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The Detroit Regional Chamber invited five candidates for Detroit mayor to the <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/shows/one-detroit/series/one-detroit-series-mackinac-policy-conference-2025/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2025 Mackinac Policy Conference</a> to discuss their vision for business and development in the city. 
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/stephen-henderson-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephen Henderson</a> and <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/nolan-finley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nolan Finley</a> moderated the discussion, which included Detroit City Council member <a href="https://detroitmi.gov/government/city-council/city-council-district-7-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fred Durhal III</a>, former Detroit Police Chief <a href="https://www.chiefcraigformayor.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">James Craig</a>, Detroit City Council President <a href="https://www.marysheffield.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mary Sheffield</a>, nonprofit CEO <a href="https://www.saunteeljenkins.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Saunteel Jenkins</a>, and <a href="https://www.triumphch.org/about/our-pastor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rev. Solomon Kinloch, Jr.</a> of Triumph Church. 
Candidates not included in the debate are <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Danetta_Simpson" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DaNetta Simpson</a>, a two-time mayoral candidate, businessman <a href="https://www.votebarlow.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jonathan Barlow</a>, businessman <a href="https://www.joelhformayor.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joel Haashiim</a>, attorney <a href="https://perkinsforthepeople.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Todd Perkins</a>, and <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Rogelio_Landin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rogelio Landin</a>, who is running as a write-in. 
The candidates discussed Detroit’s business and development community during the debate, answering questions about how to use tax credits and other subsidies to fuel investment and growth in the city. 
Several of the candidates discussed the need to restructure or reform the city’s tax abatement programs, as well as the need to invest in public-private partnerships. Many of Detroit&#8217;s tax abatement programs will begin to expire in 2027, with over half expiring by 2030. They also emphasized collaboration with residents and neighborhoods, and the importance of fostering a more business-friendly environment.
The five candidates also shared their thoughts on how Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration has handled business and development and what they might change. They talked about investing in neighborhoods, growing the city’s middle class, reducing poverty, and working more effectively with legislative leaders in Lansing on business developments, jobs and affordable housing.

Detroit mayoral candidates share their visions for business and development in the city

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Two veteran journalists with vastly different political views have a <a href="https://wsupress.wayne.edu/9780814352182/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">new book</a> coming out titled “The Civility Book: A Guide to Building Bridges Across the Political Divide.” 
In their book, <a class="Hyperlink SCXW187605485 BCX0" href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/stephen-henderson-2/" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stephen Henderson</a> and <a class="Hyperlink SCXW187605485 BCX0" href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/nolan-finley/" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nolan Finley</a> — both One Detroit contributors — encourage people to find value in their disagreements.   
“This book … is about our experiences together,” Finley said. “We are not two people who in today’s world should be friends or as close as we’ve become.” 
He explained the two have had passionate disagreements but learned to have them without destroying their long-standing friendship. It’s important to be able to hold a civil, meaningful discussion with people on the other side of the aisle without bitterness or anger, he said.   
Often, people want to convince others to believe the same as they do. 
“Instead, we talk about trying to extract value from the differences in the way we think and feel and not think about winning or losing the conversation,” Henderson said.  “We talk about listening … and investing in the other person’s ideas.” 
Finley and Henderson will discuss the book at the 2025 <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/shows/one-detroit/series/one-detroit-series-mackinac-policy-conference-2025/">Mackinac Policy Conference</a>, and conference attendees will receive a copy. They talked with One Detroit contributor <a class="Hyperlink SCXW84212669 BCX0" href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/zoe-clark/" rel="noreferrer noopener">Zoe Clark</a> ahead of the conference about their approaches to civility and how their friendship has grown over the years despite differences of opinion.

New book from veteran Detroit journalists encourages people to find value in disagreements

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Five Detroit mayoral candidates discussed public transportation and their visions for the city’s bus system at a forum hosted by Detroit Moves May 1.
One Detroit <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/stephen-henderson-2/">contributor Stephen Henderson</a>, moderated the discussion at <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/news-media/one-detroit/newlab-at-michigan-central-helps-shift-technology-entrepreneurial-landscape-in-detroit/">Newlab</a>, a technology and mobility incubator located on the Michigan Central campus. <a href="https://www.detroitmoves.com/events/detroit-moves-forum-2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The event</a> was the first 2025 Detroit mayoral forum focused on transportation issues. 
Those who participated included businessman <a href="https://www.votebarlow.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jonathan Barlow</a>, Detroit City Council member <a href="https://detroitmi.gov/government/city-council/city-council-district-7-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fred Durhal III</a>, former Detroit City Council member and nonprofit CEO <a href="https://www.saunteeljenkins.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Saunteel Jenkins</a>, attorney <a href="https://perkinsforthepeople.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Todd Perkins</a> and <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Rogelio_Landin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rogelio Landin</a>, who is running as a write-in candidate. 
Others running for mayor include former Detroit Police Chief <a href="https://www.chiefcraigformayor.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">James Craig</a>, businessman <a href="https://www.joelhformayor.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joel Haashiim</a>, <a href="https://www.triumphch.org/about/our-pastor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rev. Solomon Kinloch, Jr.</a> of Triumph Church, Detroit City Council President <a href="https://www.marysheffield.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mary Sheffield</a>, and <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Danetta_Simpson" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DaNetta Simpson</a>, a two-time mayoral candidate.  
Mayor Mike Duggan, who is running for governor, has announced <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/news-media/one-detroit/detroit-mayor-mike-duggan-runs-for-michigan-governor-as-independent/">he will not seek a fourth term</a> as mayor. 
According to <a href="https://mcity.umich.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mcity-TSI-White-Paper_FINAL.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a 2025 report</a> from the University of Michigan titled “Transportation Insecurity in the Motor City,” nearly one-third of Detroit adults, 36%, lack safe and reliable transportation, a figure that’s double the national average of 17%. 
Another transportation forum, hosted by <a href="https://www.detroittransit.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transportation Riders United</a> and other advocacy groups, is <a href="https://www.detroittransit.org/mark-your-calendars-detroit-mayoral-forum-on-transit-set-for-june-4/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">scheduled for June 4</a> at the Wayne State University Industry Innovation Center.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story incorrectly included City Council Member Gabriela Santiago-Romero as a Detroit mayoral candidate. She is seeking re-election for the District 6 city council seat. This story was updated on May 9, 2025.

Detroit mayoral candidates discuss city’s bus system at transportation forum

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OPINION | Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan gave his <a href="https://detroitmi.gov/government/mayors-office/state-city" target="_blank" rel="noopener">final State of the City address</a> Tuesday, March 25 at the Hudson Tower, 12 years after being elected in 2013. Duggan has announced that <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/news-media/one-detroit/detroit-mayor-mike-duggan-discusses-running-for-governor-as-an-independent-in-one-on-one-interview/">he is running for governor.</a> 
The mayor’s final address highlighted the city’s efforts around affordable housing, community violence intervention, neighborhood beautification, employment, education and more.
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/zoe-clark/">Zoe Clark</a> of Michigan Public, <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/stephen-henderson-2/">Stephen Henderson</a> of “<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/shows/american-black-journal/">American Black Journal</a>,” and <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/nolan-finley/">Nolan Finley</a> of The Detroit News, weighed in on Duggan’s final address.

One Detroit contributors discuss Duggan’s final State of the City address

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A crowd of more than 50 people gathered at the <a href="https://www.uccwarren.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ukrainian Cultural Center</a> in Warren on Tuesday, March 4, following reports that <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-zelenskyy-russia-ukraine-a15a459c9a3a393d040478ebbe250a9e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">President Donald Trump paused U.S. funding</a> of the Ukrainian war effort against Russia.
The rally was led by the <a href="https://www.uacrisisresponse.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ukrainian-American Crisis Response Committee of Michigan</a>. Recent census statistics <a href="https://www.mlive.com/public-interest/2022/03/michigan-has-the-9th-most-residents-with-ukrainian-ancestry-in-the-us.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">show more than 36,000 people</a> of Ukrainian ancestry living in Michigan, many of them in Macomb County.
Ukrainian Americans were joined by other supporters of Ukraine, many reacting to a <a href="https://apnews.com/video/trump-vance-call-zelenskyy-disrespectful-in-oval-office-meeting-5f944ba6b626465aa6637b83fa488990" target="_blank" rel="noopener">heated meeting</a> between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Trump on Feb. 28, in which the American president insisted Ukraine should express more gratitude for U.S. support and agree to a ceasefire with Russia.
One Detroit’s <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/bill-kubota/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bill </a><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/who-is-detroit-pbs/senior-staff/bill-kubota/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kubota</a> attended the rally to talk with organizers and other Macomb County residents who came out to support Ukraine.

Michigan residents rally around Ukraine after President Trump pauses funding for war against Russia

ONE DETROIT Mike Duggan Still 1

Mike Duggan’s <a href="https://detroitmi.gov/news/mayor-mike-duggan-announces-he-will-not-seek-re-election-detroits-mayor-sets-vision-final-year" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announcement last month</a> that he would not seek a fourth term as mayor of Detroit did not come as a surprise. There was little doubt about what he planned to do next: <a href="https://apnews.com/article/duggan-detroit-michigan-governor-independent-democrat-5dba0e7b2d9304c2a00d716c9cd6ca05" target="_blank" rel="noopener">run for Michigan governor in 2026.</a>
The shock came when Duggan revealed he would be leaving the Democratic Party to run as an independent. He said he hopes ending &#8220;us versus them&#8221; politics will be his legacy.
One Detroit <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/shows/one-detroit/about/">contributor Nolan Finley</a>, editorial page editor of <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/staff/2646740001/nolan-finley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Detroit News</a>, talks with Duggan about his bid for governor and how an independent candidacy will allow him to more effectively deliver his message that it&#8217;s time to move past partisan politics in Lansing and bring Republicans and Democrats together to get things done.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan discusses his bid for Michigan governor in one-on-one interview

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OPINION | Political contributors react to 2024 election results, record voter turnout in Michigan

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OPINION | One Detroit political contributors discuss races to watch in the 2024 election

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One Nation, Divergent Views: A Pre-Election Roundtable

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OPINION | Political contributors discuss first of two debates for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat

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OPINION | Political Contributors discuss 2024 VP Debate between JD Vance and Tim Walz

OPINION | Contributors discuss 2024 presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump

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The American dream of owning a home — or even renting one — is turning into a nightmare. Home prices have jumped 47% since 2020 and half of all renters nationwide are cost-burdened — meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on rent, <a href="https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/reports/files/Harvard_JCHS_The_State_of_the_Nations_Housing_2024.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to a 2024 Harvard University housing study.</a> A recent report from the University of Michigan <a href="https://news.umich.edu/cost-of-living-tops-detroiters-priorities-for-us-government/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">found the cost of housing is on voters’ minds</a>. 
About 50% of Detroit households prioritize some element of housing costs as an issue they want the government to address, said Mara Ostfeld, faculty lead of U-M’s <a href="https://detroitsurvey.umich.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/DMACS-federal-priorities-July-2024.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Metro Area Communities Study</a>.  
Affordable housing is one of the top concerns for young people. 
“We really saw this pop out among younger Detroiters, and this is consistent with national polls that younger Detroiters and younger Americans are far more concerned about the cost of housing,” Ostfeld said. “Especially as they’re entering into that phase of their life where they’re starting to pay their own rent or starting to put down payments on their own homes.” 
University of Michigan Associate Professor <a href="https://sph.umich.edu/faculty-profiles/mehdipanah-roshanak.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Roshanak Mehdipanah</a>, the Director of Housing Solutions for Health Equity, said multiple factors make it difficult for younger people to buy their first homes, including rising housing costs, having enough money for a downpayment and higher interest rates. 
Voters are looking for candidates that have a plan to address their concerns, Ostfeld said.  
“If we want to see more young voters participate in the electoral process … we need to pay more attention to the issues that they’re saying are their top concerns, and housing is clearly high ranked among them,” she said. 
PBS News Hour Student Reporting Labs <a href="https://studentreportinglabs.org/news/announcing-the-2024-gwen-ifill-legacy-fellows-at-local-pbs-stations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gwen Ifill Legacy Fellow Maria Witcher</a> talks with Ostfeld and Mehdipanah about housing concerns and how they could drive young voters to the polls.
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<h2>Stay Connected: </h2>
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @OneDetroit_PBS, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
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Cost of housing ranks high among young voters ahead of 2024 election

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OPINION | One Detroit political contributors weigh in on 2024 Democratic National Convention

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OPINION | Contributors discuss Michigan’s primary election results, Kamala Harris’ running mate

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OPINION | Contributors discuss President Biden’s decision to drop out of presidential race

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The Detroit Regional Chamber’s Mackinac Policy Conference takes place next week, from Tuesday, May 28 to Friday, May 31. <a href="https://www.detroitchamber.com/mackinac-policy-conference/2024-mackinac-policy-conference/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The annual conference</a> brings business, policy and community leaders together on Mackinac Island to discuss some of the state’s most pressing issues. This year’s theme, “Bridging the Future Together,” aims to spark collaboration across various divides.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335557856&quot;:16777215,&quot;335559685&quot;:-20,&quot;335559737&quot;:-20,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
Conference attendees can expect a series of sessions and speakers addressing key themes critical to Michigan’s prosperity, including strategies to attract businesses and jobs, improving education systems to ensure the workforce is prepared for future challenges, and discussing ways to strengthen Michigan&#8217;s infrastructure. 
RELATED: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5H3VF_9ZS8OmxwgtZ2c01ZACOwo4opYb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Watch highlights from previous Mackinac Policy Conferences</a>
Additionally, there will be a strong emphasis on leading with innovation and equity, highlighting the importance of innovative approaches and equitable practices in leadership to drive sustainable development. Detroit PBS will be livestreaming the conference. You can watch it <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/detroit-regional-chambers-2024-mackinac-policy-conference/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335557856&quot;:16777215,&quot;335559685&quot;:-20,&quot;335559737&quot;:-20,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
One Detroit contributor <a href="https://www.michiganpublic.org/people/zoe-clark" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zoe Clark</a>, political director for Michigan Public, talks with Detroit Regional Chamber President and CEO <a href="https://www.detroitchamber.com/bios/sandy-k-baruah/">Sandy K. Baruah</a> and this year’s conference chair <a href="https://www.siebertwilliams.com/suzanne-shank-bio" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Suzanne Shank</a>, president and CEO of Siebert, Williams, Shank &amp; Company, about what attendees and viewers can expect from the 2024 conference. Plus, they discuss the importance of unity and mutual respect in tackling some of Michigan’s biggest issues.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335557856&quot;:16777215,&quot;335559685&quot;:-20,&quot;335559737&quot;:-20,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @OneDetroit_PBS, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
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2024 Mackinac Policy Conference focuses on ‘Bridging the Future Together’ with collaboration across divides

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In his 11th State of the City address, Detroit <a href="https://detroitmi.gov/government/mayors-office" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mayor Mike Duggan</a> took the stage at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, on the city’s west side, to talk about a Detroit that looks different than it did a decade ago. As the <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/community-posts/2024-nfl-draft-puts-spotlight-on-detroit/">city prepares to host approximately 300,000 people</a> for the 2024 NFL Draft April 25-27, Duggan said they will no longer find bankruptcy and blight but rather changes in housing, crime and economic development around the city.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335557856&quot;:16777215,&quot;335559685&quot;:-20,&quot;335559737&quot;:-20,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/detroit-growth/mayor-duggan-state-of-the-city-2023/">Mayor Mike Duggan’s 10th annual State of the City paints optimistic forecast for Detroit’s future</a>
Duggan gave his first State of the City address in 2014. At that time, Detroit was in bankruptcy and under emergency management. During his 11th annual address, he covered topics from community <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/detroit-growth/mayor-duggan-state-of-the-city-2023/">violence programs</a> and efforts to <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/community-posts/controversy-surrounding-detroits-shotspotter-expansion-raises-transparency-concerns-among-residents/">reduce gun violence</a> to abandoned vehicle and blight cleanup; tax cuts for residents; investments in safety and transportation; and the future of Detroit’s neighborhoods, including solar neighborhoods.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335557856&quot;:16777215,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:-20,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
Duggan also discussed his Land Value Tax proposal, which he first <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/mayor-mike-duggan-detroit-property-tax-proposal/">introduced at the 2023 Mackinac Policy Conference</a>, a plan that would cut property taxes on homeowners and raise them on parking lots and scrapyards in the city. His closed his address with the announcement that the Dexter Elmhurst Recreation Center in Detroit will be renamed after Helen Moore, a Detroit woman who fought to save the center. <span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335557856&quot;:16777215,&quot;335559685&quot;:-20,&quot;335559737&quot;:-20,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/#stephen">Stephen Henderson</a>, host of “<a href="https://www.americanblackjournal.org/">American Black Journal</a>,” <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/#nolan">Nolan Finley</a>, Editorial Page Editor of the <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/staff/2646740001/nolan-finley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit News</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/ZoeMichigan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zoe Clark</a>, Political Director for <a href="https://www.michiganpublic.org/people/zoe-clark" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michigan Public</a> share their thoughts on Duggan’s 11th annual address.
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
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Mayor Mike Duggan delivers 11th State of the City, discusses city’s revitalization ahead of NFL Draft

04.23.24-Barbara-McQuade

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American society is more polarized than ever before. People are strategically being pushed apart by disinformation — the deliberate spreading of lies disguised as truth — and it comes at them from all sides: opportunists on the far right and Russian misinformed social media influencers, among others. It’s endangering democracy and causing havoc in America’s electoral system, schools, hospitals, workplaces, and the Capitol.
Advances in technology including rapid developments in artificial intelligence threaten to make the problems even worse by amplifying false claims and manufacturing credibility. In “<a href="https://www.sevenstories.com/books/4577-attack-from-within" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Attack from Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America</a>,” legal scholar and analyst <a href="https://michigan.law.umich.edu/faculty-and-scholarship/our-faculty/barbara-l-mcquade" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barbara McQuade</a>, a former United States attorney and current law professor at the University of Michigan, shows us how to identify the ways disinformation is seeping into all facets of our society and how we can fight against it.
<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/">One Detroit</a> and <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit PBS</a> partner with the <a href="https://www.econclub.org/meeting/technology-impacts-on-industry-and-how-to-prepare-future-workers-now/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Economic Club</a> to present this virtual livestream. The conversation will begin at 12:35 p.m. ET and will be moderated by Michigan Secretary of State <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/sos" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jocelyn Benson</a>.
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<h3>About the Speakers:</h3>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft wp-image-34782" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/McQuadeBarbara17011_web-360x460-1.jpeg" alt="Barbara McQuade headshot" width="196" height="250" />Barbara L. McQuade, BA ’87, JD ’91, is a professor from practice at Michigan Law. Her interests include criminal law, criminal procedure, national security, data privacy, and civil rights. From 2010 to 2017, McQuade served as the US attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. Appointed by President Barack Obama, she was the first woman to serve in her position.
McQuade also served as vice chair of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee and co-chaired its Terrorism and National Security Subcommittee. As US attorney, she oversaw cases involving public corruption, terrorism, corporate fraud, theft of trade secrets, civil rights, and health care fraud, among others. She also serves as a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, Foreign Policy, Lawfare, Just Security, Slate, and National Public Radio, and she has been quoted in The New York Times, Time, Newsweek, Politico, and other publications.
Before becoming US attorney, McQuade was an assistant US attorney in Detroit for 12 years, serving as deputy chief of the National Security Unit, where she handled cases involving terrorism financing, export violations, threats, and foreign agents. She began her career practicing law at the firm of Butzel Long in Detroit. She previously taught at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.
McQuade has been recognized by the Detroit Free Press with the Neal Shine Award for Exemplary Regional Leadership, The Detroit News with the Michiganian of the Year Award, Crain’s Detroit Business as a Newsmaker of the Year and one of Detroit’s Most Influential Women, the Detroit Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and Arab American Civil Rights League with their Tribute to Justice Award, and the Council on Legal Education Opportunity with its Diversity Award. McQuade is the author of “Attack from Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America.”
This biography was taken from the Detroit Economic Club.
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<h2>Stay Connected: </h2>
Subscribe to One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/OneDetroit/videos"> YouTube Channel</a> &amp; Don’t miss One Detroit Mondays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h3><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h3>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
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“Attack from Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America” with former U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade

Michigan-State-Capital-Shutterstock

The race for Debbie Stabenow’s open Michigan U.S. senate seat will be decided this year. <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_Senate_election_in_Michigan,_2024">Among the Republican candidates</a> for the primary are former Rep. Mike Rogers, former Rep. Peter Meijer, Grosse Pointe Park businessman Sandy Pensler, and former Rep. Justin Amash. 
Former President Trump recently announced his endorsement of Rogers, and <a href="https://www.mlive.com/politics/2024/03/elissa-slotkin-mike-rogers-locked-in-tight-us-senate-race.html">polls show</a> Rogers is in a tight race against the Democratic front-runner for the senate seat, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin. The Republican party has not won a Michigan U.S. state senate race since 1994. 
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/michigan-democratic-sen-debbie-stabenow-announces-retirement-who-might-run-for-her-seat-in-2024/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michigan Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow announces retirement</a>
Stabenow was elected to the Ingham County Commission in 1974, at age 24, where she became the first woman to chair the board. That was the first of many ‘first’ woman historic milestones she reached in her career, including being the first woman elected from Michigan to serve in the U.S. Senate. <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/michigan-democratic-sen-debbie-stabenow-announces-retirement-who-might-run-for-her-seat-in-2024/">She announced her retirement</a> from the Senate shortly after her last re-election. 
One Detroit <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/">contributors</a> Stephen Henderson of “American Black Journal,” Nolan Finley of the Detroit News, and Zoe Clark from Michigan Public weigh in on the race.
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<h2>Stay Connected: </h2>
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h3><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h3>
Watch One Detroit Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.

Republicans, Democrats in tight race to fill Sen. Debbie Stabenow’s seat in 2024 election

ONE-DETROIT-835-Stephen-and-Nolan-Primary-Discussion-Still-3

With a split in leadership in the Michigan Republican party and 13% of people voting uncommitted in the Democratic primary, a bit of turmoil has set in Michigan Democrats and Republicans ahead of the 2024 presidential election.  
<a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2024/02/28/uncommitted-michigan-primary-biden-results-vote/72770521007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Many uncommitted voters</a> cast their ballots this way to share their dissatisfaction about how President Biden has handled the Israel-Palestine conflict. The last time an incumbent U.S. President saw a similar percentage of uncommitted votes was in 2012 during former President Barack Obama’s second term. On the other side of the aisle, Michigan Republicans have been disputing over leadership. 
<a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/2024/02/27/judge-finds-kristina-karamo-was-removed-as-michigan-gop-chairwoman/72759939007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A judge ruled</a> that former Michigan GOP chair Kristina Karamo is no longer legally the group’s party leader. U.S. Rep Pete Hoekstra has been voted to replace Karamo as the Republican party gets ready for its 2024 caucus this weekend. Karamo has appealed the judge’s court orders, citing her own convention at Huntington Place in Detroit this weekend as a pressing issue, <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2024/02/29/kristina-karamo-appeal-michigan-republican-party-chair/72789172007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Detroit Free Press reported</a>. 
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/#stephen">Stephen Henderson</a>, host of “American Black Journal,” and <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/#nolan">Nolan Finley</a>, editorial page editor for the Detroit News, talk about the divide in Michigan’s Republican party, the message sent by Democrats who voted uncommitted, and the impact Michigan, a swing state, could have on the presidential election.
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<h2>Stay Connected: </h2>
Subscribe to One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/OneDetroit/videos"> YouTube Channel</a> and don’t miss One Detroit on Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h3><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h3>
Watch One Detroit Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.

Contributors discuss divide in Michigan GOP leadership, uncommitted Democratic primary votes

02.26.24-The-Honorable-Joe-Manchin

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United States <a href="https://www.manchin.senate.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senator Joe Manchin</a> will visit the Detroit Economic Club as part of a listening tour for Americans Together.
<a href="https://www.americanstogether.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Americans Together</a> is a new organization that has created a platform for the middle to connect and empower moderate voices around the country. The organization&#8217;s goal is to build a bridge between popular will and political outcomes.
<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/">One Detroit</a> and <a href="https://www.dptv.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Public TV</a> partner with the <a href="https://www.econclub.org/meeting/technology-impacts-on-industry-and-how-to-prepare-future-workers-now/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Economic Club</a> to present this virtual livestream. The livestream will begin at 12:35 p.m. ET.
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<h3>About the Speakers:</h3>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft wp-image-34171" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Manchin_Joe-web-scaled-1.jpeg" alt="United States Senator Joe Manchin" width="200" height="250" />U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) was sworn into the United States Senate on November 15, 2010 to fill the seat left vacant by the late Senator Robert C. Byrd. As a Senator, Joe Manchin is committed to bringing this same spirit of bipartisanship to Washington. As he has done throughout his entire life, he remains committed to working with Republicans and Democrats to find commonsense solutions to the problems our country faces and is working hard to usher in a new bipartisan spirit in the Senate and Congress.
Senator Manchin currently serves as the Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and also serves on the Senate Committee on Appropriations, the Senate Committee on Armed Services, and the Senate Committee on Veterans&#8217; Affairs &#8211; four critical committees that tackle the important work of addressing our nation&#8217;s energy needs, overseeing discretionary spending, defending our nation, and standing up for U.S. veterans. 
This biography was taken from the Detroit Economic Club.
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<h2>Stay Connected: </h2>
Subscribe to One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/OneDetroit/videos"> YouTube Channel</a> &amp; Don’t miss One Detroit Mondays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h3><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h3>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
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U.S. Senator Joe Manchin brings Americans Together listening tour to Detroit Economic Club

Detroit residents asked to weigh in on new election district maps proposed by redistricting commission

Detroit residents are being asked to <a href="https://www.michigan-mapping.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">share their input</a> on new election district maps being proposed by the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission. The commission is holding <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/micrc/meeting-notices-and-materials" target="_blank" rel="noopener">public hearings</a> Feb. 21 at Greater Grace Temple and Feb. 22 at Second Ebenezer Church in Detroit to allow residents to weigh in on the redrawing of boundaries for seven Michigan House districts — Districts 1, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12 and 14. 
RELATED: 
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/michigans-new-redistricting-maps-change-election-races-face-legal-challenges/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">New redistricting maps face legal challenges</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/redistricting-commission-facing-lawsuits-over-secret-meeting-notes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Redistricting Commission facing lawsuits</a></li>
</ul>
The Redistricting Commission has been tasked with redrawing the maps after a federal court ruling deemed the previous maps were unconstitutional and found the commission violated Black voters’ rights by relying on inaccurate racial data to draw legislative districts. Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson asked the U.S. Supreme Court to <a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/benson-redrawing-detroit-districts-by-spring-threatens-2024-elections/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pause the redrawing of the maps</a> ahead of the 2024 election, but the request was <a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/u-s-supreme-court-to-redistricting-commission-keep-redrawing-detroit-maps/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rejected by the court.</a> 
<a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/drafts-for-new-detroit-area-house-districts-move-on-to-next-stage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">At the commission’s Feb. 1 meeting</a>, commissioners narrowed down the choices from 14 to <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/micrc/mapping-process-2024/draft-proposed-maps" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nine versions</a> of a proposed district map and an independent map has been submitted for public review. The commission must agree on a final map to submit by March 1, and the court is expected to review the new districts by March 29. 
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/#stephen">Stephen Henderson</a>, host of <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/">“American Black Journal,”</a> and <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/#nolan">Nolan Finley</a>, editorial page editor for the Detroit News, discuss the redistricting process.  
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<h2>Stay Connected: </h2>
Subscribe to One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/OneDetroit/videos"> YouTube Channel</a> and don’t miss One Detroit on Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h3><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h3>
Watch One Detroit Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.

02.14.24-The-Honorable-Gretchen-Whitmer

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Governor Whitmer will propose her administration’s new fiscal year 2025 budget to the Michigan legislature in early February.
During a fireside chat with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Whitmer will share her administration’s budget priorities for fiscal year 2025. The conversation will begin Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 12:05 p.m. ET.
<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/">One Detroit</a> and <a href="https://www.dptv.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Public TV</a> partner with the <a href="https://www.econclub.org/meeting/technology-impacts-on-industry-and-how-to-prepare-future-workers-now/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Economic Club</a> to present this virtual livestream.
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<h3>About the Speakers:</h3>
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_accordion _builder_version=&#8221;4.23.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;][et_pb_accordion_item title=&#8221;Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Governor, State of Michigan&#8221; open=&#8221;on&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.23.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;]
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft wp-image-34015" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-Honorable-Gretchen-Whitmer_web-scaled-1-e1706892280901.jpeg" alt="Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer" width="250" height="250" />
Governor Gretchen Whitmer is a lifelong Michigander who is focused on getting things done that will make a real difference in people’s lives and build a Michigan where everyone can envision a bright future for themselves. As governor, she has signed over 1,000 bipartisan bills and four balanced, bipartisan budgets to deliver on the kitchen-table issues, grow the economy, and create good-paying jobs in every region of the state.
Since the governor took office, she has announced 35,000 new auto jobs and used bipartisan economic development tools to bring home more than $16 billion in transformational investments, creating 16,000+ jobs and putting Michigan in the lead on innovating the future of cars, chips, batteries, and more. She has fixed nearly 20,000 lane miles of roads and over 1,400 bridges, and funded programs putting almost 200,000 Michiganders on tuition-free paths to higher education and skills training.
The governor has made the largest education investments in state history four years in a row, delivering the highest state per-student funding ever, increasing on-campus mental health resources, and helping hire more qualified teachers, literacy coaches, counselors, and staff. Additionally, the governor has expanded low or no-cost child care to 150,000 more kids.
Governor Whitmer has also protected clean water for every community, investing $4 billion to upgrade drinking water and replace lead service lines, supporting 57,000 jobs. She made the single largest-ever investment in state and local parks across Michigan.
Since the governor took office, Michigan has won over $16 billion in investments and become home to “the next Silicon Valley” for mobility innovation, the #1 emerging startup ecosystem and the fastest growing clean energy job sector in the country.
Governor Whitmer achieved this progress alongside three dynamic elected statewide leaders: Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist, Attorney General Dana Nessel, and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.
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<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft wp-image-34106" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Sec_Yellen_Portrait-e1707929098589.jpeg" alt="U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen" width="250" height="250" />
On January 26, 2021, Janet Yellen was sworn in as the 78th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. An economist by training, she took office after almost fifty years in academia and public service. She is the first person in American history to have led the White House Council of Economic Advisors, the Federal Reserve, and the Treasury Department.  
Janet Louise Yellen was born in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn in 1946. Her mother, Anna Ruth, was an elementary school teacher while her father, Julius, worked as a family physician, treating patients out of the ground floor of the family’s brownstone. 
In 1967, Secretary Yellen graduated from Brown University and went on to earn her PhD at Yale.  She was an assistant professor at Harvard until 1976 when she began working at the Federal Reserve Board. There, in the Fed’s cafeteria, she met fellow economist, George Akerlof. Janet and George would marry later that year. They would go on to have a son, Robert, now also an economics professor. 
In 1980, Secretary Yellen joined the faculty of the University of California at Berkeley, where she became the Eugene E. and Catherine M. Trefethen Professor of Business and Professor of Economics. She is Professor Emeritus at the university. 
Secretary Yellen’s scholarship has focused on a range of issues pertaining to labor and macroeconomics. Her work on “efficiency wages” with her husband George Akerlof studied why firms often choose to pay more than the minimum needed to hire employees. These businesses, they found, are often making a wise decision.  Firms that offer better pay and working conditions tend to be rewarded with higher morale, reduced turnover and greater productivity.  
In 1994, President Bill Clinton appointed then-Dr. Yellen to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. Three years later, he named her Chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. 
In 2004, Secretary Yellen began her third tenure at the Federal Reserve, this time as President of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. From that post, she spotted a worrying economic trend – a bubble in home values. When the housing bubble popped in 2008, Secretary Yellen helped manage the resulting financial crisis and recession. In 2010, President Barack Obama, appointed her Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve, before nominating her to succeed Fed Chair Benjamin Bernanke as the nation’s top central banker. Secretary Yellen would serve as Chair of the Federal Reserve from 2014 until 2018. 
On December 1, 2020, then-President-elect Biden nominated Dr. Janet Yellen to the post of Treasury Secretary. “She has spent her career focused on unemployment and the dignity of work,” he said, “She understands what it means to people and their communities when they have good, decent jobs.”
Prior to serving at the Treasury Department, Secretary Yellen was a Distinguished Fellow in Residence with the Economic Studies Program at the Brookings Institution.  During 2020-2021 she served as President of the American Economic Association.  She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Council on Foreign Relations.  She was also a founding member of the Climate Leadership Council. 
Secretary Yellen has served on the advisory boards of the Bloomberg New Economic Forum, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and Fix the Debt Coalition (CRFB), and the Washington Center for Equitable Growth Steering Committee.  She was elected to the Yale Corporation as an alumni fellow in 2000, serving until 2006.
Dr. Yellen has received honorary doctorates from Bard College, Brown, the London School of Economics, NYU, the University of Baltimore, the University of Michigan, the University of Warwick and Yale from which she also received the Wilbur Cross Medal for distinguished achievements in scholarship, teaching, academic administration, and public service.
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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer discusses her administration’s budget priorities with the Detroit Economic Club

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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer delivered her <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYJH5B1VRgY" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sixth State of the State address</a> in front of a joint session of the Michigan House and Senate, sharing new policy proposals related to education, affordable housing, boosting the economy and growing the state’s population.  
<a href="https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/whitmer-state-state-2024-more-money-housing-college-childcare" target="_blank" rel="noopener">On Whitmer’s list of policy proposals</a> was a $1.4 billion call to rehabilitate 10,000 housing units across the state to provide more affordable housing. If the proposal gains traction, it would be the largest investment of its kind in Michigan’s history. The governor also called for the return of former Gov. Rick Snyder’s “<a href="https://www.michiganbusiness.org/reports-data/good-jobs-for-michigan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Good Jobs For Michigan</a>” program to provide better tax incentives to businesses attracting new talent to the state.
RELATED: 
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/future-of-work/michigans-population-stagnation-with-gov-whitmer/">The implications of Michigan’s population stagnation: A conversation with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/detroit-growth/gov-whitmers-growth-council-aims-to-boost-population-economy-through-education-and-infrastructure/">Gov. Whitmer’s Growth Council aims to boost population, economy through education and infrastructure</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/news/gov-gretchen-whitmer-targets-tax-relief-gun-reform-education-in-2023-state-of-the-state-address/">Gov. Gretchen Whitmer targets tax relief, gun reform, education in 2023 State of the State address</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/michigan-lawmakers-pass-bills-on-gun-control-lgbtq-rights-abortion-and-right-to-work/">Michigan lawmakers pass bills on gun control, LGBTQ+ rights, abortion and right to work</a></li>
</ul>
On the education front, Whitmer proposed a plan to provide free community college tuition for the first two years to Michigan high school graduates. She also proposed <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/upgraded-education-system-needed-to-help-grow-michigans-population-skillman-foundation-ceo-angelique-power-says/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">further investments in Pre-K education</a> with a goal to provide universal preschool to all 4-year-olds in the state. Among her other proposals were calls to increase family caregiver tax credits, provide electric vehicle rebates, and finish fixing the roads.
One Detroit contributors Stephen Henderson of “American Black Journal,” Nolan Finley of the Detroit News, and Zoe Clark of Michigan Public discussed some of Whitmer’s proposals.  
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Gov. Whitmer’s sixth State of the State proposes historic affordable housing plan, free community college and more

