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.
A conservative group has filed a complaint with the House Ethics Committee asking for an investigation of Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) over a letter he wrote on behalf of Greektown businessman Jim Papas after his wife, Monica Conyers, had taken what looks like a bribe from Papas, shuttled through her former aide Sam Riddle. Monica Conyers has plead guilty to accepting a bribe in a separate case.
The Landmark Legal Foundation, a Virginia-based group, accuses former Detroit Councilwoman Monica Conyers of persuading her husband to change his position on the well and write a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency to renew permits the agency was considering terminating.
Basing its complaint on Michigan newspaper accounts, the legal group said the well’s contractor paid $20,000 to an aide of Monica Conyers to gain the influence of her husband. Then, the complaint continues, Monica Conyers pressured the aide to give her $10,000 of the money. The claims mirror those of Sam Riddle, a former aide to Monica Conyers who is under investigation by the feds himself…
In the Romulus well case, Landmark says that if Rep. Conyers used his congressional clout for his wife, he violated House rules. In addition, he failed to report the $10,000 his wife allegedly received on his 2007 financial disclosure forms, the complaint says.
“The public record indicates that Representative Conyers’ actions not only may have violated House rules, they appear to have violated the federal bribery statute,” the complaint says.
“The $10,000 accepted by Mrs. Conyers appears to have been intended to secure Representative Conyers’ influence to support permit transfers for a waste injection well. … Mrs. Conyers appeared to take an active role in securing her husband’s influence,” the complaint adds.
An investigation is entirely appropriate. This situation certainly does, at the very least, give the appearance of impropriety. Only a thorough investigation can determine whether that appearance reflects a real violation of ethics rules.
Do you know where to vote on Election Day? Do you know what to bring with you? Get comprehensive voter information for your state here.
Sign up for our email newsletter