I should preface what I’m about to say by noting that I’m not a conspiracy theorist… at least when it comes to last week’s bombing in Boston. I suspect it’s probably the case, given what I’ve read thus far, that Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev carried out the attack that cost three individuals, one of whom was just eight years old, their lives, and wounded over 100 others. Between the surveillance footage that shows men who appear to be the brothers leaving backpacks at the bomb site, and the statements of the man whose car they hijacked a few days later, who claims that they confessed everything to him, I don’t imagine it’s likely that we’ve got the wrong guys. And, if I’d harbored any lingering doubts, I suspect they would have evaporated a few nights ago when, after throwing bombs at the Boston police officers pursuing them, Tamerlan charged the officers wearing a suicide vest. With all of that said, though, I find it absolutely amazing that, over this weekend, I’ve heard so many state that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who was taken into custody after the death of his brother, isn’t deserving of even the most basic rights afforded us by the constitution. From arguing that he shouldn’t be read his Miranda rights, to saying that he should be spirited away to Gitmo without a trial, like an enemy combatant, I’ve heard it all this weekend. I’ve even heard people suggest the he should be summarily executed.

As terrible as last week’s Boston bombing was, this is what’s been keeping me up… this realization that people don’t seem to care about the rights that our ancestors fought so hard to secure, not just for those who were likely innocent, but for all people. Maybe it’s the fear that comes as a byproduct of terrorism. Maybe we’re so terrified that we just don’t care. Or maybe this is what happens in a society that’s come to accept that, with increasing frequency, we send weaponized Predator drones into other countries, to wipe out whole families on our behalf. Or, maybe it’s a function of today’s technology. Maybe, if we’d had cellphone video of Timothy McVeigh walking away from the truck he’d loaded with explosives, we would have been demanding his head on a platter as well. Regardless of why it’s happening, my sense is that we’re not going to move beyond it anytime soon. In fact, I suspect we’re going to start seeing more of it… God help us all.

I posted something similar on Facebook earlier this evening, and received the following response from a friend, explaining how Obama will likely go about assigning gay spouses.

I suspect that she’s kidding, and that she doesn’t really have an inside track on how it will go down, but I found the idea to be interesting… Or, at least, I found it a welcomed diversion as I was washing dishes just now. I’d need to break out a tape measure to be sure, but, if I’m not mistaken, the Closest Straight Male (CSM) in proximity to me at the moment is a young former employee of the Ypsi Food Co-op by the name of Adam… who I think would be completely creeped out if he knew that the middle aged father of two next door was, at this very moment, wondering what our married life together would be like.

In all seriousness, we need to start planning one hell of a big street party/riot for later this summer, when we get word from the Supreme Court. Either way, this is going to be huge, historic…. and super gay.

[I apologize for the gratuitous small penis joke above. I really do try to use them sparingly. Something about Kirk Cameron, though, really brings out the worst in me.]

The following statement, written by one of the victims, was read aloud during the course of Toviave’s trial, which ended yesterday with a guilty verdict and an 11-year sentence:

“The physical torture, beating me and starving me, you inflicted was so painful that I prayed at night that God would either help me to be free, or allow your assaults to kill me… The pain is something I will never forget. In the midst of your verbal and physical assaults, you worked the four of us to death.”

While there’s not a lot of information available about the children, and how they’re presently doing, the Huffington Post is reporting that one of the boys is currently president of his school’s student council, and wants to pursue a career in medicine. But, lest we think there’s a true happy ending here, it’s also noted in this same report that this young man has “permanent damage to his vision and persistent headaches,” as a result of having been repeatedly punched and kicked in the face. So, even if he is able, by some miracle, to put the memory of the abuse behind him, he’ll still have to contend with the physical manifestations of his ordeal for years to come.

Sadly, this is not an isolated occurrence. While this is the only local case that I can recall, it’s been reported by several news sources over the past decade that there are presently more slaves brought into the United States each year than at the height of the colonial slave trade. The following clip comes by way of ABC News.

