November looks good for Democrats

Like every other political junkie in Michigan, I’m still digesting last night’s primary election results, but for the most part I am a happy man because most of the candidates I supported won.

I haven’t posted recently because I was busy campaigning over the weekend, and those candidates I worked for – soon to be Senator-Elect and former Rep. Hoon-Yung Hopgood, D-Taylor, and Congressman John Dingell, D-Dearborn – won their races.

I was elated to see Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero win with such a big margin – 59 to 41 percent – and I am even happier to see who he is running against, chief job outsourcer Rick Snyder. That certainly proves teabaggers are a fringe group. One Livingston County rightwing blogger had this headline in a pre-primary post: “No Rick Snyder for governor. Anybody in the primary but Rick Michigan.”

Not to worry; it will be Virg in November. Let the speculation about his running mate begin. I’m nominating House Majority Floor Leader Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee. The anti-choice Democrat will bring in the Andy Dillon supporters.

I see little difference between the last GOP Gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos and Snyder. Like DeVos, Snyder sent jobs to China, and well as Mexico, while the head of Gateway Computers.

I spent last Sunday walking in the Monroe County Fair Parade for Dingell. Monroe is my hometown, and because I still have lots of friends and family there, I volunteer there often. After the parade I did a three-hour shift in the Monroe County Democratic Party booth, which was really a tent. I was wearing my distinctive red, “Team Dingell” shirt when this goofy looking guy came into the tent and introduced himself as “Dr. Rob Steele,” and he was the "guy who was going to retire John Dingell.”

Apparently, it really was teabagger Republican candidate and Ann Arbor-area cardiologist Rob Steele. It caught me off-guard that he would seek out a confrontation, so the only witty come back I could come up with was “in your dreams.” He went on about how it was time for Dingell to retire then tried to make conservation when he noticed the hat I was wearing said “U.S. Navy retired.” I just told him to move on. I was so suspired by the arrogance that I was caught off guard.

It was only after I found out a little about him that it was cleared up. He is a teabagger who seeks confrontation, and he is a doctor. Like Sen. Roger Kahn, R-Saginaw, who is also a cardiologist, he appears to be a little arrogant.

The other Congressional candidate I volunteered for, State Sen. Hansen Clarke, D-Detroit, unseated incumbent Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick for the seat in the 13th Congressional District with a resounding 48-39 percent win. It will be nice to see someone with some real passion and above reproach ethics in that seat.

I feel much better about the race for the other two competitive Congressional seats. U.S. Rep. Mark Schauer, D-Battle Creek, will again get the opportunity to beat extremist Republican and loser Tim Walberg in the 7th District.

U.S. Rep. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, will face perennial loser and sacrificial lamb Andrew Raczkowski in the 9th U.S. House District.

Locally, I was disappointed to see Teabagger Republican Joe Hune win in the 22nd Senate District, I guess that proves Republicans will vote for name recognition, no matter how extreme and wacky their positions are. I can’t wait for the debate when he goes against someone who really knows the issues, like Democratic candidate Chuck Fellows.

I also can’t wait for November.

Fundraisers on tap this week

Campaign season is in full swing with lots of fundraisers, and I just wanted to give a shout out to some of my friends.

Livingston County Democrats had the most candidates file for the nine-member Livingston County Board of Commissioners since at least 1998, and Kelly Raskauskas is one of the most qualified. She is running in the 7th District, which includes the city of Brighton and part of Genoa Township. She has been a leader in the community, serving as president of the Friends of the Library in Brighton. She has a master's degree in public policy from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

She has a fundraiser set for 6 p.m. Thursday, July 15. To RSVP and for directions, call (734) 878-6792.

My friends at the Monroe County Democratic Party are holding a campaign kickoff at 5 p.m. this Saturday, July 17 at UAW Local 723, 281 Detroit Ave. in Monroe. For $15 you get a steak dinner and soft drinks. Tickets can be ordered online.

Come out and enjoy some great fellowship and good food, and many of the candidates will be there. Monroe’s two House seats are under attack, and Republicans are targeting the seats in the blue collar, union town.

House Majority Floor Leader Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, is term-limited, and Bedford resident Mike Smith is running for the seat against a large field of Republicans. Rep. Kate Ebli, D-Monroe, is running against a well know Republican, and she can use your help.

We need your help, and I will see you there.

