Rep. Conyers on ‘Fading Republican Party’: ‘There’s Really Only One Major Party’

March 29, 2013 | Filed Under Democrats/Leftists, Detroit, Ethics, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Progressives, Warner Todd Huston | 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston

Michigan’s Democrat Congressman John Conyers has pronounced the Republican Party dead and gone telling a gathering of the Detroit NAACP that, “the Republican party is fading out of sight almost, so there is really only one major political party of any significance.”

Amusingly, Conyers prefaced that line with “actually without being biased…”

It should be pointed out that the “only major political party of any significance” has been locked out of 30 governors mansions across the country. Only 19 states now have Democrats as governors. Additionally, 24 states are completely controlled by the Republican Party while only 13 are controlled by Democrats (the remainder are spilt between parties on power).

A great example of the Democrats’ stewardship of which Conyers is so proud can be seen back in his home state. Detroit, once Michigan’s biggest and most vital city–and wholly controlled by Democrats–is in such poor financial shape that Governor Rick Snyder, a Republican, has had to evoke a “financial state of emergency” for the crumbling city and has imposed an emergency financial manager upon it to bring the city out of its Democrat-initiated financial disaster.
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85,000 Mich. Food Assistance Card Holders Left Without Funds

January 6, 2013 | Filed Under Budget, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Entitlements, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Progressives, Taxes, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Michigan officials reported that “human error” was the cause of 85,000 recipients of state food assistance finding no money deposited to their state-issued debit cards on Friday.

Michigan’s Department of Technology, Management & Budget spent all day Friday attempting to correct the “error” and get the state aid credited to the Bridge Card debit cards but could not say for sure when all 85,000 recipients would have access to their allotments.

By late morning, some 40,000 cards had been credited and officials hoped to fill all cards by day’s end, Friday.

“It’s 85,000 card holders and their family members. The average card holder services about four to five folks in their family, roughly about $500 on average, about $540 gets put on to that card each month for them,” spokesman Kurt Weiss told WWJ Newsradio 950

The problem occurred for about one-tenth of the 1.8 million Michiganders on the State’s Bridge Cards.

“Grocers and retailers across the state who are servicing these customers are put in a bad situation because they are, you know, having to turn folks away and that’s certainly not the position we want to put those retailers in and we certainly issued our apologies to those folks as well,” Weiss told WWJ News.
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Unions Attack/Destroy African American Hot Dog Vendor’s Equipment

December 15, 2012 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Budget, Business, Capitalism, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Ethics, Government, Corruption, Jobs, Liberals, Michigan, Progressives, Public Employees Unions, Right To Work, Taxes, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

One story that no one seems to be talking much about is the violent attack on an African American small businessman’s hot dog vending stand perpetrated by criminal union thugs during Monday’s right-to-work fracas in Lansing, Michigan.

Clint Tarver set up his stand near the Americans for Prosperity tent that union goons later tore down and, at least initially, Mr. Tarver reported that things were “going real well,” until the union toughs got into their woefully common criminal behavior.

Tarver was not just selling his hotdogs to the AFP folks but to anyone that wanted a snack. But it wasn’t long before the union members began to taunt him, even calling him a “n*gger,” calling him an “Uncle Tom,” and accusing him of being “on the wrong side.”
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Media Ignores Union Violence: Flashback to Palin’s 2008 ‘Target’ Outrage

December 14, 2012 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Bill of Rights, Budget, Business, Constitution, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Ethics, Government, Government, Corruption, Jobs, Journalism, Liberals, Media, Media Bias, Michigan, Newspapers, Public Employees Unions, Right To Work, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

As unions again run amuck, this time in Michigan, the Old Media establishment has steadfastly refused to report on the union’s violence, not to mention the “violent rhetoric” coming from their advocates. But this is in stark contrast to the Summer of 2011 when the Old Media was hot to condemn the supposed “violent rhetoric” of Republicans such as Sarah Palin, Andrew Breitbart, and talk radio hosts.

In Michigan this week unions have once again shown why the term “union thug” is no misnomer by beating up people and engaging in property destruction, intimidation, and violence all in order to turn back Michigan’s right-to-work legislation passing through the state’s duly elected legislature.

During the day on Monday union goons attacked a tent set up by members of Michigan’s chapter of Americans for Prosperity. The tent was staffed with women and men, Michiganders who came out to support the Republican’s effort to pass worker’s rights legislation that would make The Wolverine State the 24th right-to-work state.

Also in attendance was occasional Fox News guest and comedian Steven Crowder. The young Crowder was actually physically attacked, punched at least four times, by one union criminal. Crowder’s crime? He dared to ask unionistas the simple question: “what is it about right-to-work that you oppose so much?”

The union thugs then swarmed AFP’s tent and tore it down with the women, and a few children, still inside.
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Huffington Post Misquotes Union Violence Victim, Steven Crowder

December 14, 2012 | Filed Under Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Ethics, Government, Huffington Post, Journalism, Liberals, Media, Media Bias, Michigan, Progressives, Public Employees Unions, Right To Work, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Huffington Post is being accused of purposefully misquoting Steven Crowder, the victim of violence perpetrated by union thugs during protests over Michigan’s worker’s rights legislation, and blaming Crowder for being attacked.

In a December 11 piece by Dave Jamieson, Huffington Post’s “workplace reporter,” Crowder is misquoted at least once. Worse, instead of having Crowder explain himself, his actions are “explained” by a union tough that was on the scene.

The whole story was “reported” from the union perspective and painted Crowder as a “provocateur” who’s main goal was “to get punched.”

The whole of the story was originally presented from the perspective of union member Ken Spitzley, a state agriculture department employee, who claimed he witnessed Crowder’s actions that day. According to Spitzley, Crowder was only there only to “provoke” the union thugs. “There was no question he was there just to start a fight, to start some kind of trouble,” Jamieson reports.
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MSNBC: An Unprofessional Excuse for the News

December 13, 2012 | Filed Under Americans For Prosperity, Anti-Americanism, Business, Capitalism, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Ethics, GOP, Government, Government, Corruption, Jobs, Journalism, Liberals, Media, Media Bias, Michigan, MSNBC, Progressives, Public Employees Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

The violence that unions perpetrated in Michigan as the state legislature passed its new right-to-work legislation was hailed by lawless Democrats and union supporters alike showing that neither unions nor Democrats are much interested in morality of legality, but the incident also revealed yet another perfect example of how illegitimate MSNBC is as a source for reliable news.

During the union thugs’ protest outside the state capitol in Lansing, union criminals beat up a pro-worker’s rights advocate and destroyed a tent set up by the conservative activist group Americans for Prosperity. Multiple videos show that it was a spontaneous, criminal action by the union members but MSNBC’s coverage tended to run counter to the truth.

On the evening of December 11, Ned Resnikoff took to the cabler’s webpages to “report” on the incident for MSNBC’s The Ed Show. But instead of observing journalistic practice, instead of doing his job as a reporter, Resnikoff outrageously lied through his teeth and claimed that the AFP tent was really torn down by its own people!

Resnikoff posted the mere claims of a biased union member pretending that he knew that the AFP folks had torn down their own tent just to get publicity out of it all.
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Mich Dem. Whitmer Shows Unions & Obama More Important Than Her State

December 11, 2012 | Filed Under Business, Capitalism, Democrats/Leftists, Detroit, Economy/Finances, Elections, Ethics, Government, Government, Corruption, Jobs, Liberals, Michigan, Pensions, Progressives, Public Employees Unions, Right To Work, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer, the State’s Senate Democratic Leader, is now pleading for President Obama to trample on Michigan’s state sovereignty and control the state from Washington DC. This is an odd request for someone that thinks she should be Michigan’s next Governor.

During most of American history, state politicians have been keen to safeguard their own power in their state. We even fought a whole civil war in part over the idea of states’ rights, after all. Oh, but not Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer. No, for Whitmer, allowing unions and President Obama to control Michigan is far more important than allowing the people of Michigan and their representatives to control the state.

Whitmer, you see, is trying to get President Obama to withhold federal funds from Michigan merely because Republicans and worker’s rights advocates have succeeded in passing right-to-work-style legislation in the current lame-duck session.

Whitmer is calling the right-to-work law “petty and vindictive politics.” That’s how losers talk, we all know. So, she wants King Obama to take action.
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Muslims in Michigan Attack Christians With Bottles, Stones — Cops Turn Blind Eye

June 30, 2012 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Christianity, Constitution, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Ethics, Freedom, Government, Government, Corruption, Human Rights, Islam, Islamofascism, Jihad, Koran, Liberals, Liberty, Michigan, PCism, Religion, Sharia, Society/Culture, Terrorism, War on Terror, Warner Todd Huston, Western Civilization | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

This is one of the most disgusting and alarming videos made in America I’ve seen in quite some time. In it you will see scores of teenaged Muslims surrounding a small group of less than a dozen Christians in Dearborn, Michigan. You will see these Muslim thugs taunting the Christians, cursing them, throwing bottles, and even chunks of concrete at them. One scumbag, punk even throws a plastic milk carton at the Christians.

You will also see Dearborn police ignoring these crimes. Why? Because Dearborn police don’t care about enforcing the law. They care about placating their Muslim citizens. It is easier for Dearborn cops to allow these Muslims to attack Christians and then to blame it all on the Christians than to uphold the law much less the U.S. Constitution.

This is truly disgusting…

Why are these Muslim creeps doing this? Because these few Christians wanted to stage a little march sporting their banners and touting their cause. And what could be more American than wanting to have a little march, protest or otherwise?
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Inexcusable: Thad McCotter Out of Congress Over Petition Sigs Snafu

June 4, 2012 | Filed Under Congress, Crime, Elections, Ethics, GOP, Government, House of Representatives, Michigan, Republicans, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

What an inelegant way for such an illustrious career to end — perhaps if only temporarily. Congressman Thad McCotter (R, Mich) not only didn’t get enough signatures on his nominating petitions to get himself on the ballot for his reelection, the petitions his team did turn in were rife with duplicates and outright fraud. Now he’s announced that he is not running for reelection because of all this.

McCotter, 46, has been in Congress for ten years and has been considered a rising conservative star. He even made an abortive attempt to run for the 2012 GOP nomination for the White House. Now, he’s out of Congress on his ear due to nothing other than neglect of the nomination process.

McCotter initially announced that he was going to carry out a write-in campaign but has given up that idea, too.

As he announced the end of his last ditch effort to keep his seat, he had a message for Michiganders. “To those who unhappy at this news, I’m sorry; to those happy at this news, you’re welcome,” he said.

The write-in effort was necessary because McCotter’s campaign utterly bollixed the nominating petitions, didn’t get enough signatures, and clearly committed fraud in order to try and get the petitions in on time.
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Wealthy Michigan Teacher Upset She Can’t Retire at 47

April 20, 2012 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Budget, Democrats/Leftists, Elections, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Public Employees Unions, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

It’s just unfair, isn’t it? I mean, if an $80,000-per-year, union protected, unfireable, teacher can’t retire at the extremely young age of 47 while the rest of us have to work into our 70s, well, what kind of world are we living in? That’s how teachers in Michigan feel, anyway.

Just ask the haughty Terri List, a Michigan public school teacher from Saginaw Township. She’s entirely disgusted with all those ignorant taxpayers — who vote in evil Republicans — that won’t let her retire at 70% of her salary at a sprightly 47-years-of-age. She’s so upset that she’s telling anyone that will listen that being a teacher isn’t worth the effort.

On the government union site run by the Michigan Education Association, Mz List is seen carping that waiting to retire at 60 is a travesty for the teaching profession. In what rotten world do people have to wait until they are 60 to retire, anyway!?

… only the rest of us, Mz List, only the rest of us. You know the “us” I’m speaking of Mz List? Yeah, the “us” that are with our taxes forced to pay your exorbitant salary, your overly generous benefits, and your retirement in your middle age.
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More Union Workers Caught Blowing Weed on Break Time

November 29, 2011 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Business, Crime, Detroit, Jobs, Michigan, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Not long ago a series of Detroit sting-styled TV News reports found autoworkers getting high and drunk during their lunch breaks. Now WJBK has found the same problem with the union workers at an aerospace factory.

Tower Defense and Aerospace Factory Workers Party at Lunch: MyFoxDETROIT.com

The company claims it has “been investigating” the employees. But the fact is, if these workers were not protected by unions they’d have been properly fired the second management realized that they were doing illegal drugs on company property during their break time.

It shouldn’t take a TV expose for a company to be able to fire criminals! But that’s what happens with unions. They protect criminals.
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Mich. House Moves to Ban Union Dues Deducted from Teachers’ Paychecks

September 15, 2011 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Budget, Capitalism, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Education, Government, Government, Corruption, House of Representatives, Liberals, Michigan, Public Employees Unions, Regulation, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

A new measure has been introduced in the Michigan House of Representatives that would ban school districts from automatically deducting union dues from teachers’ paychecks and handing that money over to unions.

The practice of having state governments deducting dues automatically from state employees is quite common in northern and western states that are in thrall to the unions. It is a major payoff to unions to have governments automatically deduct dues from the paychecks of government employees, too.

It does seem odd that government is handling union dues, of course, but the reason it is done is because if government didn’t automatically deduct the dues and hand the cash over to the unions, those unions would have a harder time getting timely dues payments from members. If employees were responsible for paying their own union dues — as they should be required to do — then unions would find payment a bit less reliable than when government does the job.
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Michigan Public School Illegally Uses Robocall System Against GOP Governor

July 20, 2011 | Filed Under Budget, Children, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Education, Elections, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Public Employees Unions, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

News has emerged that a Michigan public school illegally used its automatic phone calling system to call the homes of every student to urge parents to join the recall effort against Republican Governor Rick Snyder last month. To imagine that they can illegally use public school facilities for a partisan, left-wing political effort, this is the arrogance of left-wingers in our mis-educational system writ large.

It is certainly illegal for a school to put it’s telephone alert system for partisan political use, but that is what happened nonetheless. Here is what the message said:

This is a message from the Lawrence Public Schools (inaudible) alert system. This is an informational item and not directly associated with the school. Concerned parents interested in cuts to education . . . we’re here to inform you that there is information about the problem. Also, be advised that there is a petition to recall Governor Snyder. If you want, stop by Chuck Moden’s house right by the school June 7th/8th between 3:30 and 4:00 pm. Thank you. Goodbye.

(To hear a recording of the message, click here.)
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Grand Rapids, Michigan Refuses to be Called a Dying City!

June 2, 2011 | Filed Under Budget, Business, Michigan, Music, Taxes, Video, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

Not long ago the City of Grand Rapids, Michigan was called a “dying city” by Newsweek. The folks living there took exception to that characterization.

So, a couple of 5,000 citizens or so decided to get together and make a music video to show their civic pride…

Read the story of the making of this fun video.

GM Exec: Reporting GM’s Failures Hurts… Republicans?

May 5, 2011 | Filed Under Barack Obama, Budget, Capitalism, Communism, Congress, Democrats/Leftists, Detroit, Economy/Finances, GOP, Government, Government, Corruption, House of Representatives, Liberals, Michigan, President, Regulation, Socialism, Stimulus, Taxes, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

In an odd turn of events, former GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz thinks that anyone that criticizes GM is not only “mis-informed” but insists that those “foaming ideologues” that criticize the car giant are “damaging the Republican Party.”