…Worldwide, there are more slaves today than at any point in human history, and America is not immune to the crime. Restavèks (a Creole euphemism for domestic slaves, which translates roughly as “stay-withs”) are only a fraction of the estimated 50,000 slaves held in the United States. Each year, traffickers take more people — up to 17,500 according to Justice Department estimates — into slavery in the United States than traders annually took into bondage in colonial America.

The Justice Department has successfully prosecuted sex trafficking cases in record numbers since the passage of the 2000 Trafficking Victims Protection Act. But according to its own estimates, the government has liberated less than 2 percent of the slaves within U.S. borders.

Domestic slaves are the most difficult to discover, let alone free. Recent cases have revealed a pattern of domestic slavery in otherwise “decent” households, often in expatriot enclaves. In those cases, only the intervention of conscientious citizens broke the slaves’ chains…

It’s amazing to me that this was allowed to go on for nearly five years, right under our noses, and I feel as though there are lessons to be learned here. Unfortunately, though, I’m not exactly sure what those lessons are. Clearly, one major take-away from this whole ordeal is an appreciation for just how important our local educators are. Had it not been for an observant school counselor who had the trust of these children, this abuse might very well still be going on today. In a period where we continue to slash public education budgets, I think it’s incredibly important to keep in mind just how much our children, and thus our entire community, depend on these men and women. And my hope is that we all keep this case in mind the next time we’re told that, due to budget constraints, we have no choice but to let go more teachers and counselors. The fact of the matter is, the more children we have in each classroom, and the more cases we have assigned to each counselor, the less likely it is that we’ll bring things like this to light.

As for other ideas, I’m beginning to wonder if it might not make sense to require the genetic testing of children being brought into the United States from countries where this kind of human trafficking is known to be prevalent, to ensure that they are, in fact, related to those individuals claiming to be their parents? Ordinarily, I’d say that this would be overkill, and a violation of civil rights, but, as I’ve now heard of several cases of people passing off unrelated domestic slaves as their own children, I feel as though it could be warranted.

I also think that we, as the local community, need to accept some responsibility. Thankfully, the abuse in this case was eventually caught by someone in the public school system, but it took five years, and one has to think that there were other warning signs over that span of years that some of us saw and chose not to act upon. (I saw it noted somewhere that Toviave was also farming the kids out to clean and perform menial tasks for friends, so I think it’s likely that people must have seen something.) While I’d rather not live in a community where people are encouraged to call the police on their neighbors every time they see a kid with a bruise carrying a mop bucket, I do think that things like this are less likely to happen in communities where people are more engaged with one another. And, by “engaged,” I don’t mean nosy. I’m not suggesting that people surveil their neighbors. The occasional friendly conversation, however, may not be such a bad thing.

One last thing… As someone who may very well have helped to build the Habitat for Humanity house where this abuse took place, I’ve gone through an interesting progression of feelings this evening. At first, I was a little angry at the thought that I might have helped to have built a home for a man like this. I don’t know why I’d expect Habitat for Humanity to identify this man as a human trafficker when our Immigration officers apparently weren’t able to, but I found myself doing just that. And my fear is that others might do the same… or worse… come to the conclusion that a majority of those acquiring homes through Habitat for Humanity, are conniving schemers who just know how to play the system to their own advantage. I know it’s something of a tangent, but, as I care a great deal about the program, and know the good that it does, I’d hate to see stories like this begin to undermine the mission.

I’ve got more that I’d like to say, but I’m falling asleep… If you’d like to learn more about the case, you can find coverage at both USA Today and the Detroit Free Press.

MARK: What can you tell us about Citizens for Prison Reform, the Lansing-based organization which you founded? Why did you feel as though an organization like yours was necessary, and what are the specific reforms that you’re presently working to have implemented?

