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Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
MIGOP chair appears open to primaries for attorney general, secretary of state
MIGOP Chairman state Sen. Jim Runestad, R-White Lake, center, and state Rep. Bryan Posthumus, R-Rockford, right, discuss the future of the Michigan Republican Party Chad Livengood of The Detroit News during the third day of the Mackinac Policy Conference at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Mich., on May 29, 2025. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance) MACKINAC ISLAND – Michigan GOP Chair Jim Runestad says he is open to the idea of selecting nominees for attorney general and secretary of state through statewide primaries. Currently, the candidates are selected by delegates at each party's convention. 'I think the base of the party likes the idea of being able to have input in these statewide positions,' said Runestad, a state senator from White Lake. State Rep. Bryan Posthumus (R-Rockford) expressed a similar sentiment but added that he sees value in the type of grassroots activists conventions bring out. Runestad and Posthumus spoke during a discussion on the future of the Michigan Republican Party at the Mackinac Policy Conference on Thursday. Runestad was selected to lead the Michigan Republican Party in February. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX He said the party had about $800,000 of debt when he first took over, but said he has raised $500,000 since taking over. 'We're vanquishing that debt,' Runestad said. 'I think by year's end, we're going to get most of that down, and into next year, at the end of this term, we certainly will have no debt.' Runestad said he has vowed to ensure the party has a 'big' fund balance by the end of his term – even if means denying requests for a last-minute spending spree in the run-up to the election. 'We're going to raise the money, we're going to spend the money, but whether it's me or someone else, we're not going to leave that for the next person,' Runestad said. He said the party has been undergoing a rebuilding process following several years of dramatic internal politics. 'We are on a growth spurt,' Runestad said. 'We have changed everything that was done in the past in terms of the email system, the domain system, the website. We are changing absolutely everything from what it was before into a completely new party.'
USA Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- USA Today
No civility, no democracy? These writers say it's vital we talk to each other
No civility, no democracy? These writers say it's vital we talk to each other | Opinion The growing inability – or even desire – to engage with people who hold opposing views is leading to fractures that aren't harmful only to personal relationships. They're hurting our country. Show Caption Hide Caption These writers say it's vital we talk to each other Two veteran journalists fear the nearly 250-year-old American experiment is at risk if we can't get back to talking to each other in meaningful ways. If it weren't for bourbon, veteran Detroit journalists Nolan Finley and Stephen Henderson would not be friends. Frequent sparring partners? Sure. But not friends. When they discovered a shared love of the famed Kentucky beverage, however, they started meeting at Motor City bars and really talking to each other. And even though they are about as far apart on the political spectrum as you can get, they realized they had more in common than they thought. Mutual respect then evolved into friendship. Finley, a conservative, and Henderson, a liberal, have appeared frequently together on Detroit TV shows, debating the news of the day. Yet, people would be surprised when they discovered they were more than competitors in the world of ideas. They were friends, too. So Finley, the editorial page editor of The Detroit News, and Henderson, a Pulitzer Prize winner who has worked across journalism mediums, decided to start bringing together diverse groups of their friends and acquaintances at 'bourbon nights.' At these events, a cross section of Detroiters who would have probably never hung out otherwise realized they enjoyed the conversations. Those events later morphed into The Civility Project, with Finley and Henderson holding workshops about how to cross ideological divides. Now, Finley and Henderson, along with author and writing coach Lynne Golodner, have turned what they've learned into 'The Civility Book,' which will be released in early June. (Full disclosure: Finley was my boss when I worked at The Detroit News and is one of my closest friends. I consider Henderson a friend as well.) I recently spoke with them about their book and why civility is more important than ever in our deeply divided country. There's value in getting out of our own echo chambers Finley and Henderson say the driving principle of their book is the value in engaging with those who hold different views and come from different backgrounds. As they write, 'Embracing empathy and respect for 'the other side' doesn't mean abandoning your own convictions.' Opinion: Is it me or ChatGPT? As AI grows smarter, I have a down-to-earth worry ‒ my job. 'All good people come to their opinions in the same way,' Finley says. 'They take the information available, run it through the filter of their own experiences, and they come up with an opinion.' And it's OK if the opinion is different from your own, Finley says. 'It doesn't make them evil and it doesn't mean they're out to destroy you. It just means they've lived different life experiences.' Simply hearing out someone else is not the same thing as 'giving in.' After all, changing someone's mind is close to impossible. Trust me, I know from experience after years as an opinion columnist. Yet, I consider it a victory when I hear from a reader who will say they're on the opposite side of the political spectrum but still respect my views and take time to read my column. After years of battling out their ideas without really changing the other's mind, Henderson and Finley say there's still value in having the debate. 'While it's true that we don't change each other's minds and we don't find each other on the same side of most issues, when we talk about those things, I think we both would say that we're learning from the other person,' Henderson says. 