#michigan laws

[politijohn]

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More of this!

[reasonsforhope]

"Two years ago, the biggest battles in state legislatures were over voting rights. Democrats loudly — and sometimes literally — protested as Republicans passed new voting restrictions in states like Georgia, Florida and Texas. This year, attention has shifted to other hot-button issues, but the fight over the franchise has continued. Republicans have enacted dozens of laws this year that will make it harder for some people to vote in future elections. 

But this year, voting-rights advocates got some significant wins too: States — controlled by Democrats and Republicans — have enacted more than twice as many laws expanding voting rights as restricting them, although the most comprehensive voter-protection laws passed in blue states. In all, 39 states and Washington, D.C., have changed their election laws in some way this year...

Where voting rights were expanded in 2023 (so far)

Unlike two years ago, though, we’d argue that the bigger story of this year’s legislative sessions was all the ways states made it easier to vote. As of July 21, according to the Voting Rights Lab, [which runs an excellent and completely comprehensive tracker of election-related bills], 834 bills had been introduced so far this year expanding voting rights, and 64 had been enacted. What’s more, these laws are passing in states of all hues.

Democratic-controlled jurisdictions (Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island and Washington) enacted 33 of these new laws containing voting-rights expansions, but Republican-controlled states (Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming) were responsible for 23 of them. The remaining eight became law in states where the two parties share power (Nevada, Pennsylvania and Virginia).

That said, not all election laws are created equal, and the most comprehensive expansive laws passed in blue states. For example: 

New Mexico adopted a major voting-rights package that will automatically register New Mexicans to vote when they interact with the state’s Motor Vehicle Division, allow voters to request absentee ballots for all future elections without the need to reapply each time and restore the right to vote to felons who are on probation or parole. The law also allows Native Americans to register to vote and receive ballots at official tribal buildings and makes it easier for Native American officials to get polling places set up in pueblos and on tribal land.

Minnesota followed suit with a law also establishing automatic voter registration and a permanent absentee-voting list. The act allows 16- and 17-year-olds to preregister to vote too. Meanwhile, a separate new law also reenfranchises felons on probation or parole.

Michigan enacted eight laws implementing a constitutional amendment expanding voting rights that voters approved last year. Most notably, the laws guarantee at least nine days of in-person early voting and allow counties to offer as many as 29. The bills also allow voters to fix mistakes on their absentee-ballot envelopes so that their ballot can still count, track the status of their ballot online, and use student, military and tribal IDs as proof of identification. 

Connecticut became the sixth state to enact a state-level voting-rights act, which bars municipalities from discriminating against minority groups in voting, requires them to provide language assistance to certain language minority groups and requires municipalities with a record of voter discrimination to get preclearance before changing their election laws. The Nutmeg State also approved 14 days of early voting and put a constitutional amendment on the 2024 ballot that would legalize no-excuse absentee voting.

No matter its specific provisions, each of these election-law changes could impact how voters cast their ballots in future elections, including next year’s closely watched presidential race. There’s a good chance your state amended its election laws in some way this year, so make sure you double-check the latest rules in your state before the next time you vote."

-via FiveThirtyEight (via FutureCrunch), July 24, 2023

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Former President Donald Trump has filed a new lawsuit against Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer accusing her of breaking state law when she allowed voter registration at places such as the Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Small Business Administration offices.

The 22-page lawsuit, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court Western District of Michigan, claims only the state legislature, not the governor, can designate voter registration agencies (VRA’s). Whitmer last year issued an executive directive to designate Saginaw VA Medical Center, the Detroit VA Medical Center and the Department’s Detroit Regional Office as VRAs. She also allowed people to register to vote at the state Department of Health and Human Services and Housing Development Authority, among other agencies.

“Voting is the lifeblood of our democracy,” she said at the time of the directive. “When more Michiganders vote, our government is more accountable to the people. I am fully committed to protecting the fundamental right to vote, making participation in our democracy more accessible, combating misinformation, and empowering all eligible voters to make their voices heard.”