Don’t forget the fundraiser for Jim Delcamp, the Democratic candidate for the 66th h Michigan House District, that will be held from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. today at the Brighton House Restaurant, 10810 Grand River Road, Brighton.

Democrats attempting to restore transparency to secret corporate campaign cash

LANSING – The House Ethics and Elections Committee took testimony on a package of bills aimed at restoring accountability to the flood of secret corporate money that will pour into elections following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last January in the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission case.

The Committee took testimony on Wednesday on House Bills 6182-6188 that would bring some accountability and transparency to the process. Among the things the bills would do include required disclosure of what they spent, corporations would have to have approval of investors to spend money on political campaigns and those investors could be liable for fines if there are any campaign finance violations, companies with foreign investors would not be able to make campaign contributions and ads sponsored by a company or union would have to clearly state the source of the ad, including a disclaimer by the chief executive.

“It (the SCOTUS decision) overturned nearly a century of precedence, and it opened the floodgates to corporate money,” said Rep. Daniel Scripps, D-Northport, primary sponsor of the package. “Because this type pf campaign contribution was illegal before the Supreme Court decision, there is no framework to address this.”

The SCOTUS decision lifted the prohibition of all independent expenditures by corporations and unions, and it wiped out all disclosure and transparency. In the past, corporations, unions and special interest groups could form Political Actions Committees (PAC) to solicit money and hand out political contributions, but they were required to file quarterly campaigns finance reports that list who is giving money and there the money is going,. That’s not the case after the decision, but the package of bills will make that happen again.

“There is no Secretary of State web site to check what the corporations are spending and on what,” said Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, the chair of the Elections Committee.

Republicans on the committee questioned why the focus was on corporations and not labor unions. Angerer said the rules apply to unions, too, but she would be open to any clarifications to address any concerns. However, the simple fact is money from labor does not hold a candle to the cash of corporations like insurance companies or oil companies.

Michigan has a history of rich timber and mining barons spending huge sums of money to elect people friendly to them to the Legislature that led to widespread corruption. It was that rampant corruption that led to the laws the Supreme Court struck down in their decision.

“It has been so long ago that it has been forgotten, but the history books are filled with examples of this corruption,” said Mark Brewer, chair of the Michigan Democratic Party.

Rep. Kimberly Meltzer, R-Macomb Twp?, playing to her base for her primary Senate race, said the Democratic Party should be held to the same disclosure requirements for its bingo games, claiming she knows of a bingo hall run by Democrats that funnels money to candidates. However, those facilities are required under federal law to disclose how much they collect from whom and where that money goes.

Brewer said the bingo halls are a model of fundraising; raising small amounts of money from many people as opposed to millions of unregulated dollars being raised by corporations, and he invited Meltzer to visit the bingo hall.

“The voters have spoken on this issue, and there was a referendum in 1996 to allow political parties to raise money with bingo,” Brewer said.

No vote was taken on the package of bills, and Angerer said further hearings will be held on the bills.

There is a race for the 22nd State Senate seat

It appears Republican Joe Hune has a challenger as the heir apparent for the state Senate seat in the 22nd District.

The Livingston County Daily Press & Argus is reporting that former Howell Mayor Paul Rogers intends to run for the seat that covers all off Livingston County, Shiawassee County and part of Ingham County vacated by term-limited Valde Garcia, R-Howell. Rogers is not related to U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, or his brother State Rep. Bill Rogers, R-Brighton, or the P & A would have already endorsed him.

It will be a primary challenge to Hune; even though no where in the article does it mention his party affiliation. Rogers has a ton more experience than Hune even after Hune was term-limited in the House.

Rogers served as the city's mayor from 1997-2000 and has spent more than a decade on the City Council. Those positions are nonpartisan. In addition to this stint on the City Council, Rogers, according to the P & A, has held leadership roles with the Howell Area Chamber of Commerce, Howell Education Foundation and Livingston County United Way campaign. He's also been involved with the Howell Area Fire Authority, the school-to-work steering committee for the Livingston Educational Service Agency and the Livingston County. He is also a small business owner.

That’s in sharp contrast to Hune, a really nice guy who did little more than show up everyday in Lansing. He has a near perfect, if not perfect, voting record, but his list of accomplishments is very thin. That’s not always a bad thing because the party who holds the gavel will often block any legislation of someone from the opposing party they do not like, are targeting or think is a rising star; like the Republicans did to Sen. Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing, and Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee.

