Governor Granholm to give ‘State of the State’ Address

Just a note that Governor Granholm will deliver her “State of the State” address tonight at 7:00pm.  You can find it on any local Michigan channel and the remarks should be posted on her State website afterwards.

You can also find it on MichiganLiberal.com and BloggingForMichigan.com – two wonderful progressive blogs which I follow on a daily basis (and wish I had more time to post on)

So far, details have been sort of mum about exactly she’ll talk about.  We have been hearing about proposals to reduce state government from 18 to 8 departments over the next few years.  Also, other suggestions such as de-funding the state fairs in Detroit and Escanaba and asking State Universities to freeze tuition for a year (hellz yes!) have been rumored.  The other big question is will she address the incoming (hopefully) federal stimulus money.

I’ll be watching on my Blackberry in the lobby waiting to go see SPAMALOT in Detroit tonight.  I’ll try to post something about the address in the next few days.

A New Year, A New Start in the Michigan Legislature

Keeping with my “too busy to saddle everything down  a lot of opinion” streak I’ve been having, I wanted to share the opening remarks from MI House Speaker Andy Dillion (D).  There were some very notable bits of information and some lofty goals involved.  Only time will tell whether it is all rhetoric and words, or if there is actually strength behind those words.  Hopefully with a newer and stronger  Democratic majority, we can move some progressive legislative forward!

Some excerts (and one bit of disgreement) are included below the fold:

Michigan unemployment hits 9.1%

The Michigan Department of Labor released unemployment statistics for all 83 counties in Michigan through November 2008.  Mackinac comes in last with 19.6% and Washtenaw comes in first with 6.0%.  You can find the news release, including the numbers, here.    More to come on this when I have more time.

Back up and running (kinda, sorta)

Well, it has certainly been a while since I last wrote on here; the blog has actually been dormant for nearly five months!  But those five months were filled with incredible excitement and life changing experiences which I am sure will come out in future posts. 

For the time being,  just wanted to let people know that things still start to become active again in the next few days.  You’ll start to notice some changes, such as content, scheme, quality of information and most likely a new name.

I’ll be busy job hunting too, so that’ll slow down redevelopment a bit.  If anyone has a political job opening, don’t hesitate to contact me!    Take care!

UPDATE:  So, the name has reverted back to the original (Political Chaos), the theme has become somewhat more simple (and I like the colors better) and I have removed most of the Campaign Adventure material.  More changes to come in the near future!

UPDATE2: Added a ‘Helpful Links’ page for research on State Politics; Michigan related federal political sources will follow.

McCain’s VP and other stuff

So, I realize it has been well over a week since I last updated this, but once again, I have been busy!

My family can up to visit last weekend (Saturday afternoon – Sunday afternoon), so I spent my day off taking them all over the county and even to WEST VIRGINIA!  I was excited to go to WV – I only live like 30 minutes away and I had never been there, so I figured it would be a good thing to do…. it was fun!

Back on Track

Ok, so I originally developed this blog in order to easily keep people updated on how everything was going with me during my stint as a professional campaig worker – I hit a few snags along the way (mostly that I couldn’t talk about the training) and have had a complete lack of time to update this.  But I have today off, so here is some basic information on how things are going.

I have been placed in SE Ohio (to keep a level of protection, I will not name the town right now) working on a state house race.  The town is home to Ohio University (google it, you’ll figure out exactly where I am at) and I really like it – it reminds me a lot of Marquette and most people are incredibly friendly down here!   It is surrounded by mountains and rivers… it is officially part of ‘Appalachia’ which is kind of cool.

Obama raises $52M in June

Obama campaign released June numbers today and they are indeed impressive.  From an e-mail (and on the website) sent out to supporters today:

Because of your generosity and commitment, we’re reporting to the press today that this campaign is in a very strong financial position.

In the month of June, supporters like you helped raise $52 million.

But more impressive than the number is how you did it. Hundreds of thousands of ordinary people contributed to building our campaign for change. Many were first-time donors, giving only what they could afford — and the average donation was just $68.

…

They go on to say that between McCain and the RNC, Obama is actually at a disadvantage, but I am not sure how much of a disadvantge he is really at.  After all, McCain only raised 22M in June.  But I suppose a $400M campaign between McCain’s campaign and the RNC (see previous post) would worry me a bit, even if I did raise $52M in 30 days.  Theres not much else to say on this except: Good job Obama!

Dow chooses Michigan for new Headquarters

This is a day old, but being from Midland, the global headquarters of Dow Chemical (and NO, I don’t glow at night… not yet), anytime Dow does anything it is big news here.  So, in the backdrop of GM’s disappointing announcement, Dow made its own announcement which really made quite a few people very happy.

From the Midland Daily News:

The Dow Chemical Co.’s $11 billion joint venture with Kuwait’s Petrochemical Industries Co. will be headquartered in Michigan.

…

The exact city also hasn’t been determined, with the decision to be partially based on approval of incentives offered to the company.

Dow President and CEO Andrew Liveris said the choice of Michigan for the headquarters was consistent with the positive business environment in Michigan, where Dow has more than 110 years of history. Dow’s corporate center is in Midland.

Stabenow manages high-profile meeting in DC

Michigan’s very own Senator Debbie Stabenow managed a recent meeting in Washington DC between Democratic leadership and 17 CEOs of large trade groups. Below are some highlights from the Politico article:

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), who managed the meeting for the leadership, called in the CEOs of the city’s most powerful trade associations to circumvent what Democrats consider their more partisan lobbyists — many of whom are Republicans with long-standing ties to the power structure that got toppled in 2006.

…

One of the business leaders said that Reid and Stabenow were explicit in expressing the importance of dialogue with the business community. He said the Democrats then let their guests do most of the talking.

“People left the meeting with a very positive sense that the Democrats are interested in engaging with the business community in a more broad-minded way than has been in the past,” he said.

The Democrats delivered their message through compliments rather than direct threats. A Democratic aide who attended the meeting said the senators “were thanking people for having broken [from Republicans] on certain things.”

The biotech lobby was thanked for its help with tax extenders and stem cells. PhRMA, which didn’t make the meeting because its leader was ill, was called out for its help with the Medicare push.

I would strongly suggest reading the entire article as it is certainly worth the read.  It is nice to know that my Senator is working to bring everyone into the fold and is doing her part to stop partisan gridlock.  Especially when you consider how much Republicans and big-business like to brand Senator Stabenow as a ‘protectionist’ and ‘anti-growth’, etc, it is nice to see her taking such a pro-business step!

Reform Michigan: No-Reason Absentee Voting

I just stumbled across an editorial from the Lansing State (July 10, 2008 edition) which brings out a very simple point about no-reason absentee voting.  It notes that in the Reform Michigan NOW ballot proposal, on section creates no reason absentee voting.  Well, why can’t the legislature just do it?  They have tried in the past and yet nothing has ever been able to make it to law.  Below is an excert:

In Michigan, unless you are a senior citizen, you are required to provide a proper reason for requesting a ballot before Election Day.

This is an impediment to voting – and unfair. Why should senior citizens be given a voting option denied to younger voters?

Year after year, legislation is filed at the State Capitol to alter the law. Quite a few of these bills, some backed by Democrats, some by Republicans, would authorize “no-reason” balloting. If any registered voter wants an absentee ballot, they can get it – without giving a reason.

Yet the bills have invariably gone nowhere.

… (read the entire editorial)

I don’t think it’s a secret to anyone who knows me that I tend to like the Lansing State Journal – and it’s these kinds of editorials that make me like them!