Left Of Lansing

It’s the 56th episode of Michigan’s Premier Progressive Podcast! I’ve been looking forward to this episode because I’ve wanted to talk with Michigan Advance reporter Jon King for quite awhile. Jon’s been busy covering MAGA right wing Millennial presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speech at the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference, Mike Rogers’ steep chances at winning the Republican nomination for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat next year, and speaking with parents fighting against the so-called “parental rights” movement. Jon’s also got experience at working in right wing terrestrial radio for years in Livingston County, until he was pushed-out because the snowflake right wing audience and advertisers didn’t like the way John reported on facts. My opening monologue talks about how legislative Michigan Democrats are pushing ahead on passing their clean and affordable energy bills, which will help lead our state in the future for energy generation and conservation, and also on combating climate chan

This week's Left of Lansing Short deals with how Democratic State House Rep. Karen Whitsett from the 4th district in Detroit not only voted against the Reproductive Health Act in House Health Policy Committee this week, but she's signaling she's vote against the RHA when it comes to a vote on the House floor! And with Democrats holding a narrow lead in the House, that would very well defeat the bill.  To hear an even more lenghty discussion of the bill, please listen to to Episode 53 with Ashlea Phenicie, VP of Communications and Interim VP of Public Policy for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan and Planned Parenthood of Michigan.  It's one thing for MAGA Christian Nationalist Republicans to vote to push women's health and economic rights back to the 19th Century. But it's a betrayal when a so-called "Democrat" joins in that effort.  --Pat leftoflansing.com leftoflansing@gmail.com 

Here's Episode 55 of Michigan's Premier Progressive Podcast! Paid Family and Medical Leave is one of the important policies Michigan Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer mentioned in her "What's Next" speech last month. If Michigan's Democratic majority in the legislature can pass State Sen. Erika Geiss's paid family and medical leave bills, Michigan would join 11 other states which have already passed similar laws. Passing these bills would guarantee 15 weeks paid leave for ALL workers, and help guarantee that workers won't have to choose caring for a loved one or having to work. And since the United States remains the only developed nation not to guarantee some form of paid family and medical leave, or paid sick leave, it's up to the states to get something done. Making paid family and medical leave a reality is a priority for the nonprofit organization Mothering Justice from Detroit. National Executive Director, and Founder, Danielle Atkinson, joins me to talk about why this legislation is of the utmost

The Left of Lansing Short on this Friday September 15, 2023 deals with the UAW's request for a 32-hour work week for its members.  It's not that crazy of an idea, and the data shows that workers are happier and more productive when they work four days a week.  If that's the case, then why aren't we doing it! The UAW officially started its "Stand Up Strike" against the Big Three automakers late Thursday night. In addition to the four-day work week, the UAW is asking for a 40% increase in wages, paid time-off, better pensions, and more. Auto corporations are demanding their workers earn less while working longer hours as their CEO's earned 40% raises over the last decade.  --Pat leftoflansing.com leftoflansing@gmail.com  NOTES: "Why a 4-day workweek is on the table for autoworkers." By Andrea Hsu of Michigan Radio "32-hour work week would be the end of Detroit." By James David Dickson of Michigan Capitol Confidential "Strike! United Auto Workers declares historic strike against Detroit Three automake

It's episode 54 of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! It's a solo episode this week as I spend time taking the Michigan GOP to task for being absent on supporting the UAW (and unions, in general) in its fight for fair wages, pensions, and paid time-off against the Big Three automakers. Progressives always support unions. Michigan progressive lawmakers and activists support unions, but not one Republican shows up to help strengthen the solidarity for the working class. They don't care about the working class. They care only about the donor class.  I take Republican state representatives Bill Schuette, Matthew Bierlein, and Graham Filler to task on their Midland Daily News op-ed criticizing legislative Democrats' clean and affordable energy plans. It's unconscionable how these right wing Republicans dare to scare readers by claiming clean energy results in higher energy prices when Michigan already pays the 12th highest energy rates in the country!!! And, it's not reliable energy either! Finally, in my

