Clerk pleads no contest in 2020 Flint-area ballot sabotage
A woman who was a public official in a Michigan community admitted Wednesday that she broke a seal on a ballot box to ensure that votes could not be recounted in her 2020 race, prosecutors said. Kathy Funk, 59, pleaded no contest to misconduct in office, a felony, under an agreement that includes no time in jail. Funk, a Democrat, was the Flint Township clerk in 2020 with responsibility over elections.
news.yahoo.comNYC to use cruise ship terminal as asylum-seeker shelter
New York City is temporarily turning a cruise ship terminal into a shelter and services hub for asylum-seekers, Mayor Eric Adams said Saturday, announcing the latest in a series of facilities the city has set up — and sometimes shut down — as it strains to handle an ongoing influx. The Brooklyn Cruise Terminal will have room, food, medical care and other services for 1,000 single men until it reverts to the cruise business in springtime, the mayor's office said in a release. “Our city is at its breaking point,” said Adams, a Democrat who has repeatedly pleaded for state and federal assistance to address the flow of asylum-seekers — some of them bused by out-of-state governors — to the nation's most populous city.
news.yahoo.com‘The real work begins now,’ congresswoman Scholten says during Grand Rapids ceremony
GRAND RAPIDS, MI — Saying “the real work begins now,” U.S. Rep Hillary Scholten hosted an in-district swearing-in ceremony Wednesday at the Gerald R. Ford Federal Building in Grand Rapids. Prior to taking the oath, the first-term Democrat from Grand Rapids spoke to a packed room of supporters, reflecting on becoming the first woman to represent her hometown in Congress. The district encompasses portions of Kent, Ottawa and Muskegon counties, and includes the cities of Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Grand Haven. During the ceremony, Scholten was administered the oath of office by U.S. District Judge Jane Beckering. She said Wednesday “stands out in the record books” because Scholten is just the second Democrat elected from Grand Rapids since 1974.
mlive.com18 people want a vacant Ypsilanti Township board seat. Here’s the supervisor’s pick
WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI - There’s no shortage of residents hoping to take a seat alongside elected leaders on the Ypsilanti Township board. Officials received 18 letters of interest for a open position caused by the resignation of former Trustee Jimmie Wilson Jr., a Democrat who was elected as state representative in November, according to Township Clerk Heather Jarrell Roe.
mlive.comMSU Board of Trustees elects first Black woman as chair
The Michigan State University Board of Trustees has elected Rema Vassar as its chair. She is the first Black woman to hold the position, and she called the moment “historic.”“There’s been, I believe, 124 board members,” said Vassar, a Democrat who was elected to the Board in 2020. Three were black women, two of which are on the board right now and none of those women have ever been chair. But following the election of two Democrats to the Board in November and the resignation of Republican Trustee Pat O’Keefe, who Gov. And Vassar, a professor of education at Wayne State University, said she anticipates a “resurgence of collegiality.”
mlive.comTrump’s Legal Strategy of Annoyance Is No Longer Working
Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/GettyIn their desperate attempts to halt the New York attorney general from dealing a death blow to Donald Trump’s family business, the former president’s lawyers keep shopping the same failed arguments in states across the country. And judges are starting to call his legal team out for its bad-faith delay tactics.Trump’s latest failure in New York state court shows just how far his lawyers are willing to go to appease the former president—an
news.yahoo.comFlint sorority brunch will feature new member of Michigan Supreme Court
FLINT, MI -- The Flint chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority will host a jazz brunch later this month to celebrate 70 years of sisterhood and service. The brunch will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 21 at the Riverfront Banquet Center, located at 1 Riverfront Plaza in downtown Flint. Kyra Harris Bolden, who was recently appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court, is a featured guest speaker for the event. Harris Bolden became the first Black woman to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court this month. Read more at The Flint Journal:Black market battles, plummeting prices: a look at Michigan marijuana in 2022Flint Community Lab receives $40K grant to increase youth engagement in STEMFive new board members highlight Flint Community Schools year in reviewThe real Elaine from ‘Seinfeld’ is rethinking Michigan transportation.
mlive.comCost of living, corporate tax changes should be lawmakers’ top priority, Michiganders say
Michigan residents are looking for everyday items to be more affordable and for corporations to pay their fair share in taxes, and they’re hoping a Democrat-controlled legislature will make that happen in the coming session. That’s according to polling conducted by EPIC-MRA on behalf of the State Innovation Exchange, which parsed out a number of issues voters hope Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and lawmakers will tackle when returning Jan. 11 to Lansing.
mlive.comLying for the job. From politicians and office workers to first-time job seekers, is it worth the risk?