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Population stagnation is a challenge faced by many states and regions across the nation, and Michigan is no exception. It’s a predicament that, if left unaddressed, experts say could have significant and far-reaching consequences for the state’s economy, workforce and long-term prosperity. 
<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer</a> has made addressing this issue a top priority and has established the &#8220;<a href="https://growingmichigan.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Growing Michigan Together Council</a>&#8221; to propose solutions. The council&#8217;s findings and recommendations, anticipated in December, will play a pivotal role in determining the state&#8217;s trajectory. <span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}"> 
The Council has <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/detroit-growth/gov-whitmers-growth-council-aims-to-boost-population-economy-through-education-and-infrastructure/">set out to address preK-12 education</a>, higher education, infrastructure, and workforce development, as well as <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/growing-michigan-together-council-american-msulims-town-hall/">gather expert opinions and lived experiences</a> of how Michigan can attract and retain more young professionals and students. The problem currently is, more than half of young Michiganders living in the state say they won’t likely stay through the next decade. 
<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/education/detroit-chamber-survey-polls-residents-under-30/">A survey of 18–29-year-olds</a> conducted by the <a href="https://www.detroitchamber.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Regional Chamber</a> and <a href="https://businessleadersformichigan.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Business Leaders for Michigan</a> revealed that only 64% of respondents within this age group envision themselves residing in Michigan a decade from now, with college-educated individuals showing a stronger inclination to consider relocating. <span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}"> 
The majority of survey respondents cited better infrastructure and affordable housing as two key factors in the decision of where they want to live. Others surveyed also pointed to the changing climate and LGBTQ+ and abortion rights as factors. 
To better understand where Gov. Whitmer stands on this issue, One Detroit contributor <a href="https://www.michiganradio.org/people/zoe-clark" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zoe Clark</a>, political director for Michigan Radio, sat down with Gov. Whitmer at Marygrove Conservancy for a one-on-one interview about where Michigan’s population growth efforts are headed. <span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}"> 
They talk about Michigan’s unique access to fresh water in the face of climate change, as well as the state’s decision to <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/michigan-lawmakers-pass-bills-on-gun-control-lgbtq-rights-abortion-and-right-to-work/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">protect LGBTQ+ rights</a> and a woman’s right to choose. Plus, they discuss previous governor’s attempts to address the state’s population challenges, like former <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/formergovernors/recent/granholm/press-releases/2004/06/02/granholm-designates-20-projects-for-cool-cities-pilot-program" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s “Cool Cities”</a> initiative, and the importance of telling Michigan’s story to the world.
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The implications of Michigan’s population stagnation: A conversation with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

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Traditionally revered as centers of knowledge, libraries, schools and bookstores are now grappling with attacks on intellectual freedom and the right to access diverse literary works. The contentious issue of book bans has taken center stage across the nation, and in metro Detroit, it’s no different. A clash between what has been branded as conservative values and the freedom to read has raised concerns about the boundaries of literary expression, and the battle has continued in cities including Ferndale, Royal Oak, Lapeer and Grand Rapids.  
 RELATED: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YjcH4En13k" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Drag queen story time at Michigan bookstore is the latest chapter in the battle over LGBTQ+ rights</a>
The rise of book bans has also brought attention to <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/obscenity" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the “Miller Test,”</a> which was established by the U.S. Supreme Court to define obscenity. The test sets a legal precedent that has often been invoked in debates surrounding censorship, and it’s one that libraries often consult before acquiring new materials. Delving into the state of book bans and literary freedom in Michigan, we’re left with a looming question: is Michigan on the precipice of a larger censorship storm? 
<figure id="attachment_32658" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-32658" style="width: 650px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-32658" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/One-Detroit-813-Book-Bans-Still-1.jpg" alt="list of teen topics on display at a library" width="650" height="366" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-32658" class="wp-caption-text">A list of teen topics is on display at a local library to help teens find books on mental health, eating disorders, LGBTQ+ themes and more. | Photo by One Detroit</figcaption></figure>
One Detroit’s Elizabeth Stewart set out to learn how libraries across metro Detroit have been impacted by book bans and where Michigan stands on the issue. Stewart talks with Ferndale Public Library Assistant Director <a href="https://www.fadl.org/Staff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jordan Wright</a> about ways the library has been targeted by those who wish to keep LGBTQ+ books out of public libraries. She also talks with PEN America’s Freedom to Read Program Director <a href="https://pen.org/user/kasey-meehan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kasey Meehan</a> about what we’re seeing nationwide.  
Plus, Katie MacFarland, chair of the <a href="https://www.momsforliberty.org/chapters/oakland-county-mi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oakland County Moms for Liberty</a>, an organization that wants more parental control over their children’s education, shares her thoughts on literary censorship in schools.  Michigan Library Association Executive Director <a href="https://www.milibraries.org/meet-the-mla-staff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Debbie Mikula</a> talks about the MLA’s <a href="https://www.mirighttoread.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MI Right to Read hotline</a>, which started in 2021 to provide local news on incidents of censorship and tips for fighting book bans, along with other resources.
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Michigan’s book ban battle: Navigating the controversy of literary censorship in metro Detroit

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Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s “Growing Michigan Together Council,” <a href="https://youtu.be/WpjOfVfOGvE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unveiled during the 2023 Mackinac Policy Conference</a>, is taking a bold bipartisan approach to address the state’s key challenges. Comprised of experts from various fields, the council’s overarching goal is to devise strategies that will bolster Michigan’s population and economy with a focus on Pre-K-12 education, higher education, infrastructure, jobs, talent, and overall societal well-being. 
RELATED:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://youtu.be/9s0szgNfdqs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announces new council, chief growth officer to fuel population increase</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/imagining-michigans-future-with-richard-florida-zoe-clark/">Renowned urbanist Richard Florida discusses Michigan&#8217;s population declines and how to build a prosperous future</a></li>
</ul>
While discussions on mitigating Michigan’s population decline have persisted for decades, <a href="https://senatedems.com/camilleri/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">State Senator Darrin Camilleri</a> (D-4th District), a recent appointee to the council, believes that the group is breaking new ground through a multifaceted approach to growth.  
<figure id="attachment_32319" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-32319" style="width: 650px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-32319" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Zoe-Clark-Sen-Camilleri-Still-1.jpg" alt="Darrin Camilleri and Zoe Clark" width="650" height="366" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-32319" class="wp-caption-text">Michigan Sen. Darrin Camilleri (left) and One Detroit population contributor Zoe Clark (right) discuss the Growing Michigan Together Council and MiLEAP at Marygrove Conservancy in Detroit. | Photo by One Detroit</figcaption></figure>
During an insightful conversation with One Detroit population contributor <a href="https://www.michiganradio.org/people/zoe-clark" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zoe Clark</a>, Political Director for Michigan Radio, Camilleri shares how the newly established Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer/news/press-releases/2023/07/12/whitmer-establishes-michigan-department-of-lifelong-education-advancement-and-potential" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MiLEAP</a>) will play a pivotal role in the overall growth strategies of the Growing Michigan Together Council. 
Camilleri also addresses concerns raised by the Michigan Board of Education regarding the constitutionality of MiLEAP and talks about his hopes that the state will become a top 10 state in terms of education quality and economic growth.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Zoe Clark, Political Director, Michigan Radio: So let&#8217;s talk all things population. Let&#8217;s first talk about the council that you&#8217;ve been appointed to. What are you looking forward to? What is actually going to get done here?
Darrin Camilleri. Michigan Senator, 4th District: I&#8217;m excited that we&#8217;ll have a chance to dive deep into population trends, not only in Michigan but across the country as we look to figuring out solutions to help put us on the map for being one of the best places to live, grow a family, and have a job and work here. We&#8217;ve got fantastic features for people to have recreation and love being here and work here. But we need more people to know that that is a story that Michigan has to tell.
Zoe Clark: Where is that disconnect? Because there was also a report that said Michigan is second only behind West Virginia when it comes to population growth.
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: I think as a young person and knowing a lot of my friends who have moved out of state or even out of the area that I grew up in, Downriver, people are looking for places where you have a lot of activity, where you can walk to coffee shops or museums or art shows and a place that you can feel like you&#8217;re part of a community. And I think we need to go back to more of those types of communities.
If you look at Michigan and places that are growing, it&#8217;s places like Traverse City or Ann Arbor or places like Royal Oak and Oakland County. And those are walkable, livable communities that people are attracted to based on the experience that they have there. And so we need more of that across the state.
Zoe Clark: So those places that you just named also happened to be very wealthy areas. Talk to me a little bit about how, when we&#8217;re talking about growing population, that fits in with inclusivity for all so that everyone can make a home in these areas that can be tough to find housing and affordable living.
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: And that&#8217;s actually a key piece that was brought up in our first Population Council meeting is that we want to ensure that any of the data that we are looking at and analyzing is really inclusive of every experience of all of our Michiganders. And so we&#8217;re talking about communities of color. Some of that data is not always aggregated in a way that is telling the full story. Let&#8217;s put it that way. Where we&#8217;re talking about Latino communities or black communities or any of our other diverse, beautiful members of Michigan, we want to ensure that every piece of the data is accurate and that we are inclusive for all of those voices.
Zoe Clark: So help me understand. So it&#8217;s like this younger generation that we need to get to stay or that we want to have them stay. Meantime, we sort of have a council or folks in government saying, here&#8217;s what we need to do, tend to be older. So how will the council, or whoever is making some of these decisions, make sure to listen to the younger generation?
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: This is how I&#8217;ve lived my life in politics. I&#8217;m one of the younger people always in the room, and I think that there are those who are eager to listen to people like me and others who are of my generation wanting to see what is it that I&#8217;m choosing about Michigan. Why do I want to be here? And for me, it&#8217;s about making sure that we have a place that is close to home, that I have a beautiful family nearby, that we&#8217;ve got wonderful places to live that are affordable, and that we do have these beautiful natural resources across Michigan, whether it&#8217;s Lake Erie or the Detroit River.
Zoe Clark: You are chair of the PreK-12 education budget in the Senate. Talk to me a little bit about the conversations that you want to make sure are had at that table.
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: When talking about education, it has to be pre-K through post-secondary. And so we&#8217;ve got to talk about how do we get the best resources in front of our kids as early as possible. So we&#8217;re talking about literally right from birth. So whether it&#8217;s the Dolly Parton Imagination Library and getting more books in the hands of families, which is something that we added in our school budget for more Michigan students to take advantage of. All the way through, what is that post-secondary credential? Whether it&#8217;s a trade school or a two-year community college or a four-year university, all of those options have to be on the table for conversation.
Zoe Clark: Growing Michigan&#8217;s population has been on the top of politicians, lawmakers, academics, economists, minds for decades here in Michigan. How will this council, do you think, be different this time than the previous conversations, iterations, idea-making?
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: I think for a lot of the conversation previously, it&#8217;s always been about how do we hearken back to the past. And because we have so many people who came to Michigan for a specific purpose. My family is one of them. My dad&#8217;s an immigrant from Malta. Him and his family came to the U.S. in the 1960s with the hope of the American dream and a good manufacturing job. On my mom&#8217;s side, Mexican Americans who came from Texas all the way to Detroit again with the hope of manufacturing. But that was 60, 70 years ago for my mom&#8217;s side and 50 years ago from my dad&#8217;s side. That type of Michigan doesn&#8217;t exist in the same way.
But how can we become a place that is still a beacon of hope for the future? It&#8217;s about climate. It&#8217;s about our environment. We are going to be the place that, because of the lack of action at the national and worldwide level for climate change, Michigan is the place where you can seek refuge in the future. You know, we do have our moments of really high heat, but we&#8217;re not sitting in 120 degrees like in Arizona. There&#8217;s going to be a point pretty soon where people are starting to realize that we want to live in a place that is bearable and beautiful all at the same time.
Zoe Clark: So affordable living, transportation, which is always top of mind here in Michigan, and education. What will success look like? Are there going to be metrics? How will you know that this is working other than maybe a population of 11 million? What does that look like?
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: So I do think we need to hit a specific target, whether that is a specific number that we&#8217;re hoping to be at by 2050 or a specific growth number. One of those two things is really critical because we do need to have a North Star. But the other piece is what are the other metrics along the way? And so if we&#8217;re going to hit a certain population, whether it&#8217;s 11 million, 12 million by a certain number, what are the steps along the way that we need to be taking together?
Whether you are a Democrat or Republican in this legislature, we need to be united in that purpose. And that&#8217;s something I hope we can come out of this council with, is that this is the vision for Michigan. It&#8217;s not a vision for the governor or for the legislature or for this one body of people. It&#8217;s literally, how can we put all of our partisan politics aside and say, for Michigan to thrive, we must do this together and stick on that path for the next ten or 15 years?
Zoe Clark: Let&#8217;s talk a little bit about education. The governor just recently announced an entire new department will go into effect in December. Talk to me a little bit about MI-Leap.
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: I think for this new department that the governor is creating, it&#8217;s again, back to that principle of we need to be focused on a goal as a state and we need to all be working towards that direction. And so with her new initiative, with MI-Leap, I think it&#8217;s going to be very important that we focus on those early learners as well as those who are looking to go right into the economy and to get a job. And we do know that those who have been working in the Department of Education, I&#8217;ve heard it over and over again during this budget process, they need more staff, they need more support. So if we can figure out ways to balance that workload, I think this new department is really going to help.
Zoe Clark: So you just mentioned the Department of Education. So these are going to be two separate departments. And there&#8217;s been some consternation from some folks who are part of the Department of Education, including the state superintendent, Michael Rice. The Education board members actually asking for an opinion from the state attorney general, Dana Nessel, about the constitutionality of this new department. Is it not great that it&#8217;s already- with its announcement that there&#8217;s already a little controversy surrounding whether it&#8217;s something that even Democrats are going to back?
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: I think there&#8217;s always going to be resistance to change, no matter whether it&#8217;s coming from a Democratic administration or a Republican administration. But this one component around education, no matter the party of the governor, there has not been an ability for the governor to really lead in a direction unless they do some systemic departmental changes. And that&#8217;s one way that I know that Governor Whitmer is trying to lead in this space.
She has the constitutional authority to create her own departments and to reorganize departments as well. I&#8217;m backing it. I think a lot of legislators are backing it, too, because we do see the benefit of working with a department that is focused on some of these early and post opportunities for education.
Zoe Clark: Let&#8217;s think about 2033. Write me a headline if Michigan is a successful state when it comes to population growth, and particularly your passion, which is education.
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: The headline that I&#8217;d like to see is that Michigan is a top ten state for growth, and we are in a top ten state for education across the country. When we look at some of the things that we&#8217;re investing in right now, we are trying to plant the seeds for future opportunities, not only for our students but for our educators as well. If we can be the place for an education workforce, it&#8217;s going to set us up for so many opportunities for success.
Zoe Clark: Can we do it?
Sen. Darrin Camilleri: I think we can. We&#8217;ve got some really important investments in the education workforce that we just passed in this budget. We&#8217;ve got record per pupil amounts going out to every student across Michigan, and we&#8217;re also investing in equity. We&#8217;re spending $200 million in additional resources for our at-risk students. And that&#8217;s also being added in with a new opportunity index that if you you&#8217;re in a high concentration poverty district, you&#8217;re going to get more money per pupil than those that don&#8217;t have those exact needs.
That, I think is going to level the playing field, balance out some of these inequities in our system and actually help us address these challenges. Hopefully for that 2033 headline to say, Come to Michigan. Be the place that you want to raise your family. Be the place that you want to learn and grow and work. And that is something that I think we can all be proud of.
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Gov. Whitmer’s Growth Council aims to boost population, economy through education and infrastructure

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Every year, the state’s top policymakers, C-suite business executives, academics, community and civic leaders head to Mackinac Island for the Detroit Regional Chamber&#8217;s <a href="https://www.detroitchamber.com/mackinac-policy-conference/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mackinac Policy Conference</a> to discuss the challenges and opportunities that Michigan has before it. This year’s conference is set to explore the theme “The Power of And,” emphasizing the importance of collaboration, innovation and inclusive solutions to shape the future of Detroit and the state.  
With an array of thought-provoking discussions, interactive sessions and networking opportunities, the 2023 Mackinac Policy Conference is expected to be a platform for meaningful conversations and transformative ideas, much like previous ideas that began at the conference including the bipartisan auto-reform policy, rebounding Detroit from bankruptcy, and more.  
One Detroit’s 2023 Mackinac Policy Conference correspondent <a href="https://www.michiganradio.org/people/zoe-clark" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zoe Clark</a>, political director for Michigan Radio, sat down with Detroit Regional Chamber <a href="https://www.detroitchamber.com/bios/sandy-k-baruah/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CEO Sandy Baruah</a> and Bank of America Michigan <a href="https://www.detroitchamber.com/bios/matt-elliott/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">President Matt Elliott</a>, this year’s conference chair, for a preview of the annual conference and what attendees can expect. They talk about the conference theme, the <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/future-of-work/">future of work</a>, what each are looking forward to, and how the conference’s conversations affect the daily lives of Michiganders.  
Detroit Public TV will provide <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/2023-mackinac-policy-conference/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">live coverage of the 2023 Mackinac Policy Conference</a> beginning Tuesday, May 30. Stream key conversations from the conference here.  Plus, don&#8217;t miss a special one-hour One Detroit episode from the conference airing at 7 p.m. ET Thursday, June 1.
<h2></h2>
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Zoe Clark, Political Director, Michigan Radio: So for folks who are new to Michigan or haven&#8217;t heard of the Mackinac Policy Conference before, what is it? Why does it matter? 
Sandy Baruah, President &amp; CEO, Detroit Regional Chamber: So the Mackinac Policy Conference is unique. It&#8217;s a terrific asset that the chamber happens to be stewards of, but it&#8217;s essentially Michigan&#8217;s senior management retreat that takes place on an island where we have you sequestered with no cars. Mediocre cell phone reception. But it&#8217;s really a it&#8217;s a management retreat in the sense that we&#8217;re bringing together academic leaders, business leaders, civic leaders, obviously political leaders to be in one place at one time to really address the opportunities and challenges that Michigan has before us. 
What are we going to do about these opportunities and challenges? And the great thing about it is, is that all these leaders are there. These are all C-suite leaders and they&#8217;re all accessible. If you&#8217;re media, if you&#8217;re a fellow attendee. Everyone&#8217;s accessible on equal terms and relationships are created. Discussions are had that would take months to schedule individually, but you&#8217;re going to have dozens of them in the span of an hour. 
Zoe Clark: Matt, as chair of the conference, you get to put a big imprint into the theme. And the theme this year is &#8216;The Power of And&#8217;. Tell me about that and how you&#8217;re thinking about that theme. 
Matt Elliot, Michigan Market President, Bank of America: Well, as Sandy mentioned, that this is a conversation amongst business leaders, civic leaders and others that in the current environment is very often framed in either or terms. Okay, you&#8217;re Democrat or a Republican. You&#8217;re left or right, you&#8217;re Spartan Wolverine. But we all know from a lot of personal experience and all of us have this, is that the best ideas, the best solutions come when multiple points of view are brought to the table, sometimes after a really healthy debate. And so what we want to do is leverage that power of and bring some concepts together that may have some constructive tension to them and see if we can drive forward for better solutions for everybody. 
Zoe Clark: That&#8217;s really saying something, though, that &#8216;The Power of And&#8217; can work for Spartans and Wolverines. I mean you&#8217;re throwing down there. 
Matt Elliot: I&#8217;m throwing down the gantlet. And I say that as someone who grew up in mid-Michigan and a Spartan. 
Zoe Clark: Here at One Detroit, the future of work is something we talk a lot about. Talk to me about the future of work and how that might intertwine into these conversations up at the island. 
Matt Elliot: We will cover the future of work in several different ways. The most obvious one is we&#8217;ll talk a lot about talent. And one of the things we&#8217;re going to do not only in this session but others, is try to do a level set with some data. You know, it&#8217;s you can&#8217;t have an and unless you agree on a common set of facts. So we&#8217;ll start with that. And then we&#8217;ll bring out some different points of view about how we develop talent more effectively so that people can be more effective in the future of work. We&#8217;ll also talk about things like electrification and the transformation of the automotive and mobility industry, which will have a huge impact on all of us in Michigan. 
Zoe Clark: Sandy, you mentioned the sort of senior managers up on the island. As I mentioned, these are philanthropists. You know, there&#8217;s it&#8217;s heady, weighty stuff.  Help me understand for someone living right now in Detroit, in southeast Michigan, who isn&#8217;t going to the island. How what is happening on the island could affect daily lives in the future of Michigan. 
Sandy Baruah: So I&#8217;d say two things. First of all, it what happens on the island doesn&#8217;t stay on the island. It is the opposite of Las Vegas. You know, first of all, the sessions are streamed. So what our audience is seeing when you&#8217;re sitting in that, you know, that main theater room listening to either Bill Ford or Liz Cheney or Fareed Zakaria or Santa Ono, you can watch for free, thanks to our partnership with Detroit Public Television. 
The second thing I would say is that the conference has a great history of working on long-term challenges that eventually come to fruition that affect all of us. For example one, outside these windows, you can see the building of the Gordie Howe Bridge. That is something that the conference and the chamber worked on for literally 20 years, highlighted at the conference. The car insurance reform bill was signed at the conference in 2019 celebrating a bipartisan win and today&#8217;s very non, non bipartisan environment. The final pieces of the grand bargain that got Detroit through municipal bankruptcy were sealed at the conference. So there&#8217;s a whole history of things, both big and small, that kind of come to fruition or get their route started at the conference. 
Zoe Clark: This is going to be the first conference in, well, ever where Democrats are running the show in Lansing. Right. The governor, both chambers of the legislature. Has that changed the dynamic as you put this conference together or expectations of what might happen with this sort of trifecta? 
Sandy Baruah: Regardless, you know who&#8217;s in control, if it&#8217;s the R&#8217;s or the D&#8217;s. We try to program the conference in a very bipartisan way. We take pride in the fact that the Detroit Regional Chamber is a bipartisan business organization. We work with and equally are offended by both sides of the aisle.  The way it does changes is that obviously when you know, when you have Democrats in control or Republicans control, you will see more of that party on stage. Like, for example, our governor and the mayor of Detroit, both Democrats, they&#8217;re going to be featured. If they were Republicans, you would see them as Republicans. 
Zoe Clark: Matt, what are you most looking forward to from the conference this year? 
Matt Elliot: I&#8217;m very excited about a lot of the speakers. You know, I have our CEO Brian Moynihan coming. He&#8217;ll talk about how &#8216;The Power of And&#8217; impacts our company and the work that we do around the world. Liz Cheney, we&#8217;ve mentioned, will also be there. And what we&#8217;re hoping is that those speakers, but also many of the panelists, drive a dialog that sounds different and lasts longer, frankly, and as Sandy said, should leave, should go beyond the porch, should go beyond the island, because we really want to sort of start conversations that drive forward for more and&#8217;s for the state of Michigan. 
Zoe Clark: Sandy, what are you most looking forward to? 
Sandy Baruah: I am really looking forward to this kind of this umbrella theme that Matt has created about &#8216;The Power of And&#8217;. Knitting things together. You know, we need to move as Michiganders away from trying to address our challenges and address our opportunities through purely a programmatic approach. We need to set an umbrella. What is the culture in which these programs are taking place? What is our North Star? So tying together or weaving together these multiple and&#8217;s to create a bigger picture for a bigger strategy?
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2023 Mackinac Policy Conference emphasizes collaborative solutions with ‘The Power of And’

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Examining Michigan’s AAPI Community: A roundtable on the issues, activism and legislative developments

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Lansing has been a hotbed for legislative action in recent weeks as Michigan lawmakers tackled gun control, LGBTQ+ rights, abortion and the right to work in a slate of new bills passed and repealed in several legislative sessions across the House and Senate.  
<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/news/gov-gretchen-whitmer-targets-tax-relief-gun-reform-education-in-2023-state-of-the-state-address/">Additional gun safety laws</a> — safe storage laws, universal background checks and red flag laws — have been passed by lawmakers and LGBTQ+ protections will be added to the <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/-/media/Project/Websites/mdcr/legal/public-act-453-of-1976-elliott-larsen.pdf?rev=778962c60c314c849814d5a560e5ad93">Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.</a> Lawmakers also repealed the 2012 right to work law signed into action by former Gov. Rick Snyder and the 1931 abortion ban. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the bill to expand LGBTQ+ protections Thursday, March 16, the same day the Michigan Senate approved a trio of proposals related to gun safety.
RELATED: 
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2023/03/16/michigan-gun-safety-proposals-senate-vote-background-checks-storage/70004578007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michigan Senate OKs proposals to expand gun safety measures in step forward for Democrats</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2023/03/16/michigan-lgbtq-protections-bill-civil-rights-law/69990432007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gov. Whitmer signs bill expanding Michigan civil rights law to include LGBTQ protections</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/news/gov-gretchen-whitmer-targets-tax-relief-gun-reform-education-in-2023-state-of-the-state-address/">Gov. Gretchen Whitmer targets tax relief, gun reform, education in 2023 State of the State address</a></li>
</ul>
One Detroit <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/#bill">senior producer Bill Kubota</a> sits down with <a href="https://www.michiganradio.org/people/zoe-clark">Michigan Radio Political Director Zoe Clark</a> to get a rundown on what lawmakers passed and where they stood on the issues. They talk about the impact the <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/news/healing-from-tragedy-how-msu-moves-forward-after-mass-shooting-kills-three-injures-five/">recent mass shooting at Michigan State University</a> had on gun control conversations, the legislature’s bipartisan support of the Elliott-Larsen amendment, and the controversy around the right to work. 
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Bill Kubota, Senior Producer, One Detroit: Another rally about guns at the state capitol this week. Hundreds came. Detroiters, spartans, the governor. 
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer: We are done only offering thoughts and prayers. It is time for action. 
Mia Reid, Moms Demand Action: It is so difficult because it is not the natural order. We&#8217;re not supposed to be burying our children!
Bill Kubota: A few here protesting the protesters and the keynote speaker, former Arizona Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, still recovering from a gunshot to the head in a mass shooting where six others were killed in 2011. 
Gabrielle Giffords, Former Congresswoman, Activist: But change doesn&#8217;t happen overnight. I can&#8217;t do it alone. Join me. Let&#8217;s move ahead together. Amen. 
Bill Kubota: But now, Michigan gun laws are really expected to change. Other laws, too, spinning out of a whirlwind Wednesday House session last week. Elliot Larsen, right to work. We&#8217;ll talk about those. But first, background checks for gun purchases. 
Rep. Angela Rigas, D-Caledonia Township: Simply put, this bill is a slippery slope toward an oppressive, authoritative government or should I say even more oppressive authoritative government. 
Rep, Jaime Churches, D-Wyandotte: This package will not take anything away from gun owners. It will merely be an inconvenience to you. The same way you inconvenience my curriculum so I can teach my kids survival. A required background check, much like every parent who comes into my classroom has to have to read to my students. 
Bill Kubota: State Rep Jaime Churches. She was a teacher downriver. She introduced a gun bill that passed in a vote split along party lines. The recent shootings at nearby Michigan State University activating legislators. 
Zoe Clark, Political Director, Michigan Radio: For a lot of lawmakers, it was personal. 
Bill Kubota: So many connections to MSU. Here&#8217;s Zoe Clark, Michigan Radio&#8217;s Political Director. 
Zoe Clark: That can be frustrating for some people. That it takes something personal to get something done. They definitely moved gun safety legislation forward on the calendar.  
Bill Kubota: Well, what was the problem that the Republicans had with that? 
Zoe Clark: Well, look, I mean, I don&#8217;t want to just make it all about Democrats versus Republicans, but Democrats want some gun safety legislation that they&#8217;ve been pushing for. And Republicans tend to be Second Amendment. And they say it&#8217;s not about gun safety legislation. This is a mental health crisis. 
And Democrats, at least these bills that have been pushed so far, are these three, right, that many folks say actually can be helpful if you look at the data across the country and this is safe storage laws, red flag laws, universal background checks. what we know about Michigan voters is in recent polling, it shows that actually, a majority of Michigan voters approve of these three pieces of legislation that they&#8217;re pushing. 
Unknown Speaker: Senate bill number 04, a bill to amend the Elliott-Larsen&#8217;s Civil Rights Act. 
Bill Kubota: Elliot-Larsen dates back to 1977, protecting Michiganders from discrimination, but not LGBT people. Not until last year when the state Supreme Court decided that it does. But there&#8217;s no guarantee their ruling can&#8217;t be overturned, thus the amendment. 
Rep. Laurie Pohutsky, Speaker Pro Tem, D- Livonia:  I also rise today as the first out queer woman to serve in the Michigan legislature. But I do just want to note that a few months ago I was prohibited from even making that statement in this chamber, and I&#8217;m grateful that the landscape has shifted dramatically. 
Rep. Mike McFall, D- Hazel Park: We&#8217;re often accused of having a secret agenda. The truth is, the only agenda I have is to live my life free from discrimination and hate. 
Rep. Rachelle Smit, D- Shelbyville: Many religious individuals and organizations hold deeply held beliefs about sexuality and gender. Forcing them to act in a way that goes against their beliefs is a violation of their religious freedom. 
Rep, Noah Arbit, D- West Bloomfield: To all those who would invoke the word of the Lord to deny us these rights. I remind you, the Lord created us in his own image. Can you not see the Lord in me? Can you not see the Lord in your gay sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews? Can you not see the Lord in us? 
Rep, Jason Hoskins, D- Southfield: This legislation will show LGBTQ people, particularly LGBTQ people of color, that they can fulfill their full aspirations. Your identity won&#8217;t limit who you are or what you can do. You don&#8217;t have to hide anymore. You don&#8217;t have to feel less than. And that is cause for celebration. 
Bill Kubota: Bipartisan support. Eight House Republicans voted for the amendment. 
Rep. Laurie Pohutsky, Speaker Pro Tem, D- Livonia: The bill is passed. 
Bill Kubota: I wonder if some of the talks on the floor by some of the representatives changed some minds? 
Zoe Clark: I don&#8217;t know how much of it changed minds versus what we know is there were probably some Republican lawmakers, even in previous sessions, that would have voted for it, but it never actually came to the House or the Senate floor because Republicans were in charge and didn&#8217;t ever put it up for a vote. 
Bill Kubota: Now, the Governor locks the Eliot-Larsen amendment into state law. The third big one that I&#8217;d like to talk about kinda started in 2012. And that&#8217;s &#8216;Right to Work&#8217;, what happened there? 
Zoe Clark: Oh, my goodness. Well, so let&#8217;s go back ten years ago, this past December. This is legislative Republicans pushed forward &#8216;Right to Work&#8217; in an incredibly short amount of time. Rick Snyder, then governor, Republican, basically said it wasn&#8217;t on his agenda. This wasn&#8217;t necessarily something he wanted to do. He believed it was divisive, but he ended up signing it into law. And there were huge protests at the state capitol. 
Bill Kubota: Less commotion last Wednesday, as the script was flipped, voting along party lines. 
Rep. Dylan Wegela, D- Garden City: The so-called &#8216;Right to Work&#8217; law was designed not to give workers freedom, but to weaken their bargaining power and increase the profits of a few. 
Rep. Matt Hall, D- Kalamazoo: Many companies look solely to &#8216;Right to Work&#8217; states, and this is one of those major factors in determining whether we&#8217;re going to land a major economic opportunity for our state. 
Rep, Regina Weiss, D- Oak Park: ‘Right To Work’ was never about freedom. It was simply about control. Dr. Martin Luther King knew that truth all the way back in 1961, when he said, &#8220;In our glorious fight for civil rights, we must guard against being fooled by false slogans such as &#8216;Right to Work&#8217;.&#8221; 
Zoe Clark: Wednesday, I mean, that movie, &#8216;Everything Everywhere All At Once&#8217;, you know winning all of the Oscars. I mean, it felt a little like that in Lansing last Wednesday. It really was just the way that the votes happened so quickly. It had a lot of folks&#8217; heads spinning. And what Democrats are saying is like, look, this is what we said we were going to do. 
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Michigan lawmakers pass bills on gun control, LGBTQ+ rights, abortion and right to work

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A conversation with Jelani Cobb on race, media, and democracy

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Just after re-election to the U.S. Senate through the 2024 term, Michigan Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow announced her retirement, a decision fueled by &#8220;passing the torch&#8221; to a new generation of leaders. “Inspired by a new generation of leaders, I have decided to pass the torch in the U.S. Senate. I am announcing today that I will not seek re-election and will leave the U.S. Senate at the end of my term on January 3, 2025,&#8221; <a href="https://www.stabenow.senate.gov/news/senator-stabenow-announces-she-will-not-seek-re-election-in-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stabenow said in a press release</a>.
The candidates that follow Stabenow will have big shoes to fill for Michigan&#8217;s now-open senate seat. Stabenow was elected to the Ingham County Commission in 1974, at age 24, where she became a trailblazer as the first woman to chair the board. That was the first of many &#8216;first&#8217; woman historic milestones she reached in her career, including being the first woman elected from Michigan to serve in the U.S. Senate.
As the unprecedented announcement sent shockwaves through Michigan&#8217;s political sphere, politicians on both sides of the aisle have been scrambling to take advantage of the new opportunity. Who could be contending for Sen. Stabenow&#8217;s seat in 2024? Some, like Michigan Democratic Reps. <a href="https://slotkin.house.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elissa Slotkin</a> and <a href="https://debbiedingell.house.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Debbie Dingell</a>, have already announced their interest in running for Senate, while others may still slowly come out of the woodwork.
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://twitter.com/SHDetroit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephen Henderson</a>, host of <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&#8220;American Black Journal,&#8221;</a> and <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/staff/2646740001/nolan-finley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nolan Finley, of the Detroit News</a>, sit down for a conversation about who might make a bid for U.S. Senate in 2024, the challenge for Republicans to take back the seat, and the financial investments needed to make a strong bid.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Nolan Finley, The Detroit News: Well, Steve, the unexpected retirement of Senator Debbie Stabenow puts Michigan at about a once-in-a-quarter-century position, an open Senate seat.
Stephen Henderson, Host of American Black Journal: Yeah.
Nolan Finley No incumbent running in 2024. It&#8217;s going to be a free for all, isn&#8217;t it? I mean, everybody in Michigan who&#8217;s ever had the ambition to be a senator. This is their opportunity.
Stephen Henderson: Well, the problem is if you have any idea in your head that this is what you want to do, you&#8217;ve got to jump because it may not come up again when you have the chance. I mean, first, we should note that Debbie Stabenow has this extraordinary career in the Senate. First woman elected from the State of Michigan. She unseated the last Republican to hold that seat. We&#8217;re going to miss her.
We have a lot of names to go through thinking about the replacement. But I think Elissa Slotkin on the Democratic side starts with maybe the most advantage. Somebody who just won in probably the toughest congressional districts, at least in the Midwest, if not the country, has a lot of money and gets R and I votes. She can appeal to voters who are not part of her party.
Nolan Finley: I think she&#8217;s got some issues in her own party.
Stephen Henderson: A lot of other people.
Nolan Finley: The progressives aren&#8217;t crazy about her.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah. No, they aren&#8217;t.
Nolan Finley: I heard someone say this week, we don&#8217;t need another Joe Manchin Democrat. We don&#8217;t need a Kyrsten Sinema. So she starts with some troubles there. And right now, she&#8217;s getting a lot of attention because she&#8217;s expressed some interest. You throw Jocelyn Benson in, the Secretary of State, how does that change the dynamic? A Dan Kildee, a Debbie Dingell, a lot of names on the Democratic side, some we probably haven&#8217;t even thought about.
Stephen Henderson: Garlin Gilchrist, I think, is another person who should be in the mix.
Nolan Finley: Progressives would love him. So I think it&#8217;ll be a crowded primary field unless the interests of the Democratic Party decide they don&#8217;t want a crowded field. The Republican side has fewer names.
Stephen Henderson: Well, part of the problem is that Republicans have not won a Senate race here since 1994. That will be 30 years when we have this election in 2024. Statewide has been a problem for Republicans for a long time.
Stephen Henderson: Rick Snyder.
Nolan Finley: Until recently they held most statewide office but you&#8217;re right. The senate&#8217;s been a tough one since they lost that seat. But you may see Ronna Romney McDaniels come back.
Stephen Henderson: Come back.
Nolan Finley: John James may decide, well, gosh, I&#8217;ve served in Congress.
Stephen Henderson: Run for a third time for Senate.
Nolan Finley: I think that would be a mistake by the way. But there are not so many names. I think that will change. I think you&#8217;ll see people on the Republican side come out of the business community to make a bid.
Stephen Henderson: And Peter Maer, I think over in Grand Rapids, somebody who again, has that appeal or potential appeal across the party divide through if he can get through the primary.
Nolan Finley: I think this was starting to come into focus a little more. People have only had a week or two to weigh these. You and I may get in the race.
Stephen Henderson: That&#8217;s right, everybody is a possible candidate.
Nolan Finley: And that&#8217;s the truth, right now. There is no clear person in any party who can say, I&#8217;ve got this because there have been so many people waiting for this chance.
Stephen Henderson: And it also really depends on the national climate at that time, right? If Democrats go into 2024 with a stronger economy than they had in 2022, depending on who is at the top of the ticket, it may be even harder for Republicans. But it&#8217;s entirely possible that Republicans will be expecting a big wave in 2024 if things aren&#8217;t better.
Nolan Finley: If the economy goes into the tank. If Joe Biden remains unpopular and he&#8217;s at the top of the ticket.
Stephen Henderson: You have no idea.
Nolan Finley: And if Trump&#8217;s on the ticket, it changes that dynamic of who we might herd or carry in, depending on what the mood in the country is. It&#8217;s very early.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah.
Nolan Finley: It&#8217;s two years out. I think it&#8217;ll shape out over the summer.
Stephen Henderson: It&#8217;s not so early, though, because of the money that it takes. You&#8217;re talking about $100 million to raise. One of the interesting things I talked to Debbie Stabenow about was that she raised an awful lot of money last year, more than $1,000,000. That was money that she was raising for the seat. That&#8217;s money that&#8230; I don&#8217;t know. Does that come into the race? Does she put that behind somebody? It&#8217;s got to go somewhere.
Nolan Finley: It can&#8217;t go to a condo in Traverse City.
Stephen Henderson: Not anymore, right? They stopped that.
Nolan Finley: What about Pete Buttigieg? He moved here for a reason.
Stephen Henderson: I think he could be somebody who&#8217;s looking at something like that. I mean, he&#8217;d have to do a lot in terms of digging into Michigan and raising his profile.
Nolan Finley: But carpetbaggers have won.
Stephen Henderson: But the idea Stabenow, as not just a kingmaker, as the person in the seat, or queen maker, but as the person who has some resources to lend to.
Nolan Finley: So why is she going now, Steve? As we close.
Stephen Henderson: She said it&#8217;s time for a new generation. But she also said she&#8217;s got a mother who&#8217;s aging and she wants to spend more time with her. She needs more time to do that. I think lots of people are in that position these days trying to figure out how to care for elderly parents. Work has got to come second.
Nolan Finley: And this is a six-year commitment. It&#8217;s not like you&#8217;re running for Congress for two years.
Stephen Henderson: She&#8217;ll be 74 in 2024, I think.
Nolan Finley: Nobody in that age group can look ahead and say, yeah, I can do this another six years. You just don&#8217;t know.
Stephen Henderson: It makes the election much more exciting, right off the job.
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Michigan Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow announces retirement. Who might run for her seat in 2024?

