Michigan's Democrat AG Prosecuting Political Enemies - What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

So our current rather partisan Democrat Attorney General Dana Nessel has decided to file criminal charges against former Republican Governor Rick Snyder over the Flint Water Crisis.

The Detroit News: Michigan plans to charge ex-Gov. Snyder in Flint water probe

Let's of course disregard how the damage in Flint was caused by the combination of factors: a rapacious Detroit Water board, local Democrats making decisions, decisions of state level bureaucrats, and bureaucrats at the EPA that advised the state and city with an erroneous and insufficient additives standard, leading to a breakdown of the protective coating in lead pipes and causing the crisis.

In short, Snyder, whatever his faults, and there were many, was not the main cause of the Flint water crisis by a long shot.

The problem of course is prosecuting your political opponents can easily backfire and this will be a bad precedent to set. Aside from the chilling effect to prevent Republicans from running for office lest they win and then get prosecuted for acts that occur during their administration, there's a flipside to this decision.

After all, the next Republican AG, to remain consistent with this precedent, must prosecute our current Governor Whitmer for her criminal negligence, if not reckless indifference causing death.  

After all, by her very hand she directly ordered nursing homes to take in those infected with Covid - those executive orders are signed by her with no layer of bureaucrats or anyone else issuing those orders.  Her issuance of that order and doubling-down on that order led directly to the deaths of thousands in those nursing homes - far many more than died or were harmed in Flint. 

Are the Democrats really stupid enough to play this game?  Do they think they will never be out of power where their own precedents can be turned against them? Stay tuned to find out.

Update:  Well, they are charging Snyder with willful neglect of duty, and the former state health director with involuntary manslaughter.   If anyone doesn't think that Both Gov. Whitmer and her Department of Health head Dr. Khaldun can't be charged with similar charges for their actions in terms of Covid and nursing homes once control of the executive branch flips they're kidding themselves.     Real nice precedent you're setting here Dems.

The Governerd Begins To Get A Clue

Suddenly, 10,000 unvetted Syrian "refugees" settling in Michigan doesn't seem like such a good idea.

WXYZ: Gov. Snyder puts Syrian refugee efforts on hold following Paris attacks

Gov. Rick Snyder said in a statement Sunday that the state is postponing efforts to accept refugees until federal officials fully review security clearances and procedures.

"Michigan is a welcoming state and we are proud of our rich history of immigration," Snyder said. "But our first priority is protecting the safety of our residents.

"Given the terrible situation in Paris, I've directed that we put on hold our efforts to accept new refugees until the U.S. Department of Homeland Security completes a full review of security clearances and procedures," he added.

That he thought it was a good idea in the first place shows rather terrible judgment on his part, but he at least seems to be waking up to reality. Hillary still clearly has not.

Not to mention the plan to resettle them in Pontiac was just plain nuts.

Michigan Gun Law Reforms - Now With Pneumatic Fixes

Governor Snyder has signed the air gun reform bill into law.

The Detroit News: Snyder signs bills to loosen airsoft gun restrictions

Gov. Rick Snyder has signed laws relaxing Michigan’s restrictions on BB, pellet and paintball guns.

Under bills approved Tuesday, the airsoft guns will no longer qualify as firearms under state law.

Snyder says the laws address confusion surrounding definitions of firearms and provide clarity to sportsmen and others.

In short pellet guns, bb guns, airsoft and paintball guns will no longer be classified as firearms requiring registration and users will not potentially be charged with felonies for mis-transportation.

This is a very good thing as most purchasers of these items had no idea they were considered firearms and it will make purchase of air guns much easier in the future including form out-state sellers that were previously refusing to ship air guns to Michigan.

This is a welcome and appropriate fix to what had been quite an oddity in Michigan law.

You're Welcome America.

The people of Michigan humbly accept your thanks for trouncing Proposal 1 and thus having Governor Snyder decide he's not running for President after all.

