The Michigan Economic Development Corporation, or MEDC, has been in the news for an alleged scandal. A probe by the Attorney General focuses on Fay Beydoun, a Metro Detroit businesswoman active in Democratic politics, for allegedly misusing a $20 million state grant, administered by the MEDC. And the real question is: Why didn’t this happen […] The post IS MICHIGAN’S MEDC A COLOSSAL BOONDOGGLE? appeared first on The Ballenger Report.| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): Lansing has been abuzz about the $20 million Michigan Economic Development Corporation grant awarded to former MEDC board member Fay Beydoun in 2022. Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office has been investigating Beydoun, a Governor Gretchen Whitmer donor, for embezzlement, to the point of raiding the MEDC for records. Yipes! Is this the end of the […]| The Ballenger Report
Why the Almanac of American Politics remains the most important read amid today’s fractured political climate. Despite a polarized nation, the 2026 edition continues to offer trusted, comprehensive data and profiles, from local districts to Washington insiders, including an essential Michigan chapter. For more than five decades, the Almanac of American Politics has set the […] The post NEW MICHIGAN CHAPTER IN FAMOUS ALMANAC OF AMERICAN POLITICS appeared first on The Ballenger Report.| The Ballenger Report
SEE BELOW FOR LIST OF ‘SECRET’ DONORS’ WHO SUPPORTED EFFORT TO THWART GOV. GRETCHEN WHITMER DURING PANDEMIC “NO ONE WILL KNOW” EMAILS DISCLOSE ‘DARK MONEY’ FUNDING BEHIND ‘UNLOCK MICHIGAN’ The COVID cacophony of 2020-2021 may have ended, but the discordant melody lingers on. Republican state lawmakers opposed to the way Gov. Gretchen Whitmer unilaterally assumed […]| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): Right now, groups backing half a dozen statewide ballot initiatives are preparing to collect petition signatures to qualify for the 2026 general election. The six proposals are 1) Invest In MI Kids aka “Tax the Rich,” which would sock those earning $500,000 or more annually with an additional 5% income tax; 2) Demanding […] The post SIX QUICK ANSWERS ON MICHIGAN POLITICS appeared first on The Ballenger Report.| The Ballenger Report
WHY CAN’T CONGRESS OPERATE LIKE THE MICHIGAN LEGISLATURE? It’s difficult to give the Michigan Legislature credit for mastering the art of lawmaking. After all, the six public acts Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed into law so far this year is the fewest number of signed bills at this point in any year since 1940, the […] The post COULD THE MICHIGAN LEGISLATURE TEACH CONGRESS ANYTHING? appeared first on The Ballenger Report.| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): Now that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) has been signed into law, has the messaging for the two major parties changed? And what are the implications for the Republican Party and its candidates, since they “own” this legislation? Could Medicaid cuts be a voter turnout driver for Michigan Democrats in 2026? […]| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): Michigan Republicans cheered the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on June 27 in a case involving President Donald Trump’s order seeking to restrict birthright citizenship that limited lower courts’ ability to issue nationwide injunctions overall. The 6-3 decision held that lower courts must decide whether a more narrowly tailored decision, applying to the specific plaintiffs […] The post IS CURBING FEDERAL JUDGES’ POWERS A BIG DEAL? appeared first on The Ballenger Report.| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): There are plenty of aspirants who claim they’re running for the Republican nomination for Michigan governor next year, but that didn’t stop former state House Speaker Tom LEONARD from announcing last week that he’s getting into it, too. Meanwhile, the likes of Kevin RINKE, Tudor DIXON, and even Perry JOHNSON and possibly others […]| The Ballenger Report
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This year marks the 160th anniversary of a famous battle linking two states on opposite sides in the Civil War — Michigan and North Carolina. The two states would appear to have little in common, then and now, but actually that’s not quite true. Yes, Tar Heels and Wolverines (or denizens of the “Great Lakes […] The post TARHEELS & WOLVERINES — IS THERE ANY CONNECTION? appeared first on The Ballenger Report.| The Ballenger Report
This past week, both chambers of the Michigan Legislature inched (awkwardly) toward final “conference” floor votes on a Fiscal Year 2025-26 state budget, including K-12 school aid. However, state House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Kalamazoo area) has refused to commit to finalizing the FY 2026 budget by its legal deadline. For years, lawmakers have worked to […]| The Ballenger Report
When it comes to Michigan business organizations lobbying politicians and public policy makers in the state capital in Lansing, it’s an open question as to how effective they really are. For starters, MIRS newsletter reported last week that, for the 10th straight survey, the Michigan Chamber of Commerce received the most votes from “insiders” when […]| The Ballenger Report
The irrepressible Bob LaBrant, a retired attorney living in Perry, Michigan, has ben puzzling over the question of whether Donald Trump can run for a third term as President of the United States. LaBrant has decided that we should look to the “Qatar 747” gift airplane for the answer: “HOW CAN TRUMP RUN FOR A […]| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson has hit a rough patch in her nascent campaign to be the state’s next governor. Her bungling of the official campaign finance/transparency website forced the passage of emergency legislation to extend the deadline for officials to report, and she’s been roundly criticized, even by members of her […]| The Ballenger Report
Does anybody remember Richard Nixon’s “Silent Majority” from more than half a century ago? What was it? Did it ever really exist? If so, whatever happened to The Silent Majority? William S. Bishop, a retired attorney born and raised in Flint but now living in Idaho (and sometimes Florida), says it still exists. By the […]| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): What should we make of University of Michigan President Santa ONO leaving for the same job at the University of Florida after less than three years in Ann Arbor? Answer 1): It looks like 1-800-CALL SAM is more than just a bloviating law firm. As one of the four Democratic regents who were […]| The Ballenger Report
Last Sept. 9, TBR published an article that detailed how Michigan Democrats’ ability to raise ‘outside’ money from donors who have no real idea whom they’re giving to in a distant state had reached unprecedented levels. Michigan Democrats were garnering a huge majority of their donations in small dollar amounts from outside the state, and […]| The Ballenger Report
Hard to believe anyone in Michigan does, given the way the state has treated its own horse racing industry. For the first time in 90 years, pari-mutuel horse racing is defunct in Michigan, at least for the time being. Northville Downs, Michigan’s last surviving track, closed its doors after its last standardbred race early last […]| The Ballenger Report
Question 1): The administration of President Donald J. Trump seems hell-bent on dismantling the U.S. Dept. of Education — in fact, abolishing it, with the help of a Republican-held Congress. Trump’s newly-appointed Education Secretary, Linda McMahon, is on board. Aside from whether it’s a good idea, how did it ever come to this? Answer 1): […]| The Ballenger Report
Inside Michigan Politics, the bi-weekly hard copy (later online) newsletter founded in 1987 and published for 27 years by William S. (Bill) Ballenger before he sold it, has been returned to him, facilitated by East Lansing attorney Mark Grebner. Dormant since 2018 after two owners over some five years, Bill Ballenger once again owns the […]| The Ballenger Report
MICHIGAN’S EX-LAWMAKERS DON’T NEED TO BECOME LOBBYISTS. THERE IS ANOTHER PATH TO PROSPERITY The Michigan Legislature is looking once again at instituting a ‘reform’ that has never seen the light of day — ending the ‘revolving door.’ The state House of Representatives has sent to the state Senate a bill to prohibit state legislators […]| The Ballenger Report