March, 15 2016, 02:30pm EDT
![Progress Michigan](https://assets.rbl.ms/32012619/origin.jpg)
Governor Snyder Bypasses Accountability; Forces Taxpayers to Foot the Bill for his Personal Defense
Progress Michigan to submit signatures calling on Snyder to pay his own legal bills
LANSING
Today, Progress Michigan is calling on Governor Rick Snyder to pay his own legal bills and will submit thousands of signatures to the State Administrative Board demanding that taxpayers do not have to foot the bill for Snyder's legal defense. Governor Snyder's office is using an exemption, not previously used in Michigan history, that gives Governor Snyder the ability to approve contracts with no oversight.
"It's odd that the man who did nothing when Flint residents were crying out for help can all of a sudden move heaven and earth to find the money for his own personal defense," said Lonnie Scott, executive director of Progress Michigan. "It appears that Snyder used his control of a board that is meant to regulate spending to pass a rule relieving him of checks and balances on spending and contracts. The loophole the administration is citing appears to allow Snyder to unlimited millions of taxpayer dollars with no oversight. The State Administrative Board should not only condemn the contracts before them to pay for Snyder's personal legal bills, but should immediately pass a resolution changing the loophole that allows such egregious actions by a state officer whom no longer has the trust of the people."
The State Administrative Board is tasked with approving contracts and grants of $250,000 and more. The total cost of the contracts in question is over one million dollars. However, in 2011 the Snyder administration changed the rules governing the Ad Board giving Snyder the power to approve contracts without oversight.
"Last I read, the constitution says the governor is a state officer and not a dictator yet his actions seem to suggest he thinks otherwise," Scott continued. "Snyder is attempting to force the taxpayers of Michigan, including the people of Flint, to pay his legal defense for his failure in Flint. That is the equivalent of an $800,000 deposit into Snyder's personal checking account. Snyder claims he is being defended in his official capacity as governor, but I think it's safe to say that any criminal activity is not one of the duties required of the governor of our state. The people of Michigan are clear that they do not want the governor using the state treasury like his own personal piggy bank and the Ad Board should not allow this to stand."
Progress Michigan aims to provide a strong credible voice that holds public officials and government accountable, assists in the promotion of progressive ideas and uses state-of-the-art web based new media to creatively build grassroots support for progressive ideas.
LATEST NEWS
Billionaire-Backed JD Vance Postures as Working Class Ally in RNC Speech
"Vance doesn't care about workers—he just wants to put more money into the pockets of greedy CEOs."
Jul 18, 2024
A former venture capitalist whose Senate campaign and push to become Republican nominee Donald Trump's running mate were propelled by billionaire cash postured as an ally of the U.S. working class during his speech Wednesday night at the GOP's convention, where he accepted the party's vice presidential nomination.
"We're done, ladies and gentlemen, catering to Wall Street. We'll commit to the working man," said Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), who made millions working in Silicon Valley—including for billionaire Peter Thiel's company Mithril Capital—and later started his own venture capital firm, Narya.
"We need a leader who's not in the pocket of big business, but answers to the working man, union and nonunion alike," said Vance (R-Ohio), an opponent of landmark legislation that would strengthen workers' organizing rights and a leading advocate of an ostensibly pro-labor bill that—as one analyst put it—would empower corporations "to fend off union organizing drives by setting up their own internal labor organizations, AKA company unions."
Vance also cast Trump, a billionaire himself, as a hero to the working class despite his record of gutting labor protections and stacking federal courts and agencies with rabid opponents of organized labor.
"President Trump's vision is so simple and yet so powerful," Vance gushed Wednesday night. "Together, we will protect the wages of American workers."
"He's a former venture capitalist backed by billionaires. He has ties to Big Pharma. He's raked in Big Oil cash. He has an awful record on worker rights. He will sell out workers in a heartbeat."
Following the Republican vice presidential nominee's speech in Milwaukee, the AFL-CIO wrote on social media that "if JD Vance were pro-worker, he would have supported the PRO Act."
"But he didn't—he opposed it, and introduced his own legislation to allow corporate bosses to create their own sham unions," the labor federation added.
By the AFL-CIO's tally, Vance has "voted with working people" 0% of the time as a senator—lower than the Republican average of 3%.
Vance's ascent from bestselling author to senator to vice presidential nominee was aided at every turn by some of the richest people in the United States. Thiel, a co-founder of Paypal and an outright fascist, bankrolled Vance's Senate bid, pouring more than $13 million into a super PAC backing Vance in a crowded field. Vance also raked in campaign cash from Big Oil.
Trump's decision to choose Vance as his 2024 running mate was influenced by a behind-the-scenes lobbying effort from the world's richest man, Elon Musk, and other tech billionaires. The New York Timesreported earlier this week that Musk "told Mr. Trump directly that he should choose Mr. Vance as his running mate, describing the Trump-Vance pairing as 'beautiful.'"