GovWhitmer-SOTS23

Appearing before Michigan House representatives and senators in the Michigan House chambers on Jan. 25, <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer">Gov. Gretchen Whitmer</a> delivered her 5th State of the State address as governor of Michigan, and her first of her second four-year term that has seen a shift to Democratic control across all three legislative bodies. 
During her address, the governor spoke optimistically about her goals for Michigan, including tax relief for low-income families and senior pensions, gun reform, expanding LGBTQ rights and protections, universal pre-k for all four-year-olds and investments in K-12 tutoring and afterschool programs. She hopes to enact some turnkey legislation right away, while others may be more ambitious, long-term goals the state may only accomplish with bipartisan support. 
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/politics/2023-state-of-the-state/">Watch Gov. Whitmer&#8217;s State of the State address here</a> 
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://twitter.com/SHDetroit">Stephen Henderson,</a> host of <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/">&#8220;American Black Journal,&#8221;</a> and <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/staff/2646740001/nolan-finley/">Nolan Finley, of the Detroit News</a>, got together to discuss Gov. Whitmer&#8217;s goals for the state moving forward and whether she can get them accomplished. Plus, they posit whether voters might see Gov. Whitmer make a bid for national office during the 2024 election cycle. 
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Stephen Henderson, @SHDDetroit: All right. So, Nolan, we saw Governor Gretchen Whitmer give her fifth State of the State address. It is the first State of the State address of her second term and the first address to a chamber that is controlled on both sides, Senate and House, by Democrats.  I thought it was a really focused speech. She talked about some really concrete things she wants to get done right away. I also thought it was an ambitious speech. She talked about some things that, hey, maybe there stretch goals for us here in the State. But look, this is playing to my sentiments, right? This governor and this legislature. I wonder how it struck your ears.
Nolan Finley, @NolanFinleyDN: Well, what it struck me as a governor who recognizes the opportunity here. She&#8217;s got complete control of the legislature. It&#8217;s a slim majority. But if she could hold it together, she could get a lot of things done. A lot of difficult things done. Things that you wouldn&#8217;t have imagined happening had the chamber not changed to a Democratic majority. Also, an opportunity to position herself as a governor who can do hard things and can get things done, which is very useful if a governor had ambitions for 2024 and the presidential race.
Stephen Henderson: People keep bringing that up about 2024. And whether Whitmer would be in it. I don&#8217;t see her as a great, credible candidate there. But before we get to that, I do want to talk about one part of her speech in particular, and that&#8217;s this idea of pre-K for all. Which, I think, I mean, we have been expanding pre-K for a while here in Michigan. We&#8217;ve been talking about doing better in terms of educational outcomes. Everybody seems to agree that pre-K gives kids a leg up that lots of them need. I think this is the most ambitious part of the early agenda, at least that the governor has in getting the legislature. And it is something that I think you&#8217;re going to see a lot of Republicans at least sit-down and think about and open their ears to.
Nolan Finley: Yeah and I agree. I think it&#8217;s an important piece. I would have preferred to see it as part of an overall strategic education improvement plan, something we lack in this state, and a blueprint, a plan that everybody understands and everybody participates in that goes from K-12 and includes school choice. It includes tutoring, intensive tutoring, and it breaks down all these barriers structural, cultural, and whatever that has kept us at the bottom of education performance in a state that should not be at the bottom. We fancy ourselves a sort of advanced state, a prosperous state, and here we are, lurking around with some of the poorest states in the nation in terms of our educational achievement.
Her educate&#8230; Her economic plan, Steve. She&#8217;s calling for an increase in the earned income tax credit for the working poor. I think that&#8217;s also a place where she&#8217;s going to find consensus with Republicans. She&#8217;s proposing 30% EITC credit. Republicans are already on the table with 20%. That seems like a very narrow gap to close. I think where she&#8217;s going to run into pushback from the public too is on this income tax relief for giving public employees from pensions, from state income taxes, but not everybody else&#8217;s pension. I think the Republicans have a much better plan to provide $40,000 in exemptions on retirement income for an individual and 80,000 for couples. That takes care of everybody. But this insistence on providing some extra benefit to public employee pensioners I think is unfair. And it&#8217;s not going to sit well with the public.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah, I don&#8217;t know how well it&#8217;ll sit with the public. I mean, this used to be a state where we really believed in that kind of benefit for people who worked for the government. And part of the reason was that you know, we asked a lot of them. We asked a lot of sacrifice of them when times get tough. These were concessions that were crafted around the idea that these are people who are not going to make the kind of money that people do in the public in the private sector.
Nolan Finley: But they do now.
Stephen Henderson: I don&#8217;t know if that&#8217;s all true anymore. Right. I mean, I&#8217;m not sure that everybody feels that way. I don&#8217;t object to, on its face, the Republican plan there, which is dealing with everybody who&#8217;s retired and saying, look, let&#8217;s treat them all better, right?
Nolan Finley: Equal.
Stephen Henderson: But the idea of them being equal, they aren&#8217;t necessarily equal. And I think that&#8217;s where&#8230;
Nolan Finley: They shouldn&#8217;t be. We shouldn&#8217;t have two classes of taxpayers. And I think that&#8217;s where there&#8217;s going to be a sticking point. You could take care of this by adopting that Republican plan and public pensioners benefit, private pension benefit and people without a pension, which is going to be most of the population,.
Stephen Henderson: As most of us now, right?
Nolan Finley: They benefit.
Stephen Henderson: But quickly, I want to talk about this ambition. Do you really believe that this is somebody who&#8217;s thinking about the national office?
Nolan Finley: Yeah. I mean, she sounded like it. She didn&#8217;t sound like somebody who is ready to quietly walk off the stage in two years. And again, this presents her with an amazing opportunity to position herself as a get-it-done governor. And that&#8217;s made much easier when there&#8217;s nobody standing in your way and keeping you from getting it done. So like Rick Snyder in his first term. Look at all he accomplished with a Republican majority in the legislature&#8230;
Stephen Henderson: Well everyone thought he might be&#8230; everyone thought he might have national aspirations and possibility. And well, he did.
Nolan Finley: He ran for a little bit, you know. So and I would expect.
Stephen Henderson: A lot to see.
Nolan Finley: Okay, Steve. Next up, the budget where reality will meet these.
Stephen Henderson: How are we going to pay for all those?
Nolan Finley: Yeah, right. So good talking with you.
Stephen Henderson: All right.
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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer targets tax relief, gun reform, education in 2023 State of the State address

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<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer</a> lays out her new legislative year agenda. WKAR Senior Capitol Correspondent <a href="https://www.wkar.org/people/tim-skubick" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tim Skubick</a>, covering his <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer/news/press-releases/2023/01/03/gov-whitmer-to-deliver-2023-state-of-the-state-address-on-january-25th" target="_blank" rel="noopener">53rd State of the State</a>, provides analysis and commentary along with fellow capitol correspondents.
Joining the panel is Huel Perkins, Jim Kiertzner, Kathy Hoffman and Chuck Stokes, bringing a combined total of over 150 years of political experience on the Michigan political front.
Tune in LIVE Wednesday, January 25 at 7 p.m. ET here on <a href="http://www.onedetroitpbs.org">One Detroit</a>.
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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer delivers 2023 State of the State address

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As lawmakers in Michigan&#8217;s legislature and congress wrap up a year that saw contentious election races, major debates over abortion access, and a plethora of other big decisions, the traditional lame duck sessions that typically round out the year will look a little different than past sessions.
That&#8217;s because, for the first time in nearly 40 years, <a href="https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/michigan-democrats-will-control-lansing-what-will-they-do-it" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Democrats have taken control</a> of the Michigan Senate and House of Representatives following the 2022 midterm election. In a year where Republicans had expected to maintain the state&#8217;s representative majority, and even possibly flip the governor&#8217;s seat, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was re-elected and Democrats narrowly won the advantage with a 56-54 majority in the house and a 20-18 advantage in the senate.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/michigan/2022/12/08/budget-negotiations-fizzle-in-lansing-as-lame-duck-legislature-comes-to-a-close/69710975007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Budget negotiations fizzle in Lansing as lame duck comes to a close</a>
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/beyond-the-ballot-box-a-one-detroit-election-special-with-the-detroit-free-press/">Watch &#8220;Beyond the Ballot Box: A One Detroit Election Special with the Detroit Free Press&#8221;</a>
With the state&#8217;s political power leaning blue, One Detroit contributors <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/staff/2646740001/nolan-finley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nolan Finley</a>, the editorial page editor for the Detroit News, and <a href="https://twitter.com/SHDetroit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephen Henderson</a>, host of <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&#8220;American Black Journal,&#8221;</a> sit down together on Dec. 7, as Michigan&#8217;s lame duck was still in session, to share their thoughts on the practice and process of lame duck, as well as the state issues they think Michigan lawmakers should focus on. Plus, Finley and Henderson look at what&#8217;s ahead for national politics and discuss what they&#8217;d like to see from lawmakers as they return to work in 2023.
This story was updated on Dec. 12, 2022. 
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Stephen & Nolan discuss Michigan lame duck sessions, look ahead to national politics in 2023

ONE-DETROIT-713-Voter-Attitudes-Still-1

Absentee voting or in-person? That&#8217;s one of the key questions on many Michigan voters&#8217; minds heading into the 2022 midterm election season. Others include the right to reproductive freedoms, including an individual&#8217;s right to make decisions on pregnancy and abortion, the economy, and who may lead Michigan as the next governor of the state. While some voters are leaning into party lines, other voters are still undecided.  
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/certifying-an-election-public-voting-accuracy-test-educates-voters-on-election-process/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Certifying an Election: Public Voting Accuracy Test Educates Voters on Election Process</a>
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/behind-the-ballot-box-detroit-election-inspectors-receive-training-ahead-of-august-2-primary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Behind the Ballot Box: Detroit Election Inspectors Receive Training Ahead of 2022 Primary</a>
One Detroit has teamed up with the Detroit Free Press political team for an in-depth look at what voters are thinking ahead of the Nov. 8 midterms. Detroit Free Press <a href="https://www.freep.com/staff/2646657001/paul-egan/">Lansing Bureau Chief Paul Egan</a> and One Detroit senior producer <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/bkubota56">Bill Kubota</a> talk with Michigan voters from across Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties about who they&#8217;ll cast their ballots for and where they land on the key issues. 
<figure id="attachment_27458" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-27458" style="width: 600px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-27458" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ONE-DETROIT-713-Voter-Attitudes-Still-2.jpg" alt="Michigan voters" width="600" height="338" srcset="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ONE-DETROIT-713-Voter-Attitudes-Still-2.jpg 1920w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ONE-DETROIT-713-Voter-Attitudes-Still-2-300x169.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ONE-DETROIT-713-Voter-Attitudes-Still-2-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ONE-DETROIT-713-Voter-Attitudes-Still-2-768x432.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ONE-DETROIT-713-Voter-Attitudes-Still-2-1536x864.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-27458" class="wp-caption-text">Detroit Free Press Lansing Bureau Chief Paul Egan, right, talks with a Oakland County, Michigan voter in his home during the 2022 midterm election season. | Photo by One Detroit</figcaption></figure>
This story coincides with One Detroit 1-hour election special episode with the <a href="https://www.freep.com/">Detroit Free Press</a>. Watch &#8220;Beyond the Ballot Box: A One Detroit Election Special with the Detroit Free Press.&#8221;
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Paul Egan, Lansing Bureau Chief, Detroit Free Press: So President Trump&#8217;s made a lot of claims about the 2020 presidential election, that there was a lot of fraud and that it was stolen from him. How do you feel about all those claims?
Julie Gavigan, Independent Voter, Livonia: Well, if the claims are investigated, which they say they are, there&#8217;s not really much one can do about that either way. So what&#8217;s already done is done. There is no need to keep dredging it back up. It&#8217;s not going to do anybody any good. It&#8217;s a waste of taxpayer money and time.
Paul Egan: Do you feel confident that when you cast your ballot that it&#8217;s going to be accurately counted and that your vote will really count like it should?
Julie Gavigan: Let&#8217;s hope because there have been some accusations of that in the past, that somebody will be overseeing that. That needs to be this time much more than last time. Let&#8217;s hope there&#8217;s a little more checks and balances going on and it&#8217;ll be a little more transparent than it was to begin with.
Paul Egan: Do you think that voting absentee or through the mail is any more or less secure than voting in person at the polls?
Julie Gavigan: It depends on what your view is. If you don&#8217;t have an opportunity to go to the polls, then absentee is better than not voting.
Michelle Spencer, Democratic Voter, Detroit: I&#8217;ve been voting absentee. It started because I wasn&#8217;t going to be able to go to the polls on that particular day. So I started getting absentee ballots. It&#8217;s so much easier. I don&#8217;t have to stand in line. When we had the Obama election, I stood in line for hours.
Richard Peluso, Republican Voter, Troy: Having come from Chicago, the adage of vote early and vote often was 40 years ago, 50 years ago. Mayor Daley ran Chicago and that was sort of a chuckle. But there was more to it than that, really. I think we&#8217;ve degraded the whole voting process by extending the amount of time that you can vote.
It&#8217;s hard to think that even though the population of the United States is probably now worth 300 million, it might have been 200 million 50 years ago. How is it that without computerization, we could count ballots in by midnight or very early into the next morning? We would have winners decided and everybody voted on one day.
Now a substantial number of people will vote absentee. It&#8217;s not that I disagree with absentee voting to be used in the right way. You know, offshore military, people that are infirm and sick, and in those kinds of situations. But any time that you&#8217;re going to take ballots over an extended period of time, it just makes me a tad concerned about the effectiveness and the legitimacy of those kinds of votes being cast.
Paul Egan: So do you trust the system?
Julie Gavigan: I trust it now more than I did before because hopefully there will be some more overseeing because of what&#8217;s happened.
Paul Egan: It sounds like, and I&#8217;m not trying to put words in your mouth, you feel that if somebody is able-bodied, it&#8217;s a civic duty to show up at the polls and vote.
Richard Peluso: I 100% agree with that. My wife and I will do that. Even when I was working, I would take time from work. And we just go get in line either early or late. And you can see your fellow neighbors in there and it&#8217;s an opportunity to kind of catch up, not so much about politically what did you do, but to be seen at the voting booth rather than dropping an envelope in the mail and really wondering where&#8217;d it really go and is my vote truly going to be counted in that situation?
Michelle Spencer: In my opinion, I think they want certain areas, and by certain areas we mean Democrats, especially in the urban areas, to go stand in line. Stand in line for hours and hours at a time.
Paul Egan: How do you expect you&#8217;ll cast your vote in November?
Julie Gavigan: I&#8217;ll probably vote absentee this year, more than likely.
Paul Egan: And why?
Julie Gavigan: Probably because of time constraints. And it just depends on the COVID situation as well, as far as exposure and time of the polls.
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Absentee or in person: Michigan voters react to key issues, races in the midterm election

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All across Michigan, a shortage of childcare availability and rising childcare costs have persisted, leaving some working women with few options other than to stay home and forego a job for parenthood. Nearly 1.1 million women left the workforce from February 2020 to January 2022, and<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/diversity-and-inclusion/seven-charts-that-show-covid-19s-impact-on-womens-employment"> a disproportionate number of women</a> — 23% compared to 13% of men —  considered leaving their careers for motherhood.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dkt25jl7pws" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The impact of women leaving the workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic</a>
RELATED: <a href="https://greatstarttoquality.org/calculator/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Check to see if you’re eligible for childcare assistance in Michigan</a>
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer&#8217;s<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer/news/press-releases/2022/08/09/40-percent-of-michigan-working-families-with-kids-under-12-eligible-for-free-or-low-cost-child-care"> latest childcare announcements</a> have expanded the state&#8217;s efforts to re-strengthen the childcare industry, but how will those efforts roll out across the state? And what other changes does Michigan need to make childcare more affordable and accessible?
RELATED: <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/lara/news-releases/2022/09/13/gov-whitmer-launches-new-program-to-help-open-new-child-care-programs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gov. Whitmer Launches New Program to Help Entrepreneurs Open New Child Care Programs, Increase Availability of Affordable Care for Parents</a>
Guest host <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/trudy-gallant-stokes-a1195110/">Trudy Gallant-Stokes</a> talks with<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/mwc"> Michigan Women’s Commission</a> Commissioner<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/mwc/commissioners/charity-r-dean"> Charity Dean</a> and<a href="https://inforummichigan.org/"> InForum</a> CEO<a href="https://twitter.com/terrybarclay"> Terry Barclay</a>, about the decline of women in the workforce, the impact of childcare, and how Gov. Whitmer’s latest<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/lara/news-releases/2022/09/13/gov-whitmer-launches-new-program-to-help-open-new-child-care-programs"> childcare legislation</a> may help working women and their families.
This story comes from One Detroit&#8217;s Future of Work Virtual Town Hall, &#8220;Women in the Workforce.&#8221; Watch the full <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/future-of-work-town-hall-women-in-the-workforce/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">town hall here</a>.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Trudy Gallant-Stokes, Guest Host, Future of Work Town Hall: While women gained 188,000 thousand jobs in January 2022, they are still short by more than 1.8 million jobs lost since February 2020. But in August, Governor Whitmer passed the free childcare expansion, making 40% of Michigan families eligible for free or low-cost childcare. So that&#8217;s where we&#8217;ll start the conversation today. I&#8217;m a third-generation working woman, and now I have two daughters who are working women. One is a new mom. And I just find it extremely frustrating that we seem like we keep having to have these conversations.
How do the two of you feel? Does it feel like two steps forward and then one step back? Are we making any progress?
Terry Barclay, President &amp; CEO, Inforum: The causes for that are many. But I do think that childcare is a central concern for men and women in the workforce. The stresses on families, whether they could afford childcare or not, even in many cases when they could afford childcare, there was sort of a lack of stability because of the pandemic.
Terry Barclay: And they would not know from day to day whether those services were going to be available. So there&#8217;s no question that if we want to solve the talent shortage, we need to look at what services are we providing to support healthy families in Michigan.
Trudy Gallant-Stokes: Well, I guess it is encouraging that we do have this bipartisan effort now and been announced by Governor Whitmer and hopefully this providing low-cost childcare. And 40% of Michiganders, if they qualify, that will make a huge difference, will it not, Charity?
Charity Dean, Commissioner, Michigan Women&#8217;s Commission: We still have so much, so much to go. Women unemployment rate is still higher than men&#8217;s unemployment rate. But the first step is saying, how are we looking at who&#8217;s eligible for assistance for childcare? Right. And how do we make sure that even the working poor have access to this great resource?
I think, as a Michigan Women&#8217;s Commissioner, we spent a lot of time when we were first when the governor was first elected. We went around the state and we held conversations for women. And this is pre-pandemic. And we said, what are your issues? We had conversations in the U.P., we had conversations in Grand Rapids. I hosted one in Detroit. And, back then the Michigan Women&#8217;s Commission was placed in civil rights.
And as a result of all these conversations, what we realized and what we know, what we&#8217;re talking about today is that women&#8217;s issues are economic issues. And so in order to help solve that problem, the Michigan Women&#8217;s Commission actually moved and now we&#8217;re placed in LEO. And the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity. And the goal is how do we solve for these very critical problems that are impacting half of our population? Right. And so the first thing is this bipartisan effort to help expand eligibility for childcare. And I&#8217;m sure later we&#8217;re going to talk about our Tri-Share program as well, which is another great tool to help women.
Trudy Gallant-Stokes: So Terry, you obviously are communicating directly with top management and companies. What do you hear from them and what do you hear from those people who have just decided, I can&#8217;t keep this corporate job. Do they want onsite childcare? Do they want vouchers? What are they looking for?
Terry Barclay: Well, I think oh, gosh, Trudy. There&#8217;s layers to that question, right? So, first of all, there&#8217;s no question, Charity mentioned it. Women&#8217;s leadership is good for the economy. And there&#8217;s study after study that shows that there was a multi-university study that was published in April of 2021 that looked at 150 companies, and they saw that after women joined, top management teams, firms became more open to change, less open to untoward risk.
And tended to shift away from a merger and acquisition focus to strategies that were more about investing and growing the businesses and growing the jobs, growing opportunities for employees. And growing through R&amp;D. So, we see that women&#8217;s participation at all levels of companies makes a positive difference. There&#8217;s a lot of research there, but we have a ways to go. You know, Inforum has for 20 years now published the Michigan Women&#8217;s Leadership Report. Where we look at the 100 largest companies that are headquartered in the state. And while there has been some progress for women in board positions.
Particularly at larger publicly held companies. I think one of the biggest takeaways is how slow that progress has been. And, to Charity&#8217;s point, how the inequities have just been persistent for all those years. The percentage of women of color on boards has not changed in 20 years. And so it&#8217;s like it&#8217;s kind of like, what&#8217;s that about? So there&#8217;s work to be done. And I think that as companies, we see high level of interest in companies on the part of companies and sort of unpacking this and figuring out what they can do to make the change.
And so one of the things that has really emerged from the talent shortage is that women want more from their employers now in terms of workplace culture and investment in employee wellness and family wellness. And when they don&#8217;t see it, they move on. Or they deselect. And secondly, they want work that&#8217;s meaningful to them.
So we&#8217;re starting to see data that says that top talent, the workers we need to power our economy in Michigan, are looking for companies that are making those investments in childcare support that will help them manage all of their lives so that they can be present at work.
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Michigan’s Childcare Challenges Have Displaced Women From the Workforce. Will New Legislation Help Them Return?

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Some of Michigan&#8217;s nearly 1.4 million student loan borrowers, who owe a cumulative total of $51 billion in student loan debt, are rejoicing after the<a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/biden-student-loan-forgiveness-plan-what-it-means-for-michigan/"> Biden administration announced</a> its Student Loan Forgiveness Plan, which would cancel up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt for millions of borrowers across the nation.
<a href="https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Under Biden&#8217;s plan</a>, borrowers earning under $125,000 could be eligible for up to $10,000 in forgiveness, and for borrowers who have Pell Grants, the amount jumps to $20,000. The Biden administration&#8217;s Student Loan Forgiveness Plan also includes a continued pause on loan collection through December 2022, and includes some potential changes to the income-driven repayment policies. 
One Detroit Associate Producer<a href="https://twitter.com/YeaitsmewillG"> Will Glover</a> sits down with <a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BridgeDetroit</a> reporter<a href="https://twitter.com/isalohgo"> Isabel Lohman</a> to learn more about the different components involved in Biden&#8217;s Student Loan Forgiveness Plan, as well as talk about the catalyst for announcing the loan forgiveness program and the arguments for and against it. Plus, Lohman shares how some metro Detroiter student loan borrowers reacted to the news, and the two posit whether the proposed plan will help resolve the larger issue of expensive, inaccessible higher education. 
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Will Glover, Producer, One Detroit: We&#8217;re here to talk about a recent article you wrote that appeared in BridgeDetroit that was talking about the recent action on the federal student loans from the Biden administration. So first things first, what is the plan? What&#8217;s it called? Who&#8217;s eligible?
Isabel Lohman, Education Reporter, Bridge Michigan: Sure. So there&#8217;s a couple of different components of the plan. The thing you&#8217;ve probably heard the most about is the student loan forgiveness program. That would mean that some student loan borrowers, depending on their income, could get up to $10,000 of their federal student loans forgiven. And for students who had Pell Grants during college, they could get up to 20,000 thousand of their student loans forgiven.
But there&#8217;s other components of the plan, too. There&#8217;s a continued pause on collection of student loans. So if you have a student loan, you can be making payments on it right now. But you don&#8217;t have to in many cases. And that is true through the end of December, and you don&#8217;t have to pay interest on it right now.
And then there&#8217;s also a plan that the Biden administration is putting forward to change some aspects of the income-driven repayment policy. So if this plan were to work, essentially people who are in an income-driven repayment program, which is where your income helps determine how much you pay per month, there&#8217;s some changes to that that could make it easier for folks to pay back their loans and then also give them some relief when it comes to the interest, that is often the concern for folks.
Will Glover: What was the catalyst for this to be instituted?
Isabel Lohman: Sure. So President Biden, back when he was on the campaign trail, this was one of the things he campaigned on was to have some sort of student loan forgiveness program. And it&#8217;s something that has been talked about in progressive circles for quite a while. There are people that wanted him to forgive a lot more than 10,000 thousand.
And of course, there are people who wanted him to forgive absolutely no money. But some of the main reasons arguing for this type of loan forgiveness is that there are many people in this country who have student loan debt but don&#8217;t have the degree. So they don&#8217;t have the higher wage earnings that typically come with the degree, but they have the burden of debt.
And so people argue that that puts them in a place where they cannot economically make sound decisions, that they&#8217;re further and further behind. Another argument is that families and students and anyone who&#8217;s borrowed money in the last couple of years with student loans, they have really enjoyed this period where they do not have to make student loan payments. And so there&#8217;s an argument to be made that by forgiving some of these loans, you are helping these people get ahead and that they will ultimately stimulate the local economy, the state economy, and the national economy.
Will Glover: What is the effect of this debt here in Michigan? How many, how much debt do people in Michigan have? And how is this going to impact Michiganders?
Isabel Lohman: Sure. So the Education Data Initiative estimates that there are about 1.4 million student loan borrowers in Michigan with a collective debt of about $51 billion. So it&#8217;s quite a large chunk of money. When you look at that, of course, there is variance, right? Some folks owe only a couple thousand dollars, some owe way more. When you look at the state borrowers within that group, about 16% of those folks owe less than $5,000. While about 21.6% of people owe between $20,000 to $40,000.
Will Glover: When it comes to eligibility. Who&#8217;s in? Who&#8217;s out? What are the figures around that?
Isabel Lohman: Sure. So it&#8217;s based on your income. So if you make up to $125,000 a year or if you&#8217;re a household that makes under $250,000 a year, you&#8217;re eligible for up to $10,000 of loan cancelation. If you received Pell Grants, that number goes up to $20,000. It&#8217;s important to note this is up to. So hypothetically, let&#8217;s say I&#8217;m a borrower, I make within that income level, but I only owe $8,000. The government is not going to say, okay, here&#8217;s $8,000 forgiven and here&#8217;s that $2,000 check. You&#8217;re just going to get up to the amount that you owe.
Will Glover: What have you heard from the opposition when it comes to this debt relief?
Isabel Lohman: There&#8217;s a couple of different points that they bring up. One is the idea that this is an unfair way of going about it. So some folks would say higher ed is too expensive as it is, but this is just a Band-Aid on the issue. This isn&#8217;t going to solve how much college costs. It&#8217;s not going to solve the idea that people are still taking student loans out. So that&#8217;s one argument. Another argument is from folks who maybe didn&#8217;t go to college or paid their way through college or for whatever reason, don&#8217;t have loans themselves. And they will argue that they are paying for someone else&#8217;s education. So they will say that&#8217;s not fair.
Will Glover: What was some of the reaction to the debt that&#8217;s being forgiven from one of the college students that you spoke with, somebody who&#8217;s currently still in college?
Isabel Lohman: I talked to someone who has about $5,000 in student loan debt and she&#8217;s expecting to have that fully forgiven. She thinks that&#8217;s great, but she doesn&#8217;t think it&#8217;s going to ultimately solve everything. I talked to another student who&#8217;s expecting to get some student loan relief, but she&#8217;s also expecting to still have student loans at the end of the day, even with this forgiveness. So, I think there is a sense of optimism and a sense of, wow, this has never happened before and this is historic and let&#8217;s be thankful for that. But there&#8217;s also that, like I said, broader conversation about how do we pay for college moving forward.
Will Glover: Are we going to be in a much better position because of this loan forgiveness or are we going to kind of be in the same position with just a slightly smaller loan balance or principle balance for people who still owe money?
Isabel Lohman: I think it&#8217;s a both-and situation. I think the devil&#8217;s are in the details. Right. So people know this number. People know that they could get up to, in some cases, $20,000 thousand of loan forgiveness. But they need to be able to know how to access that forgiveness. They need to access the form that the federal government is expected to release in October.
And we need to see how this plays out. Right. It&#8217;s one thing to think, okay, I&#8217;m going to have some relief. It&#8217;s another thing to see that in your credit score, in your pocket, in your monthly budget. So all of those things I think are left to be seen. I think there&#8217;s also, like you said, a broader question of how do we make this work for everyone and how do we figure out what this means for Michigan practically? But this isn&#8217;t going to solve the fact that there are still plenty of Michiganders and plenty of Americans that are going to have a lot of debt on their hands.
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Biden Administration Announces Student Loan Debt Forgiveness For Millions. How Will Michigan Borrowers Be Affected?