But Hune doesn’t have that excuse because his party held the gavel for four of his six years in office.

Hune won his seat in 2002 in the newly created 47th District by a mere two votes in the primary election over a large field of more experienced and better known candidates. He was term-limited last year, and after being out of office a mere month, he announced he was running for the Senate in February of last year.

The Republicans have gerrymandered the district to make it a safer Republican seat, so the race will more than likely be over after the primary. It’s nice to see someone a little more moderate and may actually vote how he feels and not how parity leadership tells him to vote. No Democrat has yet announced they will run.

Land contradicts GOP Senate and supports voting measures

LANSING – Apparently, Secretary of State Terri Land is at odds with Senate Majority Mike Bishop and the Senate GOP caucus on election issues.

Land testified before the House Committee on Ethics and Elections on Wednesday and she supports measures the House Democrats have passed, but the Senate refuses to move.

The House approving no reason absentee voting with bipartisan support last month, but the Senate has refused to take up the bill the last two sessions. Committee member Kim Meltzer, R-Clinton Township, has been the leading GOP mouthpiece for opposing the common sense measure that will increase voter turnout, and she tried to get Land to buy into the GOP’s flimsily excuse that it increases voter fraud. Land refuse to bite, and she said there has been no prosecution of voter fraud during her almost eight year tenure. She also said reforms she supports, like an electronic poll book, will make voter verification easier.

Land referred to Chris Thomas, the Director of Elections for many years, who said there has been no cases of voter fraud in regard to A/B that he is aware of.

“Where we generally see fraud is when people get their ballots, and campaigners show up their porch, and voters feel they are being strong-armed,” he said.

Land said, in contrast to her GOP colleagues, she supports early voting and allowing 16-year-olds to pre-register to vote; something Meltzer objected to. Land said it’s much better than registering them to vote when age 18 by outside groups. Land said it would not be an issue with local clerks, and they would not see them on their voter file until age 18.

“I think it’s the best way to do it,” Land said. “They are already there with their birth certificate when they get their driver’s license.”

Committee Chair Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, asked Land for her help in getting some movement on the bills she supports.

“We are having a terrible time moving these items with your colleagues in the Senate,” she said. “Would you be wiling to help in the Senate?”

Land said she would.

“It took 20 years to get election consolidation,” she said. “I sure hope it does not take another 20 years.”

Committee moves bill on 16-year-old vote

LANSING – House Democrats stuck another blow for bringing more people into our democracy and increasing government participation by reporting two bills out of the House Committee on Ethics and Elections on Wednesday that will allow 16-year-olds to pre-register to vote.

The Committee, chaired by House Majority Floor Leader Rep. Kathy Anger, D-Dundee, reported House Bill 4261, introduced by Rep. Lesia Liss, D-Warren, and House Bill 4337, introduced by Rep. Robert Jones, D-Kalamazoo, the bills out to the full House Floor.

Chris Thomas, director of the state Bureau of Elections, testified in support of the bills, and he said when a 16-year-old goes to the Secretary of State’s office for their driver’s license, they would be allowed to pre-register to vote. Once the person reaches age 17 and a half, they would be sent their voter ID card. They would be allowed to vote in the election occurring in the year they turn 18, not on their birthday, which is existing state law.

The only no votes were cast by two Republicans on the committee: Rep. Kim Meltzer, R-Clinton Township, and Rep. Kenneth Kurtz, R-Coldwater. However, neither gave any reason for opposing it.

Some Republicans have resisted any effort to increase voter turnout, such as their opposition to no reason absentee voting, approved by the House earlier this month.

Republicans oppose no reason A/B voting with no reason

LANSING -- Michigan Republicans continue to resist any attempt to increase voter turnout and make it easier for citizens to cast their ballots.

The House Committee on Ethics and Elections voted two bills out of the committee to the full House along party liens on Wednesday that allows no reason absentee voting. There are only six reasons for A/B voting in Michigan: age 60 years old or older, unable to vote without assistance at the polls, expecting to be out of town on election day, in jail awaiting arraignment or trial, unable to attend the polls due to religious reasons or are appointed to work as an election inspector in a precinct outside of your precinct of residence.

There is no doubt that no reason A/B will increase voter turnout, and at least 28 other states allow it.