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and elections chief Jonathan Brater are also named in the suit. Attorneys for Trump say Whitmer’s directive “undermines the integrity of elections by increasing the opportunity for individuals to register to vote even though they are ineligible to do so.” The plaintiffs claim they must “deploy their time and resources to monitor Michigan elections for fraud and abuse.” Trump’s team provides no evidence of any voter fraud.

The lawsuit says no VRAs have been established in Michigan since 1995 when then-Gov. John Engler enacted them in response to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. Whitmer in her directive said, “The operative list of Michigan’s voter registration agencies is nearly 30 years old and in need of an update.”

Trump’s lawsuit also claims that the VA and SBA violated the registration act and are “undermining confidence in the integrity of the electoral process and discouraging participation in the democratic process, which will harm the electoral prospects of Republican candidates.”

Whitmer has become one of the people mentioned to replace President Joe Biden on the ballot should he decide to step aside in November’s presidential election, though Biden insists he’s staying in the race. She has expressed support for Biden. Either way, Michigan is expected to be a key battleground state.

The lawsuit asked a judge to order an injunction to bar the SBA and VA from operating as voter registration agencies without authorization from the state legislature and declare Whitmer’s executive directive as invalid.

A spokesperson for Whitmer said in an email to Law&Crime that her office is reviewing the lawsuit.

[beetnelson]

It recently dawned on me that it probably wasn't even just the arson that put Simon in prison..

[lookninjas]

The last time they won a Division Championship was in 1993, when they took the NFC Central Championships.

[johnschneiderblog]

Converting cash into trash

On a recent walk, Sharon plucked these cans from the shoulder of U.S. 23; in fact, she filled her shopping bag before she finished her walk and had to take a second walk to retrieve the overflow.

What conclusions can we draw here ...?

That Sharon is looking for ways to supplement our income, one dime at a time ... ? Nope.

That some people see the world as their garbage dump ...? We already knew that.

That Bud Light is the beer of choice for people who like to throw trash from car windows ...? Too small a sample.

Try this one: Michigan's bottle/can deposit law - one of the best things to ever come out of the state legislature - is losing steam.

The program was temporarily suspended during the germaphobic days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Before that, the return rate was about 90 percent - the highest in the country. Now it's about 73 percent, meaning that $100 million worth of bottles and can deposits is left on the table every year.

Or, more accurately, left in our landfills and on or highways.

[torsamors]

on a long car ride and im curious

[moderat50]

Vance Positions

Vance wondered if Trump could be "America's Hitler."

[galerymod]

A myth (more rarely mythus, obsolete mythe, plural myths, from ancient Greek μῦθος, "sound, word, speech, tale, legendary story, tale", Latin mythus) is in its original meaning a narrative. In religious myths, the existence of humans is linked to the world of gods or spirits.

Myths claim validity for the truth they assert. This claim to truth has been criticised since the Greek Enlightenment by the pre-Socratics (e.g. Xenophanes, around 500 BC). For the Sophists, myth stands in contrast to logos, which attempts to justify the truth of its assertions through rational evidence.

In a broader sense, myth also refers to people, things or events of high symbolic significance or simply a false idea or lie*.

For example, the adjective "mythical" is often used in colloquial language as a synonym for "fabulous-vague, fabulous or legendary".

Wikipedia

How can it be that a man who describes himself in public as a successful businessman worth billions cannot pay a financial penalty and that someone wants to vouch for him?

Trump can't pay 450 million dollars

In February, former US President Trump was fined 450 million dollars in New York for fraud. Now his lawyers have announced: Trump cannot pay. According to his lawyers, former US President Donald Trump is currently unable to guarantee payment of a fine of more than 450 million dollars from a fraud trial. Despite great efforts and negotiations with around 30 companies, it has not yet been possible to obtain such a guarantee, according to a letter from his legal team to the competent court in New York. Several US media outlets unanimously quote from the letter, arguing that it would be "practically impossible" to make the payment on time.

Trump has received a refusal from 30 bail companies, according to a letter from his lawyers to an appeals court on Monday. Many would not provide collateral in excess of 100 million dollars and would not accept real estate as collateral.