The Detroit News: Gov. Snyder: Michigan had to come first

Gov. Rick Snyder said Friday he decided not to run for president because of the mounting issues facing the state — and the fact that a campaign would have required him to spend a lot of time away from Michigan.

Getting trounced 80-20 for your signature bit of tax-increasing legislation will do that to you.

For Detroit, More Bailouts Means Never Having To Say You're Sorry

The blue state model has been crumbling in Detroit for quite some time.

Now it is the Detroit Public School system's turn.

This is the school system where 94-95 percent of the children within it are not proficient in science and math and 66% are not proficient in reading. It's a loyal Democrat base of union protected teachers and corruption.

For whatever reason, whether due to belief in big systems, for political expediency, and/or to prevent Michigan's largest city from completely falling apart on his watch, or for some other reason, Governor Snyder seems hell bent on a mission to allow Detroit to continually avoid the consequences of its decades as a corrupt blue state Democrat-Union enclave to the detriment of the rest of the state.

Maybe he's trying to earn a place in history as the Governor Who Saved Detroit. Who really knows?

So when faced with the existence of a crushing $483 million dollar debt held by the Detroit Public School system, what is the proposal from Michigan's nominally Republican governor to deal with the insolvent DPS system?

It is to bailout the DPS out to the tune of $530-$720 million from the state school aid fund over the next 8-10 years to cover the DPS' present debt of $483 million. This will be at the expense of all the other schools in the state that will be deprived of those funds.

Note that this is after and in addition to the already kicked in $195 million the state gave to bailout the city itself.

The proposed bailout will not only have the state school fund pay for Detroit School's debt, but will keep all the union contracts, pension system and all other liabilities in place that led up to the problem in the first place.

Hilariously enough and in a rather brutal assault on the English language and in a feat of political-doublespeak Gov Snyder claims this would not be a bailout:

Asked if his plan in a bailout, Snyder replied, "I don't view it as a bailout when it's really being done in getting something stable and working well."

Folks, it's a bailout. When the state takes over an entity's debts leaving the taxpayer to pickup the tab for that entity's decades-long mismanagement without the entity having to pay a dime, it is a bailout.

Unsurprisingly, this proposal is being less than well-received outside of Detroit: The Detroit News: 'Detroit fatigue' greets Snyder's Detroit schools plan. Surprisingly its not meeting a ton of favor in Detroit and among Democrats and their stalwart Detroit union teachers as their proposal instead is simply for the state to hand over the money to payoff the debt, and then have no oversight reverting back to complete local control with no safeguards to prevent it from happening again.

The money for this bailout coming from taxpayers from all over Michigan, monies that should be going to their local schools. All the other public schools throughout Michigan will suffer to sweep the profligacy and corruption of the DPS under the rug and let it start anew.

How about not just "No" to this bailout proposal, but "Hell No".

The Governerd Caves And Vetoes SB 789 CPL Reform

Gov. Snyder vetoed SB 789, the bill that would have further reformed Michigan's CPL law and made it fully shall-issue.

Anti-gunners found a weak wedge issue in the bill and exploited it to the full. 

They claimed the bill would require permits to be issued to those subject to PPOS for domestic violence.

In truth the bill would not have done that and indeed, on every PPo there's a check box where the court can order the recipient of the PPO not to posses firearms.  It simply would, among other things not make it a blanket loss of gun rights should someone slap an ex-parte PPO on the person whether for domestic matters or not.

In addition, all the prohibitions on felons, those convicted of domestic violence, and any other misdemeanor in the last three years (and 8 years for a few assorted misdemeanors).

The media painted this as allowing domestic violence perpetrators to get carry permits and then commit illegal acts, failing to note that people already committing domestic violence will likely not wait to get a carry permit to do wrong.

In short, the anti-gunners and their buddies in the media distorted what the bill actually did and under the pressure Governer Snyder caved and vetoed it.

Sadly, the bill would have improved the chance of self-defense for victims of domestic abuse by letting them get expedited carry permits. 

