Michigan Caucus

Kochville: Gag on This

What’s going on in Kochville, Michigan? Well, plenty it seems.

First up, come recent news reports that the township board of trustees voted to gag it’s own elected members to stop them from talking to reporters or risk being “fired†from office.

According to the policy that the board approved February 21 – just three weeks before National Sunshine Week – trustees who talk with reporters are “subject to removal from their position by the Township Board.â€

National ridicule caused the board to subsequently “clarify†the policy as meaning that only the township supervisor – sort of like the mayor – could officially speak for the township. Employees and township volunteers apparently still face the threat of dismissal for exercising their First Amendment rights.

The township attorney who actually drafted the policy says the measure is aimed at controlling “negative media coverage.† It doesn’t look like it worked, dude.

Brewer Threatened with Arrest

Dick Devos spokes­man, John Trus­­cott, calls the po­lice to re­move Mark Brew­er from the side­walk in front of the Lan­sing De­­Vos Head­­quar­ters while the lat­er was set­ting up for a press con­­fer­­ence.

Oakland Exec Violating the Campaign Finance Act?

Copyright 2006 Michigan Caucus

(Cross-posted at Michigan Liberal) By now every­one’s heard of blowhard L. Brooks Patterson’s pro­pos­ed petition drive to kill the state’s Single Bus­i­ness Tax and replace it with, well, nothing.

At his 13th “state of the county†address February 8, a bombastic self-congratulatory screed before his corps of sycophants and hangers-on, Patterson call­ed the SBT a “damnable†tax, crediting it with kill­ing the current Michigan economy. A bizarre tribute for a tax that’s been around for over 30 years. Hey, Brooks, what suddenly made the SBT jump up and bite you this year?

But, none of this really matters. We all know that these sound bites are just bullshit to put a plausible face on an effort by Patterson to do his corporate buddies’ bidding: kill the tax.

What the Michigan GOP Says About Michigan Jobs

"We are currently losing one job every 10 minutes,
and it's getting worse."
Dick DeVos - GOP Gubernatorial Candidate

"That's one job [lost] every 20 minutes."
Michigan Republican Party Website

"Which one is it, 10 or 20?"
Michigan Caucus (Cross posted at the Michigan Liberal)