“It’s amazing that in a country where the cornerstone of democracy is the vote, we do not do everything in our power to make it easier for people to vote,” said Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, the chair of the committee. Angerer has been mentioned as a possible candidate for Secretary of State, but she has not spoken publicly about it.

Local clerks who run elections have been in support of A/B voting for years, and the numerous municipal and voting advocacy groups lined up in support of the bills was impressive.

Among those supporting no reason A/B voting are The Michigan Election Reform Alliance, The Michigan Election Coalition, The League of Women Voters, The Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks, The Michigan Municipal League, The Michigan Campaign Finance Network, The Michigan Association of County Clerks, The Michigan Townships Association, Common Cause Michigan and The Michigan Nonprofit Association. The only people opposing the bill are the House and Senate Republicans.

Evan Hope, the Chair of the Legislative Committee for the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks, said no reason A/B is the association’s top priority right after early voting. He said people who don’t meet the six conditions for getting an A/B should not have to lie to get one.

“We see it all the time when people come into our office,” he said. “They hesitate, and some have to lie and some just say I hope I can find the time to vote.”

The bills passed out of the committee were House Bill 4097 sponsored by Rep. Martin Griffin, D-Jackson, and HB 4367 sponsored by Rep. Woodrow Stanley, D-Flint. The bills are basically identical, and it’s unusual that identical bills are moved on together. In fact, a Republican member of the committee asked about that. Griffin is a candidate for the vacant 19th District Senate seat up for election in November, and Senate Republicans will not approve anything with his name attached to it.

Angerer knows that firsthand. Angerer unseated an incumbent Republican when she won her first term in 2004. Republicans, who controlled the House then, were so incensed that she wore a target on her back for two years, and Republicans refused to let her even get the simplest of resolutions passed.

“I want to give the Senate the best opportunity to vote on this and pass it regardless of the sponsor,” she said.

No reason was given for the Republican’s opposition. Reasons floated in the past for opposition has been corruption and fraud, but that was not brought up during the hearing. None of the numerous clerks or voting advocates were asked about that or brought it up.

Democrats poised to take back traditional Democratic statewide offices

A poll conducted by Marketing Resource Group for Bill Ballanger’s Inside Michigan Politics of possible match-ups in the 2010 races for Michigan Secretary of State and Attorney General show Republican candidates having a slight lead over Democrats.

For secretary of state the poll showed Sen. Michelle McManus, R-Lake Leelanau, at 33 percent to 28 percent for House Majority Floor Leader Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee. There are three other GOP candidates for the position, and until I heard Angerer’s name mentioned, I thought Wayne State University law Professor Jocelyn Benson was the only Democratic candidate.

Benson has an excellent and impressive resume, and I think she would be a top-notch SOS, especially after six years of the most partisan SOS in Michigan history. That’s until I heard about Angerer possibly running. With zero publicity and not even a mention of her running, Angerer is just 5 percentage points behind with 37 percent undecided.

There are at least three other potential candidates for the GOP nomination, but none of them compare to Angerer or Benson. I wanted Angerer to run for Senate in the 17th District in 2010. My hometown should not have a Republicans representing it. Angerer unseated a Republican incumbent in 2004, and she can do it again.

I worked in Angerer’s House office as the world’s oldest intern. You can’t find anyone in Lansing who doesn’t respect her.

After Angerer unseated the incumbent Republican, she was a target of the Republicans in the GOP-controlled House for tow years, and Republicans refused to let her even get the simplest of resolutions passed. She spent those two years building the best constituent operation in the state and really learning the issues. In the meantime, the person she unseated spent those two years in the district campaigning and raising money. She won even bigger in 2006, along with the Democrats who took control of the House.

She has earned the respect of colleagues, opponents, staff on both sides of the aisle and House employees down to the janitorial staff. With her seat safe last November, Angerer campaigned for other House candidates, helping Democrats increase their lead by nine seats to give them 67 seats.

The same numbers played out in the poll for attorney general. Republican Bill Schuette edged out Sen. Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing, 33 percent to 28 percent with 39 percent undecided. Whitmer, like Angerer, has not announced she is running. The poll did not include the other two Republicans; Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop and Sen. Bruce Patterson. Bishop has been campaigning in the Senate by pandering and irresponsibly blowing a hole in the budget.

House Speaker doles out committee assignments

Livingston County lawmakers received some good committee assignments after Michigan House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township, announced committee assignments on Monday.