Forbes magazine estimates the property entrepreneur's total assets at 2.6 billion dollars. Trump recently stated that his cash assets totalled around 400 million dollars.

"I thought he was a billionaire? Is he lying to the public or the court?" Law professor Andrew Weissmann poses the question of questions on X in relation to Donald Trump's liquidity: How much is there to the image of the self-made billionaire?

How much money does Trump himself have?

Last year, Trump testified in court that he had a cash fortune of around 400 million US dollars. The latest legal documents indicate that he does not have anywhere near that amount of money at his disposal, Professor of Business Law Will Thomas from the University of Michigan. However, he and the Trump Organisation would have significantly more assets at their disposal. His largest asset holdings are tied up in property. If Trump is unable to pay in other ways, he could be forced to sell some of his properties, according to Professor Thomas. His lawyers want to prevent this and warn that Trump would have no way of buying them back if he is successful with his appeal.

Where could the money come from?

Without liquid funds, there are two options for Trump to prevent enforcement for the time being.

Guarantees: A guarantee would probably be the only solution for him. This would allow him not to have to sell anything for the time being. At the same time, guarantors require collateral and often only accept cash or shares in return - not property. Trump also needs to find someone who is prepared to guarantee an enormous sum of over 550 million dollars.

Donations or campaign funds: He is also receiving support from private sources, but the sums are nowhere near enough. Trump supporters are collecting money for him on the internet, with over a million private donations having been collected so far.

Again and again, it is also about money from Trump's election campaign. Federal law prohibits Trump from using campaign funds for personal purposes. However, it is legally unclear to what extent campaign money from political action committees (PACs) and funds from the Republican National Committee (RNC) fall under this. But even these funds would be far from sufficient.

If he loses the aura of the successful billionaire self-made businessman, he also loses his aura of success.

mod

This kind of legal action would not only be a serious blow to Trump's finances, but also to his image, as he always praises himself as a brilliant businessman.

The biggest bankruptcies* of Donald Trump

It was always visible to everyone, but as long as you can keep generating capital, the myth can be maintained

Trump Ice

In 1995, Donald Trump founded the Trump Ice Natural Spring Water brand (Trump Ice for short) - his own brand of bottled drinking water. However, the sales figures were not particularly good. After missed payments to the producer and a lawsuit against Trump Ice in this connection, production was discontinued. Today, only bottles with collector's value are sold on eBay and the like.

Trump Steaks

Donald Trump founded his own steak company in 2007. The company was to be dedicated exclusively to selling his favourite food and running a steakhouse in Las Vegas. The prices for the steaks varied between 199 and 999 US dollars. Despite such bargain prices, the company had to close in the same year. The steakhouse was shut down after the health department found 51 health code violations.

Trump University

In 2005, Donald Trump opened "Trump University" - a distance learning university specialising in the real estate industry that was not officially recognised as a university. Enrolment cost up to 35,000 US dollars, but many of the course instructors, who were allegedly selected by Donald Trump himself, often did not have the appropriate qualifications. The school had to be closed down for good in 2011. Thousands of students filed a lawsuit against the former US president, who relented in 2017 and offered a settlement despite his supposed innocence. This was confirmed by the US Court of Appeal in 2018 and secured compensation of USD 25 million for the more than 4,000 ex-students.

New Jersey Generals

In 1984, Donald Trump bought his own football team, the New Jersey Generals. However, they did not play in the famous National Football League, the NFL, but in the smaller offshoot, the United States Football League (USFL). Just one year later, the team was bankrupt and the entire United States Football League with it. Trump had tried with all his might to bring about a merger of the UFSL with the NFL. This prevented Donald Trump from taking over a team in the NFL.

Trump Vodka

According to Donald Trump himself, he does not drink alcohol. However, this did not stop him from launching his own premium vodka on the market in 2005. However, production was discontinued in 2011.

Trump Magazine

Donald Trump made several attempts to land a hit in the luxury magazine segment. After two failed attempts, he launched the quarterly "Trump Magazine" in 2007, which covered topics such as yachts and other toys for the rich. However, the magazine was cancelled in 2009.