"Let's be clear here. J.D. Vance is no champion of working class people," former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich wrote Wednesday. "He's a former venture capitalist backed by billionaires. He has ties to Big Pharma. He's raked in Big Oil cash. He has an awful record on worker rights. He will sell out workers in a heartbeat."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Israeli Lawmakers Vote Against Palestinian Statehood
"In essence, the Israeli Knesset voted to continue to wipe Palestine off the map," said one critic.
Jul 17, 2024
While Israel's troops wage what has been widely decried as genocide on the Gaza Strip, Israeli lawmakers on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed a resolution opposing "the establishment of a Palestinian state" west of the Jordan River.
The measure passed Israel's legislature, the Knesset, 68-9. It was spearheaded by Knesset Member Zeev Elkin of New Hope - The United Right, who shared the key messages from the resolution on social media along with a photo of the final tally.
According to Religious Zionism-affiliated Israel National News:
The proposal says, "The Israeli Knesset firmly opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state west of the Jordan. The establishment of a Palestinian state in the heart of the land of Israel will pose an existential threat to the state of Israel and its citizens, perpetuate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and destabilize the region."
"It will only be a matter of a short time until Hamas takes over the Palestinian state and turns it into a base of radical Islamic terrorism, working in coordination with the axis led by Iran, to eliminate the state of Israel."
"The promotion of the idea of the Palestinian state will be a reward for terrorism and will only encourage Hamas and its supporters who will see this as a victory thanks to the massacre of October 7, 2023, and a prelude to the takeover of jihadist Islam in the Middle East," the proposal reads.
Since the Hamas-led October attack on Israel, Israeli forces have killed at least 38,794 Palestinians and wounded another 89,364, according to Gaza's Ministry of Health. Thousands more remain missing and believed dead beneath the rubble of bombed buildings.
In addition to destroying civilian infrastructure across the Hamas-governed coastal enclave, Israel has restricted the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, even as people starve and the remaining hospitals operate at a limited capacity.
Israel faces a South Africa-led genocide case at the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and three Hamas leaders.
"What is happening in Gaza is going down as the most documented genocide in history," Riyad Mansour, Palestine's permanent observer at the United Nations, told the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday. "When will the world denounce the crimes and stop tolerating their reoccurrence?"
The Knesset vote against a two-state solution comes as Netanyahu prepares for a trip to the United States—whose government has provided political and weapons support for Israel's war. The prime minister is supposed to meet U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House next Monday before addressing a joint session of Congress, though the American leader is isolating after testing positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday.
"The measure was intended as a way to apply pressure on Netanyahu, since he is likely to face opposite pressure from U.S. officials on a hostage deal that could include future discussions of Palestinian sovereignty," The Jerusalem Postreported Wednesday. "Netanyahu himself was not present at the vote."
As the newspaper detailed:
Notably, National Unity chairman MK Benny Gantz supported the proposal alongside three other members of his party, which is considered centrist. The three were MKs Michael Biton, Pnina Tameno-Shete, and Chili Tropper.
Gantz said after the vote, "National Unity is committed in any future political scenario, as long as it exists, to preserve the Jewish and democratic identity of the state of Israel, and to stand up for its historical right and security interests."
Members of various other parties—Netanyahu's Likud, Otzma Yehudit, Religious Zionism, Shas, United Torah Judaism, and Yisrael Beytenu—also voted in favor of the resolution.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Biden Contracts Covid Again During Tough Campaign
"President Biden is vaccinated, boosted, and he is experiencing mild symptoms following a positive Covid-19 test," the White House said.
Jul 17, 2024
U.S. President Joe Biden has contracted Covid-19 for the second time and is heading to his home in Delaware to self-isolate, the White House said Wednesday evening.
"President Biden is vaccinated, boosted, and he is experiencing mild symptoms following a positive Covid-19 test," the White House said on social media.
A statement attributed to Biden's doctor said that "the president presented this afternoon with upper respiratory symptoms, to include rhinorrhea (runny nose) and nonproductive cough, with general malaise."
.@POTUS is back on Air Force One and we’re headed to Delaware pic.twitter.com/SLGfL8pcN1
— Nandita Bose (@nanditab1) July 17, 2024
"He felt okay for his first event of the day, but given that he was not feeling better, point-of-care testing for Covid-19 was conducted, and the results were positive for the Covid-19 virus," the statement continued. "Given this, the president will be self-isolating in accordance with [U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidance for symptomatic individuals."
The doctor said that Biden—who is 81 years old—is taking the antiviral drug Paxlovid.
Biden previously contracted Covid-19 in July 2022. In what doctors call a "rebound" positive test that affects some people who take Paxlovid, he actually tested positive twice within a two-week period.
The president—who is facing mounting calls to step aside for another Democratic candidate amid concerns over his mental fitness—was scheduled to speak at the UnidosUS Annual Conference in Las Vegas before attending a community event in the important swing state of Nevada.
Biden's positive test comes as the Republican National Convention is happening in Wisconsin, another swing state. Former President Donald Trump this week secured enough delegates to become the GOP nominee and announced Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) as his running mate.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular