Immigration reform would be a job creator for Northern Michigan, says Congressman Dan Benishek. But the Republican-controlled House of Representatives won’t move on immigration reform, following the Tea Party defeat of Majority Leader Eric Cantor in June.
Dave Barrons, northern Michigan’s trusted television meteorologist for nearly two decades, officially declared his candidacy today for a seat on the Leelanau County Commission. Barrons, a Democrat, lives in Elmwood Township in the county’s southeast corner. He seeks to unseat District 2 incumbent, Republican Deb Rushton, in this November’s election.
When I spoke on the phone recently with Derek Bailey, current chair of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians and now Democratic candidate for U.S. Congress, he was crossing the Mackinac Bridge and returning home to Traverse City. The tires on his 2005 Saturn VUE hummed loudly as he passed over the rumble strips on the majestic arch that connects Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas.
Cindy Hollenbeck surprised herself this past winter when she took a personal day and drove to Lansing to join a demonstration against Michigan Governor Rick Snyder’s Emergency Manager bill — which was signed into law on March 16 and gave the governor the right to dissolve economically troubled schools and public municipalities and appoint his own fiscal managers to run them.
In reality, there are three parties actively running in these midterm elections: Democratic incumbents, Republican moderates and Republican Tea Party extremists who would have us storm the kitchen, fire the chefs, dump out the giant vat of slow-cooking soup, and start all over again. Michigan largely appears to have bucked the trend of Tea Party-rage this election season.