MI Morning Update: McCain Talks Jobs in MI - Another Obama Flip-Flop - McCotter Sticking it to the left
By saul anuzis Posted in Barack Obama | John McCain | Michigan Republican Party | Republicans | Saul Anuzis | Thad McCotter — Comments (0) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
116 Days until Election Day
July 11, 2008
MORNING UPDATE:
McCAIN TALKS JOBS IN MICHIGAN...in a Town Hall meeting in Belleville. Do you remember how Obama said he would meet John McCain anytime, anywhere at these Town Hall meetings...you know, earlier, when he was seeking the nomination. Now he refuses to engage in these discussions. Hypocrisy and/or flip flop...again.
McCAINS JOBS PLAN...is explained by his chief economic policy advisor, Doug Holtz-Eakin. Please check it out.
OBAMA...CAN YOU BELIEVE HIM...Maybe the biggest question of the 2008 presidential campaign is "Who is Sen. Barack Obama really?" Of late, the mystery is deepening. It's customary for presidential candidates to move to the center for the general election after they've pandered to their party's base in the primaries - but the Illinois Democrat has claimed not to be your customary candidate, but someone who was going to usher in an era of new politics. He has eloquently promised "change we can believe in," but lately he's changing his tune on so many issues it's becoming a legitimate question: Can voters really believe in him? - Roll Call
CONGRESSMAN THADDEUS MCCOTTER ...makes a very serious point about challenging Democratic Congressional censorship and political correctness, by spoofing Bob Dylan's video Subterranean Homesick Blues. (This video also features Congressman Steve LaTourette of Ohio and Lee Terry of Nebraska). Whether on college campuses, Hollywood, and now in Congress, the left loves to stifle speech they disagree with.
A few weeks ago, Congressman McCotter got under the Democrats' skin with this humorous piece on You Tube (80,000 hits), here it is in case you missed it.
McCAIN HEADQUATERS & VICTORY CENTER GRAND OPENING...we will officially open our headquarters this Monday, July 14th at 5pm and would be honored if you all would join us and also invite your own organizations. Governor Mitt Romney will be among our special guests who will be there to help kick off our grassroots campaign here in Michigan.
When: Monday, July 14, 2008 at 5 PM
Where: McCain Great Lakes Regional HQ and Michigan Victory Center
31440 Northwestern Hwy, Suite 100
Farmington Hills, MI 48344
RSVP to Michigan@JohnMcCain.com <mailto:Michigan@JohnMcCain.com> or 248-579-4578
MICHIGAN MATTERS...I taped "Michigan Matters" with Carol Cain, which will air this weekend. "Michigan Matters" airs Saturday on CBS Detroit at 11 a.m. and is repeated on Sunday on CW 50 at 11:00 a.m.
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TODAY'S TOP STORIES
The following stories and more are available at my Articles of Interest online.
McCain: I feel Michigan's pain
Gordon Trowbridge and Tanveer Ali / The Detroit News
VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP -- John McCain was forced on Thursday to spend part of his first Michigan campaign appearance in weeks distancing himself from a top economic adviser.
"Michigan is hurting today. ... Let's face it, America is hurting today, and it's hurting badly, and we have a lot of work to do," the Republican presidential candidate told about 250 people, including some undecided voters, at a town-hall meeting at Bayloff Stamped Products, which makes parts for vehicles including the Cadillac CTS and Toyota Tundra.
But McCain faced questions about comments from an economic adviser, former Sen. Phil Gramm, who told a newspaper that the nation is not in an economic recession, and that Americans and the media refuse to acknowledge the strength of the economy.
School aid, roads top Lansing agenda
Gary Heinlein / Detroit News Lansing Bureau
LANSING -- Michigan lawmakers, due back at the Capitol next week for more work on the state budget, are still trying to reach agreements on key issues, including school aid and roads.
The House tentatively had scheduled a session for Wednesday, but House leaders aren't certain that will take place, as talks toward budget deals continue. A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, confirmed the Senate will follow through on a planned Thursday morning session, but it's unclear what action will be taken.
Left pending when lawmakers adjourned June 27 were budgets for K-12 public schools, transportation, building projects and spending for some general government agencies, including the Legislature.
Honesty, justice take more mayoral pounding
July 11, 2008
There's an old courthouse expression: If you have the law on your side, argue the law; if you have the facts on your side, argue the facts. If you have neither, pound the table.
No one is pounding the table louder these days than lawyers for Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
How else to explain their latest efforts to raise doubts about the origins of hundreds of thousands of text messages sent to and from Kilpatrick's city-issued pager?