Freshman Rep. Bill Rogers, R-Brighton, was named to the important Appropriations Committee. The appropriations committee is broken down into 19 smaller sub-committees that approve the budgets for each state department, but that list was not yet promulgated or announced.

Freshman Rep. Cindy Dendy, R-Handy Township, was named to four committees. She was named minority vice-chair of the Insurance Committee. Her former boss, term-limited Rep. Joe Hune, R-Hamburg Township, served on that committee, and was briefly the chair. The former Handy Township Supervisor and Clerk was also named to the Committee on Intergovernmental and Regional Affairs, the Committee on New Economy and Quality of Life and the Health Policy Committee.

Dillon also announced the chairs of the 24 committees, and only seven are returning to the same committees thy chaired last session. Among the most interesting, at least to me, was the assignment of Majority Floor Leader Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, from the chairmanship of the Health Policy Committee to the chair of the Ethics and Election Committee. I'm a little biased because I once worked in her office as the world's oldest intern, but she has a well-deserved reputation for getting things done. Rep. Mark Corriveau, D-Northville, takes over the chair of the Health Policy Committee.

Rep. Kate Ebli, D-Monroe, who I campaigned for, gets a chairmanship for the first time with the important Tax Policy Committee.

Speaker Dillon outlines an ambitious agenda fore the 95th Michigan Legislature

LANSING -- The opening of the 95th Michigan Legislature on Wednesday was routine, unless you were one of the 44 new House members who took the oath of office from Michigan Supreme Court Justice Michael Cavanagh.

The Senate met briefly and adjourned, but the excitement was in the House with the new Representative that increased the Democrats lead in the House to 67-43, up from 58-52 when the Democrats took back control of the House in 2007. Family and friends were on hand on the House floor and in the galleries to watch the ceremony, highlighted by Rep. Joel Sheltrown, D-West Branch, playing "How Great Thou Art" on his saxophone. Members chose their seats in the House Chamber, and elected the Speaker of the House.

New Majority Floor Leader Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, nominated last session’s Speaker, Rep. Andy Dillon, D-Redford, who was elected unanimously.

“Our country and state are in a time of transition and changes, and we need strong leadership to see us through,” Angerer said. “We need honest, ethical leaders like Andy Dillon.”

Dillon’s nomination was seconded by new Minority Leader Rep. Kevin Elsenheimer, R-Bellaire, saying the speaker has been willing to meet with him over the past several weeks. Early indications are he will be an improvement over term-limited Minority Leader Craig DeRoche, R-Novi, who has nothing but an impediment.

“It is my honor to second the nomination of Andy Dillon as Speaker of the House,” Elsenheimer said.

Dillon outlined a broad and ambitious agenda that included reforming the state's tax structure, cutting property taxes, eliminating the Michigan Business Tax surcharge, addressing home foreclosures and enacting a workplace smoking ban. He wants to accomplish the bulk of the work before the Legislature breaks for the summer in June.

“We are serving in the most challenging economic climate since the Great Depression,” he said. “We may not be able to fix all the problems, but shame on us if we don't do what we can.”

He is also facing a current budget shortfall of $350 million and as much as $1.5 billon drop in tax revenue next year. He also wants to cut lawmakers pay and lifetime health care after just six years.

“If we are going to ask other people to sacrifice, then we must lead by example,” he said.

House Democrats choose leaders

LANSING - - Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, was chosen as the Majority Floor Leader Thursday for the 2009-10 legislative session that begins in January as current, term-limited and Democratic Representatives-Elect gathered in caucus to choose their leaders.

Angerer will replace term-limited Rep. Steve Tobocman, D-Detroit. The Democrats retained House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Twp, as Speaker of the House. Rep. Pam Brynes, D-Chelsea, was chosen as speaker pro tempore. The votes cast for all three positions were unanimous.

Both Angerer and Brynes - in their third and final terms - took the next step up the ladder. Angerer was the Assistant Floor Leader and Byrnes was the associate speaker pro tempore. Byrnes will be in the chair during floor sessions, and Anger will set the agenda from the floor.

Angerer unseated an incumbent Republican when she won her first term in 2004. Republicans, who controlled the House, were so incensed that she wore a target on her back for two years, and Republicans refused to let her even get the simplest of resolutions passed. The same Republican she beat spent the next two years in the district campaigning and raising money.

