In 2018 Governor Whitmer campaigned on fixing the damn roads and improving transparency of state government. If elected, she said she would make sure the governor’s office provides a streamlined process for FOIA requests and is transparent in its operations, even if the legislature did not pass any new laws improving Michigan’s ranking as the lowest of 50 states when it comes to government transparency.
During her re-election campaign in 2022 she blamed the Republican controlled legislature for lack of progress on these two issues. Now she has a Democrat controlled legislature, yet nearly 10 months into the current session of the legislature there have been no improvements on any of these fronts. When asked, the Democratic spokespeople say they are working on it, but it is difficult, and they want to make sure they get it right before they introduce any laws. Yet, when the Democrats were in the minority, they said they introduced laws addressing transparency, but the Republicans wouldn’t move them forward. What gives?
In the meantime, last week, Governor Whitmer signed into law legislation that will allow high school student-athletes to enter into NIL agreements (Name, Image, Likeness) like what college student-athletes have. This is hardly a priority.
I was so hopeful for the Democrats to do the right thing when it came to fixing our roads and improving government transparency. I should have known better.
See the below link as reported by Bridge Michigan.
The clown show continues this week as nine Republican members of the House of Representatives have thrown their hats into the ring to become speaker. It is now 20 days since Kevin McCarthy was removed by Matt Gaetz and members of the Freedom Caucus. With nine people seeking the position, how likely is it that a speaker will be chosen this week or next? And once they elect a speaker, what is the likelihood the speaker can negotiate a deal with Biden that will allow the government to pass a continuing resolution prior to the November 17 deadline?
Gaetz and the Freedom Caucus are good at saying “no”, but they have proven time and time again they have no idea how to govern. Saying no does not get it! We need someone who can lead the House and negotiate a deal that allows the government to continue operating after November 17. It is time for the clown show to end. It is time for the Republican party to clean up the mess that Gaetz and his cronies have created and start working for the American people. See the following Quotes of the Day
“It’s kind of a captainless pirate ship right now — a Black Pearl with no Jack Sparrow, but on the bright side, we will have a speaker at some point.” Ralph Reed, a prominent social conservative leader.
“These Republicans are complete idiots,” Ann Coulter, the conservative commentator.
“It’s a problem. We’re going to do our job and hope the House can get functional here sometime soon.” Mitch McConnell
“As the current mess in choosing another House Speaker shows, never underestimate the ability of Republicans to commit electoral suicide.” Wall Street Journal Editorial Board
“So, it’s not a surprise that we are where we are, but it’s a disgrace, and it’s an embarrassment.” Liz Cheney
“We are in a very bad place right now.” Former Speaker Kevin McCathy
After my round of golf on Sunday, Leah and I took a 90-minute ride to look at the fall colors in the Petoskey area. We traveled on county two lane roads from Petoskey to Boyne City, to Boyne Falls, to Wolverine and back to Petoskey. The sun was bright, and the colors were spectacular, with reds, pinks, golds, yellows, browns, and greens shining brightly with a spectacular sunny blue sky as a backdrop. I felt like my head was on a swivel as I kept looking side to side at one spectacular hillside after another. I had to concentrate to keep my mind on my driving.
This fall has been better than most, as we are in our third weekend of God’s artwork. If you have never been to Northern Michigan during the fall colors, you have missed out on something special. On a day like Sunday when the sun was shining brightly, there are no words or pictures that can really do it justice. Each hillside and each turn of the road, brings another “wow”. It is like watching the grand finale at a Fourth of July fireworks display, only this last for weeks. See my Video of the Day.
Don’t look now, but the Detroit Red Wings have the best record in the Eastern Conference of the NHL. With their 6-2 victory over the Calgary Flames on Sunday, the Wings improved their record to 5-1. After five down years, they seemed to have turned the corner on their rebuild and they should make the playoffs this year.
Speaking of 5-1 teams, the Lions are now 5-2 after they stunk up the place in Baltimore on Sunday with their 38-6 butt-kicking at the hands of the Ravens. The Lions were down 28-0 at half time. Hopefully, this will be a wakeup call for the Lions and their coaching staff. As the saying goes, “on any given Sunday”.
It was a good weekend for the Harbaugh brothers, Jim and John, as their respective teams, Michigan and the Ravens, both had half-time leads of 28-0 and both went on to increase their leads in the second half.
Onion of the Day: Just when you think MSU football cannot sink any lower, they show a picture of Hitler as part of a trivia game on the video scoreboard prior to the Michigan football game on Saturday. It set off a firestorm, starting with the Board of Trustees, and put the already stressed AD in the position of again apologizing for the actions of someone in the Athletic Department. You cannot make this stuff up.
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Quote of the Day: See the above story.
Orchid of the Day: Michigan Quarterback J.J. McCarthy. He is proving to be an elite college quarterback.
Onion of the Day: MSU Athletic Department see above.
Question of the Day: Why do we as citizens tolerate the state being the lowest ranked state when it comes to government transparency?
Video/Image of the Day: The Sky Bridge at Boyne Mountain