So the legislature will likely propose new bills without that section and push them ahead for the Governor to sign and we'll see what new excuse they antis can come up with. It seems with this Governor that he folds like a cheap suit whenever gun rights are the subject and the media and the antis can drum up some hysteria.

Feh.  Well, keep calling your representative and the governor, and keep the pressure up to keep CCW reform moving in Michigan.

Another Incremental Michigan Gun Law Improvement: Snyder Signs CPL Reform Into Law

Yesterday Governor Snyder signed SB 789 and 790 into law.

While these bills do not fix the no carry areas, otherwise known as criminal empowerment zones, they do effectively address quite a few issues in the current law and make some good improvements.

The law gets rid of the anachronistic and unnecessary County Gun Boards and makes Michigan a true Shall-issue state where as long as you're legally qualified, you will get a CPL permit.  No longer will some Michiganders have to take time off work to go to a Gun Board Meeting to have to stand a beg for a shall-issue permit that is then issued so long as they appear.  Nor will you be stuck waiting as long as you have in the past for the permits to be issued, and it also fixes the renewal gap problem.

The new law slightly reduces the cost of the permits, fixes some of the application and renewal processing delay problems and makes for a better CPL issuance and renewal system overall.

Another good improvement, with hopefully more to come. 

So, do politely contact Governor Snyder, thank him for passing SB 789 and 790 and politely request he support further reform of the law, including getting rid of prohibition on law-abiding people lawfully carrying concealed firearms in the current no-carry zones.

The NRA-ILA: Michigan: Governor Snyder Signs Concealed Pistol Licensing Reform Into Law

Rent Seekers Gotta Rent Seek

The Detroit Free Press: Gov. Snyder signs bill banning direct Tesla sales

Quick summary and explanation: Dealer franchises and GM make campaign contributions in Michigan, and Tesla Doesn't. Therefore, Telsa can't have a direct company sales model or even have a car display and answer potential customer questions in Michigan at such a display.

Some People Really Do Prefer To Sit And Curse The Darkness

So yesterday, Governor Snyder signed bills into law that both enhanced firearm record privacy and fixed the stupid law that prevented youths from handling pistols unless their parents were present.

Incremental improvements that we talked about here before.

Of course the usual suspect who we've run into before over at Right MI, while conflating multiple issues and drawing false conclusions in a manner that would make an ADD-addled squirrel jealous, thinks this is somehow a bad thing, and that people in favor of it are apparently in his words Booberus Michiganderus.

Well, ok then.

So, are you going to sit there and curse the darkness, hoping for nirvana and badmouthing all the accomplishments made by the efforts of others (that he will no doubt take advantage of) and insulting them while doing so? After all, that's the easy way.

Or are you going to work to improve firearms rights in Michigan (or your state) and the US by doing you know, actual work like contacting your legislators to support pro-gun legislation, contributing to pro-gun candidates and organizations (cough NRA-ILA, and other effective groups, cough)?

The Underpants Gnome Theory Of Some Michigan "Pro-Gun" Activists

One wonders if they really are pro-gun as their plan seems to guarantee an opposite result:

Step 1. Vote and work to elect known anti-gun Democrat Mark Schauer for Governor on the theory that a Republican House and Senate will be somehow motivated to send pro-gun legislation to him that he will veto, and then the Republicans and a few renegade Democrats will team up to override the veto. And the example of this ever happening in real life is when? Oh yeah, never.

Step 2. .......

Step 3. Pro-gun nirvana?!?

Oh, that plan will work out real well.

Seriously, these guys need to stay off my side. Many of them seem to be of the "I couldn't get everything I want so I'll take my ball and go home and complain" school of politics.

Heck, they're not even happy that Snyder passed SB610 and legalized SBS and SBRs, which is pretty darn pro-gun when you think about it, and a darn good start after quite a few disappointments with the governor to date.