LOIS: Citizens for Prison Reform is a statewide, family-run organization. We hold our meetings on the third Saturday of each month in Lansing, as it’s a central location. Our main focus is to educate, support, and unify loved ones of prisoners, so that they can better advocate within the system. By doing this, we hope to raise standards within our prisons, and help to keep supports in place for prisoners.

As far as working on reforms within the walls, we are currently working to address the number of mentally ill inmates who are being held in segregation and solitary confinement, and those with mental illness who are at prisons where no therapeutic programming is available to meet their needs. We are also looking at the treatment, or lack of appropriate treatment and care, for juveniles who are within our adult system. The legislature passed legislation for 2013 that states that the mentally ill, and juveniles up to age 19, are not to be housed in segregation, unless it’s “therapeutic”. Michigan Protection and Advocacy, and the Department of Corrections, agreed in a lawsuit settlement less than a year ago that certain punishment (detention/segregation) is not to be utilized if it is found counter-therapeutic. We know these issues have not been fixed or changed.

We are also asking questions around inadequate and untimely medical treatment, particularly the halting of inmates’ medications when they have known illnesses that require it.

We’d also like a policy requiring every facility to have a Release of Information that all inmates are given to sign upon entry, so that their families can know if they have a medical or mental health crisis. This may seem insignificant, but for families, it is imperative that we be able to know about our loved one’s medical issues and mental health. The the Department of Corrections has not made prisoners or families aware that these release forms need to be signed in order for information to be shared concerning a prisoner’s care.

So many areas needing addressed, it’s challenging at times to determine what should take precedence. It’s time that families’ voices are heard, and that our ideas for cost savings and more humane treatment are seriously looked at.

MARK: How did you come to be involved in prison reform?

LOIS: My son (image right), who has had known mental illness since he was very young, was sent into the adult prison system at age 15, with a minimum of five months to serve. I knew nothing about this system. I had never been exposed to it, nor had anyone in our family. Once he was inside, we learned firsthand what happens to children who are sent into the adult system, under adult operating procedures and policies. There is no in-patient mental health care for young prisoners, outside of putting them in with the most mentally ill adults. Then, they are segregated due to their age.

We found other juveniles within the system, who my son would ask me to help because he was concerned about their treatment. We have seen those with severe cognitive impairments, mental illness, and many who simply do not belong in this system. It has been very painful and heart-wrenching to see. They often wind up in segregation, only allowed out of their cell for three ten-minute showers per week. They become more ill, and, as a result, receive more punishment. It becomes a vicious cycle. Furthermore, in some prisons, the officers have no training with regard to mental illness. That’s alarming.

I gathered my family, friends, and prison family networks together for a letter-writing campaign. We sent our letters to Governor Snyder and our legislators. There is little to no rehabilitation occurring currently. There are a lot of tax dollars being wasted, poured down the drain, though. It should matter to all of us how these people are being treated, and what they are receiving to help them while they are inside the system. We must remember that 95-98% of these people will return to our society. There are many things they could be doing, and learning to help our communities out here, our society. Instead, much of their time is spent idle, which leads to more criminal behavior.

MARK: Is there any reason to be optimistic? From what I read, I’m inclined to think that things aren’t moving in the right direction. If I’m not mistaken, for instance, Michigan has the distinction of being a leader among states that spend more on incarceration than on higher education. And the push for more prison privatization, it would seem, continues to build, in spite of the problems we’ve seen across the country, like in Pennsylvania, where we’ve seen judges taking bribes to hand down lengthy sentences to juvenile defendants. With that said, though, I believe I’ve read somewhere that Michigan’s prison population is beginning to decrease. So, is there some cause to be optimistic?