The "Friday Short" highlights the Reproductive Freedom Act, which Democratic State Rep. Laurie Pohutsky formally introduced this week. The RFA would reverse many hurtful abortion access restrictions put in place by Republicans through the years as they tried to enact their view of Christian Nationalism on the rest of the state.  Please, listen to this week's Left of Lansing episode with Ashlea Phenicie, VP of Communications and Interim VP of Public Policy for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan and Planned Parenthood of Michigan, as we discuss the RFA in more detail.  --Pat leftoflansing.com leftoflansing@gmail.com 

It's the 53rd installment of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! I start out mocking the right wing Michigan Republican Party for claiming to care about working Michiganders on this past Labor Day. Then, I talk about the latest from the nutty right wing Ottawa Impact faction, which is working to defund the Ottawa County health department all because it took steps to protect its citizens during the pandemic. I conclude my monologue by highlighting that while the right wing is busy trying to hurt Michigan and her citizens, progressive policies are doing the exact opposite.  Governor Gretchen Whitmer made her key "What's Next" speech last week, calling on the state legislature to pass bills for cleaner energy, codifying major parts of the Affordable Care Act, paid family and medical leave, and for passage of the Reproductive Health Act. The RHA would reverse many of the Republican draconian laws which made it difficult for women trying to find abortion access. Ashlea Phenicie, VP of Communications and Inte

It's the Friday Left of Lansing Short! I discuss my support to have Michigan join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. This would allow states to award their electoral college votes to the presidential candidate who won the national majority vote. Right now, states allocate their electoral college votes to the candidate who won their state.  Democratic State Representative Carrie Rheingans talked about why she's leading this effort with HB 4156 on this week's Left of Lansing podcast. Please, listen to the episode as we discuss this topic, and many others, in greater detail. She argues by joining this compact, more people will feel engaged, and that includes here in Michigan as candidates in the past have stayed away if they believed they had zero chance at winning.  It would give us a better system than the current broken and antiquated system, and it would finally allow the majority of voters to have a say on who should lead the country.  --Pat leftoflansing.com leftoflansing@gmail.com 

Episode 52 of Michigan's premier progressive podcast is a little longer than normal, but well worth the listen! I take DTE Energy and Consumers Energy to task for failing to keep the lights on after storms rolled through the state. Despite keeping hundreds of thousands of customers in the dark, both energy companies are asking government officials to give the green light on more rate hikes! Perhaps this is the time we finally pass a clean energy bill to revamp the failing energy grid while lowering energy costs. I also discuss more right wing violence happening across the country, how we should expect more of it. And I talk more Ottawa Impact shenanigans as the right wing majority is gutting the Ottawa County Department of Health to pre-pandemic levels! Insanity! But we've got some strong progressives who are delivering results to each and every Michigander. One of them is Democratic State Rep. Carrie Rheingans of the 47th District, which comprises of Jackson and Washtenaw counties. Rep. Rheingans is part o

My Left of Lansing "Short" this Friday is about Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy's proposal to ban anyone under 25 from voting, unless they fulfil specific requirements, including passing a citizenship test.  Generation Z is not only a politically active voting bloc, especially in Michigan, but it's also a highly progressive voting bloc. Rather than fight for their vote based on their hate-filled policies, Ramaswamy's brilliant idea is taking away their voting rights.  Gina Keller from Distill Social talked about how progressives are doing a better job at connecting and messaging with Gen Z voters, as we witnessed in the 2022 midterm elections. And that scares the right wing, which is why it's trying to silence young voters. --Pat leftoflansing@gmail.com leftoflansing.com

