Progress Michigan blog posts.
“Temper tantrums.” “Time out.” No matter how Republicans have spun state Reps. Lisa Brown and Barb Byrum being muzzled on the House floor, it’s still wrong. Rep. Wayne Schmidt in an interview with Michael Patrick Shiels recently described it as “a time out.” Listen: “You know, as I said to someone up north here, it’s…
A firestorm has followed the anti-woman omnibus that has chugged its way through the state house. I call it the anti-woman omnibus, because that’s what it is: anti-woman. When female legislators attempted to speak about the anti-woman omnibus, they were gaveled down. Rep. Barb Byrum (D-Onondaga) wasn’t allowed to speak on the floor to her…
The Republicans in the state of Michigan have openly declared war on middle class families, the poor, seniors and students. So it should come as no surprise that they’ve expanded their attacks to women. A massive 60-page omnibus bill introduced last week drastically limits women’s health access, and could shut down every abortion provider in…
If there is one simple lesson to be taken from last night’s results in the attempted recall of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, it’s that it is especially hard for one side to win an election when they are being so massively outspent. In recent days, reports have surfaced that conservative millionaires are aiming to put…
The attack on women’s health is alive and well in Michigan. This Thursday, the Michigan House Health Policy Committee is considering legislation which, if passed, would result in the biggest assault on women’s health in our state’s history! House Bills 5711, 5712, and 5713 represent a sweeping and unprecedented attack on women’s reproductive health. It…
Yesterday the so-called “Michigan Truth Squad” called foul on Sen. Gretchen Whitmer for, “not backing up claims that the pension tax has placed ‘a great burden’ on seniors.” Really? According to the Truth Squad’s own analysis, the tax “is expected to raise about $344 million in fiscal year 2013.” The simple fact is that Michigan…
Imagine being 14-years-old. Your mother passes away, and your entire life is in upheaval as you grapple with her death. Now imagine your father doesn’t value you at all and sells you into slavery. This isn’t the twisted plot of a novel; it’s the reality that Cayla Robertson faced as a teenager. When Cayla was…
Yesterday Pete Hoekstra – whose past misdeeds in his Senate campaign have been thoroughly chronicled in this space – did it again. In his desperation to appeal to the worst elements of the Tea Party, he apparently felt it was necessary to suggest that the federal government should create a new office in order to investigate whether…
Last week, using the Twitter hashtag #23dollars, Michiganders Tweeted their ideas of what the average Michigan family wouldn’t be able to buy with the $23 election year tax gimmick originally proposed by Republicans in the state House. The gimmick had a total cost of $90 million to Michigan taxpayers, and came in the same year when…
Today Progress Michigan released a list of items that Michigan taxpayers won’t be able to buy with the 0.1 percent “income tax cut” that Lansing Republicans are proposing as they look ahead to November. For taxpayers earning $50,000 a year, the gimmickk would save about $23 in 2012. Click over to Pinterest and check out…