LOIS: We are cautiously optimistic. We certainly have great concerns about many of the cuts the Department has made under the new Director, with little regard to humane treatment, such as the cutting of psychotropic medications and medications for other illnesses in order to save money, the cutting of food portions and nutrition, the inadequate phone service, which they’re now charging more for, and many other things. The good news is the Department has now agreed to begin a dialogue with leaders and families from our organization around some of these issues and concerns, and allow us to share our ideas. This is currently underway. We see many areas where there could be cost savings, and more humane treatment. Director Heyns has made some positive statements, and enacted a few things that have been a positive shift, such as having college courses available for Levels I or II only, talk of shifting the culture, of officers beginning to be mentors and teachers, rather than just being officers for custody. While the treatment of visitors overall has improved recently, we would like to know that prisoners be treated better as well. We are concerned about the Legislature passing a bill that would allow any privatized company to operate a privatized facility if they can save 10% beyond what the Department is spending. GeoGroup has had three opportunities in Michigan, and they have not proven that they can provide quality, humane treatment, or cost savings. We have seen this from many other states, and private prison companies as well.

MARK: What’s your role within the organization?

LOIS: I am the Co-Founder, and President. We had around six individuals who researched, proofread, and helped with the initial letter writing campaign January 2011 (MLK weekend). I consider all of them Co-Founders. Without their help, it wouldn’t have happened. The organization was not planned… it was born out of this letter campaign. We turned our pain into passion and purpose.

MARK: Tell us about the project that will be funded by the $1,000 Ann Arbor Awesome Foundation grant.

LOIS: We will begin with Washtenaw County, and obtain public records on inmates who have just been sentenced into prison. They will receive a postcard with information about our Resource Guide for Families, Friends and Advocates, and information on our meetings and our organization, as well as other resources to help them as they enter the prison system. Our goal is to get this information to them so they can share it with their support systems prior to being transported into the system, so families and prisoners can know how to navigate up front. We will be working with the Washtenaw County Jail to provide hard copies of the guide that inmates can review while they are waiting to be moved. We are hoping they will work collaboratively with us to provide inmates and their families what they should have up front prior to entering the system. If families do not have computer access, we will mail them a hard copy of the guide. As we set up this project and it is running smoothly, we will then use funds to move the project out to other counties.

As of January 13, there were 43,442 inmates in the system, and approximately 9,000 people are sentenced to prison each year. So we know that we’ll need manpower and significant funding to reach out to all counties in doing this work.

Now, here’s the piece with Ted Koppel, which aired yesterday on Rock Center.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

[note: The photo above is of Lois DeMott's son, Kevin, who was arrested at 13 for armed robbery and imprisoned at 15 as an adult. The image, acquired by way of Freedom of Information Act, was taken at the Ionia Maximum Correctional Facility, where Kevin, who was 19 at the time, had been restrained to prevent injury. The complete story can be found at the Detroit Free Press.]

[note: Video of Lois presenting to the Ann Arbor Awesome Foundation board can be found here.]

…The lawsuit says that the student government should have allocated the roughly $5,000 that Students for Life had requested in February to sponsor the Genocide Awareness Project. The project uses large displays to compare abortion to the Nazis’ mass killing of Jews, the lynching of African Americans, and genocide in Cambodia.

The traveling exhibit visits universities across the U.S. and is run by the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform, a California group that opposes abortion. The alliance says that the university violated the constitutional rights of members of Students for Life because allocation of student fees for campus events must be politically neutral.

“Universities should encourage, not shut down, the free exchange of ideas,” said David Hacker, attorney with the alliance…

My inclination upon first hearing this was that the group had no real intention of presenting the Genocide Awareness Project on EMU’s campus, and that they were likely just engaged in some high-stakes trolling – encouraging fundamentalist students on campuses across the country to request a visit from their wall of highly-magnified baby gore, only to be told no, triggering a lawsuit which would bring with it free press coverage and the financial contributions which would surely follow. (Not a bad business model.) But, it would seem that the Genocide Awareness Project does actually make it to some campuses. Here, for instance, is a photo from the campus of Eastern Kentucky University.