In the meantime in Lansing, Angerer proved to be a tireless worker, and her constituent operation was the best in Lansing. She earned the respect of colleagues, opponents, staff on both sides of the aisle and House employees down to the janitorial staff. In the 2006 rematch Anger won by an even larger margin than in 2004, and she was named the chair of the important Health Policy Committee when Democrats took control of the House.

With their seats safe this year, Angerer and Byrnes helped other Democratic House candidate’s campaigns and the Democrats picked up nine seats to give them 67 seats.

The caucus did not elect a caucus chair and assistant positions. Republicans also did not choose its leaders, and they are expected to do that next Wednesday when the Lame Duck session resumes.

Sick of hospitals? New Web site lets Michigan consumers compare costs and quality

LANSING – Michigan lawmakers and their staffs are getting their first look at a Web site called Michigan Hospital Information, aimed at bringing price and quality information about the state's hospitals to consumers in an easy-to-use format.

The site is a voluntary effort developed by the Lansing-based Michigan Health and Hospital Association (MHA), a non-profit association consisting of a blend of hospitals and health systems that advocate for hospitals and their patients.

“This is a great example of voluntarily taking the initiative,” said Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, the chair of the House Health Policy Committee. “Not everything has to be legislated.”

The Web site, which is now up and running, lists the 50 most frequent inpatient and outpatient medical procedures covered by Medicare. Consumers can find the average charge, the average payment, the average length of stay and the total number of patients who received this procedure at all of Michigan's hospitals.

The data is provided by the independent Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The site also provides data on surgical infections and the common causes of hospitalization.

The goal of the Web site is to assist consumers in making better health-care decisions and help drive down costs. “We have 146 nonprofit hospitals across the state, and when it comes to public policy we need to act as one,” said Gerald Fitzgerald, the president of the MHA.

The Web site also provides a glossary of medical terms to help consumers interpret and understand the data. For example, hip and knee surgery is usually called “lower body reattachment,” but the Web site uses layman terms to describe the procedures and costs.

“We are not like other organizations that just put the information out there,” Fitzgerald said. “We want people to understand it.”

Many states require that their hospital data be published, but it is often in obscure, hard-to-find publications or it must be read at the hospital. For example, the data in California is published in two books the size of New York City telephone directories.

“Obviously, that was not an effective way to get the info to the consumer,” said Jim Lee, the vice president of data policy and development for the MHA. “We think this is the best way to distribute the data.”

Republicans celebrate and worship another convicted felon

Republicans sure love their convicted felons. It seems kind of ironic that they claim to be the party of law and order, but they worship, adore and hang on to the every word of convicted felons like Oliver North, Scooter Libby and G. Gordon Liddy.

In a case of you are who you associate with, State Sen. Randy Richardville, R-Monroe, is taking time out of his busy schedule to appear with Watergate burglar and convicted felon G. Gordon Liddy at a breakfast Saturday morning arranged by local members of the motorcycle group ABATE, business owners and the Monroe County Republicans. According to the Monroe Evening News, when asked if he would have an issue with being associated with Liddy's strongly conservative viewpoint, Richardville said no. They should have asked him if he would have an issue being associated with a convicted felon.

I personally know how much in demand and how full the schedule is for each of Monroe’s – where I was born and raised and most of my family lives - two state Representatives, especially now that they are both committee chairs and in the majority. Richardville is in the same position in the Senate where the Republicans control that house, but he is also responsible for twice the people and land area as Reps. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, and Kate Ebli, D-Monroe, are. Logic says Richardville should be in twice the demand as they are, so this is a rather curious choice for Richardville to put on his schedule.

Liddy is the former FBI agent and White House aide who helped plan the Watergate break-in of DNC headquarters that led to the cover-up and resignation of former President Nixon. According to Wikipedia, Liddy then worked for Nixon’s 1972 reelection campaign, known as CREEP, in order to extend the scope and reach of the White House "Plumbers" unit, which had been created in response to various damaging leaks of information to the press. Liddy concocted several plots, some far-fetched, intended to embarrass the Democratic opposition. Most were rejected, such as firebombing the Brookings Institution, but a few were given the go ahead by Nixon Administration officials, including the break-in at Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist's office.
At some point, Liddy was instructed to break into the Democratic National Committee offices in the Watergate Hotel. For his role in Watergate, Liddy was convicted of conspiracy, burglary and illegal wiretapping, and received a 20-year sentence. He served four and a half years in prison before his sentence was commuted by President Jimmy Carter.