Here's another exciting and informative episode of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! The Christian Nationalism that has overtaken the Michigan Republican Party is trying to take control of the entire state. While Democrats have control of state government for the first time in 40 years, and progressive values have achieved some major victories, right wing Christian Nationalist are taking control of local governments throughout the state. And they are leveling their extreme and dangerous worldview on the people through book bans, defunding of libraries, defunding of local health departments, attacks on public schools and teachers, and by attacking marginalized people. The Christian Nationalist movement is backed by a rich donor base, which wants to divide us just enough so they receive more power and massive tax cuts. But what's worse, is that all of these attacks on marginalized citizens throughout right wing media leads to violence, which is another dangerous aspect of right wing, white Christian Nati

The "Friday Short" puts a spotlight on Michigan Republican Congressman John Moolenaar's hypocrisy when it comes to the proposed Gotion electric battery plant in Big Rapids.  Moolenaar hopped-aboard the right wing xenophobia bandwagon since Gotion's parent company is from China. Yet, Moolenaar never once uttered a word of skepticism over other Chinese companies which set-up shop here in our state, nor did he once criticize former Republican Governor Rick Snyder over his numerous trade mission trip to China!  But now, Moolenaar says he opposes the project because Gotion will pay workers in the area less than it originally said. Some state senate Democrats voted against the project for that very reason a few months ago. Moolenaar suddenly sounds like progressives in opposing corporate handouts in exchange for cheap labor. But in reality, John is only appearing to be pro-worker because he's trying to show he's strong against China.  If Moolenaar is such a pro-worker kinda guy, I can't wait for him to publicly

Here it is! The 50th episode of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! I love that I've made it to 50 episodes, and I'd love to thank everyone who helped me get this little project off-the-ground. And, I'd love to thank you for listening, and to helping spread the word of this podcast.  In this episode, I put a spotlight on the extreme right-wing Christian Nationalist movement, which is spreading inside the national Republican Party, and especially inside Michigan's Republican Party. This movement scored some wins in local governments, including the far right Ottawa Impact group which is now the majority on the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners. And with Donald Trump's fourth indictment this year, I discuss how the Christian Nationalist movement will go to any length to be on the winning side, even if that means resorting to violence.  Part of the Christian Nationalist movement's battle against democracy is by attacking local libraries and librarians, and by banning books. That's been happening in many

It's the 49th episode of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! I celebrate Ohio's decision to hand the state Republican party a humiliating defeat at the polls this week, when voters rejected the GOP's efforts to raise the threshold to pass a state referendum from 50-to-60%. Ohio Republicans were hoping to hurt the chances of enshrining abortion rights into Ohio's constitution in November. But they failed miserably, and like Michigan Republicans, they will suffer again when voters back a woman's right to choose. Yet, the legacy media didn't seem to cover another huge victory for choice and democracy because it only wants to cover Trump, Trump, Trump, and more Trump. I also highlight the big news Democratic State Senator Mallory McMorrow's endorsement of Democratic Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin in her bid to win Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow's seat, which opens-up in 2024. Then, Sean McBrearty, who is the campaign director of the anti-Line 5 oil and natural gas pipeline group called Oil & Water Do

This week's "Short" deals with the Republican effort to ban TikTok in the United States. Ostensibly, they argue it's to protect our privacy since TikTok is a Chinese company.  But the main reason Republicans are fighting for a ban is to take-away a major communication tool from Generation Z voters, who are by far the most progressive voting bloc in the country.  Generation Z played a key role in helping get Democrats victories across the country in the last few election cycles. And that's particularly true here in Michigan, as Gen Z voters showed up in greater numbers than in any other state in 2022.  Rather than win over some Gen Z voters with policy ideas of their own, Republicans believe shutting down those voters' favorite mode of communication will help their party in the future. I also talked about this topic on this week's episode of the podcast with Progress Michigan's Jade Gray, and I'll post that episode below as well.  --Pat NOTES: "On the Cusp of Adulthood and Facing an Uncertain Future: Wh