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The results are in. The hotly contested 2022 Michigan primary election wrapped up Aug. 2 at 8 p.m., with voters deciding which Republican candidate for governor will be on the ballot come November. A number of crowded state legislative and congressional races were also decided, including in the new 13th District in Detroit after<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/michigans-new-redistricting-maps-change-election-races-face-legal-challenges/"> new redistricting maps</a> were approved in the spring. Plus, voters now know who incumbent Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will face as her challenger.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/election/the-race-for-michigan-governor-which-republican-candidate-will-win-the-2022-primary-election/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Race for Michigan Governor: Which Republican Candidate Will Win the 2022 Primary Election?</a>
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/election/the-race-for-michigan-governor-which-republican-candidate-will-win-the-2022-primary-election/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voters Choose from Crowded Pool of Candidates Fighting Over Fewer Districts in Michigan Congressional Election</a>
With the winners and losers chosen, One Detroit contributor<a href="https://twitter.com/NolanFinleyDN"> Nolan Finley</a> meets up with<a href="https://www.deadlinedetroit.com/"> Deadline Detroit</a>&#8216;s Greg Bowens for a conversation about who made it out on top of the 2022 Michigan primary election, what voters can expect from the upcoming governor race between Republican candidate Tudor Dixon and Whitmer, and how Michigan&#8217;s political landscape may shake out during the election this November.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Nolan Finley: Greg Bowens, thanks for being with us today. Primary&#8217;s over. And this governor&#8217;s race is on, as well as a lot of other races. So far, it&#8217;s been one bizarre political year in Michigan, particularly in the Republican gubernatorial campaign, but they appear to have settled on a choice. Tudor Dixon will represent the party and its challenge of Gov. Whitmer this fall. I described her in a column yesterday as perhaps the longest shot gubernatorial candidate I&#8217;ve seen in 40 years of doing this. I don&#8217;t know if you would agree or not.
Greg Bowens, Columnist, Deadline Detroit: But longer than Jeffrey Fieger&#8230;
Nolan Finley: I don&#8217;t think so, because I was asked that. I think Fieger was not so long because he had name I.D. Everybody knew who Jeffrey Fieger was. He had vote money and he had a voter base in Detroit. I don&#8217;t see Tutor Dixon with any of those things.
Greg Bowens: Yeah, that&#8217;s a good point. She&#8217;s a total newcomer and she doesn&#8217;t have that sort of &#8216;aw shucks&#8217; kind of appeal that Rick Snyder had when he popped up on the screen if you recall. And so it should be interesting how this works out. I mean, wow. Just, you know, from James Craig to, you know, the guy Kelley. Kelley Ryan. Is that his name?
Nolan Finley: Ryan Kelley.
Greg Bowens: Ryan Kelley. Yeah. Who got arrested and who now won&#8217;t concede the race?
Nolan Finley: He finished almost last. Yeah, it&#8217;s bizarre. I mean, we had the first tier. Most of the first tier of this race got wiped out for invalid signatures. And Tudor Dixon turned out to be the best of what was left. I do think she&#8217;s an engaging candidate. She&#8217;s charismatic. I think she connects with people.
Nolan Finley: I do think she has to hone her message, have a stronger message, and she has to also unite this Republican Party. It&#8217;s still, despite her endorsement by Donald Trump and the DuBose family, still a lot of people in this party are perpetually unhappy. And she&#8217;s got to bring them together. She&#8217;s got to raise a lot of money. She&#8217;s got to raise her own profile. She&#8217;s got to do a lot of things in a short amount of time, and she&#8217;s got to get it all exactly right.
Greg Bowens: Nolan, I don&#8217;t know. We might. You remember the Tea Party people. How they stormed through Michigan.
Nolan Finley: Yeah.
Greg Bowens: And that kind of thing. This seems like a real, you know, extreme version of what had occurred with the Tea Party not so long ago. And the politics of grievance has turned on the Republican Party itself. I&#8217;ll be honest with you, I missed you know, establishment Republicans&#8230; May disagree with them on a lot of issues, but at the same time, we could at least have those discussions.
Greg Bowens: You can&#8217;t have discussions with people who are caught up in QAnon and, you know, these crazy conspiracy theories. And Nolan, I don&#8217;t know if you&#8217;ve heard this&#8230; But part of the reason why 63 of the 83 counties election returns were delayed was because you had some of these MAGA folks, all up in these clerk&#8217;s offices insisting that cops, you know, ride behind people who had to hand-deliver the tabulations from the precinct.
Nolan Finley: Well, we also had a lot of computer problems, motor problems. That Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson&#8217;s office should have gotten well ahead of before, people went into the polls. And the local clerks shouldn&#8217;t have had to deal with this. But we got a gubernatorial candidate, two women running in a year when abortion is going to be a major issue.
Nolan Finley: Gretchen Whitmer is all in on the pro-choice side. She supports this ballot measure which would make abortion an unregulated environment in Michigan. Tudor Dixon is all in on the other way. She says no exceptions for anything. And I think once again, on this issue, the majority of Michiganians won&#8217;t be heard, won&#8217;t be representative, because I think they&#8217;re somewhere in the middle on this.
Greg Bowens: Nolan, you raise a good point with that. I will say this, that the abortion issue is pouring kerosene on a gas fire, man.
Nolan Finley: I think abortion will be the rock that this expected red wave crashes on. You already see Republicans downscaling their predictions for their House gains, their U.S. House gains. One time it was 50, 60 seats they hope to pick up. Now, they&#8217;re looking at 19, 20. Realistically, still enough to give them a majority, but not much.
Nolan Finley: Beyond the gubernatorial race, we had races all over the ballot in every you know, in every county in this state yesterday. One of the most interesting, I think, to you and I were that was that 13th District congressional race where Shri Thanedar, state representative and millionaire put five, six, seven million of his own money in that contest and prevailed over a pretty good slate of candidates.
Nolan Finley: He was the only non-African American in this race, and his victory means, Detroit for the first time since Charles Diggs, won&#8217;t have an African American representative in Congress.
Greg Bowens: No, that&#8217;s true. And you know, Nolan, you keep up with this stuff in ways that I wouldn&#8217;t think that a conservative political commentator would&#8230; Writer would. And, you noted a long time ago downtown, the columnist said, where are the Black people?
Nolan Finley: Yeah.
Greg Bowens: Well, now, guess what? When it comes to Michigan congressional delegation, you know, that same thing is going to be true. And we run up against. As a community, as a society trying to balance out this push, pull between the need or recognizing that representation really does matter.
Greg Bowens: But then how much does it matter? And so when it came to Shri Thanedar, you know, here&#8217;s a guy that popped up on the scene, ran against the governor, got the most support in Detroit so he moves into power woods, would show a force and went the street there and now his &#8216;aw shucks&#8217; I&#8217;m harmless kind of approach has won him the congressional seat.
Greg Bowens: And Nolan, now you know. You know every single person that was in that race, with maybe with the exception of Mike Griffey but you know now. But, you know, Nolan, there were some people in that race that just shouldn&#8217;t have been in there.
Nolan Finley: Well, there were too many in the race and that helped Thanedar. You know, the redistricting commission has to take some fault here as well, perhaps maybe not in this race, but Black representation overall will go down in January when these new bodies are seated. That&#8217;s the fault of a redistricting commission that didn&#8217;t prioritize creating Black representation in these new boundary maps.
Greg Bowens: The redistricting commission was a failure in a lot of ways, not the least of which that Democrats, communities of color, we need to have an honest conversation about race. And we didn&#8217;t have that during the redistricting process because you had these other rising communities of color that are represented in Hamtramck, that are represented with Shri Thanedar and the Pacific, Asian Indian community.
Greg Bowens: And along with the Arabic Middle Eastern community. And there was no serious discussion about how do we give them the same kind of opportunity to have fair representation without diminishing the opportunity for African Americans to have that representation.
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
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Republican Nominee for Governor, Congressional, and State Legislative Races Decided in Michigan Primary Election

Screen-Shot-2022-08-01-at-3.56.23-PM

New plans for how Detroit will verify votes during the August 2 primary election will include more stringent protocols that tighten the leash on the number of challengers present on the Central Counting Board floor as election inspectors count and verify ballots. The move comes nearly two years after election workers at the formerly-named TCF Center saw angry protesters line up along the center&#8217;s glass windows, chanting, &#8220;Stop the count!&#8221; and causing other obstructions, Daniel Baxter, an election inspector for Detroit since 1985 told One Detroit.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/recounting-election-night-2020-trouble-at-tcf-center/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Recounting Election Night 2020: Trouble at TCF Center</a>
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/analysis-of-misinformation-media-trust-and-our-democracy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Election Aftermath: An Analysis of Misinformation, Media Trust and our Democracy</a>
One Detroit&#8217;s Bill Kubota visits an election inspector training hosted by Baxter and David Nathan, an election trainer for Detroit, for a look at what goes on behind the scenes of elections and what election workers are required to know to preserve the democratic process.
<figure id="attachment_25753" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-25753" style="width: 700px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-25753" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-01-at-3.54.34-PM.png" alt="August 2 primary " width="700" height="394" srcset="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-01-at-3.54.34-PM.png 1732w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-01-at-3.54.34-PM-300x169.png 300w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-01-at-3.54.34-PM-1024x577.png 1024w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-01-at-3.54.34-PM-768x433.png 768w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-01-at-3.54.34-PM-1536x866.png 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-25753" class="wp-caption-text">Election inspectors work at Detroit&#8217;s old TCF Center admist a sea of Republican and Democratic challengers on election night during the 2020 election. | Screenshot by One Detroit</figcaption></figure>
Baxter talks about the critical role election inspectors play in the process of election day, the roughly 50,000 absentee ballots expected to come in by the August 2 primary election, the importance of taking a nonpartisan approach to election inspecting, what election workers need to know heading into the primary, and the rise in Republicans who&#8217;ve reached out to help with the inspection process in 2022.
Plus, Nathan shares his belief that the decisions made during the 2022 and 2024 elections will likely define the outcome and foundational strength of America&#8217;s democracy. And, Baxter talks about the overall perseverance of the Detroit Department of Elections through the 2020 election and beyond.
This story coincides with One Detroit’s 1-hour election special episode with the <a href="https://www.freep.com/">Detroit Free Press</a>. Watch <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/beyond-the-ballot-box-a-one-detroit-election-special-with-the-detroit-free-press/">“Beyond the Ballot Box: A One Detroit Election Special with the Detroit Free Press”</a> on-demand now.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Daniel Baxter, Election Administrator, City of Detroit: I&#8217;d just like to start off by saying greetings to each and every one of you on behalf of the Detroit Department of Elections and our Detroit city clerk. Like I said, I&#8217;ve been doing this since 1985. I love this stuff. Elections is in my blood.
I&#8217;d like to welcome each and every one of you to the Central Counting Board Training Class. My name is Daniel Baxter. I just want to share a couple of things with you as we engage in this particular training. Our election inspectors are basically the lifeblood of the operation. They&#8217;re the folks who come in at 5:00 in the morning, and every Detroit resident who votes by absentee ballot is depending on them to guarantee that their ballots are processed accurately as well as timely.
David Nathan, Election Trainer, City of Detroit: And then there is a secrecy sleeve.
Bill Kubota, Senior Producer, One Detroit: Detroit&#8217;s Elections operation has been under scrutiny for years. At times, vote counts out of balance. That is numbers not adding up. Then came the Trump-Biden election. Detroit&#8217;s absentee vote count at what they used to call the TCF Center hit by the national spotlight.
Daniel Baxter: 2020, when all of that happened, it was perhaps the most exciting election that I had ever engaged in, and I thought 2008 was it.
Bill Kubota: 2008, the year Barack Obama was first elected. Lots of Detroit votes to be counted then.
Tresa Baldas, Reporter, Detroit Free Press: Where are you from?
Speaker 1: I&#8217;m from downriver. I&#8217;m here because of the 38,000 ballots that arrived here at 3:45 a.m. that are just now sitting over there and getting counted.
Bill Kubota: But 2020 Republicans and President Trump questioned how Detroit handled the vote.
President Trump: Detroit is another place and I wouldn&#8217;t say has the best reputation for election integrity.
Tresa Baldas: The craziest it got was in the middle of folks counting the ballots, you&#8217;d get a big group of Republican challengers that would form a circle around one table. And they&#8217;d start chanting, stop the count, stop the count, and clapping as they did it. And as you can see right now, we&#8217;ve got several police officers heading out there on the floor. And the police would come in. They&#8217;d escort them out.
Mandi Wright, Staff Photographer, Detroit Free Press: The number of Republican vote watchers were removed from the hall. So a group of angry protesters came down and started banging on the windows of the basement of where we were at.
Tresa Baldas: And then you&#8217;d have people complaining, &#8220;we got kicked out of the process.&#8221; Well, you were chanting in the middle of the floor and causing a scene.
Speaker 2: All the Republican challengers out of this room.
Tresa Baldas: A lot of conspiracy theories that were being thrown at us. And there was also a directive from folks. It said, to challenge everything. Challenge every ballot. And they were doing it. They were like, this doesn&#8217;t look good because of this or because of that. And at some point, someone had to step in and say enough.
Edith Lee-Payne, Democrat, Detroit Election Inspector Supervisor: Those people, the way they were behaving to demand that we stop counting. I mean, literally demand. And I can&#8217;t imagine what would have happened if they had broken down that door and gotten inside.
Tresa Baldas: People were not only banging on the windows, but they were taking their phones and they were videotaping the counters as they were counting the ballots. Well, A, that&#8217;s not allowed. And, B, it was intrusive and bothersome. So the ballot counters said, listen, these folks outside the windows are videotaping me. So they taped up the windows.
President Trump: One major hub for counting ballots in Detroit covered up the windows with large pieces of cardboard.
Tresa Baldas: In the mind of somebody who thinks that they&#8217;re already being shut out of a process, you put up a piece of paper so they can&#8217;t see it, they&#8217;re going to be like ah-ha they&#8217;re hiding something.
President Trump: They wanted to protect and block the counting area. They didn&#8217;t want anybody seeing the counting, even though these were observers who were legal observers that were supposed to be there.
Bill Kubota: There were plenty of Republican challengers inside, too many, working, some perhaps not so civilly, with trained Election Inspectors.
Edith Lee-Payne: We had a lot of training. We had three days over a period of maybe three weeks.
Bill Kubota: Election Supervisor Edith Lee Payne, a Democrat. She was in there.
Edith Lee-Payne: Even I was a supervisor, I had to know what was expected of me as a supervisor. I also needed to know what challengers&#8230; The rights that they had because they were there.
Bill Kubota: Can you understand some of those folks that showed up that didn&#8217;t trust the system?
Edith Lee-Payne: I can understand why some of the people that showed up not trusting the system because they themselves wanted to&#8230; Some people can&#8217;t handle the truth, has been said in a movie.
David Nathan: You all excited about this election? I am, too.
Bill Kubota: Despite that turmoil two years ago, these election inspectors have returned to count another day.
David Nathan: I think that this is probably&#8230; These next couple of elections are probably going to be the most important elections of our country.
Daniel Baxter: We have two shifts and it&#8217;s roughly anywhere from 1100 to 1300 people who work to ensure that all those ballots are processed.
David Nathan: We are going to go through this training. This training is probably going to be about 3 hours or so. It&#8217;s for CCB, as Mr. Baxter said. CCB, Central Counting Board. We count all the absentee ballots for the city of Detroit.
Daniel Baxter: We stand on the fence, if you will, in terms of engaging in this process. We&#8217;re not Democrats. We&#8217;re not Republicans. We&#8217;re a nonpartisan entity who is responsible to ensure that all ballots are counted.
David Nathan: The attire for inspectors is white, top black, bottom, close-toed shoes, no jeans, and no Greek or partisan paraphernalia are allowed.
Daniel Baxter: When you go to the polls on Election Day, when you cast your vote, you have to fill out an application, and you have to sign it. And that application has to be verified and bumped against your record and the electronic poll book. The same thing is true for an absentee ballot.
Bill Kubota: That&#8217;s part of the process that would be suspect to some who questioned the absentee count in 2020. They didn&#8217;t understand or maybe they didn&#8217;t want to.
Daniel Baxter: When those ballots come back, we have to verify that signature to make sure it&#8217;s the exact same signature that was on file when the individual requested it. It takes time. So once we processed all of those ballots, then they were delivered to the central counting board, and it was late.
Bill Kubota: The mysterious late-night arrival seen in surveillance video circulated on the Internet, just ballots that had to be verified ahead of the count.
David Nathan: They&#8217;re going to take their first 50 out of whatever precinct that they&#8217;re working in. They&#8217;re going to go through every single one of those ballots or envelopes to ensure that there is a signature on each one of those, that there is an election date that is correct, and that the precinct number, which is on the label, is the precinct that we&#8217;re working in.
Bill Kubota: In 2020, poll challengers roamed freely on the counting floor. With too many challengers, when some left, they weren&#8217;t let back in. Now, A new plan.
Daniel Baxter: So for this year, what we did was we revamped the entire operation. For instance, in 2020, they had to sign in on a regular sheet of paper. But for this election, they&#8217;ll be responsible for swiping in with their driver&#8217;s license so that they might be able to enter. That information will be uploaded in our system where we might be able to keep a count of who&#8217;s actually in the Central Counting Board as we process absentee ballots.
Each individual will be given a name tag with their party affiliation or their challenging affiliation on it, as well as they&#8217;ll be responsible for being stationed at one of the counting boards slash tables. So instead of roaming about throughout the entire building or throughout the entire counting board, they will be restricted to a certain table.
David Nathan: Cell phones are not permitted in Hall E. Not permitted to be used. If you are using a phone in Hall E, you will be asked to leave and potentially not paid for that day.
Daniel Baxter: Last year, during our municipal election cycle at the Central County Board, we probably had less than 100 Republicans to engage in the process. This year we received applications for upwards of 800 individuals to work with us on Election Day. However, at the Central Counting Board, we&#8217;ll probably have roughly 200, maybe 250 of them to serve as inspectors to help us with the tabulation of absentee ballots.
Bill Kubota: Republican election inspector Max Rohtbart worked in Detroit last year. This year too.
Max Rohtbart, Republican, Detroit Election Inspector: In 2021, the clerk&#8217;s office, they balanced every precinct at the absentee counting board, something they had done over 20 years. It really is a remarkable accomplishment.
Bill Kubota: Rohtbart&#8217;s done Oakland County elections for years but wanted to see Detroit&#8217;s process knowing past issues there.
Max Rohtbart: Usually if you have about over 30 precincts, there&#8217;s at least one that&#8217;s out of balance because you&#8217;re working a 13-to-17-hour shift. And if you make one mistake and you don&#8217;t catch it, you&#8217;re off.
David Nathan: Now, this supply box has everything that you need for the entire day. We have, below the supply box, a black bin.
Daniel Baxter: We&#8217;ve received kudos from both the Wayne County Board of Canvassers as well as the State Bureau of Elections for our efforts. So we&#8217;re excited about that as we began to engage in the off-year election here. For the gubernatorial, we expect the same. And after this election, we&#8217;re going to look at how we can enhance and improve it for the 2024 presidential election cycle.
David Nathan: So your section supervisor, your team lead, will fill this document out. But all inspectors must sign this document at the end of the night.
Max Rohtbart: The way the absentee board works, there is no position in the Absentee Counting Board that really involves discretion. The entire process of the absentee counting board now is a very singular assembly line task where it&#8217;s very tough to really impact or throw a wrench into the socket. And if there is a problem, it&#8217;s very easy to remove it and have an alternate replaced.
Daniel Baxter: I&#8217;d like to add something. I think that the reason why after the 2020 presidential election, nobody quit in Detroit at the Department of Elections is because over the years&#8230; We get beat up a lot and it&#8217;s a thankless job. And I think that what it did for us, it built thick skin. Around the country, they probably never experienced that before. We&#8217;ve had protests in front of the Department of Elections, the clerk. So it was almost like par for the course. But in Detroit, we have to deal with that a lot.
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Behind the ballot box: Detroit election inspectors receive training ahead of 2022 midterms

Voting Booths

Leading up to the Aug. 2, 2022 primary election, as the race for Michigan&#8217;s congressional seats heats up, <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/election/the-race-for-michigan-governor-which-republican-candidate-will-win-the-2022-primary-election/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">which candidates will voters choose</a> to represent Michigan for the next two years? When voting at the polls this year, voters have to choose from a crowded field of candidates from each of their districts to fill now only 13 congressional seats, rather than the previous 14 seats, after the approval of <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/redistricting-commission-facing-lawsuits-over-secret-meeting-notes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">new redistricting maps</a> this year.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/michigans-new-redistricting-maps-change-election-races-face-legal-challenges/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michigan’s New Redistricting Maps Change Election Races, Face Legal Challenges</a>
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/election/the-race-for-michigan-governor-which-republican-candidate-will-win-the-2022-primary-election/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Race for Michigan Governor: Which Republican Candidate Will Win the 2022 Primary Election?</a>
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://twitter.com/SHDetroit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephen Henderson</a>, host of <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“American Black Journal,”</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/NolanFinleyDN" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nolan Finley</a>, editorial page editor at <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Detroit News</a>, come together for a lively conversation about the candidates running in the upcoming Michigan congressional election, the Districts with the closest races to be decided, whether or not Michigan will have an African American representative in Congress, and the hot-button issues voters that may motivate voters to visit the polls.
Plus, they debate what&#8217;s at stake for the state depending on the possible outcomes of the Michigan congressional election.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Stephen Henderson, One Detroit Host: All right, Nolan, it&#8217;s next week. The August 2nd primary, where we&#8217;ll make big decisions in Congress and in the state house. And there are a couple of barnburners still really raging out there.
Stephen Henderson: Let&#8217;s start with the 13th Congressional District, which is the new district, one of the new districts in the city of Detroit. Nine candidates. Shri Thanedar, Portia Roberson, Adam Hollier, Sherry Gay Dagnogo, Sharon McPhail. I mean lots of big names in that one.
Nolan Finley: A lot of big names which you know, gives an advantage to Shri Thanedar, the state representative who&#8217;s spending $5 million dollars of his own money to go to Congress. And the polls show that&#8217;s paying off, that he is the front runner in that race.
Nolan Finley: Followed rather closely by Portia Roberson and Adam Hollier, who are making a good run for that. But the significance of this race is that it&#8217;s the best chance or perhaps the only chance to send an African American Democrat to Congress and to get an African American congressional representative from Detroit. It&#8217;s been a long time since&#8230;
Stephen Henderson: 1955
Nolan Finley: Right
Nolan Finley: I mean, that&#8217;s a pretty remarkable shift. But if things play out the way they appear to be playing out, that won&#8217;t be the case. And the only I mean, maybe Michigan&#8217;s delegation either has no African-American members or a Republican. And John James, who&#8217;s running in the 10th District, no guarantee he&#8217;ll win there.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah, I mean. Well, I mean, the problem is actually has nothing to do with the way that district is drawn. It&#8217;s the number of African-Americans from the city who decided they wanted to take a shot at it.
Nolan Finley: Right.
Stephen Henderson: They will clearly outpoll Shri Thanedar on Election Day together. But individually they may not be able to come up with the votes.
Nolan Finley: But let&#8217;s move over to the 11th District, where you have two incumbent Congress members running against each other and Haley Stevens and Andy Levin. You look on the paper, I have two Democrats, two progressives, but they&#8217;re really quite different.
Nolan Finley: I mean, Andy Levin aspires to be a member of the squad. Haley Stevens describes herself as a pro-business Democrat.
Nolan Finley: Now, neither one of them are moderates. But if you look at that district, it would seem that someone who comes from a business point of view and a more moderate, slightly more moderate point of view would have the edge there. And I think that&#8217;s what the polls are suggesting in Haley Stevens.
Stephen Henderson: I think the truth is that neither of them really represents the way that district was drawn. And I think what you could see is one of them win it this term, but in two years face a really stiff challenge from somebody who would not have gotten in it this year because you had two incumbents in the race. But I&#8217;m surprised at how ugly this race has gotten.
Nolan Finley: When you put two incumbents together it always gets ugly. It always gets nasty because they both are just holded to these jobs. I&#8217;ve seen it play out this way any time it&#8217;s happened in Michigan.
Nolan Finley: Let&#8217;s go all the way over to the third district in the Grand Rapids area, where Democrats are spending a lot of money to promote a Trump-backed candidate. And John Gibbs, who&#8217;s primary who&#8217;s making a primary challenge to Peter Meijer.
Nolan Finley: And they&#8217;ve done this in other places in the country, trying to get the Trump candidate on the ballot in hopes that he&#8217;ll be easier to beat in the general election. Sort of a sleazy move. But politics is a sleazy business.
Stephen Henderson: It&#8217;s kind of par for the course. But here, there&#8217;s a little bit of a, an individual miscalculation in that district, you know, I mean, Peter Meijer. Yeah, he&#8217;s a Republican, but you certainly would favor him if you are a Democrat over the primary opponent that he has.
And there&#8217;s no guarantee that the Democrats who even though they&#8217;re going to have a good candidate, can win that district, is not really drawn too much to their favor. I think over time, maybe they hope that because it&#8217;s a more centralized district than the one that they had before, that maybe they can but I don&#8217;t think this is the year to be playing that game now.
Nolan Finley: I think Peter Meijer will keep this seat. I think once he&#8217;s through the primary, Republicans will flood that district with money because it&#8217;s districts like these that are key to them winning the majority.
Nolan Finley: We had an interesting piece last week in the Detroit News about the redistricting commission itself. And the chairman of the commission saying, you know, look, I was pressured by our attorneys to the number of Black voters in these districts that she didn&#8217;t want to get accused of backing, but in doing so, made it a lot harder. In both legislative races and congressional races, to get Black candidates elected, particularly around the city of Detroit.
Stephen Henderson: What you have are districts that try to create, you know, common communities of interest across municipal and community boundaries. That&#8217;s always a risk, but it&#8217;s a smart risk. And one of the reasons that it makes sense is the number of African-Americans who have moved out of the city and now live especially and close in suburbs.
If you look at all of those districts, they have enough African-Americans in them, according to the numbers. Forty percent and above is really what you&#8217;re looking at to be able to elect an African-American. The question is whether they will elect African-Americans from the city or eventually whether they will turn to African-Americans from the suburbs.
I always say that the most instructive example here is, is the district that Brenda Lawrence now represents, which went away. But the idea that she is an African American from Southfield, was able to beat African-Americans, in some cases from the city. For that seat, it&#8217;s a harbinger of the future in this region.
Nolan Finley: It&#8217;s been decades since we haven&#8217;t had a Black senator from Detroit in the state Senate. I don&#8217;t think this is a good outcome of that whole redistricting effort.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah, it&#8217;s not a good outcome. It is a logical outcome of the shifting demographics. And this is the first election under this map. I think elections three through five really are the ones that tell you what you really have. I don&#8217;t think it is a bad map. I think it is a map that, you know, has a bad transition potentially that comes with it. But we&#8217;ll see in a few days.
Nolan Finley: Well, let&#8217;s get out and vote Tuesday, Steve.
Stephen Henderson: Yes, everybody go out and vote or you can sit at home and vote now if you want to vote absentee. No reason. Absentee voting. One of the wonderful changes we&#8217;ve made here in Michigan.
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<h2>Stay Connected: </h2>
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h3><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h3>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.

Voters Choose from Crowded Pool of Candidates Fighting Over Fewer Districts in Michigan Congressional Election

Voting-Booths

As the race for Michigan governor gets underway heading into the Aug. 2, 2022 Michigan primary election, who will come out on top of the Republican party to take the nomination? And how will former President Donald Trump’s endorsement influence who gets to be on the ticket come November? 
One Detroit contributors <a href="https://twitter.com/SHDetroit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephen Henderson</a>, host of <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“American Black Journal,”</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/NolanFinleyDN" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nolan Finley</a>, editorial page editor at <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Detroit News</a>, sit down for a conversation about where the five candidates remaining in the Republican party stand leading to the 2022 Michigan primary election and what issues will impact the campaign for governor. 
RELATED: Michigan Radio | <a href="https://www.michiganradio.org/politics-government/2022-07-25/meet-the-republican-candidates-for-michigan-governor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meet the Republican candidates for Michigan governor</a>
“It’s basically a deadlocked race,” Finley said about a recent Detroit News poll that shows candidate Tudor Dixon ahead with 19%, but only marginally compared to the other four candidates.
From <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/one-detroit/could-roe-v-wade-be-overturned-this-year-the-abortion-rights-ramifications-we-may-see-in-michigan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">abortion rights</a> to economic inflation, they discuss how the Republican candidates are addressing these issues ahead of November. Plus, Finley weighs in on Trump’s diminishing approval rating in Michigan and how he might contend with other possible Republican presidential candidates, like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, if he announces he’s running in the 2024 election.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Nolan Finley: Well, Steve, I couldn&#8217;t blame you if you haven&#8217;t noticed. But there is a Republican gubernatorial campaign underway in Michigan. It&#8217;s struggled to find its feet. We&#8217;ve talked before about the troubles and actually getting on the ballot. We&#8217;re still left with five candidates. And they&#8217;re still trying to put this thing together with just two and a half weeks left before the August 2nd balloting. No sign that any of them have a true statewide organization, which is an unusual thing. Not much money is being spent and getting out the vote efforts.  
Although just this week, we have seen some flyers and some text messages, emails go back out to absentee ballots. But it got off to a really late start. Only one candidate, Kevin Rinke, has real money and he seems to be spending most of it to tear down Tudor Dixon. My view of this is it&#8217;s a race just waiting for Donald Trump to enter.  
 Stephen Henderson: Well, he&#8217;s already there. And that&#8217;s part of the problem.  
Nolan Finley: He hasn&#8217;t anointed a candidate, yet. 
Stephen Henderson: He hasn&#8217;t said who he likes. But everybody in the race seems to believe that the way to win is to cozy up just enough to the former president to get votes. I think some of them are maybe rightfully afraid of what kind of consequence that would pay in the fall. But they all seem very aware that this is still the heavy in the party and that in the primary in particular, the litmus test is two things.  
One is, what do you think happened in the last presidential election in 2020? Do you think Joe Biden actually won? And then the question is, do you support Donald Trump? Which becomes, I think, harder and harder to do as we watch the noose tighten around him and his inner circle in these hearings in Washington. We still haven&#8217;t heard from Merrick Garland at the Justice Department, but anybody who knows Merrick Garland and the kind of prosecutor he was.  
For instance, with the Oklahoma City bombers and some other high-profile cases, you can&#8217;t believe that he&#8217;s not going to do anything there. I mean, it is a treacherous kind of path to have to walk. Nobody has been able to come out and say, here&#8217;s who I am and what I&#8217;m really about and this is why I want to be governor.  
Nolan Finley: And that&#8217;s true, but it&#8217;s a necessary route for them to take. If you look at our poll this week, basically a deadlock race to Tudor Dixon was leading with 19. But everybody else in the race except for Ralph Rebandt is at 12 to 15. So basically, it&#8217;s within the margin of error. You got to believe Trump&#8217;s coming in now. We&#8217;re taping this in advance but by the time it airs. Donald Trump may have already made his pick. But whoever that is, Donald Trump is going to be able to say he decided the Michigan race.  
You know, his ego, that&#8217;s a big thing for him. But the poll also had some warning signs for Donald Trump as I write my column today. His approval rating among Michigan Republicans still strong at 76%, but it&#8217;s dropped eight points in the last two months. I assume, because of the high coverage of the January six hearing and in a head-to-head matchup. And this is what astonished me in this poll. In a head-to-head matchup with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Trump is up only 45 to 42, within the margin of error. 
It shows a real weakening of what we assumed was solid support in Michigan for the former president. You got to believe me, I mean, Ron DeSantis doesn&#8217;t enjoy near the name I.D., name recognition as Donald Trump and we wouldn&#8217;t have thought the popularity but there it is. 
Stephen Henderson: If you&#8217;re a Republican, you need this to happen. I mean, there is almost no chance that Donald Trump, if he decided to run in 2024 and got the nomination, would be able to win the presidency. He would do further damage to the party. 
Nolan Finley: 2016 is gonna be calling to give you a wake-up call.  
Stephen Henderson: Yeah, a lot&#8217;s happened since then. And he&#8217;s not the same guy he was in 2016. We know a lot more about him and voters have twice rejected him for president. There&#8217;s nothing that suggests more people would vote for Donald Trump than already have in 2024.  
And he&#8217;s not able to get a majority of the votes either time. The other thing that&#8217;s really interesting to me about this Republican primary is what role in the fall the abortion issue will play for Republicans. This is if you&#8217;re a Republican, that&#8217;s your worst nightmare is having abortion on the ballot, because the polls show overwhelmingly that people support a woman&#8217;s right to choose.  
The Supreme Court did Democrats something of a favor by forcing that issue. Any Republican who comes out of this primary, I think is going to have a harder time with that than they might have had with the Trump issue in the primary. 
Nolan Finley: And the Republican campaigns are downplaying that. They&#8217;re saying all that matters is inflation. And I believe inflation is the driving issue. But I also believe abortion will turn out large numbers of Democratic women, particularly in the younger demographics. Who might have said, &#8220;Good God, I&#8217;m not voting this year. I&#8217;m so fed up. I&#8217;m so disgusted.&#8221;  
I think abortion is a motivator. It always has been in this state, and I agree. I think it makes it tough for Republicans unless inflation keeps getting worse and worse. It is an issue that takes your mind off a lot of things.  
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
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The Race for Michigan Governor: Which Republican Candidate Will Win the 2022 Primary Election?

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In the national and global race for strong professional talent, how can Michigan get a leg up on the competition? How does the Great Lakes state become a top 10 state where families and young professionals want to live, work, grow and play? Some of Michigan’s top business leaders gathered together to answer these questions about making Michigan more competitive and how exactly the state should do it at the Detroit Regional Chambers<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/mackinac-policy-conference/2022-mackinac-policy-conference/2022mpc/"> 2022 Mackinac Policy Conference</a>.
Featuring a laundry list of CEOs and presidents, the panel’s conversation focused on how business and political leaders can make Michigan an attractive place to live and work, as well as the importance of having an educated and trained workforce of the future.  One Detroit revisits a portion of the panel’s conversation on the<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/future-of-work/"> future of work</a> and jobs in Michigan.
Moderated By: Paul W. Smith, Host, WJR NewsTalk 760 AM. The panelists include:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Awenate Cobbina, Chief Executive Officer, Bedrock Group LP; Chairman, Michigan Economic Development Corp. Executive Committee</li>
<li aria-level="1">Maureen Krauss, President and Chief Executive Officer, Detroit Regional Partnership</li>
<li aria-level="1">Sandy Pierce, Senior Executive Vice President, Private Bank and Regional Banking Director and Chair, Huntington Michigan</li>
<li aria-level="1">Dug Song, Chief Strategy Officer, Cisco Secure; Co-Founder, Duo Security</li>
<li aria-level="1">Sandy K. Baruah, President and Chief Executive Officer, Detroit Regional Chamber</li>
<li aria-level="1">Tina Freese Decker, President and Chief Executive Officer, BHSH System</li>
<li aria-level="1">Quentin Messer Jr., Chief Executive Officer, Michigan Economic Development Corp.; President and Chair, Michigan Strategic Fund</li>
<li aria-level="1">Howard Ungerleider, President and Chief Financial Officer, Dow</li>
</ul>
Find more on-demand coverage from the 2022 Mackinac Policy Conference sessions, including on-site interviews by One Detroit Founding Managing Editor Christy McDonald on One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/mackinac-policy-conference/2022-mackinac-policy-conference/2022mpc/"> website</a> or<a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5H3VF_9ZS8NZZcQKawIoNrVqmEEJOLaM"> YouTube</a>.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Paul W. Smith, Host, WJR NewsTalk 760 AM: From your perspective, Dug, is Michigan competitive? And if not, why not?
Dug Song, Chief Strategy Officer, Cisco Secure; Co-Founder, Duo Security: So I think we have a larger role to play, particularly in the new jobs, new economy of technology, innovation and so forth than we actually get credit for. But people don&#8217;t generally think in tech of Michigan necessarily as a growth state.
Dug Young: I think it&#8217;s evidenced by the fact that we have not actually grown, our population and so forth. But neither did they actually think of auto actually as a tech industry, which actually is. The big challenge, though, is that as the World Economic Forum, they just had a report on the future of jobs.
Dug Young: There&#8217;s 75 million jobs that will be displaced by technology, with 133 million new jobs being created that are digital. And we have to fight harder for the jobs that remain in manufacturing. Our manufacturing levels are back up, but with a third less jobs.
Dug Young: And in some cases, you know, like an easy as many of you know, it takes 30% less labor to actually develop. So we have to fight harder for not just the jobs that we have, but for the jobs of the future. And those really are driven by technology innovation.
Sandy Pierce, Senior Executive Vice President &amp; Chair of Michigan, Huntington Bank: We have to worry about K through 12. And when you look at where we stand in the state of Michigan, let&#8217;s not go global right now. Let&#8217;s just stay in the United States of America. We are 33rd in the eighth-grade math scores; 39th in fourth-grade reading.
Sandy Pierce: We&#8217;re 41st in high school graduation. We have to invest in our children for the jobs of the future. And we have to have them graduate and want and give them a path for jobs that will be available. And but people aren&#8217;t going to come to this state when they look at those statistics and they don&#8217;t have the talent here.
Awenate Cobbina, CEO Bedrock Manufacturing Company Chairman, Michigan Economic Development Corporation Executive Committee: As a relatively new transplant to Michigan, I had never thought about coming to Michigan for tourism or livelihood prior to coming. And I came for a job and I&#8217;m still here six years later and I love it and I&#8217;m here on stage. So thank you for having me. But the thing that we are missing is not there&#8217;s not a one size fits all solution.
Awenate Cobbina: There&#8217;s many different populations of talent, some of whom come here for two or four years for university, and then some of them leave. People that grew up here and went through the K-through-12 school system and then moved along. Or others like Dug and I, that grew up somewhere else and would stay.
Awenate Cobbina: So you can&#8217;t have a 1 size fits all solution, but people want a lot of the same things. They want to have a good life. They want to have a good job. They want to have mobility. They want leisure activities. And those are things that we have parts of. But we need to create a vision of the life that they could have that enables them to come join us.
Sandy K. Baruah, President &amp; CEO, Detroit Regional Chamber: We&#8217;ve got a long way to go. You know, Jeff Donofrio at lunch, talked about, you know, where is our common shared vision of where our economy is going, what our industry needs, and how are we mapping to that. Right? How are we mapping the skills of tomorrow that our industry of tomorrow where we have competitive advantages? You know, what are we mapping to that? Right.
Sandy K. Baruah: How do we ensure that A, we make the state more attractive for especially young, talented people? And how do we then communicate that to people? And then and then finally, the sense of urgency. And, you know, our all our friends, John Rakolta has really been pushing on this, which is we need a sense of urgency. We need we need action.
Sandy K. Baruah: You know, not soon, but sooner than soon. And he&#8217;s talking about a commission or, you know, maybe that&#8217;s the right idea. But whatever we need to do, we need to do something robustly. We need to do something big, and we need to do it quickly and it needs to be in a bipartisan way.
Quentin Messer Jr., CEO, Michigan Economic Development Corporation President &amp; Chair, Michigan Strategic Fund: So I&#8217;m grateful to be sitting on stage with leaders like this, being here at a confab. We have some of the best minds globally that are thinking about how to change the marketplace, whether it&#8217;s health care, whether it&#8217;s research, chemicals, financial services, mobility, you name it.
Quentin Messer Jr.: So gratitude to see for more so we can&#8217;t lose perspective on what we have. The second thing or two things that my dad told me, you have to be your own best critic. You have to be relentlessly objective. But you also be your own best cheerleader. We are very good at being the critic. We must celebrate what we have here.
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Michigan Business Leaders Say Education, Trained Workforce Key to Making Michigan More Competitive