They also have apparently short memories, not remembering that it was Republican Governor Engler that signed shall-issue into law (admittedly reticently, and under a lot of pressure I might add from pro-gun activists that didn't take the ball and go home after earlier disappointments from Engler, but with the pressure on, Engler did do it). They also forget that we haven't seen a lot of pro-gun moves from Democrat governors in this state, not to mention Schauer has a rock-solid rabid anti-gun pedigree. They also don't understand how politics works.

Even better, one rather rude proponent of the scheme in the comments flatly declared that he was already carrying a short-barreled shotgun for self defense -- legal or not -- and that Michigan's ban was a "bogus law". Ooooh, how tough. Turns out it was a Bond Arms Derringer which is not an short-barreled shotgun (I guarantee he still doesn't know why it isn't). But he thought it was such and bragged on the Internet of all places of how he thought he was breaking a law. That's smart right there, as is relying on a Bond Arms Derringer for personal protection.

I'm halfway figuring he's a Democrat troll 'cause no one can be quite that patently over the top, but he may just be for real. In which case again, he, like the rest of the Keyboard Kommando Krybaby Korps needs to stay off our side.

Considering they're loudly planning to elect anti-gun Democrats, I daresay they already are on the other side.

Michigan Ban On SBR And SBS Possession Lifted! Governor Signs Reform Bill Into Law!

Governor Snyder has signed SB 610, making it now legal for law-abiding Michiganians to own short-barreled rifles and short-barreled shotguns so long as they comply with federal law.

He signed it at 9:10 pm yesterday, making it law 2014 PA 63.

Another great step forward for Pro-Second Amendment supporters here in Michigan.

As I've said before, if you had asked me if we'd get SBS and SBR reform in blue-state Michigan a few short years ago I'd have laughed at the suggestion.

Thanks to all of you who contacted your representatives and asked them to support the bill.

Another victory for civil rights in this great state.

The Winter Of Our Discount Tent - Detroit To Get A $350 Million Bailout From The State

The Discount Tent of course refers to the recent brouhaha where Brooks Patterson, Oakland County Executive, 30 some years ago stated regarding Detroit "“I made a prediction a long time ago, and it’s come to pass. I said, ‘What we’re gonna do is turn Detroit into an Indian reservation, where we herd all the Indians into the city, build a fence around it, and then throw in the blankets and the corn.’”".

While colorful and inflammatory, the statement is, in its essence "truthy" as the left would put it. After all we're not sending in blankets and corn, instead the State of Michigan will be sending in millions of dollars to deadbeats, corrupt government officials and the electorate that succored them for so long as they led the city to ruin and bankruptcy.

The Detroit News: Let's call a bailout a bailout

Let's also note the sad reality, Govenror Snyder, a nominal Republican, is pushing $350 Million dollars on a solid Democrat city to relieve them of the consequences of their malfeasance. That malfeasance of course first being promising pensions that couldn't be paid while squandering the pension money that was there on corruption and incompetence. The second such act of malfeasance being that of the vulnerability of the Detroit Institute of Arts because the City Council for years refused to get it out from under City control and thus let its assets be open to satisfy the city's liabilities rather than safe as an independently and competently run institution.

In short it's a Republican Governerd racing to save a too-big-too-fail Democrat machine.

Why is he doing it when the moral hazard of bailing out those who will invariably continue the same antics and policies that led it to ruin remain in place? Perhaps because in his mind it's the right thing to do or for his own legacy as suggested in the Detroit News:

The governor is spending the largest portion of his time on Detroit and its problems. No other recent governor has devoted so much attention to the city, not even Democratic ones for whom Detroiters voted for by rote.

And again, Snyder is doing it without hope for a ballot box return. Neither the unions whose retirees will benefit, nor Detroiters whose city will be saved, are likely to reward him with votes.

And yet he’s investing his political capital in mustering a Republican-controlled Legislature to do something it has rarely done — recognize the special place Detroit occupies in the state, and thus its special claim on the treasury.

As I’ve suggested before, if he can get that done — and I think he will — Detroit should erect a statue of The Nerd in the center of Campus Martius.