I’m all for open, honest debate on issues… even contentious issues, like abortion… but I find it difficult to imagine that a group that puts up images of Obama and Hitler flanked by the dissected limbs of fetuses, is really interested in facilitating meaningful dialogue. And, I’m happy to hear that EMU had the good sense not to provide funding that would have brought these folks to Ypsilanti. I will admit, however, that, as a card carrying member of the ACLU and a proponent of free speech, I’m somewhat conflicted with regard to my feelings about this. While, on the one hand, I find the images incredibly distasteful, and counterproductive to meaningful discourse, on the other I recognize the fact that people have a right to champion their beliefs publicly, no matter how misguided I may find them. Unfortunately, in cases like these, I believe the tactics employed blur the line. “At what point,” I ask myself, “do my the rights of the sign-holder end, and the rights of the innocent passer-by begin?” And, I suspect I would be wondering the same thing if we were discussing an anti-war organization that was seeking to further their cause on the EMU campus by forcing innocent bystanders to confront larger-than-life depictions of children killed and dismembered by drone attacks in Iraq and Afghanistan. While I agree that people need to be made aware, in that particular instance, of the real human costs associated with our foreign policy decisions, I believe that there are better ways to convey that message in public… At any rate, I’m curious as to what others think.

[note: We had a somewhat similar conversation back in 2006, when an anti-abortion group brought their massive, bloody "partial-birth abortion" signs to Michigan Avenue.]

The following quote from Kara Dansky, the senior counsel at the ACLU’s Center for Justice, comes by way of the Huffington Post.

“We’ve known for a while now that American neighborhoods are increasingly being policed by cops armed with the weapons and tactics of war… The aim of this investigation is to find out just how pervasive this is, and to what extent federal funding is incentivizing this trend.”

Of course, this isn’t anything new. Over half a dozen years ago, the libertarian CATO Institute issued a white paper entitled OVERKILL: The Rise of Paramilitary Raids in America. I don’t typically refer to reports by the Koch brothers-funded think tank, but, at least in this instance, I feel as though we may have common cause. Here’s how the folks at CATO framed the issue at the time… as an outgrowth of the so-called War on Drugs.

…The election of Ronald Reagan in 1980 brought new funding, equipment, and a more active drug-policing role for paramilitary police units across the country. Reagan’s new offensive in the War on Drugs involved a more confrontational, militaristic approach to combating the drug supply, a policy enthusiastically embraced by Congress. During the next 10 years, with prodding from the White House, Congress paved the way to widespread military-style policing by carving yawning drug war exceptions to the Posse Comitatus Act, the Civil War–era law prohibiting the use of the military for civilian policing. These new exceptions allowed nearly unlimited sharing of drug interdiction intelligence, training, tactics, technology, and weaponry between the Pentagon and federal, state, and local police departments.

The first of these exemptions was the Military Cooperation with Law Enforcement Act, passed in 1981. This wide-reaching legislation encouraged the military to give local, state, and federal police access to military bases, research, and equipment for drug interdiction. It also authorized the military to train civilian police officers to use the newly available equipment, and not only encouraged the military to share drug-war–related information with civilian police but authorized the military to take an active role in preventing drugs from entering the country…

And, as we all know, things have only escalated with the War on Terror, and the seemingly endless amounts of government/military spending that have come along with it. Motivated by fear, we pour money into developing new terrorist-fighting technologies, that invariably make their way back to our shores, where they can be deployed against us. This can be seen today in cities like Miami and Houston, where domestic military exercises have become commonplace. Here, for those of you who respond better to visuals, is a photo taken last year in Anaheim, where approximately 300 citizens had gathered to protest police violence. These are police officers.

Someone in the Reddit thread about this ACLU announcement brilliantly tied in Battlestar Galactica, offering the following quote from the series.

Commander William Adama: “There’s a reason you separate military and the police. One fights the enemies of the state, the other serves and protects the people. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the state tend to become the people.”

So, with that in mind, I’m going to make up for the fact that I’ve allowed my ACLU membership to lapse, and make a contribution to the ACLU Foundation… Someone needs to lead this fight, and I’m glad that we have the ACLU to take it on.