It was obviously a mistake because the Liddy still refuses to take responsibility for his illegal behavior, which has served him well as a conservative talk show host and poster boy for the right. Liddy has launched a ridiculous conspiracy theory – isn’t there a conspiracy theory for everything – that a then 21-year-old secretary – who is now a dean at a community college in Louisiana – was operating a call-ring out of the Democratic National Committee Headquarters in the Watergate. He claims the plumbers broke in to get pictures out of the secretary’s desk of the fictional prostitutes clad in see-thru nightgowns.

Richardville should feel right at home. It seems fitting that Richardville is appearing with Liddy now when we have a president in the White House who shares some of Nixon’s beliefs that he is above the law and the Constitution’s restraint and guarantee of personal freedoms for citizens are rights Bush does not have to heed. In Nixon’s case, he was held accountable, but in Bush’s case they just change the law for him.

Unity dinner urges Monroe County Democrats to take back the White House and move forward

There was music, dancing, good food, pats on the back for a good job and pep talks for the 2008 election at the Monroe County Democratic Party's 20th annual Unity Dinner at Leroy's Hall Saturday night.
There were even jokes - some funny and some not so much - and some much-deserved criticism of the opposition.
“The worst thing about political jokes is some of them are elected as Republicans,” said Monroe County Community College Professor William McCloskey, who served as the master of ceremonies.
Debbie Dingell was the keynote speaker. She is a recognized national advocate for women and children, a member of the Democratic National Committee, a trustee at Wayne State University and a senior executive at General Motors. She is also the wife of U.S. Rep. John Dingell. She said her husband could not attend because he is in Washington, D.C. gearing up for a fight that will have a huge effect on Michigan: higher corporate average fuel economy, or CAFE, standards. The Democratic leadership in the House wants higher gas millage standards, and Dingell wants more time for the Big 3 to meet those higher standards.
“That’s the fight we have in Washington,” she said. “It can bankrupt the auto industry; it’s not fair to the domestic auto industry.”
Dingell said the Bog 3 automakers have spent millions of dollars - more than any other industry - in research and development. She criticized the Bush Administration for not enforcing the free trade agreements that give foreign manufacturers an unfair advantage over the Big 3. Democratic leaders say the current tax policies, unfair trade polices and lack of enforcement of trade polices by the Bush Administration is making it impossible for U.S. automakers to compete globally, and foreign governments are helping foreign auto companies compete by providing health care for employees and even manipulating currency to make their cars cheaper and U.S. cars more expensive.
“Domestic manufacturers have fought, and fought and fought to compete with foreign manufacturers who enjoy unfair advantages,” she said. “Our manufacturers are not just competing against foreign manufacturers, they are competing against foreign countries.”
Dingell said Bush’s decision to ignore and refuse to even meet with the Big 3 executives, the largest manufacturers in the country, has led to the loss of more than 3 million good-paying manufacturing jobs.
“It was not so long ago in the Clinton Administration that we actually added manufacturing jobs,” she said.
Dingell also praised the leaders elected in November, and urged the party to work even harder next year to solidify the gains made in November and to add even more.
“We need to make the White House blue again, and we also need to protect our local officials,” she said.
Democrats in the state House went from having a six-vote deficit to gaining a 58-52 majority following the election last November, and one of those newly elected was Rep. Kate Ebli in Monroe’s 56th District. Ebli said the House has worked hard to erase the deficit it inherited by the mismanagement of the Republicans, and the House just reached a deal for a new and improved Single Business Tax (SBT).
“It rewards those companies that invest in and create jobs in Michigan,” she said
Ebli also outlined the victories and campaign promises the House has accomplished in the short time Democrats have been in the majority, such as ethics and eliminating the drug company immunity against lawsuits.
“We sent a huge signal that Michigan is putting people ahead of huge profits for drug companies,” she said.
Ebli said she has teamed up very well with Monroe’s other Representative, Rep. Kathy Angerer, who represents the 55th District.
“It’s very unusual that you walk into a job and are able to work with someone you trust,” Ebli said. “We have that.”
Angerer could not attend because she was attending a family wedding out of town, but she was represented by her Chief-of-Staff, Eric Candella.
“Kathy understqands she can’t do the important work she is doing in Lansing without the work you did first,” he said. “Your hard work had to proceed her hard work in Lansing.”