For those working outside the political world, ramifications for resume lies are often swift and absolute, labor experts say. Employees who get caught tend to get terminated immediately, said Amy Moor Gaylord, a labor employment attorney in Chicago who has been practicing for 25 years.
chicagotribune.comRep. Jamie Raskin says he's been diagnosed with lymphoma
Congressman Jamie Raskin, a Democrat from Maryland who served on the House Jan. 6 committee, says he's been diagnosed with lymphoma. He described it as "a serious but curable form of cancer" and said he would undergo chemo-immunotherapy.
news.yahoo.comArizona Republican loses lawsuit over attorney general race
A judge has thrown out Republican Abraham Hamadeh’s challenge of election results in his race against Democrat Kris Mayes for Arizona attorney general, concluding that Hamadeh didn’t prove the errors in vote counting that he had alleged. The ruling on Friday by Mohave County Superior Court Judge Lee Jantzen came after Hamadeh’s attorney, Tim La Sota, acknowledged his client hadn’t gained enough votes during his litigation to change the outcome of the race. Mayes finished 511 votes ahead of Hamadeh out of 2.5 million in one of the closest elections in state history.
news.yahoo.comNew Saginaw buses, downtown investment included in $1.7T federal omnibus proposal
If passed in its current form, the proposal would include 15 mid-Michigan-based community projects Kildee included in the omnibus package. $4 million: Funding for the Genesee County Land Bank Authority to demolish up to 240 dangerous and vacant residential and commercial structures. $2.4 million: Support for the Saginaw County Land Bank Authority to demolish vacant properties. $1 million: Funding for Flint-based New Paths, Inc. to upgrade its treatment center and recovery housing facility. $750,000: Support for the Genesee County Road Commission to improve roads in Flint, Fenton as well as Grand Blanc.
mlive.comSaginaw County Commissioner Carl Ruth sheds tears at final meeting in office
SAGINAW, MI — Saginaw County commissioners — of present and past — showed up to celebrate the governing board’s longest-serving active member during his final meeting Tuesday, Dec. 20. Among them: state Rep. Amos O’Neal, who was a member of the county board from 2016-20. Commissioner Dennis Krafft, a Republican and the second-longest serving member of the county board at 16 years, praised Ruth Tuesday. “We appreciate his dedication to the continuous improvement of the quality of life for all Saginaw County residents, and the sacrifices he has made to ensure the preservation of our democracy,” Krafft said. The Dec. 20 board meeting at the Saginaw County Governmental Center also was the last gathering as elected officials for Commissioners Carol Ewing and Kyle Harris.
mlive.com‘Generations of new housing:’ Leaders have big hopes for $17.5M Kent County housing fund
One county commissioner, Stephen Wooden, said the investment creates a “tool” that will help the county and developers create “generations of new housing” through low-interest loans. Ottawa County’s Board of Commissioners is also investing $10 million of its federal pandemic relief funds in a similar housing fund. Now that the county has approved the $17.5 million in housing funds, administrators and board members will work to establish the specifics of the fund, said Kent County Administrator Al Vandenberg. Ryan VerWys, CEO of ICCF Community Homes, a nonprofit housing developer, said he’s hopeful his organization can partner with the county to create more affordable housing. That would mean the initial $17.5 million investment could increase to about $58 million, and that it would rise further with additional investment, she said.
mlive.comKey abortion ruling in Oakland County is hours away -- Here’s what to expect
We are hours away from an Oakland County judge ruling on whether abortion services can continue across Michigan. That decision is pending while anti-abortion groups are working on getting a potential abortion proposal kicked off the ballot.
What we learned from former US attorney in Trump estate search
Local 4 talked to an expert to contextualize what federal agents took out of Mar-a-Lago. To put into context exactly what federal agents took out and whether the situation is an argument of paperwork or something far more serious, we spoke with former United States Attorney Matthew Schneider.
Michigan Sen. McMorrow: Republicans ‘creating issue that doesn’t exist’ with education laws
A Democratic Michigan state senator whose passionate Senate Floor speech went viral last week is saying that her Republican colleagues are creating problems that don’t exist in an effort to rile up their supporters and avoid addressing “real issues.”
Prosecutors: 2 Hawaii lawmakers took bribes to steer bills
Federal prosecutors say a Hawaii state senator and a state representative took bribes including cash, hotel rooms and casino chips in exchange for shaping legislation that would benefit a company involved in publicly financed cesspool conversion projects.