It is interesting that an executive in the company derided as “Government Motors” is trying to direct attention away from his minders in the Obama administration and toward the opposing party, and just before a general election at that.

It is also interesting to see Lutz defending GM as the “future” of the car business. Lately GM has not been turning out the sort of products that puts the company at the head of much of anything.
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Warrantless Searches By Police of Your Cell Phone

April 25, 2011 | Filed Under 4th Amendment, Constitution, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Detroit, Ethics, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Police, Rights, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

News during this past week a story made the rounds that police in Michigan may be using a device in random traffic stops that instantly copies all the data on your cell phone and stores it for later use by police. It was said that this data copying is going on without consent and without a warrant. Michigan police are denying this claim, but the ACLU posted a letter warning them against this policy regardless. The fear here is, of course, that copying cell phone data without a warrant is a violation of the Fourth Amendment’s proscription against illegal search and seizure.

This device copies everything that is on your phone. Your contacts, your emails, your texts, other instant messages, what aps you use, web bookmarks and usage, GPS location info… every bit of data stored on your phone is instantly copied into the device and into the data base maintained by police.

Famed blogger Glenn Reynolds, a lawyer by trade, seems to think that it is obviously a violation of the Fourth and that current law can even be used as precedent to assure that fact. Others are not so sure.
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Absurdity: Detroit’s Mayor has 48 City Unions to Deal With

April 19, 2011 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Budget, Democrats/Leftists, Detroit, Economy/Finances, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Taxes, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Want to know one of the reasons that Detroit (and every other major US city) is in such trouble? Democrat Mayor Dave Bing is struggling with a black hole of a budget deficit that he is stuck dealing with and one of his biggest stumbling blocks to fiscal sanity is the government unions. Oh, it isn’t just a few city government unions, either. He has 48 of them to deal with. 48 government unions all sucking up the tax payer’s dollars!

Granted Mayor Bing has decided not to take steps that might alleviate the budget long-term (like abolishing certain programs and city departments), but as the Detroit Free Press notes the unions are a major problem causing the city to spend $1.08 in employee benefits for every dollar the city spends on payroll.

As things stand the city has 8,000 active employees but is stuck with a legacy cost of 22,000 retired workers. Because of this, fully 30% of Detroit’s budget is going to retirees’ pension benefits.
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Mich. Teachers Assoc. Features Photo of Gov. Snyder as Devil on Facebook Page

March 31, 2011 | Filed Under Budget, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, GOP, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Mackinac Center, Michigan, Public Employees Unions, Republicans, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy has a devil of a story. It appears that the Michigan Education Association was hosting a photo of Michigan Governor Rick Snyder replete with bloodspatters and occult symbols making the governor out to be the devil. (See image below)

The Mackinac Center alerted the MEA about the offensive image that had been on the page since March 11 and the teachers group claimed they had no idea it was there and did not put it there themselves.

How it is that such an image can for days be on the MEA’s official Facebook page and the organization not knowing it is rather absurd.

“We do monitor our page — unfortunately, we missed this one (items move down the Facebook feed pretty quickly, so if we miss it, it can get buried fast),” Pratt said in an email. “We’ve deleted the item. Thank you for bringing it to our attention.”

Remember, folks, THESE are the sort of people “teaching” our children!

Michigan: Teachers Trying to Hide Union Activism in School Email Accounts

March 25, 2011 | Filed Under Budget, Children, Democrats/Leftists, Detroit, Ethics, Government, Government, Corruption, Judges, Labor Law, Liberals, Michigan, Public Employees Unions, Regulation, Supreme Court, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Michigan’s union thugs have found a new way to hide their on-the-job union activism from the prying eyes of public transparency — or at least they think they have. Activist school teachers are using their state-sponsored email accounts to discuss their strike ideas, their union work slow down ideas and other illegal activities but are claiming that these emails are “personal” and therefore should not be open to Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA) requests by the state’s budget hawks, government transparency advocates, and the news media.