Gotrump

In 2006, Donald Trump ventured into a search engine for luxury travel. It included private jets, tickets for exclusive events and supposedly personal recommendations and travel tips from Donald Trump. However, it was shut down again after just one year due to poor reviews.

Trump: The Game

Trump tried twice to establish himself on the board game market with the board game "Trump: The Game", but failed twice. The game is, of course, about money. The game first came onto the market in 1989, but was discontinued shortly after its release. In 2005, he tried a new edition in collaboration with Parker Brothers, but this version also failed.

Trump Shuttle

In 1989, Trump bought his own airline, "Trump Shuttle". The airline was to fly business people back and forth between New York, Boston and Washington. The interior of the Boeing 727 was elegantly furnished with maple panelling and chrome seat belt buckles, and gold fittings were installed in the toilets. However, the luxury was too expensive for the passengers. Three years later, the over-indebted company was sold to US Airways.

Trump Entertainment Resorts

With the company "Trump Entertainment Resorts", Donald Trump operated several casinos in the gambling metropolis of Atlantic City, including: Trump Taj Mahal, Trump Plaza and Trump Marina. All were closed between 1999 and 2016, and the company filed for bankruptcy three times between 2004 and 2014. In 2014, debts are said to have totalled around 1.8 billion US dollars. Trump himself withdrew completely from the company in 2016 and sold his shares to billionaire Carl Icahn.

Trump Mortgage

In April 2006, Donald Trump announced the founding of his own mortgage bank, Trump Mortgage, at a press conference. He predicted a rosy future for his endeavour and that the bank would soon become the largest lender for home loans in the USA. However, as with "Trump Magazine", the timing was not exactly fortunate. Just one year later, the former US president's mortgage bank had to file for insolvency.

[whitesinhistory]

On July 27, 1967, a multi-day uprising of violent clashes between police and Black residents in Detroit ended. The conflict, which began on July 23, was the largest of the year and foreshadowed the violent unrest in cities across the nation the following year. At the conclusion of this conflict, dozens of people had been killed by law enforcement.

Beginning during World War I and continuing through the end of the 1960s, racial terror lynchings in the South fueled a massive exodus of African Americans from Southern states into urban ghettos in the North and West. In a brutal environment of racial subordination and terror, close to six million Black Americans fled the South’s racial caste system between 1910 and 1970. In 1910, Detroit’s population was 1.2% Black; by 1970, that number had risen to 43.7%.

After several years of postwar migration had increased Black populations in Northern cities, pervasive discrimination and segregation in employment, education, and housing resulted in the continuing exclusion of Black people from the benefits of economic progress. Police brutality was rampant in Black communities, and law enforcement was rarely, if ever, held accountable. In the summer of 1967, these issues culminated in a series of uprisings across several major Northern cities.

The Detroit rebellion began after police raided an after-hours club. Looting and fires broke out, and multiple law enforcement agencies were deployed. On July 26, police and National Guardsmen raided the Algiers motel looking for an alleged sniper. They found not a single gun on the premises, but instead tortured the Black men and white women they found there together and killed three Black teenagers, shooting two of them with shotguns at point-blank range. Despite two officers’ confessions, no one was ever convicted for their deaths. By the rebellion’s end, 33 African American and 10 white people had been killed, most at the hands of law enforcement.

Urban rebellions were widely dismissed as senseless “riots,” but many people today recount them as uprisings against oppressive and discriminatory practices that subjected Black residents to violence and inequality. “You see, you can only hold a person down for so long. After a while, they’re going to get tired. And that’s what happened,” explained Frank Thomas, who was 23 years old during the Detroit rebellion. “Basically, we wanted to be a part of the city of Detroit instead of being second-class citizens.”

[frankenstein-ate-my-left-shoe]

it's almost my birthday

it's almost my birthday

it's almost my birthday!

it's almost my birthday!!

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Conservatives are fuming after Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called out Ohio and Indiana for restricting LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights in her 2023 State of the State address.

“Bigotry is bad for business,” Whitmer exclaimed while discussing the need for Michigan to expand reproductive rights and LGBTQ+ anti-discrimination laws in the state.