One last thing, regarding possible solutions… Here’s a note from the end of the 2006 CATO report that I found of interest.

End the Pentagon Giveaways. The primary reason so many police departments across the country can afford SWAT teams is the Pentagon’s policy of making surplus military equipment available to those departments for free, or at steep discounts. The Pentagon used its defense budget to buy that equipment, a budget given to it by Congress on behalf of American taxpayers for the purpose of defending Americans from threats from abroad. It’s perverse to then use that equipment against American citizens as part of the government’s war on domestic drug offenders.

Amen.

Oh, and in related news, Attorney General Eric Holder told the Senate Judiciary Committee today that Obama “has (the) authority to use drone strikes to kill Americans on US soil.”

[Today's post is dedicated to the memory of Detroit's Aiyana Jones.]

I suspect that our readers on the far right will reject it offhand as the work of agitators looking to instigate “class warfare,” and our friends on the far left will find fault with the way in which Socialism is summarily written off as a non-viable alternative to our current system, but I think this is exactly the kind of straightforward, fact-driven, middle-of-the-road, non-partisan piece that we need more of. Now, if we could just find a way to incorporate an adorable squeaking frog doing the Harlem Shake, we’d be all set.

Here, for those of you who would like to dig deeper, are the references behind the video:

Mother Jones
Dan Ariely
Think Progress
CNN

And, if you’re interested, our previous conversations on wealth inequality can be found here.

[Tonight's post is brought to you by the Romney for Detroit campaign.]

And why did I just have to stumble across this poster at Sidetrack tonight? Isn’t this the kind of thing that should be on the news everywhere? Isn’t this the kind of thing that the emergency broadcast system was made for?

People need to prepare themselves.

Here’s an idea, though… What if we find out when he’s coming into town, and strike proactively? What if we descend upon him at his hotel, and hit him with a solid, prolonged attack of poorly-executed, novice sound effects? Just imagine how cool it would be to be in the elevator with him, making fart sounds behind his back, or to be hiding behind a potted plant in the hallway outside of his room, making snarling dog sounds.

[note: There is one cool thing about his coming to Ypsi, though. His website lists his upcoming schedule as "Ireland, Ypsilanti, Seattle." I think that's pretty awesome... And, speaking of predator drones, did I hear correctly, upon waking up from my 36-hour flu-coma, that we've made it even easier for Obama to snuff out American citizens at will? So much for thinking that we wouldn't have to worry about things like "targeted killings" when we elected a professor of Constitutional law to be our President.]

Here, for the 99.99% of local folks who don’t listen to Thayrone’s show, is the highly entertaining audio.

Fortunately for us, though, Thayrone has no power, and Andy’s resolution passed out of Wednesday’s Ways and Means committee with a 6 to 1 vote. So, it looks as though it will be passed at the next meeting of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners.

Here’s the resolution:

Whereas, on December 11th, 2012 Governor Rick Snyder signed “Right to Work” legislation passed in the lame duck session of the 96th session of the Michigan Legislature; legislation designed to weaken labor unions and their ability to serve their members; and

Whereas, Washtenaw County has long had a beneficial relationship with labor unions representing our county workforce, which assist in the provision of customer service to our citizens as union membership can lead to productive tenures for employees; and

Whereas, Washtenaw County has served as host to various labor conventions and training sessions for a collective thirty years with the EEI Union Training Programs; United Association Instructor Training Program; NJATC National Training Institute; Ironworkers Instructor Training Program; and others; and

Whereas, the annual positive economic impact of such events for the County is approximately $12 million; with 22,000 hotel room nights in Washtenaw County; representing 31% of the total rooms booked by the Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitors Bureau; resulting in $2.3 million in spending at local restaurants and $3.5 million in spending on entertainment, recreation, shopping/retail, transportation at local businesses; and

Whereas, Washtenaw Community College serves a world leader in union training and has signed a new Training Agreement with Australia – UA of US, Canada and Australia; and

Whereas, both local and visiting Labor groups have made positive social impacts for Washtenaw County residents.

