political roundup

Today on Stateside, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel comments on the recent dismissal of charges against state officials and others for actions related to the Flint water crisis. Plus, an interview with the writer of an "Afrofuturistic techno choreo-poem" set in 3071 Detroit. 

Today on Stateside, a look at how the no-fault auto insurance changes could affect health care. Plus, out-of-pocket drug costs are still rising, and it’s not clear where a solution could come from.

Long-term care provider: No-fault changes would ensure your car’s repaired but not necessarily your body

Today on Stateside, Attorney General Dana Nessel clashes with the Republican-led legislature on a law that would change the rules on petition drives. Plus, an invasive insect could make its way to Michigan and wreak havoc on crops.

Today on Stateside, Republicans in the Michigan Senate want counties to lose some jail funding if they limit law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration officials. We get reaction from Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon. Plus, it is the 90th annual Tulip Time festival in Holland. We hear about how tulips came to be a symbol of the city's Dutch heritage.

Today on Stateside, the interim president of Michigan State University has publically apologized to survivors of sexual abuse by former MSU sports doctor Larry Nassar. At a Friday meeting, those survivors told the Board of Trustees that apologies aren’t enough. Plus, documenting the architectural creatures that watch over Detroit.

Listen to the full show above or find individual segments below.

Nassar survivors tell MSU trustees that apologies are not enough  

Today on Stateside, we talk with Congresswoman Debbie Dingell about efforts to halt the deportation of Mexican journalist and University of Michigan Knight-Wallace Fellow Emilio Gutierrez Soto. Plus, we check in with Wayne County Executive Warren Evans about the state of the county's finances.

Listen above for the full show, or find individual segments below.

Political roundup: Unlimited medical benefits, lack of transparency contribute to high auto insurance rates

Today on Stateside, the priest in charge of processing cases of sexual abuse by clergy in the Detroit diocese responds to state Attorney General Dana Nessel’s call for the Catholic church to stop investigating itself. Plus, the legal gray area around growing – and selling – hemp and its products, including CBD oil.    

Today on Stateside, the EPA on Thursday released a plan to deal with contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances – better known as PFAS. U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee says the plan shows the agency is “dragging their feet.” Plus, what it’s like to straddle two worlds as the first person in your family to go to college.

Today on Stateside, Michigan regulators allow unlicensed dispensaries and growers to reopen in midst of a medical marijuana shortage. Plus, a software engineer who traded building software for building kitchen cabinets.

Today on Stateside, the partial government shutdown hit the two week mark today. Is there a compromise in sight? Plus, the EPA reversed a ban on a popular insecticide produced by Michigan-based DowDupont, despite evidence that the EPA based its decision to scrap the ban on misleading science.

Today on Stateside, we review the bills headed to Governor Snyder's desk after the lame duck state legislature's all-nighter. Plus, this year marks the 50th consecutive year of a very special Christmas tradition for Stateside producer Mike Blank's family.  

Today, where do bills still passing through the Michigan Legislature stand as we head into the final week of the lame-duck session? Plus, we speak to two siblings who were separated in the foster care system. Now, they're fighting for a Sibling Bill of Rights. 

Legislator explains why school grading system is needed

Today on Stateside, the Michigan legislature has been busy pushing through bills during lame duck. The question is: will Governor Rick Snyder sign them? Plus, how training police to interact with people who have a mental illness or cognitive disability can reduce the chance of a violent encounter. 

Today, we hear from Michigan's newly elected state Senate Majority Leader, Republican Senator Mike Shirkey, about how he plans to work with Governor-elect Gretchen Whitmer. Plus, how zoning laws got rid of "missing middle" housing stock and made cities unaffordable for many working families. 

Listen to the full show above or hear individual segments below. 

Political roundup: As power changes hands in Lansing, what could possibly go wrong?

Today, the Michigan Legislature passed a law mandating paid sick leave in September, but they're already making plans to amend it after the midterms. We speak to the leader of the group that created the law. Plus, with the election just four days away, make sure you have the facts on the proposal that would legalize recreational marijuana. 

Today on Stateside, are Democratic candidates paying enough attention to Detroit voters? Plus, we continue our reporting on Emilio Gutierrez-Soto, the Mexican journalist seeking asylum in the U.S. who is facing deportation. 

State agency overseeing funeral homes responds to fetal remains scandal 

Today on Stateside, what are gubernatorial candidates not spending enough time discussing? Our political commentators weigh in. Plus, even in statistically identical neighborhoods, children in Detroit yield disproportionate success rates. 

Today on Stateside, the director of a conservative advocacy group talks about why he opposes Proposal 2, the anti-gerrymandering ballot initiative. Plus, Flint native Jim Abbott was born without a right hand, but he still made it to the major league. We talk to the director of a new documentary about the baseball legend.

Today on Stateside, a conversation with Mexican journliast Emilio Gutierrez-Soto who sought asylum in the US in 2008. He is currently a Knight-Wallace Fellow, but may face deportation under the Trump Administration. Plus, a political-round up, a conversation with a MacArthur genius fellow, and interview with Gubernatorial Candidate Bill Schuette (R).

Listen to the full show above or find individual segments below.

The Michigan Legislature will return from summer break next week, and Republicans are discussing the potential of adopting two proposals headed to the ballot this November. 

The big news in politics this week was the Republican gubernatorial nominee choosing a running mate.

Attorney General Bill Schuette announced that Kent County Clerk Lisa Posthumus-Lyons would be his lieutenant governor Monday.

To discuss that choice, and all things lieutenant governor, Stateside talked to our Friday political commentators.

Emails have emerged in a federal lawsuit which suggest Michigan Republicans gerrymandered congressional districts despite years of claims the lines were drawn without political bias.

Journalists Joel Kurth and Lindsay VanHulle broke the story for Bridge Magazine. 

One email from a GOP staffer, according to the article, bragged about cramming “Dem garbage” into four southeast Michigan Congressional districts. In another, a longtime Michigan Chamber of Commerce executive predicts the maps will keep Republicans in power for years.

Recent blogs from the free-market think tank the Mackinac Center for Public Policy applauded Governor Snyder's $10 million cut to what it calls "the state’s corporate and industrial handout complex." 

The Pew Research Center recently released a report on midterm voting that found more voters are engaged earlier this election year.

“Compared with recent midterms, more voters say their view of the president – positive or negative – will influence their vote for Congress," the report said. “A 60 percent majority say they consider their midterm vote as essentially a vote either for Donald Trump (26 percent) or against him (34 percent). These are among the highest shares saying their view of the president would be a factor in their vote in any midterm in more than three decades.”

The Michigan Legislature approved a budget this week right before leaving for the summer recess. 

It would be impossible to go over everything in the budget, so Stateside sat down with two commentators to discuss some notable parts. 

Vicki Barnett is a former Mayor of Farmington Hills and Democratic legislator, and Ken Sikkema is a Senior Policy Fellow with Public Sector Consultants and the former Republican majority leader in the state Senate. 

This week on the political roundup, Ken Sikkema, senior policy fellow with Public Sector Consultants and former Republican majority leader in the state Senate, and Vicki Barnett, former mayor of Farmington Hills and former Democratic legislator, joined Stateside to discuss their takeaways from the first Republican gubernatorial debate and a forum that brought Republican and Democratic candidates together in East Lansing.

This week on the political roundup, Ken Sikkema, senior policy fellow with Public Sector Consultants and former Republican majority leader in the state senate, and Vicki Barnett, former mayor of Farmington Hills and former Democratic legislator, joined Stateside to discuss recent developments in the primary races for governor.