Mich. Constitution proposal cites nonexistent section
BY DAWSON BELL • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • July 11, 2008
LANSING -- A review of the controversial ballot proposal to rewrite many of the political provisions of Michigan's Constitution has turned up a potentially fatal drafting error -- a reference to a section of the constitution that does not exist.
While technical and apparently inadvertent, the mistake is not unlike a drafting blunder made in 2002 by a group attempting to relax drug crime laws in Michigan. That proposal was denied a spot on the ballot by state courts because it sought to add a section to the constitution where one already existed.
The ballot reform proposal -- the work of the group Reform Michigan Government Now! -- proposes sweeping changes in how Michigan's elected officials are picked and paid. It would reduce the number of state legislators and appellate judges and slash salaries from 15% to 25% for state politicians.
Anchor was suspended after questions arose about her dealings with Synagro partner.
The Detroit News
Fanchon Stinger, a recently suspended morning anchorwoman for Fox 2 Detroit, is no longer employed there, the station said during its 10 p.m. newscast Thursday.
The departure comes a day after The Detroit News revealed that Stinger's company was hired as a media consultant by Synagro Technologies Inc. to place media advertisements in connection with a Detroit city sludge contract under federal investigation.
Fox 2 anchor Monica Gayle read a statement during the top of the Thursday night broadcast updating Stinger's status. The statement read in part: "Fanchon Stinger is no longer an employee of Fox 2."
Wagoner seeks to quell General Motors bankruptcy speculation
CEO says GM has plenty of cash for operations; Stock continues fall amid rumors
David Shepardson / Detroit News Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- General Motors Corp. Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner sought Thursday to quash speculation that the automaker was heading for bankruptcy and said it had plenty of access to cash to weather the current downturn.
The remarks came as GM's stock took another beating on Wall Street, closing at $9.69, the lowest since July 1954. The company's stock also was removed Thursday from the S&P 100 index.
Speaking to reporters following a speech in Dallas, Wagoner said that the automaker has "no thoughts whatsoever" of bankruptcy. "Under any scenario we can imagine, our financial position, or cash position, will remain robust through the rest of this year."
By Sarah Wheaton
Senator John McCain raised more than $22 million in June, making it his best fund-raising month of the campaign, according to figures released Thursday by an aide.
The amount, slightly more than his May total, left Mr. McCain, Republican of Arizona, with a bank balance of $27.6 million, which is what the McCain campaign wanted to emphasize Thursday in a call with reporters.
The campaign also pointed out that the Republican National Committee has $67.8 million in its bank account, a good deal of which can be used to help Mr. McCain, the party's presumed presidential nominee.
Lax on Its List of ‘Bundlers,' the Obama Campaign Names Names
By Michael Luo
Senator Barack Obama's campaign published the names of a whopping 181 new bundlers of campaign contributions this evening, adding to its existing list of 328 elite fund-raisers, after The New York Times made an inquiry earlier in the day about how complete the list was.
Reviewing records, The New York Times concluded dozens of members of Mr. Obama's National Finance Committee, who commit to raising at least $250,000, were not on the list, which is supposed to identify anyone who has raised $50,000 or more. In interviews, several of the missing members said they began raising money for Mr. Obama in early to mid-2007 and already exceeded their $250,000 goal.
July 10, 2008 11:54 p.m.
Webb is gone - and Virginia, too?
Losing Jim Webb as a VP option means Barack Obama might have lost his best, and perhaps only, chance of turning Virginia blue this November.
Of all the possible running mates, Sen. Webb was the most intriguing. Here was a Vietnam combat veteran and former Secretary of the Navy under Ronald Reagan who had unseated a Republican incumbent in a state Democrats hope to win this year. An economic populist, Mr. Webb has proven appeal with the blue-collar voters in Virginia whom Mr. Obama failed to win in his contest against Sen. Hillary Clinton. Impeccable national-security credentials and working-class appeal -- the two very qualities Mr. Obama lacks.
An argument against Obama's tax plan
By GROVER G. NORQUIST | 7/11/08 4:58 AM EST
The Tax Policy Center and the Barack Obama campaign used some sleight of hand this week in Politico. To quote Eric Tolder of the TPC, "Most small-business people, like most everyone else, are not really high-income." While this is true, it completely and totally misses the point.
Let's start with the definition of a "small business." Most will tell you that small-business income constitutes income derived from sole proprietorships, partnerships and Subchapter S corporations.
The conservative argument (and that of the John McCain campaign) is that Obama's stated plan to raise taxes on households making $250,000 or more in income is a tax increase on small business. The simple answer to this dilemma can be found in the IRS Statistics of Income Bulletin (Table 1.4, for those who are interested).