Whitmer explained that not only is protecting these civil rights the right thing to do, but it’s also good for the economy because states lose talent when their laws are too extreme.

She then issued a direct challenge to her neighbors.

“Together, we are going to change Michigan from a state with century-old bans to forward looking protections. Our message is simple: we will fight for your freedom. And you know what? Let’s go on offense. I’ll go to any state that restricts people’s freedoms and win business and hardworking people from them. I’m looking at you, Ohio and Indiana.”

Michigan is currently experiencing a Democratic trifecta, with Democrats holding a majority in both legislative chambers and the governorship. Democrats also control the office of the Secretary of State and Attorney General. It is reportedly the first time in 40 years that Democrats control all levels of power in the state.

Ohio and Indiana have the exact opposite, with every significant office dominated by Republicans.

The Michigan GOP was not happy with Whitmer’s comments.

Republican House Rep. Andrew Beeler, told Fox2, “I think that it is remarkable that our state plan for economic development is to lure more businesses and people with the prospect of being able to kill unborn children.”

The state GOP, itself, tweeted out angrily, “No. You know who is losing talent? Michigan. Here it is again, Gretch – more people moved OUT of Michigan in 2022 than in.”

But many were quick to criticize the tweet for failing to recognize that last year, Republicans were in control of the legislature.

[thoughtportal]

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Michigan and what happens when gerrymandering is dismantled

[joe-england]

Michigan police officers' union should be ashamed of endorsing Trump

[william-r-melich]

Too Little, Too Late - 05/02/2024

Joe Biden finally came out today to address the pro-Palestinian protests that became violent at college campuses across America. He spoke from the White House in an unscheduled speech. “Violent protest is not protected. Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations. None of this is a peaceful protest. Threatening people, intimidating people, instilling fear in people is not peaceful protest. It’s against the law.” He further said that "dissent is essential to democracy", but that dissent shouldn't lead to chaos.

He was asked by a reporter if the National Guard should be used, he said no. He also spoke out about anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. “There should be no place on any campus, no place in America for anti-Semitism or threats of violence against Jewish students. There is no place for hate speech, or violence of any kind, whether it’s anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, or discrimination against Arab Americans or Palestinian Americans. It’s simply wrong. There’s no place for racism in America. It’s all wrong. It’s not American.” He's right about it being wrong, although I question whether Islamophobia is even a real thing. Yet he wasn't very strong and convincing in my opinion, but what could he really do? He's been trying to placate both sides of the equation because he desperately needs votes from the large Muslim, anti-Semitic populations in Michigan and Minnesota, while he can't alienate the larger populations of pro-Jewish voters. He's painted himself into a corner by trying to please both sides of the equation in his brief, three-and-a-half-minute speech days after these protestors started going too far by threatening violence and taking over some of the schools.

Universities along with state and local police have had to disperse the unruly protestors in several locations throughout the country for the last 3 days before Joey finally came out of his shell and broke his silence. A protest at UCLA was shut down this morning by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and other California law enforcement agencies after determining that the encampment on the campus was illegal. California governor Gavin Newsom responded on April 30th when the encampment was clashed by pro-Israel protestors, and he said this. “People have the right to get an education, the right to get a degree, the right to walk across the campus safely without fear of being attacked.”

The White House spokesperson, Jean-Pierre said this. “What we believe—and we’re very clear on this—is that peacefully protesting within the law is something that every American should have the right to do. We’re also going to call out any type of anti-Semitism that we are hearing, that we are seeing.” She wouldn't speak to the White House's position on whether they believe there were professional agitators and who could be funding them. She sucks! - In my opinion. And so does Shmoe Bumden, (Joe Biden) he's a compromised lazy bum! - Again, my opinion; what a weak and pathetic president. His response was too little and too late.

[mejomonster]

I just reblogged a post and saw some more good news

"Under Democratic control of the legislature and the governor’s office, the state has also made moves like banning so-called “conversion therapy” and repealed a decades-old abortion ban. Other measures, like the repeal of a law that requires insurance coverage for abortion to be opt-in and a series of gun control laws, also went into effect on Tuesday."