Here's Episode 48 of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! Happy Indictment Week III! I had so many words and thoughts to share as Donald Trump faces his third indictment this week. He's finally been charged for the role he played for the January 6th insurrection in an effort to steal the 2020 election. Despite getting indicted again, Michigan's GOP is all-in for Trump even though two more state Republicans face indictments for stealing voting machines. But while Republicans keep getting indicted, progressives keep doing the work to help everyone "Make It In Michigan." One big reason why progressives are scoring some major victories in the state is because of the impressive turnout by Generation Z voters in the 2022 election. They were key in getting abortion rights enshrined in our state constitution, in expanding voting rights and access to voting, and getting Democrats in control of state government.  Jade Gray from Progress Michigan, and a Co-President of College Dems at the University of Michigan,

It's episode 47 of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! The Gotion electric vehicle battery component plant is causing a rift in the Big Rapids area, located in Mecosta County. Local Republican leaders jumped at the chance to have the California-based company build the new plant in their area--an area in which 18% of its residents live in poverty. But because Gotion's parent company is from China, right wing Republican politicians and officials, along with those from the right wing echo chamber, are using scary xenophobic and anti-Asian rhetoric to prevent the plant from being built.  Anna Gustafson from Michigan Advance wrote an extensive and informative piece on this entire saga, and she joins me to talk about how the right wing became galvanized to try to stop the plant, and how congressional and state senators and representatives have joined in the fight, despite originally backing the plant! Anna's also written many other interesting and important stories across the entire state of Michigan. Please,

Here's the 46th episode of Michigan's premier progressive podcast! I start-out this week talking about taking the battle to the right wing forces in our state. I illustrated why state Senator Mallory McMorrow's "We will not let hate win," speech went viral. It resonated with millions across the country because McMorrow did what so many of us want to see from Democrats: fighting back. In Michigan, progressive Democrats did fight back, take over the state government, and are now making the lives of millions of people better by reinvesting in them. And that's why the right wing is trying to recall five Democratic state house representatives.  I then have a talk with Sam Inglot, executive director of Progress Michigan. We cover state Attorney General Dana Nessel's announcement of charging the 16 Michigan Republican officials who tried to act like fake electors in their attempts to steal the 2020 election for Donald Trump. We also highlight how we're expanding voting rights in the state, and some of the other wo

Here’s the 45th installment of Michigan’s premier progressive podcast! Democratic State Rep. Betsy Coffia from the 103rd District joins me this week. Rep. Coffia’s district contains Leelanau, Grand Traverse, and Benzie Counties. She’s been a journalist, a social worker, and a Grand Traverse County commissioner. And now, she’s in Lansing trying to make a difference on a variety of fronts. We discuss the Traverse City hair salon owner who’s refusing to serve transgender people, why bigotry is bad for business, the budgets Democrats passed, her work on the school aid budget to help kids and families in northern Michigan, allowing 16-year olds to pre-register to vote, and more. You can follow Rep. Coffia on Twitter. My opening segment concentrates on how the right wing has always used “fear and anger” to get-out its voting base. Nothing has changed in the last 40 years when it comes to the Republican Party’s values. Donald Trump wasn’t some anomaly. The party was always a Trump party, and he emboldened Republic

Here's episode 44 of Michigan's premiere progressive podcast! Strong progressive policies continue to not only get introduced, but continue to pass in the state legislature as we witnessed with the expansion of the Hate Crimes Law. The Democratic majority passed a historic budget last week, and I highlight how they not only spent time and energy reinvesting in our teachers and students, but they're also reinvesting in the environmental well-being of our schools. I also explain how progressives have swung the pendulum in the other direction after 40 years of Republican rule. And progressives are fighting back more on the local level, too, particularly in Ottawa County! The focus then switches back to the clean and affordable energy and climate package of bills state Democrats recently introduced. Charlotte Jameson--Chief Policy Officer of the Michigan Environmental Council--joins me to talk about why the MEC is supportive of these measures. Plus, she goes into further detail on how making schools more energy