I'd humbly suggest there's no way Detroiters will be putting up a statue of a Republican governor anytime soon, no matter how many millions he hands over to them. Indeed, I expect the first thing we'll hear are complaints that he hasn't given even more of the State's money to the City and its Democrat machine.

If Snyder as part of this deal doesn't explicitly condition this bailout on the severing of the link between the DIA and the city and turning it over to tri-county control, and also require that all future Detroit retirement plans to be 401K types outside the control and sticky-fingers of the Democrat machine, we'll be looking at this same problem yet again, with the same bailout to be the answer.

If that happens, the Governerd will be forever remembered as the Goverfool.

Snyder To Appoint An EFM For Detroit

After continually trying to work with the City of Detroit's local government and getting played in return, Gov Snyder has finally stepped up and stated he will appojnt an Emergency Financial manage for the broke and broken city.

The Detroit News: Detroit emergency manager to curtail power of mayor, City Council

Gov. Rick Snyder said Friday he is prepared to sideline Detroit's elected officials and bring in an emergency manager to handle the city's affairs in an unprecedented effort to stave off financial collapse.

The move, which the city has 10 days to appeal, would make Detroit the largest American city ever to operate under state control and could effectively leave the mayor and nine City Council members out of a job.

Snyder said Friday he concurs with a review team report released last week that concluded Detroit is in a state of financial emergency. He praised city leaders for working to fix problems, but said it's clear the consent agreement forged in April hasn't worked swiftly enough.

"It's time to say we should stop going downhill," the governor said during an invitation-only town hall meeting Friday with media and community stakeholders.

It's long past time for the city to stop going downhill, but after giving them every chance and then even more chances beyond that, it looks like Snyder has had enough.

This was immediately met with Detroit politicians first blaming the state and then everyone but themselves for the failure of the city: Detroit's delegation in Lansing cast blame for city's financial emergency

Then the Detroit City Council and Leadership claimed they had a plan to avoid an EFM and their plan to straighten out the city would work this time and they could do it really, unlike the entire rest of the time and their previous plans while they've been in office and been unable to make it work:

Detroit mayor, council keep up fight against EM

And of course, other usuusal suspects were quick to get their names in the papers: Activist urges Detroit City Council to challenge Snyder's EFM appointment

Expect the need for plenty of popcorn over the next ten days as the City leadership keeps on fiddling as the city colapses and as they make whatever factually and legally baseless challenge to the appointment of an EFM that they can to stay in power at any cost.

De Rot Of Detroit

Detroit City Council and the denizens of Detroit never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.

The City Council decided to reject the state's offer to lease Belle Isle, an offer saving the City over $6 million per year and preserving and upgrading the island. Of course the Council did so without overtly rejecting it by tabling any discussion on the matter, which amounts to the same result.

The Detroit Free Press: Detroit City Council has more hurdles for Belle Isle lease deal

The city is trying to con the state into: reducing the amount of years of the lease; allow the city to cancel the lease early (once the state makes the repairs and investments in the park naturally;) and to get out of having to pay back any funds the State invests if Detroit unilaterally pulls out early.

In short, the Detroit City Council is trying to bluff and make the state the sucker in the game even as the State holds all the cards.

The Freep also has some of the rather typical inane comments that were made at the meeting that we've come to expect from Detroiters. The race card was played so many times its got creases, folds, and torn edges.

The State has said the deal needs to be made by the end of January, so the City Council is killing the deal by tabling it for two weeks.

Gov. Snyder and the State should call Detroit's bluff and walk away from the deal. Enough already.

Have Detroit either declare bankruptcy or rot, but it is well past time for the State to walk away from the Detroit Mayor and City Council's game of three-card monte.

Michigan Governor Signs Social Media Privacy Bill

In the flurry of bills passed in the lame duck session, HB 5523 was among those that have been signed into law.

HB 5523, styled as the Internet Privacy Protection Act, prohibits employers and educational institutions from demanding access to, or firing / disciplining employees and students for refusing to provide access to their personal email accounts, social media accounts, and other personal internet accounts except for some very limited circumstances.

