where similar legislation is pending. There has been a House hearing on the bill but Meisner contended, "just a hearing is not enough...I'm pushing for a vote right now."
Reminded that this is an election year and some lawmakers might be antsy about having to vote on embryonic stem cells before the citizens' vote on them, Meisner said, "I don't think we should just wait for lame duck to give some people political cover. I think this is an issue that demands attention right now."
While he publicly professes to having a good working relationship with Rep. Ed GAFFNEY (R-Grosse Pointe Farms) who chairs the committee holding the bill, Meisner is realistic enough to know the bill will not being coming out anytime soon, even though some polling shows that 73 percent of the public supports the concept.
Lobbyist Ed RIVET, who runs the Michigan Right to Life (RTL) agenda in the Legislature said, "I don't think the support is there for cloning human embryos."
Rivet said Meisner won't admit that but RTL believes the stem cell bill is really a human cloning measure in disguise. As for that 73 percent figure, Rivet dismissed that too, saying it is based on a polling question that does not reveal the cloning angle and he argues when voters discover that, the support drops.
The Michigan Catholic Conference (MCC) reminded the Legislature that when it discusses lifting the ban on embryonic stem cell research, it should also discuss how embryos have to be killed in order for the research to be carried out.
"It is utterly disingenuous for any elected official to discuss embryonic stem cell research and Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer without addressing the fact that human embryos must be purposefully cloned and killed for the process to be successful," said the MCC's Paul LONG. "By using euphemisms such as 'therapeutic cloning,' or by expressing the need to strengthen an existing human cloning ban, supporters of these measures are deceiving the public by completely avoiding the hard-to-swallow details."
(Senior Capitol Correspondent Tim SKUBICK contributed to this report).
DeRoche Tops House GOP PAC Fundraisers
In the ever-shifting House, the ability to raise Political Action Committee funds is often seen as at least one key indicator of future prowess when it comes to possible leadership races down the line.
With that in mind, MIRS today reviewed campaign finance filing records of some 30 House Republican Leadership PACs to see who raised what. Coming in at the top, of no surprise, was current House Speaker Craig DeROCHE (R-Novi) and his No. VI Leadership Fund, which reported raising $45,550 during the reporting period.
DeRoche has raised $83,600 in the year-to-date and is standing with $15,945 on hand.
Coming in second is freshman Rep. Kevin ELSENHEIMER (R-Bellaire), chair of the House Tort Reform Committee, who reported raising $22,899 in the current reporting period for a total of $28,399 for the year with an ending balance of $9,880.
The following are the other top eight leadership PACs for the House Republicans (Note: The ranking is for the most raised during the most recent reporting period.)
3. Hildenbrand Leadership Fund — Rep. Dave HILDENBRAND (R-Lowell)
Raised this report: $15,580
Raised year to date: $18,330
Cash on hand: $15,937
4. The Great Southwest Fund — Rep. John PROOS (R-St. Joseph)
Raised this report: $14,950
Raised year to date: $16,750
Cash on hand: $3,396
5. Taub Team Leaders — Rep. Shelley TAUB (R-Bloomfield Hills)
Raised this report: $14,800
Raised year to date; $25,800
Cash on hand: $8,525
6. Chris Ward Majority Fund — Rep. Chris WARD (R-Brighton)
Raised this report: $13,675
Raised year to date: $22,925
Cash on hand: $6,997
7. Green Team Majority Fund — Rep. Kevin GREEN (R-Wyoming)
Raised this report: $12,900
Raised year to date: $23,100
Cash on hand: $6,026
8. Ed Gaffney Victory Fund — Rep. Ed GAFFNEY (R-Grosse Pointe)
Raised this report: $7,150
Raised year to date: $21,750
Cash on hand: $9,880
9. Jones Majority Fund — Rep. Rick JONES (R-Grand Ledge)
Raised this report: $4,150
Raised year to date: $4,677
Cash on hand: $1,877
10. Mid Michigan Victory Fund — Rep. Bill CAUL (R-Mt. Pleasant)
Raised this report: $4,000
Raised year to date: $4,000
Cash on hand: $5,229
Gongwer News Service, Inc.
517-482-3500
REPORT NO. 142 VOLUME 45 WEDNESDAY, JULY 26, 2006
GRANHOLM BACK ON TOP IN NEW POLL, AMWAY FACTOR TESTED
The poll for the Detroit News, WXYZ-TV in Detroit, WILX-TV in Lansing and WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids sampled 600 active voters during July 19-25. It has a margin of error of plus/minus 4 percent.
LEGISLATURE FINISHES THE 2006-07 BUDGET
There was no all-night session, no hurried negotiations on a last minute controversy, no frustrated vote trading, so it hardly seemed possible the Legislature completed work on the 2006-07 budget on Wednesday. But in fact, the budget is now in the books, as the House and Senate moved relatively quickly to complete action on the conference reports to the budgets.
Only a few of the budgets even generated comment as the House and Senate approved the measures, the greatest concern probably being over potential cuts to the Wayne County-Detroit community mental health system if it does not become an authority.
There are some elements of the 2006-07 budget yet undone, most significantly the capital outlay budget. In recent years, however, it has not been unusual for the capital outlay budget to be completed past the October 1 start of the fiscal year.
In the Senate, members applauded Appropriations Committee chair Sen. Shirley Johnson (R-Troy) for shepherding her last budget through the Legislature. Ms. Johnson is term-limited from running for re-election, and between her time on the House Appropriations Committee and the Senate panel has worked on 24 budgets.
COMMUNITY HEALTH: It was SB 1083
Under the budget, the mental health agency administrative functions will be cut by more than $3 million a month unless it reorganizes as an authority by the end of the year.
Sen. Hansen Clarke (D-Detroit) argued that the cuts, even though they are supposed to be targeted to administrative functions, will hurt patients.
And Rep. Ed Gaffney (R-Grosse Pointe Farms) said, “This is like putting a gun to the head of Wayne County. Why would we want to punish the most vulnerable and those who are the least able to defend themselves?”
House Appropriations Chair Rep. Scott Hummel (R-DeWitt) said the fine was not a priority for the chamber (a $50 million cut was stripped out from the budget when it passed in May), but that compromise was required to move the budget process forward.
But not everyone saw the fine, which can be recouped if the authority is created within the fiscal year, as a bad thing.
Ms. Johnson said the only people to suffer will be the “employees, the bloated employees.” Most counties operate their community mental health on an authority basis, she said, and, “If you care about the mentally ill, as you know I do, then darn it you are going to have to do something.”
Rep. Bill McConico (D-Detroit) said he thought the fine would create a dialogue between the city and county and put an end to turf wars.
“What we know right now is mental health services in Wayne County are not effective,” Mr. McConico said.
The total budget, which is also about $30 million below the current year’s appropriation, also makes no changes in eligibility for Medicaid recipients.
HIGHER EDUCATION: SB 1088
The budget totals $1.787 billion in total spending, with $1.6 billion in general funds. The largest individual percentage university increases in funding go to those schools officials have said received the lowest per pupil expenditures: Grand Valley State University, Saginaw Valley State University and Oakland University.
Grand Valley’s overall increase totaled 6 percent. The lowest increases were allocated to Wayne State University and Michigan Technological University.