Tag: Washington

However, America is not a democracy; rather, the United States are a republic.  And that distinction isn't one of mere semantics.  In a republic, the voice of the people is more indirect the more non-local the matter is.  When it comes to elections, I can think of none more non-local than the presidential election.  Among the checks and balances the Founding Fathers included in the Constitution was the balance of the voice of the people with the voice of the states, thus the use of the Electoral College to elect the president every four years.

And yet, for the past 41 days, perhaps because even as recently as the day before Election Day eleven states (at a total of 146 electoral votes) were considered to be in the "tossup" column, there has been considerable behind-the-scenes debate about a potential "reform" to the way that some states apportion their electoral votes, a reform that, had it been in place during this election, may have significantly impacted the outcome.  Actually, instead of "reform" I should be referring to this as a "back to the basics" approach to the Electoral College.

That year, Yob was the chairman of the credentials committee, and during one of their meetings was invited into a side room into a conference with Rich Bond (then the RNC Chairman) and President Bush.  Bay Buchanan, Pat Buchanan's sister and campaign manager, was expected to be making an appearance at the meeting, and the president had some instructions for what he thought needed to be done.

What Bush wanted Yob to do was to let Buchanan lay out her entire case, put all her cards on the table.  After that, he was to spend the next 5 hours picking apart all of her arguments, and keep her in that room arguing her case for the rest of the afternoon.  And then, at 4 o'clock, he was to give up and let Buchanan have whatever she was still asking for.  She'd take the story back to her people that they'd fought all day with the establishment, and at least got them to give ground on what really mattered.  The story that would go back to the Bush supporters that they'd negotiated all day with the challenger's team, and finally given them their way on some positions that really didn't matter . . . for the good of the party.

I think that there is a lesson taught here that really should have been applied to the 2012 Republican Presidential Primary Campaign . . . and the 2012 Republican National Convention (especially when viewed in light of the 1964 campaign).

In the as yet unfinished fight to produce vehicles that are 'green' and have little carbon footprint, our automakers have been encouraged by the administration to produce a slew of not-ready-for-prime-time electric cars that not only cost too much, but go about 40 miles tops, with engines that might be better suited towards kitchen blenders or hand held power tools.  Michigan automakers have really gone to he!! in a hand basket.

I hold nothing against the volt, really.  It serves the purpose of salving eco guilt for some, and might even have a future, but the failed efforts of the government to convince enough buyers through rebates and credits of $7,000.00 are a perfect example of why we do not let government types choose which products are best for us.  The credits failed so miserably, that makers of the Chevy Volt are worried about the expiration of those credits after today.

Peruse Chevrolet's February sales release, and you'll notice one number that's blatantly missing: how many Chevy Volts were sold. The number - a very modest 281 - is available in the company's detailed data (PDF), but it apparently isn't something that GM wants to highlight. Keeping the number quiet is understandable, since it's lower than the 321 that Chevy sold in January.

The Autoblog-Green writer continues the article by desperately asking "why" the Volt and Leaf are selling so poorly. The answer is really simple. Everyone who wants a Volt (and can afford a Volt) has a Volt.

Obama, in his green zeal (and complete lack of understanding of business, economics and history) has seriously overestimated the demand for EV's.

Remember all of those wonderful scholarships that once upon a time had funding through 'promises' and 'pledges' and earmarked tobacco cash?  

Oh My.. THOSE were the days.

$300 Million dollars a year dedicated to whatever the state wanted to do.  Completely fungible money, paid for by the health issues that state's attorneys argued cost the taxpayer in the first place.  $300 Million to pay for Johnnie and Suzie's college tuition once, and later, maybe 4100 million for a state police post that was not needed.  Gosh happy days, and dollar signs in the eyes of anyone who thought they could tap into the 'free money' promised by the settlement with big tobacco about 12 years ago.  Money so stable, that even spending it ahead of time was not out of the question.

Umm  Folks?  Put the credit card down for a minute.  We seem to have hit a snag. It seems the agreement by attorney's general of several states, (GUESS WHO OUR AG AT THE TIME WAS? - Haha fooled you .. it wasnt YET the drooling over those funds JG to the right.) and some tobacco concerns represents an illegal compact between states, which is seen as unconstitutional.

The background: The case was brought by the Competitive Enterprise Institute on behalf of a tobacco company, S&M Brands, a tobacco retailer and a cigarette consumer. The group sued the Louisiana Attorney General in 2005, claiming, among other things, that the Louisiana legislation which effected the terms of the 1998 settlement represented an illegal "compact" among states.

Detroit schools apparently have some gaping holes to fill, and they would like to do it with money that the state doesn't have yet. So to make ALL schools feel like they have failed as badly as the best laid liberal plans in Detroit, they have proposed using $400,000,000.00 in [future] tobacco settlement money to plug a couple hundred million of that leak. From the Detroit news:

Rep. Fred Durhal, D-Detroit, sponsored the legislation in response to a request by Robert Bobb, emergency financial manager of the Detroit Public Schools.

In an interview Monday with The Detroit News Editorial Board, Bobb said the district was asking for money from the state's settlement with tobacco companies to alleviate DPS' $327 million deficit. In return for the aid, DPS and other districts would implement reforms based on the federal Race to the Top initiative.

There was a very real possibility of paying even higher taxes these last two years.

We talk here about the problems Lansing has, and the nature of politics, special interest etc.., It seems we are not always too satisfied with the direction our leadership in the state's capitol and the outcomes produced with regard to budgeting.  What many don't realize, is the efforts by the tea party folks had an immediate effect on our state's legislative bodies.  When the first 300 folks showed up on a cold February day for the first Lansing tea party in 2009, it did NOT go unnoticed, according to Senate Majority leader Mike Bishop.

Bishop says "it made a difference right away," when asked after his presentation during a Traverse City visit about how long it took for legislators to start taking the rallies on the steps of the capitol seriously. He continued, talking about how it gave strength to many lawmakers to hold the line. "..they knew they had support."