The bills properly exempts accounts owned by an employer or educational institution from such a ban and permits investigations when there is specific information concerning work-related employee misconduct, unauthorized transfer of the employer's information, or criminal activity.

The bill also protects employers and educational institutions by affirmatively setting out that they do not have a duty to search or monitor such personal accounts. it also states that they are not liable for failing to request or require the student or employee to allow such access to their personal accounts.

Of course, the ban doesn't prevent a school or employer from using information that is publicly available or made public by the employee or student. So don't expect to get off under this bill if you call in a sick day and then post on Facebook about your attending some event on the same day.

Overall, its a good law and one that helps to separate the work/educational institutional sphere from people's private lives (to the extent that there's much in the way of a private life left).

Two Governors, One Who Knows How To Hold 'Em, One Who Knows How to Fold 'Em

In contrast to Spineless Snyder, Governor Rick Perry gets it:

Instapundit: STANDING UP AGAINST HYSTERIA: Gov. Rick Perry speaks out against gun control hysteria, approves carrying in schools.

Michigan Governor Folds Like A Cheap Suit - Carry Reform To Be Vetoed

He can stand up to unions, but not to liberal mass hysteria and misinformation.

The Detroit Free Press: Republicans: Snyder to veto concealed weapons bill

Gov. Rick Snyder will veto a bill later today that would have allowed gun owners with extra training to carry their concealed weapons in schools, churches, day care centers and stadiums, according to Republican sources.

The veto comes just four days after a horrific shooting in Newtown, Conn., in which a heavily armed 20-year-old muscled his way into the Sandy Hook Elementary School and killed 20 first graders and six adults.

Because of course, no one would ever commit a crime with a firearm in any of those places before taking two 8 hour training classes, passing federal and state background checks to be provably not a felon, and provably not having committed any misdemeanors in the three years prior to applying and paying an application fee.

Banning a bill that would not cause, and in fact would significantly lessen the chance of a school or other mass shooting, after a mass shooting has taken place is and act of emotion rather than logic. If he wanted to prevent future incidents, signing the law and pushing for more mental health facilities would do far more.

But at least he's seen "doing something", even though it still won't win him any points with the left after he passed right-to-work.

Damnit.

Sad Michigan Donkeys

With Governor Snyder having signed the Right To Work legislation, the Democrats are bluer today than usual.

In the Detroit Free Press, one of the saddest donkeys, Rochelle Riley laments that Unions need to remind people what life was like without them as if Right To Work legislation outlaws unions or turns Michigan into a sweatshop state.

Her denial of reality is palpable in the writing:

No, the question is: How is this possible in Michigan?

Michigan, home of the UAW? Michigan, which has more union members than almost any other state? Michigan, arguably the bluest state in America?

Now that Snyder has signed right-to-work and Michigan has become the 24th right-to-work state in America, will it be the domino that causes other states to fall?

Considering unions make up only about 17.5% of Michigan's private workforce, and the unions' overreach and excesses over time, including their push to enshrine unionism in the Michigan Constitution made such reform necessary.

Riley goes on to claim this failure is due to Unions not teaching labor history and then she really falls into the rabbit-hole land of the non-sequitur:

No one marching on government grounds was paying attention to what century this is.

And there is the lesson.

The 1960s and 1970s were fighting for the phone. They both called. They want their culture back. They want their methods of selling the union back. They want the anger and threats and the memory of Vincent Chin to stay in the past.

The 21st Century is calling now, and if the unions don't answer that call with new ideas and a new program, America will become a right-to-work nation by the time Hillary Rodham Clinton completes her second term.

Try to figure out what those paragraphs full of mixed metaphors even mean. Even more hilarious, she expects Hillary Clinton to run and win two terms after the Obama deluge.

Delusions are powerful things indeed, and the blue state model has been run on them for quite some time now.