Michigan’s Mackinac Center for Public Policy recently reported that the Michigan Education Association has sent out messages to its members that they should exclude any emails sent from school-owned email accounts in FOIA requests because they are “personal” emails and are legally not eligible for FOIA requests.
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Democrat Election Fraud: Fake Tea Partiers Charged

March 18, 2011 | Filed Under Conservatives, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Elections, Ethics, GOP, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Regulation, Republicans, Vote Fraud, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Early in 2010 two former leaders of the Michigan Democrat Party came up with a brilliant idea, one that has just gotten them charged with election fraud.

Back in May of 2010, it was discovered that a new party was circulating petitions to get itself official recognized by the state as an official political party. It was supposed to be called “The Tea Party.” Local activist and blogger, the late Chet Zarko, tracked down who was behind the petition drive and found that this “Tea Party” was being pushed by a group well known to be a fixture in Michigan democrat Party activism. This called into question the legitimacy of this “Tea Party” party.

Eventually it was discovered that the new “Tea Party” party was the brainchild of then Oakland County Democratic Chair Mike McGuinness and Democratic Operations Director Jason Bauer. They intended to use it to cause chaos on the ballot and split the Republican vote by fooling voters into thinking that a “Tea Party” candidate was, well, a Tea Party guy.
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Tolerant Union Protester Damages Capitol Armed with Knife

March 18, 2011 | Filed Under Budget, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Ethics, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, New Jersey, Public Employees Unions, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Law breaking and violence has always been the stock and trade of unions and today’s budget conflagrations are no different as witness the most recent threatening actions by a union thug, this one in Lansing, Michigan, the Wolverine State’s capitol city.

On March 17 a man was arrested at the Capitol armed with a “sharp-edged weapon,” after he broke through a window and assaulting officers. 13 other protesters accompanying the man in his illegal entry and were charged with trespassing.

Meanwhile, in Camden, New Jersey, the police union chief there has compared Governor Chris Christie to Hitler. More of that “new tone” we keep hearing about from Democrats, I suppose.
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Union Thugs Attack Petition Worker, Destroys Petitions

March 18, 2011 | Filed Under Budget, Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Ethics, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, New Jersey, Public Employees Unions, Taxes, Teachers Unions, Unions, Warner Todd Huston, Wisconsin | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

From Joe Schoffstall we find yet another example of the way unions and Democrats use thug tactics to force their way on those around them, yet one more example of how Democrats and union thugs don’t care about democracy or the American system when it comes to their ill-gotten gains and freebies paid for on the backs of the working poor.

The scene was a petition drive aimed at recalling a Democrat state senator and the participants are a bunch of union thugs one of whom grabbed up all the completed petitions, defaced them, and then ripped them up.

As Schoffestall explains:
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Union Boss: Yeah We’ll Talk, But Go Our Way or You’re a ‘Human Rights Violator’

January 14, 2011 | Filed Under Anti-Americanism, Business, Capitalism, Jobs, Liberals, Michigan, Society/Culture, UAW, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

As President Obama clucks his tongue at America for “pointing fingers” and “assigning blame” in our political debate, and as his friends on the far left ignore him and point their fingers and assign blame to the Republicans, Tea Partiers, and Sarah Palin, at least one union chief in Detroit is doing his part to add to the political vitriol by charging anyone that disagrees with him with being a “human rights violator.”

Oh, he’s all about sitting down at the table and talking, he claims. Yet, United Auto Workers President Bob King is ready to finger point and accuse people of a vile abuse of basic human rights if they don’t bend over and take it up the tailpipe courtesy of those greedy, profligate unions.