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Photo Caption: Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan addresses reports that he shared the identity of an FBI informant with city officials at the 2022 Mackinac Policy Conference. | Screenshot: Mackinac Policy Conference 
By <a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/author/malachi-barrett/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Malachi Barrett</a>, BridgeDetroit 
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said he did not know a towing contractor was working with the FBI as a confidential informant when he shared the FBI informant’s identity with city officials.
Duggan opened the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Mackinac Policy Conference on Tuesday with an impromptu media conference addressing a <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2022/05/31/feds-link-duggan-outing-informant-behind-scenes-bribery-scandal/9910355002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report that morning from The Detroit News</a> that linked the mayor to “a chain of events that outed a confidential FBI informant and alerted a target of an ongoing investigation of bribery, extortion and fraud at City Hall.”
Speaking to reporters, the mayor said he was not aware that the source’s identity was being protected but acknowledged that he shared the informant’s name with members of the Detroit Police Department and Chuck Raimi, the city’s former acting corporation counsel.
RELATED: BridgeDetroit | <a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/duggans-third-term-will-see-a-drastically-different-detroit-city-council/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Duggan’s Third Term Will See a Drastically Different Detroit City Council</a>
RELATED: BridgeDetroit | <a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/spivey-to-appear-in-court-on-bribery-charges-may-resign-seat/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Spivey Pleads Guilty to a Bribery Charge, Must Resign Seat</a>
Duggan said he divulged the information after he was told by former Detroit City Councilman Andre Spivey in spring 2021 that he was under investigation for corruption.
<aside></aside>
“I have never disclosed the identity of anyone I knew to be a confidential source in my life,” Duggan said on Tuesday. “I would not do that. I did not know there was any confidential source involved in this case.”
Duggan did not say when the subsequent conversations occurred and declined to say whether he shared the name with anyone outside city government.
<h4>Watch <a href="http://www.onedetroitpbs.org">One Detroit&#8217;s</a> Full Video of Mayor Duggan&#8217;s Announcement:</h4>
<iframe loading="lazy" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7jn-yJ2ATvg" width="853" height="505" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> This video was recorded live by Detroit Public TV&#8217;s One Detroit team at the 2022 Mackinac Policy Conference at Mackinac Island, Mich. on May 31, 2022. 
A federal judge sentenced Spivey to two years in prison for felony bribery earlier this year as part of a wider federal corruption investigation focused on the Detroit City Council, the Detroit Police Department and towing operations.
Spivey admitted to accepting $39,500 between 2018 and 2020 in exchange for influencing a vehicle towing ordinance proposed at the time.
Spivey admitted he accepted bribes from an undercover law enforcement agent and a confidential FBI source. The source was involved in the towing industry and was approached by the FBI concerning corruption within the city government, according to court documents.
“Andre Spivey contacted me to say ‘I made a terrible mistake. I got in financial trouble. I borrowed a large amount of money from a tower,’” Duggan said.
“He told me the tower; it was a tower we knew very well from our investigations and our litigation. He says ‘I meant to pay him back and I didn’t. The feds have us on a wire. I expect us to get indicted soon.’”
Duggan said Tuesday that he disclosed the tower’s identity with the Detroit Police Department, Raimi and the city law department to prevent them from doing business with the tower.
The mayor said he was not informed by Spivey or federal investigators that the source’s identity was being protected.
“Andre Spivey never said a word about a confidential source,” Duggan said. “Nothing like that. I walked out of that conversation believing that I had just been told that I have a city councilman who has taken a bribe from a dishonest tower. Now, if anybody has suggested there was a confidential source involved, I wouldn’t have said a word.”
&nbsp;
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Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h3><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h3>
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BridgeDetroit | Duggan: I Outed Name of FBI Informant, But Didn’t Know It Was Confidential

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In a first-ever in the history of the U.S. Supreme Court, a draft opinion has been leaked. The draft opinion, written by Justice Samuel Alito, Jr., suggests the court&#8217;s majority favors overturning the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade court decision that granted the federal protection of abortion rights.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/american-black-journal/overturning-roe-black-women-are-disproportionately-affected-by-scotus-new-abortion-ruling/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Overturning Roe v. Wade: Black Women Disproportionately Affected by SCOTUS Abortion Ruling</a>
As the investigation into the person responsible for the leak continues, One Detroit Senior Producer connects with University of Michigan Law Professor and former U.S. attorney for Michigan Barbara McQuade to talk about the security breach, how soon the U.S. Supreme court might make a decision on abortion rights, the ramifications we may see with Michigan&#8217;s abortion laws if the decision is overturned and how other laws related to contraceptives, interracial or same-sex marriages and more could be impacted by Roe v. Wade court decision being overturned.
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Bill Kubota: Barbara McQuade, Professor of Law at the University of Michigan, former U.S. attorney for Michigan, thanks for talking to One Detroit.
Barbara McQuade, Professor of Law, University of Michigan: Oh, you bet, Bill. Thanks for having me.
Bill Kubota: We&#8217;re talking the latest about abortion, the draft opinion regarding the overturning of Roe v. Wade being leaked. A leak?  Is that a common thing and why would that happen?
Barbara McQuade: Well, first, I think the substance of the opinion is the big news here, that there is this seismic shift apparently coming in reproductive rights in America. But the leak is highly unusual. You know, historically, there have been some verbal leaks of the way the court was going to be making a decision or that somebody wouldn&#8217;t be joining the majority. But this is the first time ever that an entire draft opinion in hardcopy has been leaked to reporters. And I think it is a very significant matter.
It, I think, will tend to undermine the public confidence in the Supreme Court. It tends to show that there is less internal respect than I think we had previously thought. I think there are theories that conservatives wanted to do this to lock in those votes, or liberals wanted to do this to generate outrage and create public pressure to change. But I think that you have to also expand the scope to think about who had access to this. Could it have been someone working from home where a friend or family member or household worker got a hold of it? Could it have been obtained in a hack?
I mean, hostile foreign adversaries love to find wedge issues in America and exploit people in the stealing of emails and other kinds of things. So, I think that we should not make any assumptions about who might have leaked it.
Bill Kubota: How soon do you think we&#8217;ll see an actual ruling?
Barbara McQuade: Typically in these very significant cases, they come out very late in the Supreme Court&#8217;s term, and that&#8217;s because they are exchanging these drafts. This looks to be of the first draft. Some of the language is quite strong and what often happens is, as it gets circulated, either votes change, or some justices want certain language removed or a certain language inserted. And it often gets a little softer. Some of those hard edges get rubbed off. And so, typically the court ends its term in late June. Sometimes it&#8217;s spilled even into July just to give them sufficient time to exchange those drafts and get the final version out the door.
Bill Kubota: Legal folks say the Supreme Court will allow states to make any law they want regarding abortion. In Michigan, it gets a little complicated. We&#8217;ve had an abortion law on the books since 1931, lying dormant since the Roe decision. And then here in Michigan, you&#8217;re looking at what we&#8217;d almost consider an ancient law that might take effect. Talk about that.
Barbara McQuade: Yes. So, there are two types of laws that are already on the books. One is what are called trigger laws, about 13 states have those. And those laws were passed after 1973 that say if Roe is ever overturned, these laws will go in place, and they ban abortion. Michigan has a different category of laws. About a dozen states have these, and they&#8217;re sometimes being referred to now as &#8220;zombie laws&#8221;. That is, they&#8217;re ancient, as you say, but they&#8217;re coming back from the dead. They were on the books at the time Roe was decided in 1973, but they became moot once that decision was made because it said that they were no longer good law. So, they&#8217;ve lingered there on the books all this time.
And if and when this decision becomes final and Roe is overturned, then those laws will revert back. So, Michigan, we have one, it&#8217;s a 1931 law that makes it a felony for a provider, a health care provider to perform an abortion. Now, what&#8217;s interesting about Michigan&#8217;s law is the language of the statute is a little dated. It talks about things like causing a miscarriage, which isn&#8217;t exactly what happens in all abortion cases. And so, it may be that there are problems with that statute. It may be unconstitutionally vague. And in fact, our governor, Governor Whitmer, has already filed a lawsuit saying that, that statute violates the Michigan Constitution under the due process clause and the equal protection clause of the Michigan Constitution.
Bill Kubota: So that&#8217;s before the state Supreme Court, is that the case? So, we have another Supreme Court that&#8217;s going to potentially affect all of this?
Barbara McQuade: Yes, I think one thing that&#8217;s important to understand, is that all of us are protected by the U.S. Constitution, and that is the safety net that protects us from either federal or state laws that might overreach and violate our constitutional rights. But every state also has its own constitution, and that state can create even more protections than the federal constitution or different protections.
And so, in Michigan, we have a very different document. And what&#8217;s interesting about Michigan&#8217;s constitution is it was enacted in 1963, which is after this 1931 statute. And so, it is quite possible that it was contemplating, the people who wrote the statute were certainly not contemplating this constitution when they enacted the bill. There are other state constitutions, including California, that protect to explicitly protect the right to an abortion.
Bill Kubota: There are concerns the Supreme Court could put other rights at risk, rights not explicitly written into the Constitution, but accepted now. Think birth control, interracial marriage, things connected to the Roe decision.
Barbara McQuade: And so, what Roe held is that there is this right of privacy. It&#8217;s not explicitly included in the Constitution, but it is presumed there&#8217;s a 9th Amendment provision that says, &#8220;rights that are not enumerated are reserved for the people&#8221;. And so, Roe was based on that concept. But since that time, the court has also used that same reasoning to find privacy rights that extend to the right to contraceptives, the right to interracial marriage, the right to same sex marriage. And so, if you take away that grounding of that right to privacy, then all of those other things are built on a shaky foundation and might fall as well.
Bill Kubota: Are you concerned that that might actually happen?
Barbara McQuade: I think that it&#8217;s difficult to say. You know, the courts only decide cases that are in front of them. In this draft written by Justice Sam Alito, he does address these things and says these things are different, we&#8217;re not deciding those things today. But that will later be dismissed as people as mere dicta, which is language in the speech, in this case, it&#8217;s not controlling. And so, I&#8217;m sure we will get those challenges. I&#8217;m sure we will find states that want to pass those laws. You know, we have some very aggressive conservative lawmakers in states like Florida and Texas who are looking to make a name for themselves in conservative political circles. And so, you know, enacting a law on those bases will work its way through the courts and I&#8217;m sure they would be challenged, and then we would find out.
Bill Kubota: Well, I suspect we&#8217;ll want to check in with you again as these things move along. Barbara McQuade, Law Professor at the University of Michigan, thanks for talking to One Detroit.
Barbara McQuade: Thank you, Bill.
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Could Roe v. Wade Be Overturned This Year? The Ramifications We May See in Michigan

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As everybody watches the developments of the Ukraine-Russia conflict closely, elsewhere online there are forms of disinformation from Russian supporters beginning to populate alongside major news headlines. What&#8217;s fact and what&#8217;s fiction? 
One Detroit&#8217;s <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/about/contributors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bill Kubota</a> talks with two local Ukrainian American attorneys, <a href="http://www.natalialaw.com/about/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Natalia Kujan Gentry</a> and <a href="https://paulandsteve.com/dan-terleckyj/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dan Terleckyj</a>, to learn about their efforts to tell the real stories of the Ukraine-Russia conflict overseas, and their battle to fight back against the misinformation being spread online. Plus, they share the support they’re providing to others and the change they want to see. 
<figure id="attachment_21473" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-21473" style="width: 711px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-21473" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/ONE-DETROIT-608-Ukrainian-Americans-Still-5.jpg" alt="Ukrainian Americans march on the street about the Russian-Ukrainian conflict" width="711" height="400" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-21473" class="wp-caption-text">Ukrainian Americans and other local supporters gather for a march at the University of Michigan | Photo by One Detroit</figcaption></figure>
<h2>Full Transcript: </h2>
Bill Kubota, One Detroit:  A rally for Ukraine over at the University of Michigan last weekend.
Natalia Kujan Gentry, Attorney, Ukrainian American: My father-in-law is very conservative,and he attended that rally with me on Saturday. A few months ago, he was calling Vladimir Putin his man, and now he wants to give money to any charity that he can to end this war.
Bill Kubota: Natalia Kujan Gentry, Detroit attorney and Ukrainian American, lending a voice to the fight trying to change minds.
Natalia Kujan Gentry: And so I convinced him, and I&#8217;m sure I convinced other people. But the only way you can do that is by telling your very deep personal story, to make it real.
Bill Kubota: Gentry, a U of M history major, growing up steeped in tradition and culture.
Natalia Kujan Gentry: We played soccer together, we played bandura together, which is the instrument behind me, I had to pull it out.
Bill Kubota: Gentry taught others how to play. The bandura has a special place right here in Michigan. Here&#8217;s the Ukrainian Banduras Chorus, the national ensemble based in Metro Detroit.
Natalia Kujan Gentry: We&#8217;ve preserved our language, we&#8217;ve preserved our music, we kept it all alive.
Danylo Terleckyj, Attorney, Ukrainian American: It&#8217;s interesting because Ukrainian was my first language, even though I was born and raised in Metro Detroit.
Bill Kubota: Dan Terleckyj is in Chicago now, also an attorney, while bringing news to Ukrainian Americans through an online radio stream.
Danylo Terleckyj: I know the true story. Hey, I&#8217;m just a guy, one person here with a laptop and a cell phone.
Bill Kubota: He&#8217;s talking to people from all over, and inside the war zone.
Danylo Terleckyj: I know what&#8217;s going on, and I know the people who can tell the true story, and I&#8217;m just trying to magnify their voices.
Bill Kubota: The communication and the direct pipeline to what&#8217;s happening is different than any other war, you know.
Natalia Kujan Gentry: Vladimir Putin&#8217;s never lost a war; he&#8217;s invaded sovereign territory four times. But I think that this time is different because of social media. The world is finally starting to see what Ukraine is. Not that it&#8217;s some dark Soviet remnant, it&#8217;s a beautiful, vibrant metropolis with history that goes back thousands of years.
Bill Kubota: The last centuries Ukrainians&#8217; struggle with Russians, the Soviets, it&#8217;s been ongoing.
Danylo Terleckyj: My grandmother was an immigrant to this country. She came to Detroit in 1949 after World War II.
Bill Kubota: Here&#8217;s Terleckyj&#8217;s grandmother symbolizing Lady Liberty, freedom, chained to a hammer and sickle.
Danylo Terleckyj: They organized. They organized their own media for the time. It wasn&#8217;t what I&#8217;m doing. But I&#8217;m just doing what they&#8217;re doing with new technology.
Bill Kubota: Ukrainian Americans can connect this war with history they know well and more of us ought to. We know about the Armenian Genocide, we know about the Holocaust, but&#8230;
Natalia Kujan Gentry: No one knows about the Holodomor. The Holodomor was, it was again, a Soviet reaction to what was considered to be mild resistance. The Soviet idea is that you punish the people any time that they act up
Bill Kubota: the Holodomor 1932 to 1933, an intentional mass starvation that killed many, many millions, mostly Ukrainians.
Natalia Kujan Gentry: So my grandparents, all four of them were young kids when the genocide happened. They were all less than 10. Some of their siblings were starved to death. The world did not know about Ukraine&#8217;s genocide. You know, the Iron Curtain was real. No information came out and no information came in from the outside world.
Bill Kubota: Now attorneys Terleckyj and Gentry are networking with others trying to bring Ukrainian refugees to the U.S. Nearly 700,000 have fled, mostly women and children. The men held back to fight the Russians, but who else will fight with them?
Danylo Terleckyj: Ukrainians have a saying, “Українець Не той у кого предки українці нащадкиукраїнці”. &#8220;Your ancestors don&#8217;t make you Ukrainian, your descendants do&#8221;. So to every single person in the world who&#8217;s fighting for freedom and democracy, we are all Ukrainian now.
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Searching for truth in lies: Ukrainian-Americans react to Russia conflict, misinformation campaign

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It&#8217;s an unprecedented budget year for<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer/"> Gov. Gretchen Whitmer</a> and the<a href="https://www.house.mi.gov/"> Michigan Legislature</a>, who have, for the first time in many years, a surplus of funds stemming from federal COVID relief packages and an uptick in the state&#8217;s economy.  Whitmer&#8217;s 2023 fiscal budget of $74 billion,<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/budget/-/media/Project/Websites/budget/Fiscal/Executive-Budget/Current-Exec-Rec/FY23-Budget-Press-Release.pdf?rev=2c57c975fe944912aa2445892a8e0e89&amp;hash=5C2F88DF7397495100D2B6B7A74B5165"> announced recently</a>, was a record-setting number, but just how does Michigan plan to spend it?
One Detroit contributors Stephen Henderson and Nolan Finley come together once again for a lively discussion about Whitmer&#8217;s proposed budget — what&#8217;s included and what critics and experts think about her plan — as well as some of the striking similarities the two believe Whitmer&#8217;s budget has to former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder&#8217;s wish-list. Plus, they posit whether the funds will help fix some of Michigan&#8217;s biggest challenges and just how much will be passed through the Legislature in an election year. 
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Speaker 1: A state budget surplus and federal pandemic relief funds are driving Gov. Whitmer&#8217;s proposed seventy four point one billion dollar budget for the coming year. Among her recommendations are bonuses for teachers and frontline workers and funding increases for education and infrastructure. One Detroit contributors, Nolan Finley of the Detroit News and Stephen Henderson of American Black Journal, sat down to discuss the record-setting budget.
Nolan Finley: Steve, this certainly is an unusual budget here in Michigan. Lansing is awash in money, they&#8217;ve got more money than they know how to spend between the surplus, that the Michigan that Michigan brought in on its own and the billions of dollars in federal money that came flooding in in Covid 19 relief.
Nolan Finley: So they&#8217;re in an unusual situation normally we&#8217;re talking about, what do you cut? What do you cut, what do you cut and you get the sense that these people under a great deal of stress trying to figure out how to spend this much money.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah, it was really fun watching the reactions of the press core there. You know, as the governor was speaking and basically she just went through every it was like an Oprah show, you know, you get a car and you&#8217;re getting more money and you&#8217;re getting more money. But what it reminded me of was a conversation I remember having with Rick Snyder when he was first running for governor, and he said, you know, they&#8217;re going to have to be some really hard choices made in the early years.
Stephen Henderson: We&#8217;ve got this imbalance and we&#8217;ve got to take care of it, and he said, but once we do that, I think we can start to really reinvest in things, right? He said he talked about the kind of investment budgets that he thought would be possible in the out years. Now, he never got there. But if you look at this budget from Governor Whitmer, I think it includes a lot of the things that he was talking about.
Stephen Henderson: Increases to the foundation allowance for school districts, increases for higher ed. He did say that once revenues recovered and we got out of the ditch we were in, he would reconsider things like the pension tax he imposed or the cutting of the IPC. She&#8217;s doing all of that in one fell swoop.
Stephen Henderson: And again, it&#8217;s because there&#8217;s all this money coming from the federal government. But it&#8217;s also because, you know, I mean, the economy here is actually doing quite well despite the, you know, the Covid disruption and the interruptions.
Nolan Finley: The caution here is you have enduring money, money that&#8217;s coming in through higher tax rates, revenue, economic growth and from the cuts that were made during the pandemic when we thought revenue would drop off a cliff. And then there is the one-time money, the billions of dollars in Covid relief money.
Nolan Finley: It&#8217;s important to keep those in two separate piles. The enduring money, the money we expect to come back year after year after year. You could spend that too on new programs, new initiatives, ongoing investments in in education and infrastructure, worker training, all the things that are on the wish list for Michigan in the needs list for Michigan. The one-time money which is right now, the bigger pool.
Nolan Finley: But that money has to be kept separate and spent on one-time things. Things that won&#8217;t they won&#8217;t require sustainable funding from the Treasury because that money won&#8217;t be there and that will lead to cuts in other places or tax hikes. One thing I don&#8217;t think Rick Snyder would have done that the governor proposes is restore the exemption on public employee pensions. He was very clear that just wasn&#8217;t just a revenue measure, that that was about tax fairness.
Stephen Henderson: Well, I mean, all taxpayers aren&#8217;t created equal either. And I think the whole idea of exempting public pensions from taxes was that these are people who don&#8217;t have the opportunity to make the kind of money that people in the private sector do. They make sacrifices all the time throughout their careers to serve the public, their servants.
Stephen Henderson: And so the idea was to sweeten the pot, to incentivize people to do that more by giving them something that they could look forward to. It doesn&#8217;t make sense to have done that. I mean, especially when he gave this gigantic corporate tax break that again helped take revenue out of the Treasury. Think of the number of teachers who are walking away from the profession right now.
Stephen Henderson: You can&#8217;t get people to staff classrooms, you can&#8217;t get people to drive busses, you can&#8217;t get people to clean schools. All of these, these things that we really need people doing right now that they don&#8217;t want to do taking, you know, taking that, that pension tax and getting it away from it is one thing you can do to tell people, hey, here&#8217;s another reason to do it. But you&#8217;re right. He said he thought it was a fairness issue, and I think he was wrong about that.
Nolan Finley: And if we&#8217;re going to talk about it, you should talk about it for all retirees. You have a lot of retirees who haven&#8217;t enjoyed, sort of wages that public employee employees have who are getting by on part-time jobs and getting by on what meager savings they have, they should not have to support these, these folks that have benefits they don&#8217;t have.
Nolan Finley: All taxpayers should enjoy something from this windfall. The state as and, you know, probably more important, we should invest it in infrastructure and other things. We have a terrific need for.
Stephen Henderson: I mean, there is a lot of money in this budget for investments in infrastructure and other things like that. And you know, the conversation that I&#8217;ve been able to have with people about this budget. Everybody seems to think that it&#8217;s pretty particular in the way it spends the money that it doesn&#8217;t go and promise long term spending for short term funding that it targets the things that are going to be ongoing with money that we&#8217;re making that not this, not this, not this federal money.
Stephen Henderson: And so I think the big question that remains is whether, you know, whether the Legislature, which is of course, controlled by Republicans who don&#8217;t seem automatically opposed to these things but have their own list of things that they&#8217;d like to do. How do you reconcile those things in an election year and whether you know, whether you can get that through?
Nolan Finley: Like the investment in pumping stations and trying to do something about this flooding that has plagued Metro Detroit over the last few years. There&#8217;s money in that. I quibble with the fact that it&#8217;s taken out of Covid relief money.
Nolan Finley: But Covid money should be spent on Covid relief and the other money there&#8217;s, you know, as we said, there&#8217;s plenty to go around. I think there&#8217;ll be a lot of give and take here. I think there&#8217;ll be the Legislature will be concerned and make sure this money isn&#8217;t being spent to buy votes for the upcoming election. But I think they&#8217;ll come to an agreement.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah. So we&#8217;ll see, we&#8217;re out of time, but then we&#8217;ll talk more in the future.
&nbsp;
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What to Do With All That Money? With a Record-Setting Fiscal Surplus, the Michigan Legislature Must Decide

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Michigan has a long history of acceptance and support for refugees hoping to resettle in the state, but just what cultural, economic, and population-based impacts have these immigrants brought to their new homes? One Detroit Senior Producer<a href="https://twitter.com/BKubota56"> Bill Kubota</a> took a trip to the state&#8217;s capital, Lansing, to examine the status of Michigan&#8217;s immigration today and the changes we&#8217;ve seen to refugee resettlement over the past 20 years. 
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/emu-students-help-afghan-refugee-families-move-into-new-homes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EMU Students Help Afghan Refugee Families Move Into New Homes </a>
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/jawad-sukhanyar-an-afghan-journalists-story-on-fleeing-taliban-forces/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jawad Sukhanyar: An Afghan Journalist’s Story On Fleeing Taliban Forces</a>
<figure id="attachment_21173" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-21173" style="width: 320px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-21173 size-medium" src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/IMMIGRATION-4.png" alt="Michigan's Immigration - Refugee Development Center " width="320" height="180" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-21173" class="wp-caption-text">The Refugee Development Center, located in Lansing, supports the resettlement of refugees to the mid-Michigan area.</figcaption></figure>
Kubota meets with<a href="http://refugeedevelopmentcenter.org/"> Refugee Development Center</a> Executive Director Erika Brown-Binion to talk about some of the refugees her organization helps resettle in the mid-Michigan area, like Yohana Ferra, a Cuban immigrant who now owns and operates a Cuban food truck in Lansing&#8217;s Old Town. Then, he has a conversation with Steve Tobocman, Executive Director of<a href="https://globaldetroitmi.org/"> Global Detroit</a>, and Demographer and<a href="https://datadrivendetroit.org/"> Data Driven Detroit</a> Founder Kurt Metzger detailing how Michigan&#8217;s immigrant resettlement has driven positive growth in the state&#8217;s population and economy. Plus, resettled refugees in Lansing and Warren share their perspectives on moving to Michigan and fostering new ethnic communities together.
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<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Yohana Ferra, Owner, Habana Delights Food Truck: In Lansing, we don&#8217;t have too much Cuban food. I think that it would be a good idea to make a business for Cuban food.
Bill Kubota: You&#8217;ll find Yohana Ferra&#8217;s Habana Delights Food Truck in Lansing&#8217;s Old Town. Living her dream, three years now. Well, when did you come from Cuba?
Yohana Ferra: In 2014.
Steve Tobocman, Executive Director, Global Detroit: I think the story, particularly when you look statewide for the state of Michigan, is just how diverse this state is and how diverse the international community is.
Yohana Ferra: I&#8217;m so happy to make this kind of sandwich. I came with my husband and two sons, and they become so good, a good future for them.
Bill Kubota: But Michigan&#8217;s future? We&#8217;ve got a population problem. Here&#8217;s demographer Kurt Metzger.
Kurt Metzger, Demographer: And so what we have seen in 2020, was the first time the deaths outnumbered births. Immigration is the only way we&#8217;re going to grow our population. We have always gained population through what we call a natural increase, which is births over deaths. That&#8217;s always been a driver of population growth. In addition, we&#8217;ve had immigration. And fairly significant, not great numbers, but the state averaging somewhere around 18 to 20 thousand immigrants a year plus some movement from secondarily coming to other parts of the country and coming to Michigan. But we&#8217;ve always been what we call an outmigration, domestic out migrant state. We always send more people away than we bring in.
Bill Kubota: Steve Tobocman leads Global Detroit, an advocate for immigrants in our communities.
Steve Tobocman: Immigration in Southeast Michigan and across Michigan, just like other parts of the middle part of the country, have really been a great benefit and an untold story over the last 20 years.
Bill Kubota: Why is it untold? I would think there are a lot of people that want to talk this up. This is an attraction to try to build the economy around here.
Steve Tobocman: Well, I mean, you need only look at who has been coming to Michigan over the last 20 years. Particularly since 2010, we know that more than 50 percent of the adult arrivals who are immigrants to the state of Michigan have a four-year college degree or higher, that&#8217;s roughly twice the state average. And so, there&#8217;s a highly educated community. I mean, it also includes working-class folks as well. But yet, we went through a national debate about 5 years ago, was central to the presidential campaign, that painted a picture of immigration that is very different from the reality that communities experience.
Donald Trump, Former U.S. President: When Mexico sends its people, they&#8217;re not sending their best. They&#8217;re not sending you. They&#8217;re not sending you.
Bill Kubota: Just one presidential term ago, Donald Trump proclaimed his southern wall would save thousands of lives from an onslaught of undocumented criminals, a problem statistically unfounded.
Steve Tobocman: Unfortunately, about 5 years ago, as we were resettling a lot of new refugees from the Middle East, particularly Syria, and there were some attacks in Europe, suddenly, this issue flipped.
Bill Kubota: Terrorists attacked Paris in 2015, killing more than 100. Trump brought on the so-called &#8220;Muslim Ban&#8221; restricting immigration from certain countries. There were protests, but Steve Tobocman says the damage was done.
Steve Tobocman: Kind of anti-Muslim ban and rhetoric really sent a signal across the world, and as a result, some folks decided they would go somewhere else. They would go to Canada, they would go to Europe, they would go to Australia or other places that are actually benefiting from attracting global capital, global workers, talent, all of those kinds of things.
Bill Kubota: Back then, Michigan, a top state in the resettlement of Syrian refugees, hit a snag in Oakland County.
Kurt Metzger: We had tried years ago talking about Syrian refugees developing a community in Pontiac and Brooks Patterson came out very strongly against that.
Bill Kubota: Patterson, the late Oakland County executive, threatened legal action, citing the Paris attacks. The refugees still came, but no go on building a community in Pontiac.
Steve Tobocman: And suddenly people began to fear refugees. Now, the reality is that refugees are the most thoroughly vetted of any visitor to the United States. They go through 7 international and U.S. security background checks before they set foot on U.S. soil.
Bill Kubota: Under Trump, refugee resettlement numbers plummeted. Now, with the Afghans coming and Joe Biden in charge, a change is underway.
Steve Tobocman: And what we&#8217;ve seen, thankfully in this past year, is a much stronger embrace and a much more robust level of support for the new arrivals that we&#8217;ve gotten from Afghanistan. Then, say, 5 years ago, when we shut down the border too, you know, all Muslims and refugees at the beginning of the Trump administration.
Erika Brown-Binion, Executive Director, Refugee Development Center: We have folks from Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Syria, Sudan, Eritrea, Burma and Nepal.
Bill Kubota: Lansing&#8217;s Refugee Development Center helps new arrivals. Erika Brown Binion leads a staff of 23 and a lot more volunteers helping immigrants get situated.
Erika Brown-Binion: Our goal, since the very beginning, has been to support refugees after they arrive in mid-Michigan so that they can be successful and able to thrive here and really build roots and stick around and be part of our community.
Bill Kubota: RDA began 20 years ago when Afghan refugees came here after 911. Now, a few hundred more are settling in the Lansing area, some already on the job working.
Erika Brown-Binion: We also have a really vibrant cultural broker team, which includes people who were once a refugee themselves and bring cultural and linguistic expertise to our team, so that we are best able to connect with families and their needs.
Bill Kubota:] Brown Binion touts her city&#8217;s welcoming reputation, offering English classes, support groups and help for entrepreneurs like Yohana Ferra, with their food truck.
Yohana Ferra: RDC helped me a lot. The first time because I don&#8217;t know how I can do the business.
Kurt Metzger: There continues to be this idea that immigrants are going to take our jobs, immigrants are going to drive down wages, all these things. And that&#8217;s certainly not the case.
Bill Kubota: Last year economist David Card won the Nobel Prize, looking at how immigrants affect the paychecks of longtime residents. He looked at Miami in 1980 when the Mariel boatlift brought an influx of new workers fleeing from Cuba.
Steve Tobocman: And what David Card has shown, that when you isolate a labor market like the Mariel boatlift in Cuba that saw over 100,000 low skilled Cuban workers enter the Miami labor market, is that indeed other low skilled workers actually saw their wages increased.
Bill Kubota: Compare that to Steve Tobocman&#8217;s own study last year here in Detroit, looking at part of Southwest Detroit and the Bangla-town area, where because of immigration, property values rose, vacancies in blight drop, while new businesses emerge. Now, tens of thousands of Bangladeshis are here in Hamtramck, Detroit and beyond.
Waluir Rahman, President, Islamic Center of Warren: At one time, the city was economically and financially it was going down, but people from our community, they started up in their business, they start they creating a job, opening the businesses. And actually, that&#8217;s helping the city, at the same time, we are being, you know, a good citizen and we always teach our community for the being a good citizen, contribute to the community, helping the community for the better life.
Kurt Metzger: We&#8217;ve seen kind of what the auto industry and everything has meant to immigrant families for centuries now. I mean, it&#8217;s like when you think of the Middle Eastern community, and you tend to think that these are kind of recent immigrants coming and yet they can go back. Some of the Palestinian immigrants and Lebanese are going back to the 1800s.
Bill Kubota: For Bangladeshis, a common East Side story like the Poles and Italians before them, who a century ago were deemed less desirable immigrants by the Federal Dillingham Commission. Some Bangladeshis came to America after World War II, a lot more and more recently. That&#8217;s according to Syed Hoque, who studied Bangladeshi American history.
Syed Hoque, Real Estate Agent, Warren, MI: They used to live close to the Detroit downtown area. Then back nineteen 1970, they moved in the Hamtramck area.
Bill Kubota: Building a mosque, established a community.
Syed Hoque: This way, the Bangladeshi American community grew up in Hamtramck and around Hamtramck.
Bill Kubota:] Now, many have moved north in places like Macomb County, some congregating at the Islamic center of Warren. On this day, holding a COVID vaccine clinic.  Michigan has the second largest population of Bangladeshis. Only New York has more, a community of factory workers, business owners, tech workers and college students.
Steve Tobocman: Immigrants contribute to a quarter of all the high-tech startups in America and over 50 percent in Silicon Valley, and they&#8217;re also business owners on Main Street. They own 28 percent of the main street style businesses, like restaurants and grocery stores and dry cleaners.
Kurt Metzger: There should be kind of a coalition of these groups trying to figure out, how do we attract and then how do we retain. We educate a lot of immigrants; how do we retain them after they graduate.
Bill Kubota: How to get more people to move here. Nadeem Shakil just moved to Warren.
Nadeem Shakil, Warren. MI Resident: I just moved last summer from Atlanta. I&#8217;ve been leaving Atlanta last 30 years. The reason I moved here is the community is a very strong.
Aziz Chowdhury, Real Estate Broker, Warren, MI: Yes, the community is coming back and social media actually bringing everyone together. So, it&#8217;s a resolving lot of issues right now. And Michigan State is growing day by day.
Nadeem Shakil: And, you know, have it nice, especially food is good here. The company is good, the food is good, you know? And that&#8217;s what I always look for.
&nbsp;
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<h2><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h2>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.

Michigan’s immigration status: The impacts of refugee resettlement on the state

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<h4>Live Virtual Event: January 19, 2022 at 7-8:30 p.m. EST </h4>
On the heels of brand new electoral maps being announced in Michigan, through an innovative publicly-voted process, The University of Michigan <a href="https://fordschool.umich.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ford School</a> of Public Policy&#8217;s <a href="https://fordschool.umich.edu/event/2022/michigan-redistricting-model-nation-evaluating-states-new-maps-and-process" target="_blank" rel="noopener">latest roundtable discussion</a> explores the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission&#8217;s new congressional and legislative maps and examine the state&#8217;s new process for drafting voting districts.
Hosted in conjunction with the University of Michigan Ford School&#8217;s Center for Local, State and Urban Policy (<a href="https://closup.umich.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CLOSUP</a>), the webinar discusses how Michigan&#8217;s new citizen-led model compares to other states&#8217; process across the nation, and roundtable guests posit whether Michigan&#8217;s new model could inspire reform in those states too.
As these new <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/michigans-new-redistricting-maps-change-election-races-face-legal-challenges/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">redistricting maps</a> begin to shape Michigan&#8217;s elections and political trajectory, this webinar provides an educational and engaging look inside Michigan&#8217;s redistricting process and how it&#8217;ll impact the state going forward.
<h2> </h2>
<h2>Watch Now:</h2>
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<h2>Roundtable Panelists: </h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-20432 alignleft " src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/David-Daley.jpg" alt="David Daley headshot" width="200" height="200" /><a href="https://twitter.com/davedaley3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">David Daley</a> David Daley is the author of the national best-seller &#8220;Ratf**ked: Why Your Vote Doesn&#8217;t Count&#8221; and &#8220;Unrigged: How Americans Are Battling Back to Save Democracy,&#8221; which Nancy MacLean hailed as &#8220;exactly the book that those of us who fear for the future of our country need right now.&#8221; &#8220;Ratf**ked&#8221; has been credited for helping inspire the national drive to reform redistricting and was the basis of the award-winning documentary &#8220;Slay the Dragon.&#8221; Eric Holder has called him &#8220;our Paul Revere of partisan gerrymandering.&#8221; His journalism on voting rights and democracy appears regularly in the New Yorker, the New York Times, the Atlantic, the Guardian and many other publications. He is the former editor in chief of Salon, a senior fellow at FairVote, and has taught political science and journalism as a fellow at Wesleyan University, Boston College and the University of Georgia.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-20433 alignleft " src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Jon-Eguia-scaled-e1642541113951.jpg" alt="" width="199" height="255" srcset="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Jon-Eguia-scaled-e1642541113951.jpg 1262w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Jon-Eguia-scaled-e1642541113951-233x300.jpg 233w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Jon-Eguia-scaled-e1642541113951-797x1024.jpg 797w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Jon-Eguia-scaled-e1642541113951-768x987.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Jon-Eguia-scaled-e1642541113951-1195x1536.jpg 1195w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 199px) 100vw, 199px" /><a href="https://sites.google.com/msu.edu/eguia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jon Eguia</a> Jon Eguia, PhD, is a professor of economics and (by courtesy) of political science at Michigan State University. He joined Michigan State in 2014. He has also taught at New York University, at the University of Bristol and at Harvard University. He serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of the European Economic Association. His expertise is in Collective Choice, Institutional Design and Political Economy. His work on partisan fairness in redistricting is forthcoming in the Election Law Journal, and he is the lead author of Michigan Redistricting Map Analysis, a report on the 2021 Michigan redistricting maps published by the Institute of Public Policy and Social Research. He earned his doctorate in Social Sciences at Caltech in 2007.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-20434 alignleft " src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Matt-Grossmann.jpg" alt="Matt Grossmann Headshot " width="200" height="199" /><a style="font-size: 16px;" href="http://ippsr.msu.edu/ippsr/director-matt-grossmann" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Matt Grossmann</a> Matt Grossmann is director of the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research and professor of political science at Michigan State University. He is also senior fellow at the Niskanen Center and a Contributor at FiveThirtyEight. He is the author or coauthor of many books, including How Social Science Got Better, Asymmetric Politics, Red State Blues, The Not-So-Special Interests, Artists of the Possible, and Campaigns &amp; Elections, as well as dozens of journal articles. He has published analysis in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Politico and hosts the Science of Politics podcast. He is also opening a bookstore, coffee shop, and wine bar in Lansing.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-20435 alignleft " src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Nancy-Wang.jpg" alt="Nancy Wang Headshot" width="200" height="200" srcset="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Nancy-Wang.jpg 250w, https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Nancy-Wang-150x150.jpg 150w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px" /><a style="font-size: 16px;" href="https://votersnotpoliticians.com/about/team/nancy-wang/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nancy Wang</a> Nancy Wang is the executive director and a founding member of Voters Not Politicians, the grassroots group that led the successful 2018 ballot initiative campaign to amend the Michigan constitution to put voters, not politicians, in charge of redistricting in Michigan. In the 2020 election cycle, VNP launched the VoteSafe campaign to protect public health and the integrity of our elections during the COVID-19 pandemic.
&nbsp;
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft wp-image-20436 " src="https://wordpress.detroitpbs.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Edward_Woods_III_736307_7.jpg" alt="Edward Woods III Headshot" width="201" height="252" />
<a href="https://twitter.com/ewiii" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Edward Woods III</a> Edward Woods III is the communications and outreach director for the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (MICRC). He leads the awareness and engagement efforts as it relates to redistricting for the Commission. He has been responsible for creating and executing a multimedia and inclusive public awareness campaign about the redistricting process; collaborating with statewide organizations and community groups to engage all Communities of Interest in the redistricting process; and coordinating and responding to media inquiries about the redistricting process in Michigan. Being a lifelong Michigander, Edward has extensive experience working for governments and nonprofits in senior leadership, communications, and professional development positions. As a two-time elected nonpartisan official and advocate, Edward enjoys this unique opportunity to explain Michigan’s new redistricting process.
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<h2>Sponsors: </h2>
This is the final redistricting webinar in a series sponsored by the Center for Local, State and Urban Policy (<a href="https://closup.umich.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CLOSUP</a>) at the University of Michigan’s <a href="https://fordschool.umich.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ford School</a> of Public Policy, <a href="https://votersnotpoliticians.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voters Not Politicians</a>, and Michigan State University’s <a href="http://ippsr.msu.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Institute for Public Policy and Social Research</a>. Co-sponsors include the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, <a href="https://lwvmi.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">League of Women Voters of Michigan</a>, University of Michigan’s <a href="https://fordschool.umich.edu/practical-policy-engagement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Program in Practical Policy Engagement</a>, and <a href="https://www.dptv.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Detroit Public Television</a>.
Watch previous redistricting webinars: <a href="https://closup.umich.edu/video/2021/how-communities-can-promote-their-interests-michigans-redistricting-lessons-learned" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How communities can promote their interests in Michigan&#8217;s redistricting: Lessons learned</a>
<a href="https://closup.umich.edu/video/2021/michigan-redistricting-making-public-hearings-fair-and-effective" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michigan redistricting: making public hearings fair and effective</a>
<a href="https://closup.umich.edu/video/2021/next-big-thing-redistricting-michigan-and-role-communities-interest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The next big thing: redistricting in Michigan and the role of communities of interest</a>
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Subscribe to One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/OneDetroit/videos"> YouTube Channel</a> &amp; Don’t miss One Detroit Mondays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
Catch the daily conversations on our <a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org">website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h2><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h2>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
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Michigan Redistricting Roundtable: Evaluating the State’s New Maps, Process

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As we kick off the first few weeks of 2022, Michigan politics have already brought forth some interesting changes. WIth new congressional maps adopted in the state, and statewide election races in motion, a lot of funding and competition are likely to build up over the next 10 months approaching November. Looking ahead, One Detroit’s Christy McDonald sits down with contributors Stephen Henderson and Nolan Finley for a roundtable discussion to talk about what might be coming next in Michigan politics this year.
Full Transcript: 
Christy McDonald, One Detroit, DPTV: All right, Nolan and Steven, &#8217;22 promises to be a good one when it comes to politics. We&#8217;re talking about statewide races, we&#8217;re talking about the money that&#8217;s coming into the state and we&#8217;re talking about the new congressional and legislative maps as well. It&#8217;s all balled into one. So I&#8217;m going to start with you, Nolan, and tell me what you are really watching this year for &#8217;22 in politics.
Nolan Finley, Editorial Page Editor, The Detroit News: Well, I think the congressional races, if you look at the start of last year to where we are today, Republicans have made a remarkable comeback in their prospects. I wouldn&#8217;t have given them much hope at all coming into the 2022 midterms a year ago, but they&#8217;re well poised this year to, I think, exceed the average gains parties can expect in a midterm election. The average since World War II has been 26 seat pickups in the House, 4 in the Senate. They could even do that. They’ve gained control of both chambers. They&#8217;re liable to do much better, primarily because of the really dismal approval ratings of Joe Biden and the prospects that inflation will get worse and Coronavirus will still be with us. So I think Congress, they&#8217;re well-suited. Michigan races&#8230;
Christy McDonald: What about in Michigan, though?
Nolan Finley: Well, Michigan, I think it&#8217;s not going to be as good a year for Republicans overall as it will be in the rest of the nation. They just don&#8217;t have a slate of candidates to match up against incumbents. It&#8217;s always hard in Michigan to unseat an incumbent after one term. They&#8217;re almost always re-elected. I can&#8217;t quite… I think it goes back to the 60s or before since a governor was defeated for a second term and Jim Blanchard, since a governor was defeated. So history works against Republicans, that and a very mediocre slate of candidates at this point.
Christy McDonald: Stephen, what about you? What are you watching?
Stephen Henderson, Host, American Black Journal: I am absolutely fascinated by the new lines here in Michigan, of course, and what they mean, what they won&#8217;t mean and who will, at this point, who will even try to run for these seats, some of them look so different.
Christy McDonald: Yeah, what are you hearing right now?
Stephen Henderson: You know, I think we&#8217;re going to have a lot of new candidates. I think we&#8217;re going to have a lot of people who sat out for a long time thinking, &#8220;Well, I don&#8217;t really understand what that district is that I would be running in&#8221; who have a clearer picture right now. I&#8217;ve had a couple of emails and a couple of phone calls from people looking to test the waters, and some of them have surprised me. You know, we also will have, of course, one fewer person in Congress. And we&#8217;ve already seen that Brenda Lawrence has decided that she won&#8217;t run again. I don&#8217;t think that&#8217;s a terrible surprise, but it does sort of, you know, it frees up a seat in absolute terms. I think on the national level, I think it&#8217;s really early to be saying the things that Republicans are saying about their prospects in November. If you look at what was happening toward the end of the year, the president&#8217;s poll numbers started to bounce back up just a little. You saw the speech that he gave on January 6th. That was a really different tone than we&#8217;ve seen this president take. It was a tone that a lot of Democrats have wanted him to take for the 12 months instead of trying to work with Republicans so much. The question is whether you can turn Democrats out.
It is not what Republicans do. Republicans are going to vote this year because they&#8217;re out of power and they want to get power back. But there are more registered Democrats than there are Republicans. There are more Independents. When you add them to Democrats, I think the case that the president will try to make and the vice president is, look, we are ready to lead this country away from all of the stuff that we had for the last four years. And forget some of those people who are stuck there. That is a really different message than they have been striking for the last 12 months. And maybe it will be successful, maybe it won&#8217;t, but they have a good record to run on. The S&amp;P 500 hit 68 highs in 2021. It grew 25 percent. The first year of Trump it only grew 15 percent. You know, he got the recovery bill passed. He got the infrastructure bill passed. He got 100 million shots in 50 million arms when the vaccine was available. There are things that they can be talking about that they&#8217;ve done rather than the things that they haven&#8217;t been able to accomplish that I think may make some people think a little differently about all this.
Christy McDonald: One thing I think that we can all agree on is the amount of money that is going to be thrown around the country. Michigan, of course, but you can look at Georgia, you look around in a bunch of key states, and it feels like Nolan, every year we say it&#8217;s the most money that&#8217;s been spent in an election year. I mean, every two years. What are we looking at? I think when we&#8217;re looking at the top of the ticket also here in Michigan and then congressional-wide.
Nolan Finley: And it&#8217;ll be again the most expensive race in history in Michigan. Governor&#8217;s already starting out with $11 million plus or $10, $10.4 million, I think, plus the $4 million she raised under really questionable circumstances, claiming a recall&#8230;
Christy McDonald: That was cleared though, correct? That was. That was.
Stephen Henderson: Everyone says that was fine. Everyone said that&#8230;
Christy McDonald: I just want to throw that out there.
Stephen Henderson: And Republicans would have raised eight off of that.
Christy McDonald: Keep going Nolan, just wanted to verify.
Nolan Finley: She&#8217;s already got more money raised than races used to cost for the whole session, and she&#8217;s not done yet. The congressional races are going to draw in a ton of money, as are the legislative races, because of the new boundaries and new people running in both parties. It&#8217;s really desperate to grab a majority. So yeah, that&#8217;s going to be unlimited funding. I think it&#8217;s going to be unlimited funding until we get to the point where donors say, &#8220;Woah, this is a really bad investment.&#8221;
Christy McDonald: Yeah. Let me ask you about that in the traction or maybe the lack thereof that James Craig is doing right now. Let&#8217;s look at the governor&#8217;s race.
Nolan Finley: Yeah, well, I think James&#8217; race has to be generous. James Craig, a candidate I like and supported his entry into the campaign, hasn&#8217;t caught fire and you know, he&#8217;s got a cut-cut-catch fire soon. I don&#8217;t think the Republicans have a good Secretary of State&#8217;s candidate against a candidate who should be vulnerable based on the long lines people have experienced in Michigan since she took office and the long wait times. They don&#8217;t have a candidate really with the mojo, I think, to beat her. They&#8217;ve got a better Attorney General candidate and Tom Leonard, I think he&#8217;s got a good chance, but you know, those races tend to go like the top of the ticket goes, and I think it&#8217;s going to be a struggle for them here.
Christy McDonald: Stephen: money and then the governor&#8217;s race.
Stephen Henderson: So I mean, the money always grows right? Like Nolan said, this will be the most expensive governor&#8217;s race, but the last one was the most expensive and the one before that was too, and that&#8217;s just the direction we&#8217;re headed. You know, in order to compete in these races, you have to raise ridiculous amounts of money, and that&#8217;s because the rules allow it. And money has been equated to speech in a way that we haven&#8217;t seen before in this country. It&#8217;s a way that I don&#8217;t necessarily agree with, but it is the law. And so that&#8217;s the game, and I&#8217;m not mad at Gov. Whitmer, you know, the Democrats for playing that game effectively. I mean, historically at least they were not as good at it as Republicans. She in this case, starts out ahead, and that&#8217;s good for her. You know, I don&#8217;t think we&#8217;re going to see a terribly close re-election bid by her. I think it will be easier than what Rick Snyder faced in 2014. And that is because there&#8217;s not a great candidate, James Craig.
Look, whatever you think of him personally, this is not a guy with any sort of record to recommend him to be the governor. You know, there are serious questions about his tenure as police chief both here in Detroit and Cincinnati, and he has no other experience. I mean, and he will continue to struggle also with this Republican problem, which is that if you embrace Donald Trump, you turn off Independents and Democrats, which you need to win a statewide race in Michigan, but if you push too far away from him, you turn off Republicans, and he has not figured out, I think, a credible way to navigate that in either primary or in a general election. Meanwhile, the governor will continue to just, you know, stockpile money and she&#8217;ll be able to run on a record. You know, he doesn&#8217;t have a record to match hers. And the criticisms that he&#8217;s leveled so far against her are kind of textbook, you know, conservative criticisms of liberal administrations. I just don&#8217;t see a lot going on there.
I think Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is probably more unbeatable than the governor. You know, Nolan is mad about the lines. I think a lot of people are. But COVID, sorry. That has a lot to do with the things that went wrong in that office, and she&#8217;s trying to fix those. At the same time, her work on expanding and protecting voting rights is attracting national attention and national money. I don&#8217;t see anyone beating her. I think Dana Nessel could be vulnerable against the right candidate. I don&#8217;t know that Tom Leonard is that person. So I think you could probably hold serve here, and Nolan has said this before: there isn&#8217;t a Michigan governor since the 1960s who hasn&#8217;t run, who hasn&#8217;t won re-election, right?
Nolan Finley: For second term.
Stephen Henderson: But the second, the second time right? Jim Blanchard was beat in his bid for a third term, but everybody else, including him, was re-elected that second time. That&#8217;s kind of the pattern. I don&#8217;t know that we see the candidate or the circumstances here that would suggest something different in 2022.
Christy McDonald: So&#8230;go ahead Nolan.
Nolan Finley: We&#8217;ve got a new poll out this week that shows Whitmer well ahead, 10 points ahead, of any challenger. The other two doing quite well. In fact, it&#8217;s the curious part about this poll is that Whitmer&#8217;s numbers in terms of managing the epidemic, the pandemic improved when she sort of backed off and stopped management, managing it. Her numbers did much better than they, on that issue, than they were on the fall. She&#8217;s not going to take a hit for inflation the way the national candidates will, so&#8230;
Christy McDonald: It&#8217;s probably an interesting view about how people feel about control. You know, having this conversation about money, about the political climate in Michigan right now and finding this next generation of candidates and Nolan, you know, you talked about how Republicans just haven&#8217;t put up a good enough slate of candidates, maybe to beat the Democrats this time around, especially just looking in Michigan, who are the candidates, this next generation? I mean, what is the impetus to run when you have to earn— you have to raise so much money, you have to have, you know, the backings of certain people or certain organizations? What can we look forward to the next generation of candidates, and who is this, I guess, where we are in the political atmosphere? Who is coming out for that? Let me start with you, Stephen.
Stephen Henderson: So I mean, I think we have some good examples of the kinds of candidates who are going to be successful in Michigan in the coming years already. The person I point to more often than any other is Elissa Slotkin, who, you know, is a Democrat who ran in a district that had been held by Republicans for a really long time. She won that seat by striking a pretty moderate tone. You know, her background is in the military and in intelligence, and that appeals, I think, to a lot of Independents and maybe even to some Republicans. She&#8217;s now considered pretty safe, which I would not have necessarily assumed after getting elected in the part of the state where she is now. She&#8217;s, I think, likely to move for this new map like a lot of people are, but that&#8217;s because the lines look really different than they did. But I think that kind of candidate, somebody who you know, is liberal but also has that kind of moderate to conservative bent on certain issues, is going to be the kind of person who can win, especially on this new map, in the new congressional map in Michigan.
It does blend more communities together who have real differences, and the people who will be popular in those places will not be people on the far left or the far right. They&#8217;ll be more in the middle. I don&#8217;t think that&#8217;s a bad thing. I mean, I don&#8217;t consider myself terribly in the middle, but I get the idea that when you represent communities with really different interests, you have to have representation that takes into account all those kind of people. I think Jocelyn Benson is somebody that, you know, despite Republican ire with her, is not going anywhere. I mean, she&#8217;s got one more term if she wants, you know, if she can win for Secretary of State, but her national profile has grown exponentially since she took that job. That&#8217;s somebody who could do lots more with her, with her political career. She&#8217;s also somebody who has appealed, I think, to the Independents and some Republicans with sort of moderate views on some things. I also think you&#8217;re going to see a crop of maybe not new, but new to electoral politics people crop up in places like Detroit, right? These Detroit districts that we have on the congressional map, it looked really different. And yeah, Rashida Tlaib is there representing the one, but the other is a toss up and you&#8217;re going to see some very interesting names that you have not seen in electoral politics before come forward to try to do that. So I&#8217;m not worried or fretful. I think we have some things to work out in Michigan in terms of our differences and =how we manage them, but I think we have a good crop and youngish crop of people already in elected office who are going to be around for a while.
Christy McDonald: Nolan, what do you think?
Nolan Finley: Well, I wrote this past weekend in my column about a young man named Michael Griffie running in the 13th. He had anticipated running against Rashida Tlaib, and it would have been a very nice contrast. I think he had a better chance running against her than he does running against the field in the 13th, which has now grown to several potential candidates. Be hard to get his head above, you know, above that field of better-known candidates, but I think term limits has hurt us tremendously in terms of developing leadership in Michigan. Folks don&#8217;t get to stay long around the Legislature long enough to season, long enough to build a name and build a reputation. We&#8217;ve seen a number of promising people pass through the Legislature, and then gone before they get a shot at higher office, or other offices. So I think that works against our goal of developing a talent pool here. But there are good folks out there and I hope some of them get through this election this time and get on their way.
Christy McDonald: All right, we&#8217;re going to have to leave it there. Appreciate the insight, gentlemen, and I will see you soon.
&nbsp;
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2022 Politics Roundtable: Looking Ahead to a Tempestuous Run-up to the Michigan Election

ONE-DETROIT-548-Promo-Still-2

The Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission continues to face backlash after announcing new maps for legislative and congressional districts late last year. The new maps have changed the landscape of statewide races for the upcoming election, and the commission continues to face litigation over the maps, with new legal challenges coming forward. 
As the impacts of Michigan’s new congressional maps, which stay in effect for 10 years, continue to unfold, One Detroit’s Will Glover checks in with Bridge Michigan reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán to hear what’s happening in the aftermath of these newly adopted districts.
Full Transcript: 
Will Glover, One Detroit, DPTV: Just briefly, give us an idea as to where we are in the process now?
Sergio Martinez-Beltran, Reporter, Bridge Michigan: Sure. Well, we have maps, right? The Commission a few weeks ago approved the three different maps. State House, State Senate and Congressional maps that are supposed to remain in effect for 10 years once they are published, and that could happen any time between now and March. We also know that the commission has also been sued by a group of Black lawmakers, most of them residents of Southeast Michigan, particularly Detroit. Because they say that the maps the commission passed, they violate their voting rights and that they further dilute their voting power.
Will Glover: Right. And so when it comes to the maps further diluting the voting power, I know it had something to do with the fact that there are less majority-minority districts, but the reasoning from the commission is that even though there are less, it still kind of broadens the, I believe the word clout is what they were saying?
Sergio Martinez-Beltran: What we&#8217;ve heard from experts, from the commission is that doing that actually dilutes the voting power of Black voters because you&#8217;re putting them all in one district instead of spreading them around so they can influence the election results in other districts, right, in other congressional races. And so that&#8217;s what we&#8217;ve seen in the past. And so commissioners taking in the advice from their voting experts and their voting rights attorney, they decided to lower the percentage of Black voters in many of the districts in the Detroit area, right? So what we know is that in the past, we&#8217;ve had 17 majority Black districts in the state legislature. That number comes down now to about 5, with a population over 51 percent Black.
Now, the commission also created additional districts, what they&#8217;re calling &#8220;opportunity districts,&#8221; which are districts where the minority population is not over 50 percent, but it&#8217;s around 40 to 50 percent. And they say that that could still allow them to elect their candidate of choice. So that&#8217;s the whole issue here, right? It&#8217;s you have on one side the commission saying we did the right thing because we&#8217;re actually creating more opportunity districts and potentially creating more opportunities to have people in Lansing, in the Legislature, that represent those communities. But then you have Black leaders in Detroit and Black voters in the Detroit area who are saying, &#8220;wait a minute, you might actually dilute our voting power here by doing this because now it&#8217;s not certain that the candidate of choice of the Black voters is going to get elected.&#8221;.
Will Glover: Where do we go from at this point in the process?
Sergio Martinez-Beltran: So we have to see how this lawsuit plays out. Truly, they&#8217;re asking a couple of things. One of them is for the Supreme Court to say that these maps violate the Constitution or violates the Voting Rights Act, and also that the Supreme Court asked the commission to stop what they&#8217;re doing. Go back to the drawing board and redraw the maps to create additional majority Black districts. So that&#8217;s in a summary right? What this lawsuit is trying to get, and as part of their lawsuit, if the Supreme Court were to side with the plaintiffs, it would also stop the implementation of these maps. And so it could have big ramifications, right? As we know, the commission is truly still in a tight timeline here because they want these maps to be used in the 2022 election. They have to be published pretty soon, and they also have to start getting into effect pretty soon, again around March.
&nbsp;
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Michigan’s New Redistricting Maps Change Election Races, Face Legal Challenges

Fred-Upton

<span data-sheets-value="{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;One year after protesters stormed inside the United States Capitol Jan. 6, One Detroit contributor Nolan Finley sat down with Michigan Congressman Fred Upton to recount how it felt to be inside the Capitol during the insurrection. Upton addresses the Jan. 6 insurrection, expresses his thoughts about the state of our democracy, and discusses how the attacks have affected our democracy’s trajectory.&quot;}" data-sheets-userformat="{&quot;2&quot;:1387331,&quot;3&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:0},&quot;4&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:16777215},&quot;9&quot;:0,&quot;11&quot;:4,&quot;12&quot;:0,&quot;14&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:3,&quot;3&quot;:1},&quot;16&quot;:10,&quot;19&quot;:0,&quot;21&quot;:0,&quot;23&quot;:1}">One year after protesters stormed inside the United States Capitol Jan. 6, One Detroit contributor Nolan Finley sat down with United States  Congressman Fred Upton to recount how it felt to be inside the Capitol during the insurrection. Upton shares an eyewitness account of the insurrection, expresses his thoughts about the state of our democracy, and discusses whether he thinks the Capitol riot has affected our democracy’s trajectory.
Full Transcript: 
Nolan Finley, Editorial Page Editor, The Detroit News: So Congressman, you were in the Capitol on January 6th when the demonstrators poured in, where were you when that incident began?
Congressman Fred Upton, (R-MI) St. Joseph: The Speaker actually asked because of COVID, no more than 80 members of the 435 be on the House floor. So I decided I&#8217;ve seen this a number of times. Normally I was there on the floor when they would count the electoral ballots, but I would let freshman, the new freshman Peter Meijer from Michigan, one of them, to be on the House floor. I went back to my office and then watched it on TV and the interesting point of fact here was I&#8217;m one of the couple of members that actually has a balcony in the Rayburn Building. So it overlooks the mall, and I saw all the protesters taking the subway to the Capitol South Metro stop, walk then down to the White House 16 blocks. Not all that far. It was a cold morning. Then walk back and I was out on my balcony watching much of this. And in fact, the National Guard, the state police, all of those folks literally came and emptied out from their vehicles right below my office as they watched this thing unfold that afternoon.
Nolan Finley: Now, Congressman, from your perspective, having been there that day, was this a riot? Was this a demonstration? Was this an insurrection? How would you categorize it?
Congressman Fred Upton: No, I would call it an insurrection. They knew what they were doing. Yeah, there was a lot of mob. I&#8217;m sure there were some people that sort of got caught up into it, but there were thousands of people, tens of thousands of people is my guess. I watched the president&#8217;s speech on my TV from my office and went out again, back and forth to my balcony, which I left the door open. The individuals were cleared out about six or seven o&#8217;clock that night. And this thing started about at 2:30. So I was watching it on my TV and my C-SPAN in my office. I saw when the Speaker literally said, &#8216;Let&#8217;s get out of here.&#8217; I knew that the chamber had been broached, and after it was quiet, I would say, I went over to the Capitol an hour or two before votes started again. It was important to finish the job on January 6th. I spent time talking to the SWAT team folk. They had been beaten up. They were just literally lying on the floor and there was broken glass. You saw the vestiges of what they did, and certainly afterwards, I know that — we have a Capitol Hill policeman from my hometown, St. Joe/Benton Harbor — that I spent time with but also spent some time with the other officers that were there literally hours as they described to me, what happened. One of them was telling me is they dragged, literally dragged him out of the Capitol door, shoot him with his own gun.
Nolan Finley: So Fred, do you get the sense that this was spontaneous? Was it organized?
Congressman Fred Upton: You know, that&#8217;s I think one of the things that the January 6th commission is going to indicate when they finish the job, probably this next year. I don&#8217;t know. You know, it seems to me that from the outside that there was some planning here, but it&#8217;s important that we actually get to the facts, which is why I supported a bipartisan commission. It passed the House with a pretty decent margin. Unfortunately, the Senate didn&#8217;t have the 60 votes to pass it there, even though they had a majority. And that, of course, what&#8217;s continuing to deliberate now, this January 6th commission, is they interview hundreds of people trying to get (inaudible) was it spontaneous? Was it planned? Who was behind it? And you know, all the ramifications that come about.
Nolan Finley: So Fred, I mean, you&#8217;re a Republican, but you supported the commission in its current form. It&#8217;s pretty much dominated by Democrats. Do you trust this commission? Do you feel that it&#8217;s being politicized? Are you confident in its work?
Congressman Fred Upton: So there are actually three different versions of the commission. The first one was, in fact, very partisan. So a number of Democrats said they were against it as well, and it really didn&#8217;t have the chutzpah to move forward. Then it was negotiated with a Republican, John Katko, who had Kevin McCarthy&#8217;s lead with the Speaker&#8217;s team. They devised a select committee that was going to be equal Republicans and Democrats, equal staff to submit a subpoena. You&#8217;d have to have both a Republican and a Democrat support it, so you wouldn&#8217;t have just a partisan request. And it was going to be done by the end of this year. That&#8217;s last week. (It) was going to be done by the end of 2021. So that was the commission that I supported. That was the commission that passed the House. It was going to be bipartisan, bicameral.
That was the one that the Senate then didn&#8217;t have the 60 votes, and so when that failed, Pelosi then came with somewhat of her original plan. And that&#8217;s the one that we just have now two Republicans on. The other spots were filled by McCarthy, although she knocked them off thinking they were too partisan. And that&#8217;s the— and we had a vote on that. I voted against that panel because that wasn&#8217;t the panel that I originally supported, but that&#8217;s the one that&#8217;s in place, and that&#8217;s the one now that is moving forward. And of course, it&#8217;s not equal Republican and Democrat, and it didn&#8217;t finish in 2021 as the other panel that…We didn&#8217;t want this to bleed into an election year, being this year now, &#8217;22.
Nolan Finley: So what are your concerns about this panel?
Congressman Fred Upton: Well, we&#8217;re going to see what they do. I mean, it&#8217;s legit. I mean, it was formed. They have subpoena power. They&#8217;ll be doing the report. We&#8217;ve had a number of different issues that have come now to the House floor. I was one that did not accept Steve Bannon&#8217;s thinking that he would be exempt from this, claiming executive privilege. He didn&#8217;t work at the White House, hadn&#8217;t worked there for years. So how would that be covered under executive privilege? President Trump? So, I voted and he was cited for contempt. That&#8217;s now in the courts that are gonna, when we do this, when we cite them for contempt, it merely sends it to the Justice Department for them to then decide whether they want, see whether or not a hearing is held. We had another contempt arrest on the floor for Mark Meadows, president, former President Trump&#8217;s former Chief of Staff. I voted not to hold him in contempt, feeling that there is some, certainly a perception, but certainly some thinking that he should be exempted in some degree and didn&#8217;t feel that the process had necessarily been completed.
Nolan Finley: Culpability do you feel former President Donald Trump has in what happened on January 6th?
Congressman Fred Upton: What disturbed me the most was found when it was over. President Trump said that he had done everything, in his words, totally appropriate. I didn&#8217;t think that was the case. And I know at just the close, Kevin McCarthy, the majority-minority leader for us, the Republican leader, called them from his office in the Capitol and said, &#8216;Mr. President, call the dogs off. You know, these are your supporters. Tell them to stop. You&#8217;re doing a terrible thing for your legacy, et cetera.&#8217; As we all know, the president&#8217;s response, allegedly that Kevin reported, was &#8216;I guess they care more about the election than you did.&#8217; That&#8217;s not totally appropriate in my book.
Nolan Finley: So, Congressman, I wanted to ask you about that as we closed the broader issue here. Vice President Kamala Harris said the other day that the threat to our democracy is her biggest concern. Do you feel our democracy is threatened and this represents some sort of broader movement that may undermine our republic?
Congressman Fred Upton: You know, I sure hope not. I don&#8217;t know that I could go as far as what she said. I didn&#8217;t see specifically your comments, but you know, we&#8217;re a democracy. Every vote should count. I believe that there are the safeguards there to make sure that ballots are counted, but that I do think that we have to get to the bottom of what happened a year ago now, January 6th.
&nbsp;
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Fred Upton Shares His Experience from the Capitol Insurrection

Brenda-Lawrence

<span data-sheets-value="{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;One year after protesters stormed inside the United States Capitol Jan. 6, One Detroit contributor Stephen Henderson sat down with Michigan Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence to recount how it felt to be inside the Capitol during the insurrection. She also shares her thoughts on the divisive protests at the TCF Center in Detroit on election night 2020, and how the two events are connected.&quot;}" data-sheets-userformat="{&quot;2&quot;:1387331,&quot;3&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:0},&quot;4&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:16777215},&quot;9&quot;:0,&quot;11&quot;:4,&quot;12&quot;:0,&quot;14&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:3,&quot;3&quot;:1},&quot;16&quot;:10,&quot;19&quot;:0,&quot;21&quot;:0,&quot;23&quot;:1}" data-sheets-textstyleruns="{&quot;1&quot;:0}{&quot;1&quot;:154,&quot;2&quot;:{&quot;2&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:0}}}{&quot;1&quot;:169}" data-sheets-hyperlinkruns="{&quot;1&quot;:154,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;https://lawrence.house.gov/&quot;}{&quot;1&quot;:169}">One year after protesters stormed inside the United States Capitol Jan. 6, One Detroit contributor Stephen Henderson sat down with Michigan Congresswoman <a class="in-cell-link" href="https://lawrence.house.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brenda Lawrence</a> to recount how it felt to be inside the Capitol during the insurrection. She also shares her thoughts on the divisive protests at the TCF Center in Detroit on election night 2020, and how the two events are connected.
Full Transcript: 
Stephen Henderson, Contributor, One Detroit: So I want to go back in time a little bit to talk to you about two really pivotal things that have happened just in the last 14 months. Let&#8217;s start with the presidential election in 2020 and November, and this really crazy reaction that we saw to the idea that we were just counting votes in the city of Detroit. It was very badly interrupted by a bunch of really angry citizens who believed that there was fraud going on. Talk to me about what your reaction was to that and again, sort of how we build from there to some of the things that would happen later
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence, (D) Michigan-14th District: TCF, and what happened here on the Hill and the Capitol, was not the America I know. I was raised by a Southern woman who lived through the Civil Rights and Jim Crow laws, who took her right to vote as one of the most precious gifts of being in America. I was taken by the hand every election day to stand next to my grandmother as she voted so she could teach me, and she would constantly say, ‘This is what will protect your rights and freedoms in America and as an American citizen, you must vote.&#8217; And so to this, we call it &#8220;the big lie.&#8221; To see criminal behavior and to see just people who are misinformed to the point where we saw an attack on our democracy, and that&#8217;s what all of this summed up to be: an attack on our democracy, which is so unacceptable, so disappointing, and it&#8217;s just not the America that I know and I love.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah. So on January 6th at the US Capitol, you were there while this mob, this insurrection, this mob was trying to interrupt the official counting of votes in the presidential election. Let&#8217;s go back to that day for a second and just talk about what that was like.
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence: So, Stephen, one of the things that just really stood out as I try to suppress this memory is the words from the sergeant at arms: &#8220;They&#8217;re headed our way.&#8221; I had not seen TV. I know they had whisked out Nancy Pelosi so I figured something was really serious and they said they had locked the doors. And they said &#8220;They&#8217;re headed our way. Find shelter. Someplace to protect yourself,” and it was, you know, it was surreal. Then they told us &#8220;Put on the gas masks,&#8221; and I didn&#8217;t even know under the seats that we sit on all the time to vote in the Capitol chambers were gas masks. So I&#8217;m trying to put on this gas mask and then you hear this banging at the door, and it&#8217;s vibrating because the door is locked, and it is a mob.
You can hear them screaming and they&#8217;re banging on the door. And I&#8217;m looking around saying, &#8220;Oh my God, am I going to die today? What in the world is happening?&#8221; And then the Capitol Police came in and this is the point I want everyone to understand because whether you&#8217;re a Democrat or Republican listening to my voice, at that point Capitol Police came in with their guns drawn and said, &#8220;Everybody exit this space,&#8221; so it was the opposite end of the chamber, so the chamber has about six or eight doors that you can get into to come on the floor, and it was the opposite end. Their guns are pulled, and they&#8217;re telling everybody, &#8220;Move, move! Go, go, go!&#8221; And Democrats and Republicans.
So this is the point I want everyone to understand: this was not a partisan moment. And I tell people it&#8217;s probably the most nonpartisan moment that I&#8217;ve seen on the Hill lately, where Democrats and Republicans were literally running down back staircases and hallways to get to some place of safety. We were literally running, because I had to grab the hand of one of the staff because she was older and she wasn&#8217;t able to run and I just pulled her and said &#8220;We got to go, we got to go.&#8221; And so to think about what this was all about. It was about our democracy. It was about counting the votes and a person who did not want to leave office. So because he did not want to leave, he was going to create a riot; he was going to disrupt democracy, and he encouraged violence, and that person was Donald Trump.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah. So I want to talk about the role of race in all of this, and it&#8217;s something that even as we are watching the hearings on The Hill take place to try to assign culpability for what happened. There&#8217;s not a lot of talk anymore about the racial motive and the racial context for all of this. There&#8217;s a reason, for instance, that the protesters showed up at the TCF Center in Detroit and not, for instance, in places like Farmington or Farmington Hills, where&#8230;
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence: Or Livonia&#8230;
Stephen Henderson: Or Livonia, where votes flipped even more than they did in Detroit between 2016 and 2020. There&#8217;s a reason that this attack on the Capitol, you know, was about the idea of African American votes and counting African American votes. I want to give you a chance just to talk about why we&#8217;re still some 50-some years after the passage of the Voting Rights Act, why we&#8217;re still dealing with this.
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence: It&#8217;s been said publicly and behind closed doors, if that crowd had looked different, if it had been the typical Black Lives Matter, young, multicultural children, young people rather. If it had been predominantly people of color, African Americans, with the patience and tolerance that we saw that day, the hesitation to use armed weapons to stop the riots. There was one shot fired and it was, you know, it was— I don&#8217;t ever want a police officer to use violence unnecessarily, but I also want our laws, our policies, in this case, my dear democracy protected. And you saw, just a mob of angry, just overexcited mob just out of control, and you have all these armed police officers begging them to stop. Don&#8217;t. You know? No, you can&#8217;t do that. You know, there was a lesson to be learned here. Lives were not lost. Excessive violence was not used. And that, I know for a fact. And, you know, people say &#8216;You don&#8217;t know that.&#8217; I do know this, I&#8217;ve seen it in history time and time again. When there are mobs of people of color, Black people, the result of law enforcement is totally different.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah, yeah. I also want to give you a chance to talk about what&#8217;s going on now, which is that you see a lot of supporters of the former President Donald Trump trying to gain access to or control over the mechanisms of democracy, running for posts where they would be able to get to certify or not certify votes, running for Secretary of State in places where they would hope to set the rules for election. What should we be making of that and what should we be doing to protect democracy? This is not just about some sort of partisan aim, as you point out. This is about the democracy itself and whether it actually works and whether people can have faith in it. I&#8217;m not sure how we are supposed to push back against what&#8217;s happening.
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence: So, Stephen, isn&#8217;t it ironic that we only have a conversation about democracy working when it doesn&#8217;t work for you?
Stephen Henderson: Right?
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence: I have some of my colleagues who are supporting these bills and laws, and that same democracy they&#8217;re attacking is the democracy that resulted in them winning their seat time and time again. And let&#8217;s be very clear, zero audit, zero investigation has returned results of any fraud. It isn&#8217;t there. Even these rogue investigators who went into different states to find the corruption has not found any. So when you talk about, we want to change the laws of democracy, be careful America, because this is just scratching away at the foundation of the American democracy, the one that we have touted around the world that others look at. And you saw when President Biden now goes and talks to other countries about humanity and about values and about democracy.
Some are laughing in his face, &#8216;You need to fix your own home ground first before you go talk to us.&#8217; And it&#8217;s sad to me and it makes me very angry that we in America, based on partisan misinformation, will destroy something that has made us the great country that we are. And I, you know, I say this often, Stephen, I love America, even though she didn&#8217;t always love me back. This great country has given me opportunities for whether you are rich or whether you&#8217;re poor. It has looked after us all and taken care of the young. It has done so many great things, but yet still, you have the audacity because you did not win an election to assemble this mass destruction of our democracy. It&#8217;s not right. It infuriates me. And you know, at the same breath will turn around and say the Pledge of Allegiance. Think about what you say. I pledge allegiance. To this country, to our democracy, to protect it. When I take an oath as a member of Congress, I say that I&#8217;m going to serve and protect. It&#8217;s a very difficult time right now down there.
Stephen Henderson: OK. Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence, it&#8217;s always great to catch up with you.
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence: Great to catch up with you. I want to say happy holidays to everyone. Please be safe. We have a new variant out there. Keep those masks on. Please get vaccinated. And Stephen to you and your family, may God bless you and give you all the desires of your heart and that we&#8217;ll have a better 2022.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah. Can&#8217;t get much worse. To you too though, thanks.
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence: Take care.
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Brenda Lawrence Shares her Experience from the Capitol Insurrection