Right To Work Rocking Michigan, Democrats Go For The Blackmail Option

After the Unions overreached in pushing Proposal 2, the measure to enshrine unions in Michigan's constitution, the payback is both swift and a dog of a female persuasion.

As the law proceeds towards being passed, Union opponents are protesting the legislation allowing for workers to opt out of joining a union, and even planning to sing Christmas-themed protest songs outside the governor's house. Perhaps the song will go: Pay union dues ye faithful, you must always join the union, no right to work, no right to work, dues till the end...

With luck the songfest will end in: On the first day of Christmas, Snyder gave to me, the right to work and be free...

The songfest and protests also highlight the need for Right To Work: If all these union members can take this much time off and the work in their places of employment is still getting done, someone is way overstaffed with Union make-work jobs.

Not to be outdone, East Lansing's own Democrat's Democrat, Gretchen Whitmer is trying to get the Obama administration to threaten a blockade of federal funding for public works projects in Michigan if Right to Work passes:

Mlive.com:

Democrats have asked the White House to get into the act and it has. The President’s press secretary offers that Mr. Obama does not much like Right to Work.

And the senate Democratic leader here discloses the White House has been asked to do a little linkage.

The governor wants federal money for his bridge between Detroit and Windsor and the feds are dangling $25 million or more for a new transit system down Woodward Avenue.

What if the White House strongly hinted the money might remain in Washington, if the governor signed RTW?

Asked if that request has been made, Sen. Gretchen Whitmer says, “Yes.”

“We are hoping that when President Obama comes to Michigan (today), that this is on his radar screen.” After all if Mr. Snyder “doesn’t care about the middle class, why should we be bending over backwards so that this governor is able to deliver on his promises?”

Talk about chopping of your nose to spite your face Senator Whitmer. A helluva lot of that transport money would have gone to middle class workers and indeed union jobs, Right to Work or no Right to Work. Not to mention the resulting bridge would be used by Teamsters and others to ferry trade across it, including UAW-made cars.

Appealing to Obama to harm Michigan's workers and economy in a petulant move should not win you many favors if your supporters had a lick of sense, but then again, as she comes from the academic ivory-tower liberal enclave of East Lansing such concerns of the little people hardly matter to her supporters.

Bring popcorn, the leftist meltdown over Right to Work is going to be fun to watch.

Yet Again, Detroit Is Running Out Of Money

Not entirely unexpected given the City's refusal to get its finances in line.

Considering Detroit overwhelmingly voted against the Emergency Financial Manager law, they're likely to suffer the consequences.

The Detroit Free Press: Detroit finances may get even worse, fiscal board is warned

Detroit's financial condition is deteriorating more quickly than projected, and without an infusion of money from the state, the city could run out of cash by mid-December, a top city official told the board that has significant oversight of the city's finances.

Adding to the insanity, the Detroit City Clowncil is request the Detroit Legal Counsel decide if the financial board and the consent agreement with the state are also rendered ineffective with the repeal of the EFM law.

Council members have asked the city's Law Department for a legal opinion on how the city should proceed with the agreement in the aftermath of the repeal. But council members already are talking about options such as seeking to disband the Financial Advisory Board or at least eliminate its pay -- the city and state split $25,000 annual salaries for each of the nine board members and their work-related expenses.

Council President Pro Tem Gary Brown said the city's top lawyer, Krystal Crittendon, is expected to give the council an opinion as early as this week. Her opinion is likely to give council members a significant amount of direction on what they can do to reassert authority and possibly reverse some of the cuts Bing imposed.

Of course, if the Consent agreement is repealed, then there should be no more money from the state under that agreement.

I'd hope both Governor Snyder and the State has the gumption to demand the return of the $57 million it has already extended to Detroit under the consent agreement, but somehow I doubt they'll take such a reasonable line. In any case, The State darn well better keep withholding the remaining $80 million it has in escrow until this gets worked out or Detroit will have played the State and Gov. Snyder like a cheap fiddle - They'll get all the money, with no accountability or fiscal reform.