For Crain’s Detroit David Barkholz reports that the UAW chief is all prepared for negotiations with the Big Three auto makers this year, but his tone makes it pretty clear that his idea of negotiations is his way or the highway. His vitriol is already flowing before the first negotiation session begins.
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Truth in Accounting Issues: Michigan’s ‘Financial State of the State,’ True Burden $50.1 Billion

January 11, 2011 | Filed Under Budget, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Taxes, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

From the Institute for Truth in Accounting…

Chicago (January 6, 2011) — Today, the Institute for Truth in Accounting released Michigan’s “Financial State of the State.” After an intensive review of the State’s 2009 audited financial report the Institute determined the State is in a precarious financial position because it does not have the funds available to pay more than $50.1 billion of the State’s commitments as they come due. Each taxpayer’s share of this financial burden equals $16,400.

Michigan state law requires a balanced budget. “If governors and legislatures had truly balanced the state’s budget, no taxpayer’s financial burden would exist,” said Sheila Weinberg, founder and CEO of the Institute for Truth in Accounting (IFTA). She continued, “A state budget is not balanced if past costs, including those for employees’ retirement benefits, are pushed into the future.” The Institute reviewed 2009 data because the September 30, 2010 financial reports for Michigan have not yet been made available. Weinberg added, “How can legislators and the governor be making decisions without timely financial data?”
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Unions: Who Needs ‘Em?

December 4, 2010 | Filed Under Business, Capitalism, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Government, Government, Corruption, Jobs, Liberals, Michigan, Thierry Godard, UAW, Unemployment, Unions | 1 Comment

-By Thierry Godard

Detroit in 2010 is unlike any other American city. Once a bastion of American industrial might, Detroit was not only home to the Big Three, but a thriving community of small business owners who supported the automotive industry. In a sad twist of fate, Detroit has come to symbolize the crippled state of the American economy.

Foreclosure has rendered the city nearly vacant. Detroit is a modern-day ghost town. The infamous bailout of GM and Chrysler came about largely because of the massive obligations these automotive companies had to pay to their labor unions. The Democratic Congress, left with the option of propping up failing companies or risking a complete breakdown of mid-western society, chose the bailout instead of confronting the true problem—unions—head on.

It’s no secret to industry insiders that the United Auto Workers’ unreasonable demands played a large role in the collapse of the auto industry in 2008. The irony, of course, is that the UAW’s rampant waste prompted the downfall of the very industry it not only claims to serve, but wholly relies on for the employment of its members.
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Nanny State Republican Upton Wants House Energy Committee Chair?

November 9, 2010 | Filed Under Business, Economy/Finances, Environment, Global Warming, Michigan, Nanny State, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Light bulb banning Republican Fred Upton (R, Mich) is angling to become the new GOP chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee as the House begins to look to adjusting to reflect the Republican’s tidal wave election. Upton is a perfect example of the sort of representative that the new GOP congress needs to think about very carefully before elevating them to higher positions.

Upton has the seniority to take the position, it is true, but his past nanny state-styled votes for banning the light bulb in favor of CFLs makes his bid troubling taking into consideration the conservative direction voters went on November 2 — and Upton didn’t just vote for the bill, he co-sponsored it with the left leaning Dem. Jane Harmon of California.

Upton’s voting record is quite a mixed bag where it concerns proving his conservative credentials. Along with the nanny-state light bulb ban vote, Upton also voted against extending the Bush tax cuts, he was in favor of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), as well as the first stimulus bill.
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John Conyers Speaking at Democratic Socialists of America Meeting

October 21, 2010 | Filed Under Budget, Communism, Congress, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Elections, Government, Government, Corruption, House of Representatives, Liberals, Michigan, Socialism, Taxes, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Should Democrats “pal around” with socialists? Whether it is a good idea or not here we have a sitting congressman actually going to a group of socialists and addressing them at one of their meetings. It wasn’t that many years ago that such a meeting would ring the death knell for a politician’s career.