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One Detroit Managing Editor Christy McDonald moderates a roundtable discussion with contributors Stephen Henderson and Nolan Finley on the state of our nation’s democracy. Plus, Stephen and Nolan speak with U.S. <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/rep-brenda-lawrence-shares-her-experience-from-the-capitol-insurrection/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence</a> and <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/fred-upton-shares-his-experience-from-the-capitol-insurrection/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Congressman Fred Upton</a>, respectively, about being at the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection. The congress members address the attacks, express their feelings about the state of our democracy, and discuss how the attacks have affected our democracy’s trajectory.
<h4>Transcript, Part One: </h4>
Christy McDonald, One Detroit, DPTV: With me now are One Detroit contributors, Nolan Finley, the editorial page editor of the Detroit News, and Stephen Henderson, host of American Black Journal. You know, guys, when you watch that story, I think mostly about the process of vote counting, who can be a challenger, and really how fast misinformation can spread. Stephen, what were your thoughts coming out of this?
Stephen Henderson, Host, American Black Journal: Well, I mean, it brought back really bitter memories, and I think bitter is the right word. I mean, the challenge to the idea that Detroiters weren&#8217;t voting, that African-American Detroiters weren&#8217;t voting was completely unfounded and based on racist mythology. And you know, the challenges to the votes, the hoopla outside trying to disrupt all of it. It was completely inappropriate. And as somebody who is the son of somebody who didn&#8217;t get to vote in this country until the Voting Rights Act passed, it reminds me of the same kinds of arguments that got made before about illegitimacy and Black voters.
Christy McDonald: Nolan, what were some of your perceptions?
Nolan Finley, Editorial Page Editor, The Detroit News: Well, I think that 2020 was a very difficult time to have an election, and all of the rapid changes, all of the new procedures that were put in place, created an atmosphere of mistrust. And that&#8217;s never good. And so a lot of people saw things they misinterpreted; thought they saw things they didn&#8217;t see. And I think that speaks to why we need to address transparency. We need to be very careful in explaining anytime we change how voting is done and how vote counting is done. People need to understand what they were seeing and clearly they didn&#8217;t understand or didn&#8217;t want to understand what they were seeing that night.
Christy McDonald: Have we learned from it in moving forward, Stephen?
Stephen Henderson: No. I would like to say we have and in some ways, I think the local reaction to it has been really great. I mean, we&#8217;ve got a Secretary of State in Michigan who&#8217;s really focused on trying to make sure that there aren&#8217;t reasons to question, and trying to tighten up procedures so that things that have gone on for years and years and years that aren&#8217;t as clear to the public as they should be are made clear. But at the same time, we have a really concerted effort by the people who perpetrated the misinformation on election night in 2020 to carry that over into 2022 and especially into 2024— both at the… through legislation that they&#8217;ve been trying to pass and posts that they&#8217;re trying to win where they can question the outcome of votes.
Nolan Finley: I think we tend not to learn anything in Michigan except how to fight, and that&#8217;s what we&#8217;re doing now. There&#8217;s no reason that the two parties can&#8217;t get together and decide what changes actually need to be made in the voting process, what things need to be put in place, what steps to make sure the vote is secure and and there is integrity in the elections. I think, you know, nobody will give an inch here in this state on so many issues, including voting.
Christy McDonald: We&#8217;re going to talk about some of those challenges to voting access and to process that are happening not only in Michigan but across the country right now, and how that really contributes to how we feel about our democracy and if the government is really working for us right now. But I do want to say that each one of you talked to a member of our congressional delegation. Stephen, you talked to Brenda Lawrence and Nolan, you talked to Fred Upton. Both were there at the Capitol on January 6th and they talk about their work now in D.C. a year later. Let&#8217;s go ahead and take a listen to those interviews.
<h4>Transcript, Part Two: </h4>
Christy McDonald, One Detroit, DPTV: All right, back here now with Nolan Finley and Stephen Henderson. Nolan, let me start with you and ask you to describe what you feel is the political climate in Michigan right now?
Nolan Finley, Editorial Page Editor, The Detroit News: You know, we have been making a little progress lately in getting agreements on spending. As much as I sort of objected to the independent redistricting commission and the results it produced, I think had that been left with the Legislature and the governor, it might never have gotten done. So I mean, there&#8217;s just so many things that we can&#8217;t come to consensus on in this state, and, you know, I think that&#8217;s in some ways a natural product of having two parties sharing control. But some points you&#8217;ve got to learn to come up, come to agreement on practical solutions, and we&#8217;re not consistently getting there today.
Christy McDonald: Steve, would you agree with that or how would you describe the political atmosphere?
Stephen Henderson, Host, American Black Journal: Yeah, I think it&#8217;s pretty rotten, and we&#8217;ve got to be clear about what is driving a lot of that. I mean, you have one party in this, in this country, in this state, that is increasingly influenced by people who don&#8217;t want to see everybody have the same access to voting, who want to question institutions like voting in the face of no evidence, of course, that there&#8217;s any issue. I mean, all of the claims that were made about voting in 2020 that turned out to be just false, absolutely false, and yet we hear this constant narrative questioning that. That party— Republican Party is influenced by that. It&#8217;s hard to have a conversation with people who don&#8217;t want to see the rules executed in a way that&#8217;s fair to everybody. We&#8217;ve got to have both parties be able to have these conversations on a level playing field when it comes to things like the rules, and we can&#8217;t do that right now because of these influences on the right side of the political spectrum.
Nolan Finley: I think one of the problems we have in this country is the emergence of hard partisanship that has taken the place of principle. And this extreme loyalty to party is destructive to the country, whether it&#8217;s Republicans or Democrats. But to Steve&#8217;s question, I mean, when he talks about changing the rules, the rules were changed radically in Michigan before the 2020 vote and changed by Democrats. And, you know, the courts checked Jocelyn Benson on some of the rule changes she wanted to force through, but still they force through a number of them without getting a consensus and without even trying to get in a consensus. And I think that led to the mistrust.
We hear Democrats and folks on the left saying, &#8216;Well, gosh, nothing was wrong with the 2020 election. There was no fraud. Everything went as it should.&#8217; I tend to agree with that. But why then do they want to take over elections from the states and give it to the federal government, contrary to what the Constitution dictates if everything went so well in 2020? Why do we want to give the federal government such control over a function that&#8217;s clearly assigned to the states?
Stephen Henderson: So the rules were changed, let&#8217;s be clear, by the people of Michigan in 2018, radically. It was not Democrats that voted to&#8230;
Nolan Finley: That&#8217;s one issue. But before the 2020 vote&#8230;
Stephen Henderson: It wasn&#8217;t all of them. It wasn&#8217;t one issue&#8230;
Nolan Finley: Jocelyn Benson and Democrats put in all sorts of new rules and requirements&#8230;
Stephen Henderson: Let&#8217;s be clear what she was doing. The constitutional changes in 2018 required all kinds of things to be executed in a way that made sense. They were radical changes that the people voted for. What the Secretary of State was trying to do was make those things work at a practical level at all of these different polling sites and all these different communities. And the question about federal involvement, that is for voter protection, which is the federal government&#8217;s obligation.
It is the reason that we had to have a Voting Rights Act in the first place. It&#8217;s the reason that the Republicans, for instance, have decimated that legislation and passed it aside and don&#8217;t want to take it up again is because what they fear is that it leads to more people of color voting in this country, voting mostly for Democrats, of course. And so, Republicans don&#8217;t want it.
Nolan Finley: You look at what Democrats are doing in the name of voter participation, increasing voter participation? 800,000 non-citizens being allowed to vote in New York City. That erodes trust.
Christy McDonald: Should there be concern, less about access and more about the post-vote process? Are we putting emphasis in the wrong place?
Nolan Finley: You need to emphasis on both, but certainly you knew… you need some structure in place as we move to this new way of voting. I think vote by mail is here to stay, early voting&#8217;s here to stay. I think we&#8217;ll move into electronic voting. All those changes need to come with processes that ensure the integrity of the vote and we&#8217;re not keeping up.
Stephen Henderson: We&#8217;re not keeping up, then you would see all these instances of fraud that people are talking about taking hold, and they&#8217;re not. There isn&#8217;t any more fraud now than there was before there was mail in voting. There&#8217;s not more voter fraud before early voting, because of early voting.
Christy McDonald: I think you&#8217;re both illustrating the point right now that we are very far apart and there are— it feels like both Democrats and Republicans, and you can even take party out, or you can just take leaning, that they&#8217;re entrenching, you&#8217;re entrenching so far now onto either side. So where do we stand?
Nolan Finley: I think democracy is held and held very well. You&#8217;ve got more people expected to file for office and run for office in Michigan and across the country this year than ever before. Do we trust the process? I think no. But there&#8217;s a lot of reasons we don&#8217;t trust the process, because I think our political leaders have done everything they can possible to break that trust.
Stephen Henderson: There shouldn&#8217;t be barriers to voting for people who are eligible to vote. Whether you have ID or not, which is a matter of all kinds of other conditions that we&#8217;ve invented in this country, should not affect your voting status. And that&#8217;s why Democrats push back. I think we will see where we are with this democracy with the elections this year if we see a repeat of the kinds of efforts at disenfranchisement, at disqualification that we saw in 2020.
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Where Does Democracy Stand One Year After an Insurrection?

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One Detroit’s Christy McDonald sits down with Detroit Free Press Vice President and editor Peter Bhatia as well as University of Michigan Ford School of Public Policy Dean Michael Barr to discuss the rampant spread of misinformation around the 2020 election, the attacks to our democracy we saw at the TCF Center and U.S. Capitol, and the importance of having trustworthy media and more citizen involvement to sustain a healthy democracy.
Full Transcript: 
Christy McDonald, One Detroit, DPTV: A year later, and the investigations continue at the increasing divide between the parties, and several polls have come out just in the last couple of days that even show the difference in how Republicans and Democrats saw what happened last January 6th as either protecting democracy or threatening it. So Michael, let me start with you. How do you think what happened on January 6th in &#8217;21 has changed the way the public views our democracy or the strength of it?
Michael Barr, Dean, University of Michigan Ford School of Public Policy: Well, I think it highlighted a significant set of weaknesses that we&#8217;re going to need to be addressing for many, many years to come, maybe even decades. We have so much work to do to try and rebuild the fabric of our society, to help people who have very different perspectives on the world relearn how to have conversations with each other across those differences.
I think January 6th highlighted an underlying problem, which is that we had political leaders&#8230; a false view that the election in the United States was stolen. And we had politicians who were willing to push that line out. We had media personalities who were willing to push that line out, and lots of people now believe that the election was unlawful and that&#8217;s false. It&#8217;s just a verifiable fact that the election that took place, there was no widespread fraud.
Christy McDonald: And that really gets into the conversation on misinformation, what truth means to people and the role of the media before we get to that. Peter, you know, Michael brings up a good point. According to that ABC News poll that just came out this week, 65% of Americans believe that Biden&#8217;s election was legitimate. Sixty-five percent. It&#8217;s a very interesting number, but I want to ask you, Peter, going back to the original point of how you believe January 6th has changed the way the public sees our democracy and the strength of it?
Peter Bhatia, Editor &amp; VP, Detroit Free Press: Yeah, it&#8217;s a scary time. I have a seven-year-old grandchild and I worry about will our society, will our democracy be there for him when he&#8217;s an adult? Because as Michael just said, it&#8217;s so hard just to have a fundamental conversation with people about can our democracy survive, is our democracy working? What really happened then? You know, that even a third of the country doesn&#8217;t believe the election was legitimate is deeply, deeply troubling. It runs counter to everything that we stand for as a democratic society, and trying to communicate with people about it through our work has become exponentially more difficult because people are just not willing to believe the truth.
Christy McDonald: Does that inspire or lead to more civic engagement from people? Or does it lead to more estrangement, people pulling back and saying, &#8216;I don&#8217;t even want to participate in what I&#8217;m seeing,&#8217; Michael?
Michael Barr: I don&#8217;t think we&#8217;re in the worst period even in modern history, but we&#8217;re in a very troubling period in our democracy, and it does require civic engagement. It does require all of us to take responsibility for our own work to protect and enhance our democracy. It&#8217;s one of the reasons why at the University of Michigan, we started a year ago democracy and debate initiatives, and we get students, faculty, and staff involved in thinking about the tough issues and trying to understand voting rights in exercising the right to register and to vote. We saw University of Michigan student voting patterns go way up in the last election because there was this civic engagement — this desire to be involved, and I know for our students at the Ford School, at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, our students are deeply engaged. They are not cynical or detached about the work that has to happen in our democracy.
Christy McDonald: And so, really looking at the next generation. So Peter, do you think that this will enhance people&#8217;s need or desire to be involved, to be civically engaged, as Michael says.
Peter Bhatia: Well, I think it&#8217;s important that for those of us who have a role in creating that civic engagement, it makes it very, very important that we take that very seriously and it has to go beyond the traditional ways we think about journalism. It has to go beyond just writing stories and putting them on our website and printing them in the paper, and I hope that people take action based upon that. It does require those of us in media, I think, to take a much more aggressive role in terms of civic engagement, in terms of getting out there and talking to people and to listen to people.
I know that personally, it can be difficult when somebody just wants to yell at you and say you&#8217;re part of the cover up and they use more colorful language than that quite often. But the fact of the matter is we have to be relentless about it. Yes, in our traditional ways, but also in taking that to the public in a way that may be a little less traditional, doing town halls, opening up what&#8217;s been called mobile newsrooms and communities. Getting out, particularly for us, getting out of Metro Detroit and getting out into the rest of the state and hearing what people are thinking. You have to be very aggressive about it and be willing to listen to people and not immediately label them as kooks. Because some of this is coming from a heartfelt place.
I had a conversation with some of my staffers about how do we cover the future of democracy as a Michigan phenomenon. You know, our situation in Michigan is different than it is in Georgia or it is in Pennsylvania or as it is in, you know, the other so-called battleground states and what have you, where this is most intense, at least where the discussions have been most intense. But we just, we have to make the choice that if it means we cover a few fewer courts say, or a few fewer police stories say in order to spend more time trying to understand the mood and the health of the electorate and really the health of our democracy here in Michigan, then we need to do that. I can&#8217;t think of a more important journalistic function in 2022 than that.
Michael Barr: I think that there&#8217;s a really important local and state story to saving our democracy. It&#8217;s true in Michigan and it&#8217;s true all over the country. It&#8217;s true in a mechanical sense, in the sense that lots of the battleground issues are occurring at the state level. People are fighting about Secretary of State positions in ways that they didn&#8217;t before, or local election board officials in the ways they didn&#8217;t before, because they understand how important it is for the integrity of the electoral process. So it matters very much on that.
We have ballot initiatives and legislative initiatives that are in the state of Michigan trying to reduce access to the polls. And I think those are significant issues that need to get covered that are really important for the health of our democracy again, beginning with voting here in Michigan. And then I do think that the answer to the question how we&#8217;re going to bring our country together starts in our communities. It doesn&#8217;t start necessarily at the national level. Can we build a way that people can connect to each other in our communities, begin to rebuild trust in each other, to create a generous sense of belonging that we&#8217;re all in this together?
Peter Bhatia: We&#8217;re going to see this ramped up political activity this year with the House and Senate nationally at stake with redistricting, and you know, everything that that means in terms of our local and state elections. It&#8217;s going to be in a lot of ways more of the same. And I think that&#8217;s why it puts pressure on us to cover the election in a more healthy way, in a more what really matters to people who live here, what really defines us going forward?
Because, you know, we have, this country, we have profound issues that aren&#8217;t being addressed, whether it&#8217;s, you know, big global issues like immigration and housing and health and so on, but also more micro issues, you know, the pave the (expletive) roads debate and if it&#8217;s even a debate in Michigan. So I think our coverage really has to try to get at those and get away from the rhetoric. It&#8217;s going to be really hard because both the left and the right are going to be banging at those drums very, very loudly in 2022.
Christy McDonald: Michael, from your perspective, what should we be watching?
Michael Barr: I do think the most important issue facing the country is the health of our democracy, and I think we need to keep coming back to that theme. We can&#8217;t take for granted that the elections are going to run smoothly. We can&#8217;t take for granted that people are going to uphold the constitutional order. I think Jan. 6 called that into question. In the end, our democracy has been strong, but it&#8217;s definitely been deeply challenged along the way, and I think it&#8217;s really critical that our media, that our citizenry focus on the hard work every day that is required to preserve a functioning democracy. So I think that is the story.
&nbsp;
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<h2><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h2>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.

Election Aftermath: An Analysis of Misinformation, Media Trust and our Democracy

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Secrecy has swept through the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission after a majority of its members voted to keep notes from a closed meeting secret from the public. The Commission already faces pending litigation from various media organizations for not releasing the meeting documents, and could potentially face other litigation over the new redistricting maps as the clock ticks toward a deadline. At the end of December, the commission is expected to adopt new legislative and congressional districts for the state. 
One Detroit Associate Producer Will Glover gets to the bottom of the situation with Bridge Michigan reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán to hear about what’s happened so far and what to expect from the commission next.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/bridgedetroit-lawmakers-news-outlets-blast-ongoing-secrecy-of-michigan-redistricting-panel/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lawmakers, News Outlets Blast Ongoing Secrecy of Michigan Redistricting Panel </a>
<h2>Full Transcript:</h2>
Will Glover: Just give us a quick overview of what the redistricting process is and how important it is to the state of Michigan.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán, Reporter, Bridge Magazine: Every 10 years, the U.S. Census Bureau releases the population counts of states. And so the states use those numbers to do apportionment so to create new political boundaries. And that means that those are the districts where you live and they decide, who are you going to vote for in terms of state Senate, State House also, who could be your congressional member. Right. Depending on where you live.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: And you know, when you give power to people who might benefit from it, this tends to be problematic, right? And we&#8217;ve we saw that the Legislature drew lines in private, in secret, behind closed doors. And it also drew districts that were deemed some of the most gerrymandered in the country.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: In 2018, the Michigan voters overwhelmingly supported a constitutional amendment that drastically changed how we drew districts in the state. So that constitutional amendment created the Michigan Independent Citizen&#8217;s Redistricting Commission. That&#8217;s a group made up of 13 everyday people, four Republicans, four Democrats and five independents who have never joined districts before.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: They have never had to work with maps in the past, but they were they volunteered themselves. They were elected or selected, I should say, and they are the ones showing the lines this year.
Will Glover: I know that there is a 45-day window where the public gets to make comments. They&#8217;ve released some of their drafts for the masses. Is that where we are?
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: That&#8217;s right, yes. So for the last few months, the redistricting commission has been working on proposed maps. And so a few weeks ago, they put forward 15 proposed maps for people to see and provide feedback on them. We are in that 45 day public comment period. We&#8217;re in the middle of it.
Will Glover: Lately, we&#8217;ve seen that there have been a few media outlets that have filed suit against the Commission for keeping certain memorandum secrets. Can you just tell us a little bit about what&#8217;s going on there?
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: Yeah. So I think the biggest issue that the commission is facing is how it has handled minority-majority districts in the state. In the past, Michigan has had 17 state legislative minority-majority districts, most of them in the area of Detroit, but also some in Flint. The way the redistricting commission has drawn the districts this time around truly reduces significantly the number of minority-majority districts to a handful, right?
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: And so black leaders, black voters in southeast Michigan, in Flint, Michigan, as well. They have come out and said that the way the commission drew these districts will further disenfranchise them. We&#8217;re talking now in terms of lawsuits, right? And this is when where the press comes in. The commission has been significantly more transparent, done the previous process right at the Legislature.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: But just because they have been more transparent doesn&#8217;t mean we&#8217;re not going to hold them accountable. And what we know is that on October 27th in East Lansing, the commission met behind closed doors. They shut out the public, they shut out the press and they discussed two private memos two memos, one of them that had to do with the Voting Rights Act, which is the federal law that allows for the creation of minority-majority districts, and also another memo that was about the history of discrimination in the state and its impact on voting.
Speaker 1: We have since had a letter signed by all of our council setting forth reasons that we should not release the memo, which is really a historical document or the tape of the conversation. There was quite a bit historical comment in the paper that showed how Michigan had dealt with historically discriminatory voting in the past from the Civil War forward.
Speaker 2: If the commission decides to waive attorney-client privilege, our ability to give you counsel in incoming litigation will be hampered. And that is an understatement.
Will Glover: So I guess the question lies in whether or not it&#8217;s more important for the lawyers that the committee has on retainer to be able to give them the correct candidate information vs. abiding by what the whole purpose of the commission is, which is to be transparent in everything, all of the materials that it uses to draw these lines, correct?
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: Yes, that&#8217;s that&#8217;s a big question. And I think that, you know, when the commission was discussing these memos behind closed doors, the reality is that there was no pending litigation against the commission at that moment. So this idea of discussing legal strategy when there&#8217;s no pending litigation against the commission has raised some concerns, and some attorneys have said that that&#8217;s weird. And that&#8217;s not what usually happens, right?
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: We also know that the commission spokesman, but also the commissioners, keep saying that they are the most transparent body in the state. But then when you push them on this, on this particular issue very quickly, they quickly get a little bit upset because they say that they have the right to keep these documents private or secret because they follow their attorney-client privilege.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: And so this is why it matters. It is because voters in Michigan 61% of the voters in Michigan in 2018 voted to create a commission and a process that was A, more fair in terms of partizanship, but also more transparent. And I think the commission, right, has faced all these questions all this time.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: But I think it&#8217;s important because at the end of the day, we&#8217;re talking about people of color and they&#8217;re feeling that the way the commission has treated districts are further disenfranchising them, especially black voters in Detroit. And what we&#8217;re talking about here is that the commission keeps saying, we&#8217;re not, we&#8217;re not hurting you, but they&#8217;re using some documents that we don&#8217;t know.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán: And maybe if they make those documents public, we would know what was the rationale for them to reducing the minority-majority districts and the reason for the way they treated the political boundaries.
&nbsp;
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Redistricting Commission Facing Lawsuits Over Secret Meeting Notes, Possibly Maps

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<h2>This Week on One Detroit:</h2>
<h4><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/schools-deal-with-difficult-questions-after-oxford/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In the Wake of Oxford, Schools Deal with Difficult Questions</a></h4>
The aftermath of the Oxford school shooting left ripple effects across Michigan communities this past week, closing more than a dozen schools and leaving students, parents and teachers fearful and having to cope with the fallout. Now, the Oxford community, and others, are working to acknowledge people’s fears, answer the tough questions and provide support for those coping. One Detroit’s Christy McDonald speaks with Karen Anthony, Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant for <a href="https://www.oakland.k12.mi.us/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oakland Schools</a>, which is providing support across the county in the wake of the tragedy.
<h4><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/educators-react-to-oxford-shooting/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Educators React to Oxford Shooting and How They’re Supporting Students</a></h4>
Happening only roughly 27 miles north of his school, Royal Oak High School teacher Mike Conrad said “It may as well be right across the street, because it’s affecting us.” Following the Oxford High School shooting, teachers from across metro Detroit connected with PBS NewsHour’s <a href="https://studentreportinglabs.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Student Reporting Labs</a> shared their perspectives and how they’re supporting students.
<h4><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/michigan-gun-ownership-policies/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">After Oxford, Should Michigan Have Stricter Gun Ownership Policies?</a></h4>
Every time a mass shooting occurs in the United States, the debate over gun control and ownership flares up. In the wake of the Oxford High School shooting, the discussion continues as <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">American Black Journal</a> host Stephen Henderson and <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/staff/2646740001/nolan-finley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nolan Finley</a> of the Detroit News talk about the aggressive strategy taken by the Oakland County Prosecutor, where Michigan stands on responsible gun ownership laws, and how gun owners can be part of the gun violence solution. 
<h4><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/once-upon-a-december-eve-returns/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Once Upon A December Eve’ Returns Live &amp; Online</a></h4>
 It’s a metro Detroit holiday tradition that goes back to 2007 — <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AliceMcAllisterTillman1/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alice McAllister Tillman</a>’s “Once Upon A December Eve” performance returns, in partnership with the <a href="https://www.greatlakespaa.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Great Lakes Performing Artist Associates</a>, to the Garden Theater at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 12 or <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/the-garden-theater/once-upon-a-december-eve/583829192855384/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">live streamed online</a>. As an experienced vocalist in a range of styles, Tillman will be seen performing classical, jazz, blues, spiritual and pop holiday arrangements with help from her three brothers and a 20-piece orchestra. One Detroit’s Bill Kubota caught up with Tillman to discuss her musical upbringing with her family, how the holiday tradition started, and what viewers can expect from this year’s show. 
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<h2>Watch Now:</h2>
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_video_slider controls_color=&#8221;light&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.14.1&#8243; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Full Episode&#8221; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5r559tVxHII&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.14.1&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 1&#8243; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kf7LRkYuGds&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.14.1&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 2&#8243; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DUXBdqWYKM&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.14.1&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 3&#8243; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZgT9vBGzi8&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.14.1&#8243; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 4&#8243; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBNS2uyJuxg&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.14.1&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][/et_pb_video_slider][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.14.1&#8243; z_index_tablet=&#8221;500&#8243; text_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; text_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; text_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; link_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; link_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; link_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; box_shadow_horizontal_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; box_shadow_vertical_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; box_shadow_blur_tablet=&#8221;40px&#8221; box_shadow_spread_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221;]
Subscribe to One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/OneDetroit/videos"> YouTube Channel</a> &amp; Don’t miss One Detroit Mondays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
Catch the daily conversations on our<a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org"> website</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit/"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit"> Twitter</a> @DPTVOneDetroit, and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en"> Instagram</a> @One.Detroit
<h2><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h2>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
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12/09/21: One Detroit – Oxford Shooting Impacts, Gun Control Debate, ‘Once Upon A December Eve’

Everytown-for-Gun-Safety

Every time a mass shooting occurs in the United States, the debate over gun control and ownership flares up. In the wake of the Oxford High School shooting, the discussion continues as <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/american-black-journal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">American Black Journal</a> host Stephen Henderson and <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/staff/2646740001/nolan-finley/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nolan Finley</a> of the Detroit News talk about the aggressive strategy taken by the Oakland County Prosecutor, where Michigan stands on responsible gun ownership laws, and how gun owners can be part of the gun violence solution.
Full Transcript: 
Stephen Henderson, Host, American Black Journal: So Nolan, every day it seems we learn a little more about the circumstances that led to Ethan Crumbly going to school with a gun and shooting his classmates. This, I think from the beginning has looked really different than other shootings. And the response, I think, is shaping up to be really different, too.
Nolan Finley, Editorial Page Editor, The Detroit News: Well, I mean, Karen McDonald, the prosecutor out there, is taking a very aggressive approach and not one tried so much by other prosecutors in previous shootings in that she has charged the parents and she now is also going after school officials. And that&#8217;s never happened. There has been a few cases, three or four prosecutors have gone after the adults not involved in the shooting but considered to have enabled the shooting. This is a very rare position she&#8217;s taken and under Michigan law she can do it because, maybe you know, while Michigan law usually doesn&#8217;t hold adults responsible or the gun owner responsible for acts committed with their weapon, in the case of school shootings it does. And that&#8217;s-that&#8217;s what she&#8217;s using here as sort of to make an example or to set a point. I don&#8217;t know how successful she will be, but it is again a more aggressive move than she&#8217;s seen, and Steve, I wrote a column earlier in this week that got a bunch of pushback. She&#8217;s also trying this 15-year-old as an adult. In Michigan you&#8217;re considered for criminal purposes, an adult at 18, and my position was that 15 is a long way from 18. And I just don&#8217;t think he should be tried as an adult.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah. You know, that&#8217;s a-that&#8217;s a really hard question to answer. And I think it challenges those of us who have been really critical of the criminal justice system for its treatment of minors, particularly kids of color. You go and look at the people who get tried as adults in the state of Michigan. Of course, it falls more heavily on black kids who are often thought of as more mature or more threatening than white kids. And we&#8217;ve been pushing for a long time to say, &#8216;look, this is wrong.&#8217; But if it&#8217;s wrong for those kids, it&#8217;s got to be wrong for everybody, right?
Nolan Finley: With children, there&#8217;s a reason the law considers you a child until you&#8217;re 18. Your cognitive ability, your ability to put together rational thoughts and understand permanence, I think is much limiting. They could try this kid in a juvenile system and then reconsider it at 21 and sentenced him and as an adult if necessary.
Stephen Henderson: Yeah, I think that&#8217;s right. And then the other dimension here is this broader question of guns and gun ownership? I mean, the decision to charge the parents who in this case seem to have provided the gun, not just irresponsibly left it unlocked somewhere, but they bought the gun for him is one thing. But you know, I&#8217;ve said this before. Every gun that is used in the commission of a crime in this country was at some point bought in a legal sale, and it&#8217;s gone from legal space to illegal space. And we have not concentrated enough on heightening the responsibility for people who decide they want to own guns to say, &#8216;look, if this ends up in the hands of a criminal and they kill somebody, then you have to be held responsible for that.&#8217;
Nolan Finley: I couldn&#8217;t agree more, Steve. As a gun owner, as a very strong advocate for the Second Amendment, I do believe that a safe storage law should be passed in Michigan. 11 states have them. Michigan doesn&#8217;t. But if you&#8217;ve got guns, particularly, you got guns with a child and all, you should have to lock them up. I&#8217;ve got guns and all of mine are locked in a gun safe, and they always have been through my children&#8217;s growing up years, now with my grandchildren in and out of the house. It&#8217;s a simple thing to put a trigger lock on a gun or to lock them in a cabinet or a safe. You know, we concentrate on these big, dramatic situations where there&#8217;s a school shooting. 300 kids a year get killed accidentally, including many in the city of Detroit. Get killed accidentally when they find a loaded, unlocked gun and they shoot either themselves or another child. It&#8217;s a simple law we ought to be able to get consensus on.
Stephen Henderson: I actually think there&#8217;s maybe some opening here to-to get those kinds of changes enacted because of the implosion of the NRA. I mean, it&#8217;s weaker right now than it has been in the past. I&#8217;ve always said that the NRA is not an advocacy group for gun owners, so much as it was for the gun industry, which has really different interests. I think what you just said really does reflect what the majority of gun owners feel, which is that, look, they want to be responsible. They-most people try to be responsible. And it&#8217;s-it&#8217;s a threat to responsible gun owners’ rights when irresponsible gun owners let those guns go into dangerous hands. There&#8217;s no reason we can&#8217;t pass legislation that would address that.
Nolan Finley: And it&#8217;s not a slippery slope. And I think, you know, all rights come with responsibilities. And I keep telling gun owners, I keep saying this over and over, if you want to keep your Second Amendment rights, you&#8217;ve got to help be part of this gun violence solution. Because every time something like this happens, people go after our guns. And so responsible gun ownership is key to maintaining the Second Amendment, and we can get the Legislature to respond to that. I think we could pass important legislation this time.
&nbsp;
Subscribe to One Detroit’s<a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/OneDetroit/videos"> YouTube Channel</a> &amp; Don’t miss One Detroit Mondays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.
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<h2><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h2>
Watch One Detroit every Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Detroit Public TV on Detroit Public TV, WTVS-Channel 56.

After Oxford, should Michigan have stricter gun ownership policies?

