I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]
An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.
Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.
Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.
Michigan Democrats don’t begrudge Sen. Hillary Clinton for staying in the race until the very end, but now it’s time to unite behind presumptive party nominee Sen. Barack Obama, party leaders said Wednesday.
Their comments came shortly after Obama secured the nomination Tuesday night, capping a 16-month-long primary season, and days after the Democratic National Committee decided to allow Michigan’s and Florida’s delegates to each receive half of a vote at the party’s convention in August.
“I am in a very good mood because the Democratic Party has gone through the entire process,” said state Sen. Tupac Hunter, D-Detroit, co-chair of Obama’s campaign in Michigan. “Every state voted. All the votes were counted. Obama achieved the number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination. He deserves the party’s as well as country’s respect for his achievement.”
Continued -The DNC compromise that finally resolved the controversy over whether to seat the delegates from Michigan and Florida – who had moved their primaries ahead of their scheduled calendar slot in defiance of party rules – helped seal Clinton’s fate, who was counting on getting those states’ delegates’ full votes.
Ketola said the DNC decision was a fair one and that she didn’t perceive any widespread anger with it in her county.
“I think people feel for the most part that it was a good compromise,” she said. “The majority of people I’ve talked to have been very positive about the resolution.”
State Rep. Fred Miller, D-Mount Clemens, said he supported the compromise but he also expected Michigan’s delegates to receive full recognition at the convention because Obama will want to reach out to two critical general-election states.
“I think we should be happy our folks are going to be there,” he said. “There’s kind of a conventional wisdom that by the time we get to the convention it’ll be water under bridge and we’ll get full voting rights like everyone else.”
The critical thing now, Democrats agree, is to heal any bitter feelings that remain and unite the party behind Obama.
“I think everyone, regardless of who you supported – I think we’ve got to take a step back and realize the differences separating our candidates in the primary pale in comparison with the differences separating Obama and John McCain,” said Miller, who supported John Edwards before he dropped out. “The things we have in common are so much more important than the things that divide us.”
Hunter agreed.
“I think Sen. Clinton certainly is owed a debt of gratitude by the Democratic Party for trying as hard as she did and for being the great Democrat that she has,” he said. “But we have a nominee. I just hope she along with her supporters will keep their eyes on the big prize, and that’s returning the White House to Democrats.”
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