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners formally condemns the passage of “Right to Work” legislation in the State of Michigan.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners seeks to notify all of its labor partners that it does not support the economic arguments for and assumed outcomes espoused of “Right to Work” proponents.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners calls on the Michigan Legislature to provide swift passage of SB 95 and SB 96, which would repeal “Right to Work.”

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners seeks to continue the long and successful partnerships the County, its businesses, organizations, and citizens have had with various labor organizations by re-affirming the value derived from these relationships.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners re-affirms its support for the rights of labor organizations and members to exercise their rights to the fullest possible extent;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners directs the County Administrator and the Director of Human Resources to engage in expedited negotiations, as requested by the Unions, with the goal of reaching four (4) year agreements to protect and extend each bargaining unit’s union security provisions, as well as enter into a Letter of Understanding separate from the existing collective bargaining agreements for a period of ten (10) years;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution shall be sent to the Washtenaw County delegation to the Michigan Legislature, the Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, and any and all labor groups deemed appropriate by staff.

Also, for what it’s worth, the easiest way to gain my respect, for those of you would would like it, is to be attacked by Thayrone.

State House Republican leaders say they have no plans to scrap discussions about splitting Michigan’s Electoral College votes between congressional districts.

Both Governor Rick Snyder and Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville have said they’re not on board with the idea. Snyder says it would be better to consider changes closer to the next census, when congressional lines are re-drawn.

But House Speaker Jase Bolger said there’s no reason to wait that long.

“This should not be a conversation about party. This certainly should not be a conversation – and is not, at this point – a conversation about who might win, because we don’t know who the candidates are. So this is the time to have that conversation, when a presidential election is not ongoing,” he said…

For what it’s worth, Representative Peter Lund, the author of the bill which would, if passed, end Michigan’s winner-take-all system, and replace it with a scheme in which electoral votes are split up and awarded from each individual congressional district independently, said yesterday that, despite what Bolger has suggested, he’s in no hurry to introduce the legislation. The following clip comes from Gary Heinlein’s piece in yesterday’s Detroit News.

…A bill he sponsored last year failed to gain support and died at the end of the legislative session. Lund said that’s partly because GOP lawmakers thought Romney had a chance to win the state’s popular vote and get all 16 electoral votes.

Lund, whose bill was in the hopper for most of the last two-year session, said Tuesday he’s not personally motivated by such concerns.

He said now is the perfect time to debate the change because the next election is far off and so are no such calculations to be made.

“We’ve got 45 weeks until it matters,” he said. “I’m still going to do it but I’m not in a hurry; it’s not a priority right now.”..

Given how the right-to-work legislation came about after our Governor assured us that it “wasn’t on (his) agenda,” I’m not inclined to say that we’re out of danger on this issue, but I really don’t see how it’s likely at this point that the Republicans will make a move, despite the statements made by Bolger. Of course, I could be wrong, but I suspect, if they were going to do it, they probably would have done it by now. As far as I can tell, though, there’s really no impetus for them to push it through during this legislative session, when the next Presidential election is four years off, and they don’t yet know who their candidate will be, or whether their party might have a shot of winning Michigan – taking all 16 electoral votes for their side. Of course, the odds are against them. The people of Michigan haven’t voted for a Republican since 1988, when George Bush the Elder faced off against Mike Dukakis. But I’m sure they’re convinced that this time might be different, and they might be able, thought various voter suppression efforts, and misleading campaign ads, to win the majority of votes. And I suppose this is a good thing for us that they have this evil, little glimmer of hope, as it buys us time. So, what do we do now? How do we make good use of this time, and work to ensure that this change isn’t made a year or two from now, when they decide to go for it, in hopes of securing 9 of Michigan’s 16 electoral votes for their candidate?

[note: Those who are interested in the specifics might want to check out our discussion from a few days ago, which goes into quite a bit more detail on this issue.]