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By Sergio Martinez-Beltrán 
LANSING — Michigan’s redistricting panel voted Thursday to keep secret two memos that helped members justify the reduction of majority-minority legislative districts.
Members of the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission kept the records secret over numerous objections, including those from residents in Flint who are upset they are losing a Black-majority district in proposed legislative maps.
“Can we find out what you all talked about behind the scenes?” Arthur Woodson, a Flint resident, told the commission, which was approved by voters in 2018.
“That’s what we want to know.”
Over objections from editors of Bridge Michigan, The Detroit News, Detroit Free Press, Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, the panel voted 7-5 to continue to hide the documents.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/bridgedetroit-lawmakers-news-outlets-blast-ongoing-secrecy-of-michigan-redistricting-panel/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lawmakers, News Outlets Blast Ongoing Secrecy of Michigan Redistricting Panel</a>
Four attorneys who work for the commission, which was created by voters in a constitutional amendment in 2018, argued that releasing the memos would put the panel in danger due to expected litigation.
The documents — “Voting Rights Act” and “The History of Discrimination in the State of Michigan and its Influence on Voting” — are believed to be mostly historical in nature and not involve legal strategy.
For an hour of debate, though, lawyers claimed that making them public would set a bad precedent.
“If you are going into litigation and reveal memorada, such as the (Voting Rights Act) memorada that forms the basis of your decision … You are giving the other side your playbook,” said litigation counsel Katherine McKnight.
The commissioners who voted to keep the memos secret are Democrats Juanita Curry, M. C. Rothhorn, Brittni Kellom, and Dustin Witjes; Republican Cynthia Orton; and independents Richard Weiss and Janice Vallette.
Witjes, who weeks ago floated the idea of releasing the memos, told reporters he changed his mind after hearing from attorneys.
The memos were discussed during an Oct. 27 closed-door meeting that also has raised alarms. As the commission was meeting Thursday, the state Senate voted unanimously to clarify that the state Open Meetings Act’s provisions allowing for closed sessions don’t apply to the commission.
The bill, which has yet to go to the state House, bars the commission from “meet(ing) in closed session for any purpose.”
Even so, redistricting commissioners voted 8-4 on Thursday not to release recordings of the closed meeting on Oct. 27 that discussed the memos.
Commissioner Steve Lett, an independent who voted to release the documents, acknowledged the commission drew districts with the information presented to them in the memos.
“Every time we have a meeting, we are reminded that 61 percent of the voters want an open and transparent process — and we shut that off,” said Lett, who referred to the percent of voters who favored creating the panel.
<h2>‘The clock keeps ticking’</h2>
The commission was created to replace a system that allowed parties controlling the Legislature to draft legislative districts for the state House, Senate and Michigan’s congressional delegation largely in secret.
The districts are redrawn every decade, and the process has led to some of the most Republican gerrymandered maps in the nation.
The panel is in the middle of a 45-day public comment period created to receive feedback on 15 maps put out for public consideration before a final vote is expected later this month.
Visit <a href="https://www.bridgedetroit.com/michigan-redistricting-panel-opts-for-secrecy-wont-release-voting-memos/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BridgeDetroit</a> for the full story. 
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BridgeDetroit | Michigan Redistricting Panel Opts for Secrecy, Won’t Release Voting Memos

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[et_pb_section fb_built=&#8221;1&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;3.22&#8243;][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;3.25&#8243; background_size=&#8221;initial&#8221; background_position=&#8221;top_left&#8221; background_repeat=&#8221;repeat&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;3.0.47&#8243; custom_padding=&#8221;|||&#8221; custom_padding__hover=&#8221;|||&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.5.3&#8243; z_index_tablet=&#8221;500&#8243; text_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; text_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; text_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; link_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; link_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; link_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; box_shadow_horizontal_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; box_shadow_vertical_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; box_shadow_blur_tablet=&#8221;40px&#8221; box_shadow_spread_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221;]Retired Senator Carl Levin talks with Stephen Henderson about his new memoir centered on his illustrious career in public office. 
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“Getting to the Heart of the Matter: My 36 Years in the Senate”

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<h2> Tonight on One Detroit:</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/sexism-and-the-culture-of-harassment-in-michigan-politics/">Sexism and the Culture of Harassment in Michigan Politics</a></li>
</ul>
Christy McDonald takes a closer look at a series of reports on sexual harassment and the culture of sexism in Lansing that has people talking around the state. She catches up with MLive reporters, Emily Lawler and Lauren Gibbons, about what they found during <a href="https://www.mlive.com/public-interest/2021/04/butt-pinches-threesome-requests-and-a-glass-ceiling-sexism-is-systemic-in-michigans-political-culture.html">their reporting</a>, some of the recent changes within the state house &amp; senate when it comes to harassment policy, and what needs to happen next.
Related Video: MLive | <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lz6AkBH3OXo">Lansing’s Toxic Political Culture</a>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dF3NwBfYWk">U-M&#8217;s Decision Making on Student Vaccinations</a></li>
</ul>
One Detroit contributor and Detroit News Editorial Page Editor, Nolan Finley, talks with U of M Chief Health Officer, Dr. Preeti Malani about U of M&#8217;s stance on requiring for students returning in the fall and what parents of younger children in the 12-15 age group should know about the COVID vaccine.
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/hamtramck-usa-on-pbs/">Hamtramck, USA on PBS</a></li>
</ul>
Hamtramck is about to be featured in a new documentary film here on <a href="https://worldchannel.org/episode/america-reframed-hamtramck-usa/">PBS World’s America Reframed.</a> It’s called Hamtramck, USA and was created by a couple of filmmakers who spent a year looking at how local election can tell the story about one city&#8211;its history, how it’s changed, and where it’s going. One Detroit’s Bill Kubota spent some time with the filmmakers and has this preview of this national public TV program.
 <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWssB_ZsnR53Awurk6LAU9w">Subscribe to One Detroit’s YouTube Channel</a> &amp; Don’t miss One Detroit Mondays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m..
Catch the daily conversations on our website at <a href="http://onedetroitpbs.org/">http://OneDetroitPBS.org</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/onedetroit">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/DPTVOneDetroit">Twitter @DPTVOneDetroit</a>, and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/one.detroit/?hl=en">Instagram @One.Detroit</a>
<h2>Watch Now:</h2>
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_video_slider controls_color=&#8221;light&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.5.3&#8243;][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Full Episode&#8221; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=439eruNSLtI&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.5.3&#8243; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 1&#8243; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ozakf3ks3A&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.5.3&#8243; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 2&#8243; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dF3NwBfYWk&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.5.3&#8243; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 3&#8243; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdPFWuQDy1c&#8221; _builder_version=&#8221;4.5.3&#8243; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][et_pb_video_slider_item admin_title=&#8221;Double-click to add Segment 4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;3.7.1&#8243; show_image_overlay=&#8221;off&#8221;][/et_pb_video_slider_item][/et_pb_video_slider][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;3.27.4&#8243; z_index_tablet=&#8221;500&#8243; text_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; text_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; text_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; link_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; link_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; link_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ul_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; ol_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; quote_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_2_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_3_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_4_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_5_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; header_6_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=&#8221;1px&#8221; box_shadow_horizontal_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; box_shadow_vertical_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221; box_shadow_blur_tablet=&#8221;40px&#8221; box_shadow_spread_tablet=&#8221;0px&#8221;]
<h2><a href="https://www.detroitpbs.org/category/one-detroit/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">View Past Episodes &gt;</a></h2>
Watch One Detroit every Thursday at 7:30pm ET on Detroit Public TV. 
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7/8/21: One Detroit – Harassment Culture in Lansing / Student Vaccinations / Hamtramck USA

DEC-2021-Economics

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The Detroit Economic Club presented a conversation with Rachael Eubanks and Gabe Ehrlich in an exclusive live virtual event streamed by Detroit Public TV on January 12.
No one can argue the pandemic has severely disrupted Michigan’s economy. The ripple effect on the labor market, wages and tax revenues will be felt at least into 2021 leading to the question on everyone’s mind: What will the recovery look like?
Join Rachael Eubanks and Gabe Ehrlich as they share insights on these topics and more.
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<h3>About Rachael Eubanks</h3>
Rachael Eubanks was appointed as Michigan&#8217;s 47th State Treasurer by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in January of 2019. She is committed to bringing creativity, collaboration and commitment to identify and implement solutions to some of Michigan’s greatest challenges. She does this while also building upon Treasury’s culture of service to Michiganders, through continuous improvement and employee engagement, which are the foundation of Treasury’s mission to provide fair and efficient financial services on behalf of taxpayers, governments, students and all Michiganders, for the long-term fiscal health and stability of our state.
<h3>About Gabriel M. Ehrlich</h3>
Dr. Gabriel M. Ehrlich is an economic forecaster at the University of Michigan, where he is the director of the University’s Research Seminar in Quantitative Economics (RSQE). He received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan. His work has been discussed in the Economist, the Financial Times, and the Washington Post, and he has published articles recently in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Review of Economics and Statistics, the Journal of Urban Economics, and the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law.
Learn more at the <a href="https://www.econclub.org/meeting/2021-michigan-economic-outlook/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Detroit Economic Club</a>‘s website.
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WATCH: DEC – 2021 Michigan Economic Outlook

Michigan’s role in an historic

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Photo Courtesy: Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press
The 2020 Election: Historic. Unprecedented. Challenging. Anxiety-producing. And Michigan is right in the middle of it. Christy along with One Detroit contributors, Stephen Henderson and Nolan Finley, talk about the election&#8217;s historic turnout, counties that flipped, and what this election says about us here in Michigan.
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<h3>Read full transcript</h3>
Christy McDonald All right, let&#8217;s get right to it with our want to talk contributors, Nolan Finley, the editorial page editor of The Detroit News, and Stephen Henderson, host of American Black Journal and host of Detroit Today on WDET. Well, guys. I mean, here we are.
Stephen Henderson Yeah, well, what are what are you going to say?
Christy McDonald Well, you know, there&#8217;s still that feeling of, you know, we still have a lot of things to sort through. There still aren&#8217;t final answers. We know that Michigan ended up going for Joe Biden. But I think we start up with the things that we do know. And it&#8217;s the turnout, Nolan. Historic turnout.
Nolan Finley It was huge. Donald Trump actually got 300,000 more votes in Michigan than he did 2016 when he won the state. And, you know, this defies popular wisdom a little bit. We went into this thinking, the bigger the turnout, the bigger the margin of victory for Democrats. And it didn&#8217;t turn out that way at all. You had a big, big Republican turnout, bigger than we&#8217;ve ever seen before by far.
Christy McDonald To me, turnout, though, Stephen, is also looking at the absentee story and the way that we may be voting from now on.
Stephen Henderson Yeah, well, we made a foundational change to the franchise here in the state two years ago when we decided that we were going to open it up to absentee with no reason and early voting.
And it&#8217;s a great thing, in fact, that we&#8217;ve seen this kind of response to it in the very first election. You know, the turnout, the turnout in the cities was huge, turned out to be bigger than ever before, in fact. Bigger than 2008, which we were all blown away by how many people came out to vote for Barack Obama. That record just fell pretty quickly. So, I mean, I think that&#8217;s the good story about 2020, is that that more people than ever have decided to exercise this pretty fundamental right. And that has nothing to do with the outcome one way or another. It&#8217;s that going forward, how do you keep that enthusiasm and expand it?
Christy McDonald Yeah, how do you keep that engagement and get people even maybe more invested in the local races, the hyper local races that will really impact their everyday lives? Nolan, I think this also cemented for us the flip of Oakland County really turning and going blue.
Nolan Finley Yeah, I mean, we keep talking all these years about Macomb County and keep your eye on Macomb County. I think from here on out, you&#8217;ve got to keep your eye on Oakland County and Kent County, which also&#8211;a lot less Republican this time around than it has been in the past. Oakland County interesting, though. You look at that, that&#8217;s the place where you find these suburban women who turned against Trump. And yet, you&#8217;ve got a congressional race out there, Haley Stevens, right in the suburbs and the kind of suburbs that that Trump was supposed to be having trouble in or Republicans having trouble in it.
And she&#8217;s you know what? She was locked in a really, really tight race so that so much about this elections didn&#8217;t fit, you know, into the things we normally would predict.
Christy McDonald And, Stephen, we still look and we see that the statehouse is still a Republican majority, which is, again, interesting looking at where the votes are around the board here.
Stephen Henderson Yeah, I mean, there were some interesting changes in some seats in the House. But I always come back to the fact that, you know, our legislative districts are badly representative of the population here. I&#8217;m eager to see if this is another election in which there were more votes cast for Democratic candidates and they got fewer seats, which just happened several times here in Michigan, because we allow legislators to pick their constituents, or at least we have up until now, instead of drawing districts in a neutral way, I, I would predict that it will be much, much harder to see this kind of dominance by especially the Republican Party, because it has fewer voters than the Democrats once the map looks like it&#8217;s neutral, once the map is not drawn with party at the center of the endeavor, and that&#8217;s just in two years. The next time we vote for state House and for Senate, we&#8217;ll do it differently.
Christy McDonald Yeah, with a redistricting commission. I want to talk to both of you, though, about this feeling of how we move forward. We&#8217;re seeing challenges. And again, we have to say that we&#8217;re taping this a little bit before Thursday night. So there are still things that could be happening hour to hour. But this feeling that neither side feels like they&#8217;ve won in some way and how the mood of the country kind of goes forward from here in in working together and putting things aside, I&#8217;m feeling that it&#8217;s going to be even even harder. Nolan?
Nolan Finley Well, maybe not. I mean, I think maybe the shared disappointment is what brings us together. I mean, for somebody like me who supported neither Biden nor Trump, I take a look at a scenario in which and we don&#8217;t know this yet, but in which Joe Biden is president and the Republicans continue to hold the majority in the Senate, and I see then the inability to make big drastic changes, one party changes and I think that works toward healing the country. And I have some confidence that Joe Biden as a long time Senator and Mitch McConnell, who worked with him, will have some sort of good working relationship. I&#8217;m pretty encouraged about that. I think if we can get to the point away from the point where one party comes in, has all the party, all the power and presses, you know, their issues, and then the next party does the same and start trying to govern together and reach a middle know that&#8217;s what it&#8217;s going to take if the only way we get there.
Christy McDonald Stephen, do you share Nolan&#8217;s optimism? And I&#8217;m very it&#8217;s kind of surprising that I say that Nolan is the optimist in this here.
Stephen Henderson  (laughs) I&#8217;m not sure. We have a Senate and a Senate majority leader who, you know, who declared as soon as he got control when Barack Obama was president that his goal was to make sure that the president didn&#8217;t get anything done, A, and B, didn&#8217;t get reelected. It&#8217;s going to take a really different attitude from Mitch McConnell for what Nolan&#8217;s talking about, which is what we should all want to be possible. Democrats aren&#8217;t the obstructionists in Washington right now. We haven&#8217;t had the power. What we need is for Republicans to say we&#8217;re not just going to say no, we&#8217;re not we&#8217;re not going to block all of your judicial nominees, for instance, the way they did 80 nominees for Barack Obama. You know, shared power requires that both sides value the participation more than they value the win.
Christy McDonald All right. We&#8217;re going to have to leave it there. Nolan Finley, Stephen Henderson, it&#8217;s great to see both you guys. And we&#8217;ll see you again next week.
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Michigan’s role in an historic, unprecedented and challenging Election Day

The problems when talking politics in the workplace

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Your water cooler, real or virtual, might be rife with political talk with this week’s election. Legally speaking, there are rules.
One Detroit’s Bill Kubota talks with attorney Terry Bonnette about how far employees and employers can go in expressing their politics in the workplace.
Bonnette specializes in issues regarding employment. He represents businesses at <a href="https://www.nemethlawpc.com/">Nemeth Law</a> in Detroit. He tells One Detroit that private firms can curtail political speech on the job, while management has some rights to express political opinions as it affects business. But all this has become more problematic with many of us meeting online, virtually.
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<h3>Read full transcript</h3>
Bill Kubota, DPTV We are with Terry Bonnette attorney with Nemeth Law in Detroit. Thanks for talking to us today.
Terry Bonnette, Attorney, Nemeth Law  I&#8217;m glad to do it, Bill. How are you?
Bill Kubota, DPTV I&#8217;m good. You know, you work with the companies regarding labor issues and we&#8217;re talking about election year politics in the workplace. What have you&#8217;ve been hearing these days?
Terry Bonnette, Attorney, Nemeth Law Well, we&#8217;re hearing the same thing we hear every four years, but we&#8217;re hearing more of it. And we&#8217;re we&#8217;re hearing it in different way. Now know every time the election cycle rolls around, I think we see that workplace politics get a little bit more divisive. And on top of that, we&#8217;re seeing that the workplace itself has changed. Now we&#8217;re talking about people in their own homes communicating like we&#8217;re communicating right now over some sort of video conferencing platform. I think a lot of people would agree. There&#8217;s certainly anecdotal evidence that people actually tend to be more polite over video conferencing. I don&#8217;t know if it&#8217;s the mediated format or if, but but typically people are better behaved on camera than not on camera. But conversely, we&#8217;re also seeing people forget about what might be in the background, whether they have, you know, their their political candidate posters hanging behind them on their wall or whether they&#8217;re wearing logos on their clothing or hats to meetings. The communication is happening in a different way.
Bill Kubota, DPTV Now, bring that to from a legal point of view, can you wear a hat or a shirt pushing a particular candidate or cause to work online or at work?
Terry Bonnette, Attorney, Nemeth Law Right. And I think that&#8217;s going to come down to whether you work for a private employer or a public employer and what your employers stand on that end. Private employers are generally free to dictate or to have rules in place about what an employee can and cannot wear to work.
TV Anchor, News 5 Cleveland Tonight, President Trump going head to head with one of Akron&#8217;s largest employers.
Bill Kubota, DPTV Down in Ohio Goodyear popped up in the headlines. Seems like a thousand news cycles ago, actually was just August. Company policy banned political apparel like Make America Great Again hats, but not Black Lives Matter stuff. That&#8217;s because Goodyear, like many other companies, decided BLM is not political or partisan. That didn&#8217;t sit well with someone.
TV Anchor, News 5 Cleveland This morning, the President sending this tweet urging people not to buy Goodyear tires.
KING5 Seattle And it&#8217;s this Black Lives Matter button handed out by his union, that&#8217;s now at the center of a labor dispute.
Bill Kubota, DPTV In Seattle flipside of the same issue.
TV Anchor, King5 Seattle Ohio based Kroger, which owns both QFC and Fred Meyer stores here in the Northwest, said employees can&#8217;t wear the button on the job anymore.
Bill Kubota, DPTV Store management came up with an alternative plan. Instead of buttons it passed out &#8220;Standing Together&#8221; wrist bands, a solution not so satisfying for some.
QFC Employee And standing together for what?
Bill Kubota, DPTV The question, though, is what about your boss? Can your boss be talking a lot about politics, maybe even trying to get you to vote a certain way?
Terry Bonnette, Attorney, Nemeth Law Maybe. How&#8217;s that for a lawyer answer? Actually, federal campaign regulations dictate, you know, what would be considered corporate speech. And you&#8217;re going to have to look at is the boss, you know what level if is if my mid-level supervisor that just happens to have an opinion on that and is expressing that opinion. Probably not going to implicate federal campaign law, but certainly if this is the owner of the organization. This is the president of the organization. If this is the chief financial officer of an organization, that person creates the appearance that they&#8217;re speaking on behalf of the organization. And then the corporation is engaging in political speech. Is the president of a corporation legally permitted to say, vote for candidate X or you don&#8217;t have a job here then? Certainly not. Michigan&#8217;s election laws prohibit employers from taking coercive measures in order to dictate the outcome of a vote. Same thing you an employer can offer a bonus or a reward for voting a particular way. Those would all violate those election laws.
Bill Kubota, DPTV Now, let&#8217;s look at some other outward items of expression, masks, masks in the workplace.
PBS News Hour President Trump this week suggested some people choose to wear masks not for protection, but to signal they don&#8217;t like him. And with rare exception, the president has repeatedly refused to wear a mask in public.
Bill Kubota, DPTV It could almost be seen as a political statement whether you wear or don&#8217;t wear a mask. And what are employers empowered to do or not do regarding all of that?
Terry Bonnette, Attorney, Nemeth Law Well, we&#8217;re talking about two different sets of laws now we&#8217;re talking about, health regulations we&#8217;re talking about oh show. We&#8217;re talking about Miyoshia, where we&#8217;re talking about executive orders that depending on this, when this airs, may or may not still be in effect. But certainly at this point in time, if an employer is open and they have employees in the workplace, they are required to abide by certain safety protocols. And one of those is that employees must wear masks when they are in common areas. If an employee chooses not to wear a mask, certainly employers have to take the appropriate action to address that situation to the extent that that is political speech. I think that we&#8217;re getting into some interesting areas about what is speech. First of all, certainly a private employer can limit the type of speech or the subject matter of speech. So long as they&#8217;re not violating one of those other regulations or rules that we talked about. But I would also say that to the extent and now we&#8217;re talking about, you know, something that probably doesn&#8217;t apply legally to private employers. But certainly from just a communication standpoint, it any right to free speech that a person has is limited when it becomes dangerous. You can&#8217;t yell fire in a crowded movie theater. So to the extent that, you know, a speech would endanger somebody else, I think it&#8217;s okay to limit that speech.
Bill Kubota, DPTV [Terry Bonnette, Nemeth Law in Detroit, thanks for talking to One Detroit.
Terry Bonnette, Attorney, Nemeth Law Thank you very much, Bill. Take care.
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Polling: How it works and what we can learn from it

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Michigan pollster, Bernie Porn, pulls back the curtain on polling. Through online polls, robo-calls, and in-person interviews, polls are a snapshot of what any given population thinks about any given topic. Bernie P. talks with One Detroit’s Will Glover about how polling works, reflects on how polling played out in the 2016 presidential election, as well as how it can show how people’s support for racial justice and equality does not always add up to supporting organizations championing those causes.
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<h3>Read full transcript</h3>
Will Glover  What is polling in its most basic form?
Bernie Porn, President, Epic MRA  Well, there are also different kinds of polling. You have online polling, automated polling where robo calls are made and then people will press their phone button to respond to the polls.  And then you have a live interviewer polling, which is most of what we do.  And to make sure that we get an adequate representation of younger voters, we have continued to increase the percentage of cell phone only contacts that we make in our polls.
Will Glover  What are some of the more general ways polls are used and how might people encounter them in their everyday lives when there isn&#8217;t an election cycle?
Bernie Porn, President, Epic MRA  Most of our polls are done for school districts, community colleges and transit authorities.  And quite often it will be to test potential ballot proposals or to just do satisfaction surveys.  To find out, for example, for a transit authority, why do people ride the bus?  And with a pandemic covid 19, have they been less likely to vote, to ride the bus because of the fear of catching covid 19?  And if it is resolved, will they be more likely to go back and ride the bus, because a lot of people are no longer riding the bus because of fear.  And you have a high percentage of people in Michigan who are extremely fearful of catching both 19.  And when we ask about mask wearing, you have a very high percentage of African Americans and Detroiters who say they wear their mask.  And interestingly, when we asked that question, you have almost 100 percent of Democrats saying they wear a mask, but 12 percent of independent voters say that they sometimes don&#8217;t wear a mask.  But you have 28 percent of Republicans and Trump voters saying they don&#8217;t wear a mask, including 32 percent of male voters, Trump supporters who do not wear a mask.  So, if he would simply wear a mask and encourage his supporters to wear a mask, that would resolve an awful lot of the problems, at least in Michigan.
Will Glover  What have been the most interesting findings that you&#8217;ve seen in some of the recent polling that you&#8217;ve done?
Bernie Porn, President, Epic MRA  Interestingly, to give you an idea of how the presidential election might turn out.  Of those who were undecided in the presidential election, seventy six percent support a national mask policy.  So, while President Trump is talking about, &#8220;well there&#8217;s two sides of the mask issue.&#8221;  Well, not among those folks who are undecided in Michigan.  The other thing that I found was extremely interesting and somewhat disappointing.  Is when I saw tremendous support after the Floyd death for Black Lives Matter.  And I mean nationally polls showed as much as 70 percent supportive of Black Lives Matter.  When the message came out in support of defunding the police, there was a lot of confusion about that.  And that has had a, I think a significant impact on the perceptions of Black Lives Matter, because it&#8217;s viewed as supporting defunding the police.  And 57 percent of Michigan voters do not support or oppose defunding the police and that&#8217;s even when we tell them that it would not eliminate police.  It would just re-prioritize some of the spending, so that health care and psychologist are provided to deal with those people who need specific kinds of assistance.  You look at that and you have 48 percent supportive of Black Lives Matter now.  And 45 percent oppose overwhelming opposition among Republicans and significant opposition by more than the statewide numbers among independent voters and overwhelming support among Democrats.  However, if you phrase the need for police reform and the need for reform of education and how systemic racism affects African Americans in a variety of different avenues when you deal it that way.  Seventy five percent of Michigan voters think systemic racism is a problem.  So, if you describe it in that way and talk about, as part of it, we need to address those times when police go over the, go over the line and make sure that we address that, as well as all of the other issues that are involved in systemic racism in our country and in our state.  And when you do that, I would note that recently Joe Biden has been talking about addressing systemic racism.  And he&#8217;s not been referring as to Black Lives Matter and that is unfortunate, but that is a result of the messaging about defunding the police.
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Secretary of State Benson talks integrity of the election and ban on open carry

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Election Day is less than a week away. How ready are Michigan poll workers to count the votes as they come in? Christy talks with MI Secretary of State, Jocelyn Benson, about the integrity of the election, last minute voting logistics, and defending her ban on open carry at polling places.
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<h3>Read full transcript</h3>
Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State  We&#8217;re seeing record numbers of people voting and the urgency to insure everyone who has not yet voted and two million citizens already have.  But all of those who haven&#8217;t, making sure they know what they need to know to get their ballots returned, their ballots if they choose to vote in person on Election Day with what to expect then.  So, it&#8217;s just an increased uptick in the communications and the education and the outreach to voters and also in the support for our clerks.
Christy McDonald  What are some of the conversations that you&#8217;re having with other secretaries of state around the country?  Just in terms of the importance of making sure that everything is right this election cycle, especially because of a lot of the feelings that are out there, a lot of the misinformation that is out there about the integrity of the election.
Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State  Well yeah, that&#8217;s exactly right.  A lot of our conversations are about specifically that.  We&#8217;re doing so much work both behind the scenes and I have done with our local clerks for months and we&#8217;re ready to go.  And so really the conversations are how do we make sure voters have faith in their process?  How do we fight back against any misperceptions that threaten the integrity of the process?  How do we prepare for candidates saying things that maybe aren&#8217;t true about the process?  And so, it&#8217;s really a bipartisan collaborative effort among us all secretaries of state, because so many of us are dealing with the same misinformation, challenges of perceptions and all the rest.  And we&#8217;re also doing a lot of the same work to really shore up the process, ensure that every vote counts.
Christy McDonald  So before we talk about safety of voting and also really the timeliness of the results, I want to talk about the absentee and the number of absentee voters that we&#8217;ve seen here in Michigan. And if people still, this week before the election, what are you seeing and what should people still do if they have their ballot?
Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State  Well, if you have your ballot, you can return it in person at your local clerk&#8217;s office or to your local Dropbox prior to 8 p.m. on Election Day and it will count.  You can also track it to ensure it&#8217;s been received at Michigan.gov / vote and also get a location of your local clerk and local drop boxes at that same web site.  If you don&#8217;t have a ballot, you can still vote early.  You just have to go to your clerk&#8217;s office really at this point to get that ballot to apply to have it.  And then you could fill it out and return it right then and there.  As long as that&#8217;s done prior to Monday or prior to Election Day, you&#8217;re good to go
Christy McDonald  Explain the process of when the clerks get to start to open, prepare those absentee ballots and start to count them.
Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State  Well at 7:00 a.m. on Election Day, there will be groups of election workers all across the state and every community coming together.  They&#8217;ll be sequestered until the polls close at 8:00 p.m., tabulating ballots throughout the day and ultimately getting ready for us to report our results as soon as possible.  And so, they&#8217;ve already been trained, they&#8217;re ready to go. We&#8217;ve got double and sometimes some places triple the number of machines to tabulate ballots than we had even back in August.  So, we&#8217;ve really built an infrastructure that&#8217;s ready for these millions of absentee ballots to be processed and tabulated as efficiently as possible.
Christy McDonald  You did recently ban open carry in polling places and there is now a lawsuit challenging that, but I think that we&#8217;ll be seeing playing out this week.  Explain to voters what the legal precedent was for you to come out and ban open carry.
Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State  Well, I&#8217;m the chief election officer for the state of Michigan and in that regard, my authority is well grounded in Michigan law to supervise our elections, to protect particularly the sanctity of the polling place.  We train poll workers, we set other expectations and regulations and guidelines.  It&#8217;s also not okay to take photos of other voters, for example at the polls.  So that guidance, those directives that we issue to clerks are designed to ensure the law is followed.  And in this case the law is a ban on voter intimidation.  We will not stand or tolerate any voter intimidation, threats or harassment on Election Day.  And we need to define for our clerks, for our local election workers exactly what that means.  In our view and my view and in the view of the attorney general and the Michigan State Police, the brandishing of firearms in a polling place would amount to that type of threat or intimidation.
Christy McDonald  After you came out with this ban though, we started to hear from law enforcement, some local law enforcement saying, &#8220;Well, we&#8217;re not going to be enforcing this ban.&#8221;  And that then gives concern among voters and the people who are working at the polling places.  And I want to read you a quote from the Lapeer County Sheriff, Scott McKenna, who came out this weekend and said, &#8220;You just created a problem, all you did was throw gasoline on a fire and create a storm that didn&#8217;t need to exist, saying that this ban just adds confusion.&#8221;  What&#8217;s your response to that?
Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State  It&#8217;s actually exactly the opposite, the guidance actually provides clarity to clerks about what to do.  Call those who are, who take an oath to protect you and voters and let them know this intimidation is happening at the polls.  And I&#8217;m proud that the Michigan State Police, as well as the majority of local law enforcement all across the state recognizes that and that this is a furtherance of their duty to protect people.  Now, unfortunately we&#8217;re in a moment particularly this close to a nationwide election where things become politicized.  We&#8217;re also in a moment where there are threats and violence and hateful rhetoric increasing in our state, as we&#8217;ve seen in recent weeks.  So, we&#8217;ve got to take all that into account and recognize that my job is just to protect the vote, protect our voters, protect the sanctity of those polling places on Election Day, which is what this guidance is furthering.
Christy McDonald  Talk about the timeliness of results.  When can we expect to see results in Michigan?
Jocelyn Benson, Michigan Secretary of State  We will start to see soon after the polls close.  Some results being announced, but, of course the full tabulation of every ballot is going to take some time.  And so, from the moment the polls close, until we have that full unofficial tabulation, which may take a few days because we&#8217;ll have millions of ballots to go through and tabulate securely.  We&#8217;re going to do our best, I&#8217;m going to do my best to tell the public exactly where we are in the process.  So that we both ensure accuracy and transparency, but we also want to avoid a scenario where in any race you see this back and forth of who&#8217;s won, who hasn&#8217;t.  And that really creates a sense of uncertainty or confusion among and really lack of faith in the results themselves.  So, my focus is on making sure the end results are accurate, that the process is methodical and secure, and that we&#8217;re doing everything as transparently as possible to instill confidence in the public.  That their vote will be counted and that ultimately the results will reflect an accurate count of the will of the people.
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The Electoral College and The National Popular Vote

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One Detroit senior producer Bill Kubota reports on the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact – a way to make the popular vote count while maintaining the Electoral College when electing the President of the United States.
<h3> </h3>
<h3>Read full transcript</h3>
Hillary Clinton -voice-  Thank you so much.
Bill Kubota  It&#8217;s heard so often, Hillary Clinton got three million more votes than Donald Trump, she should be president, ahh but for the Electoral College.
-voice-  The Electoral College sucks and should be abolished.
Rick Snyder -voice-  Donald J. Trump received 16 electoral votes from the state of Michigan.
Bill Kubota  Here&#8217;s Michigan&#8217;s Electoral College in Lansing, 2016. These collegians represent all 4.8 million voters in this state, half who didn&#8217;t vote for Trump.  Let&#8217;s turn on the wayback machine to see President Benjamin Harrison win the Electoral College, but not the popular vote.
Bill Kubota  In 1888, 112 years later, -voice- (I George Walker Bush do solemnly swear), the year 2000.  Another candidate loses the popular vote and still takes office.  A fluke, it can&#8217;t happen again right?
Donald Trump -voice-  I&#8217;ve just received a call from Secretary Clinton.
Bill Kubota  Someone to get rid of the Electoral College and go to a straight popular vote, but the Electoral College is etched in the Constitution.  Hold on, there&#8217;s another way. One that keeps the Electoral College, but ensures the candidate with the most popular votes really wins.  Something called the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact.  The idea is to preserve the Electoral College, that is, to retain the state&#8217;s rights to do elections their own way, like going with the national popular vote.
Saul Anuzis  And my initial reaction was it sounds like a communist plot to make Al Gore president.  I said, what a stupid idea. Why would we ever want to do that?
Bill Kubota  Saul Anuzis has been a prominent Michigan Republican for years. Now he&#8217;s working for the national popular vote.
Saul Anuzis  You know, I&#8217;ve actually read the book that was about 900 pages long and said this is a brilliant idea.
Bill Kubota  Two thousand eight, Obama v. McCain, both candidates campaigned in Michigan, spent money here, we were a battleground state.  Until a poll came up, putting McCain twelve points back.
Saul Anuzis  So the McCain campaign and the National Party determine we can&#8217;t win in Michigan.  And so they pull out all the resources, pulled out all the people, pull out all the money and shipped it all to Ohio and Florida.  And I sat there and said, what a crazy system we have where Michigan is relevant one day and not relevant the other.
Bill Kubota  Anuzis says at least 40 states aren&#8217;t relevant during presidential campaigns, it&#8217;s predetermined. States like California and New York go Democratic states like Idaho and Oklahoma Republican. Their electoral votes don&#8217;t change.
Saul Anuzis  And that means there&#8217;s only 10 potential battleground states and as the race develops, it usually goes down to anywhere from three to six battleground states.  So we end up spending 95 percent of all the resources, ninety five percent of all the presidential visits are spent in those three to six battleground states. So it perverts public policy and a perverts politics.
Bill Kubota  States join the compact agreeing to hand over their electoral votes to the candidate that wins the national popular vote, whoever that might be.
Saul Anuzis  What the national popular vote does is equalize the system because every voter in every state now becomes politically relevant every time.  And one voter here, is the same as one voter anywhere else.
Bill Kubota  Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have signed on.  Here it passed the Michigan House a few years ago, but went no further.  So far, most of the states joining the compact lean Democratic, as do compact supporters.
-voice-  You and Elizabeth Warren and Pete Mutagen Edge and George Soros&#8217; kids are all on the same side. So why did a good Republican from Michigan decide to throw in with all those characters?
Bill Kubota  Anuzis, he&#8217;s been taking some hits because of who he&#8217;s been working with.
Saul Anuzis  Just because there&#8217;s a bunch of liberals backing you think it&#8217;s a bad idea?
-voice-  So you actually think people are going to campaign in any more states because of your plan.  I don&#8217;t think anyone&#8217;s understanding your distinction.  The Electoral College will be meaningless under your&#8230;&#8230;
Bill Kubota  For the compact to work it needs more states to sign on.  A total of 270 electoral votes, the number needed to win the Electoral College.  The compact has a hundred and ninety six electoral votes so far.
Donald Trump -voice-  We&#8217;ve got problems folks.
Bill Kubota  Some poll watchers say recent history could repeat itself yet again.  With Trump losing the popular vote by even more, while winning the Electoral College.  But if the compact were in place Anuzi says, his man Trump would still win.  Trump would just go more places and get more voters.  Voters that haven&#8217;t turned out because they&#8217;ve been in states where the Electoral College has always gone to the Democrats.
Donald Trump -voice-  The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.
Bill Kubota  The national popular vote seems unlikely this election cycle, but Anuzis keeps looking ahead.
Saul Anuzis  More realistically, I think by 2024 we will be running the presidential campaign under a national popular vote.
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The Detroit Economic Club presented a conversation with Sal Khan in an exclusive live virtual event streamed by Detroit Public TV on Thursday, October 15.
Khan Academy’s mission is to provide a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere. Join Founder and CEO Sal Khan in a wide-ranging conversation focused on virtual learning and the current pandemic. Sal shared his thoughts, strategies and tips useful for parents, students and educators.
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<h3>About Sal Khan</h3>
Sal Khan is the founder and CEO of <a href="https://www.khanacademy.org/">Khan Academy</a>, a nonprofit organization with a mission to provide a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere. He is also the founder of <a href="https://khanlabschool.org/">Khan Lab School</a>, a nonprofit laboratory school in Mountain View, California.
Sal’s interest in education began while he was an undergraduate at MIT. While there, he developed math software for children with ADHD and tutored fourth- and seventh-grade public school students in Boston, Massachusetts. Sal also taught test prep courses for the MCAT and was named Teacher of the Year by a national test prep company. He holds three degrees from MIT and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Sal founded Khan Academy as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Khan Academy offers free lessons in math, history, grammar, physics, biology, and many more subjects. The nonprofit organization’s mastery learning system allows students to learn at their own pace. Teachers can use Khan Academy to track student progress, identify gaps in learning, make assignments, and provide tailored instruction.
Today more than 109 million registered users access Khan Academy in 46 languages in more than 190 countries. As a nonprofit, Khan Academy relies on donations from foundations, corporations and individuals around the world, as well as earned revenue.
Sal has been profiled by 60 Minutes, featured on the cover of Forbes, and recognized as one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in the World. In his book, The One World Schoolhouse, Sal outlines his vision for the future of education. The ideas in One World are the basis for Khan Lab School.
Sal lives in Mountain View, California, with his wife and three children.
Learn more at the <a href="http://www.econclub.org/meeting/a-conversation-with-sal-khan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Detroit Economic Club</a>‘s website.
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Politics

Beyond the Ballot Box

Behind the ballot box: Detroit election inspectors receive training ahead of 2022 midterms

Certifying an Election: Public Voting Machine Accuracy Test Educates Voters on Election Process

Under the microscope: Former Rochester Hills City Clerk Tina Barton addresses election misinformation

Absentee or in person: Michigan voters react to key issues, races in the midterm election

Beyond the Ballot Box: A One Detroit Election Special with the Detroit Free Press

Behind the ballot box: Detroit election inspectors receive training ahead of 2022 midterms

Certifying an Election: Public Voting Machine Accuracy Test Educates Voters on Election Process

Under the microscope: Former Rochester Hills City Clerk Tina Barton addresses election misinformation

Absentee or in person: Michigan voters react to key issues, races in the midterm election

Beyond the Ballot Box: A One Detroit Election Special with the Detroit Free Press

Behind the ballot box: Detroit election inspectors receive training ahead of 2022 midterms

Certifying an Election: Public Voting Machine Accuracy Test Educates Voters on Election Process

Under the microscope: Former Rochester Hills City Clerk Tina Barton addresses election misinformation

Absentee or in person: Michigan voters react to key issues, races in the midterm election

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