Today, though, it goes entirely without note.

On October 5, 2010, Congressman John Conyers went personally to speak before a meeting in Michigan’s of members of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

The socialist that introduced Conyers reminded the gathered comrades that Conyers was a major sponsor of the single payer healthcare system. Amazingly Conyers noted that he was “honored” to be introduced by the socialist, too, and paid all due deference to those assembled.
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Mich. Ponders ‘Criminal Public Official’ Ban, Shame is They Even Have to

October 6, 2010 | Filed Under Crime, Democrats/Leftists, Elections, Government, Government, Corruption, Liberals, Michigan, Warner Todd Huston | Comments Off

-By Warner Todd Huston

Thanks to an increasingly lowered level of public discourse and comportment, more than ever those notorious or infamous for their behavior are help up as people worth applauding. Just as unfortunate, many of these lowlives are ending up voted in as our representatives in state and federal offices. Michigan thinks it has a way to address this problem, but the sad thing is they even have to do it at all.

A November ballot proposal will give voters in the Wolverine state the opportunity to decide if criminals should be barred from holding office for at least 20 years after they’ve earned certain types of felony convictions.

As the AP reports:
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WOW, Democrat Jokes That Seniors Should Be Denied End-Of-Life Healthcare

September 29, 2010 | Filed Under Congress, Democrats/Leftists, Elections, Government, Government, Corruption, Health, Liberals, Michigan, Warner Todd Huston | 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston

Democrat Gary McDowell is running to replace Bart Stupak (D, MI) in Michigan’s First District and while he may be hoping he might get the votes of seniors coming to the end of their time here on this mortal coil, he sure seems reticent to give them the medical care they’ll need to be around much longer after the election!

At a campaign appearance, McDowell agreed with those Obamacare supporters that think giving lifesaving medical care to seniors at end of life is a “resource” that needs to be rationed.

McDowell even makes a joke of the issue by saying that those that say end-of-life care should be rationed must be “from a safe district” because the “inconvenient truth” as he sees it is a tough pill to swallow.

Death panels, anyone?

Like a true Democrat McDowell thinks that setting up death panels should be swathed in less alarming language but that they should still be set up. “I was more diplomatic in not mentioning the end of life,” he said to those gathered. Yet he still meant to talk about how we need to ration healthcare at the end of life because “as adults” we need to accept McDowell’s “truth” that it’s just too expensive to save grandma’s life.

Let’s hope that Michiganders vote for Doctor Dan Benishek instead of McDowell for Michigan’s First.

http://www.benishekforcongress.com/
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Michigan Home Healthcare Workers Sue State Over Forced Unionization

September 16, 2010 | Filed Under AFSCME, Budget, Business, Democrats/Leftists, Economy/Finances, Government, Government, Corruption, Health, Jobs, Liberals, Michigan, Public Employees Unions, SEIU, Taxes, UAW, Unions, Warner Todd Huston | 2 Comments

-By Warner Todd Huston

So imagine that you are working out of your home or the home of a friend. Say you are helping care for your own developmentally disabled relative or that of another. You are working for a family, not a company, and you are not employed by the state. Then one day you get a letter in the mail that says you have been forced by the state to join a union and henceforth you will be paying dues by having some of your salary removed by the state and given to the union. Does this sound like you are living and working in America? It is if you are a home healthcare worker in the State of Michigan.

Because of a special deal made behind the scenes between Mich. Gov. Jennifer Granholm and two unions, the United Auto Workers (UAW) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Michigan’s 40,000 in-home healthcare workers were unionized by a shady “vote” of less than 20% of these workers in 2006 via a mail-in ballot that most workers had no idea even existed.

The forced unionization has been in and out of courts since 2006 and now it is about to go back in again as a group of in-home healthcare workers is suing the state for driving them into a union against their will.
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