'Maybe one of us has come across some information about something that the other hadn't seen. That happens a lot. And there is value in understanding the perspective of people who disagree. It strengthens your argument.' What's on the line if we can't be civil with one another? A lot. The growing inability – or even desire – to engage with people who hold opposing views is leading to fractures that aren't harmful only to personal relationships. They're hurting our country. After the contentious 2024 presidential election, many of us know of family, friends or coworkers who no longer talk because of their political differences. Members of Congress scream at each other instead of working together. And we live in our own social media and cable TV silos, where we can have our views confirmed and never challenged. Opinion: Salman Rushdie canceled? Pro-Palestinian groups hamper speech for everyone else. Finley and Henderson are concerned about what Americans' unwillingness to engage constructively with others portends. 'There's something fundamental about the exchange of ideas in a democracy,' Henderson says. 'That may seem like an obvious observation, but right now I'm not sure it is. The democratic experiment that this country represents depends on the honest exchange of ideas.' Henderson fears the nearly 250-year-old American experiment is at risk if we can't get back to talking to each other in a meaningful way. 'Do we want to keep trying to perfect democracy in this country, or are we just kind of done with it?' he asks. Finley and Henderson hope their book can serve as a guide to healing this coming apart. And it starts one conversation at a time. 'Civility means learning to engage without the hatred and learning to disagree with someone without devaluing that person,' Finley says. 'And I guess that would be it in a nutshell for me.' Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at USA TODAY. Contact her at ijacques@ or on X: @Ingrid_Jacques
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Detroit mayoral candidates tackle lingering issues, plans for city's future
Five of Detroit's mayoral candidates debated each other Thursday evening at the Mackinac Policy Conference, taking questions about ways to improve the city, and being challenged over their previous roles. Moderators Stephen Henderson of Bridge Detroit and Nolan Finley of The Detroit News questioned candidates on ways they expect to lure in more businesses while managing tax credits, maintain a balanced budget and whether their past experiences transfer to the duties of the city's top position. The debate included former Detroit Police Chief James Craig, Triumph Church Pastor Solomon Kinloch Jr., Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield, Councilmember Fred Durhal III and former City Council President Saunteel Jenkins. Todd Perkins, Joel Haashiim, Jonathan Barlow and DaNetta Simpson are also running but were not a part of the debate. Mayor Mike Duggan held a panel discussion of his own at the conference aimed at propping himself up for his 2026 gubernatorial bid, and moderators asked candidates to delve into whether he did the city right by his policies. In the debate, mayoral candidates had chances for rebuttals, which often resulted in defending themselves or their platforms. Craig and Sheffield sparred over the theft of $44 million from the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy's former CFO, William Smith, as the former police chief aimed his argument at Sheffield, who sits on the board. "I'm not saying the board did anything wrong, but I think it warrants a closer examination to find out what went wrong, because we're talking about fiscal leadership and fiscal responsibility. Something's lacking there," Craig said. Sheffield clapped back, noting she is not part of the audit or finance committees, and called his argument "disingenuous." "All of the documents were altered. The public documents that were put online and submitted to the board at public meetings were all altered. No one knew what was going on," Sheffield said. "In that situation, we now know, and for me as a leader, the importance of oversight and more control as it relates to fiscal management." Here is how candidates tackled the debate: Candidates addressed what they believed the business community's role in the city is and explained how they would manage things like using tax incentives to attract businesses. Tax incentives have been a contentious subject for residents but several developers relied on them to build major projects. Jenkins said she would partner with businesses, noting 'over half of the tax abatements will have expired' by 2030, which would require searching for ways to extend them. 'Otherwise, we'll start to lose businesses. We'll start to lose jobs, and the role of business is twofold. It's creating jobs. It's an economic driver,' Jenkins said. Durhal said the city is facing an 'abatement cliff' and expects to restructure it. 'We can utilize, as we spread out the length of that abatement, an opportunity to opt in and generate revenue earlier for our city by allowing developers, as well as those who have built there, to pay a little bit early, and that'll add more money and revenue to our general fund here,' Durhal said. Kinloch expects to convene various business and community leaders to ensure they are aware the mayor is receptive to business in the city. 'The mayoral office does not just cast vision, it also communicates that vision, and it also convenes a table. In order to bring stakeholders together, we have to make sure that businesses are not the only stakeholders at the table, that we are calling together neighborhood leaders. We're calling together the philanthropic community because we want to ensure that residents feel as much a part of the community as anyone else,' Kinloch said. Craig mainly focused on growing the middle class by building out small businesses. 'We have to focus on growing our middle class. I talk a lot about growing small businesses, but that doesn't take away from continuing to grow big businesses. We have got to raise revenues in this city,' Craig said. 'One of the things I have heard as chief and deputy mayor over time is many neighborhoods feel left out, the businesses feel left out. As police chief, I leveraged working very closely with small businesses,' Craig said, referring to Project Green Light, an initiative that places cameras at businesses to prevent crime. Sheffield said during her tenure on council, she tried bridging the gap between people and businesses, and credited public-private partnerships for contributing to the city's growth. 'When it comes to tax abatements, my number one issue is addressing the core of why we have to abate in the first place, and that is because we pay some of the highest property taxes in the country,' Sheffield said. 'My goal, day one, which we're laying the foundation now, is to ensure that we're addressing real structural property tax reform so that we do not have to continue to abate our way out of the issues that we have in Detroit." Candidates highlighted the Duggan administration's record of attracting businesses and manufacturers after the city came out of bankruptcy, laying groundwork for the next mayor, restoring basic city services, reducing crime, maintaining a fiscal foundation and overall rebuilding confidence for investors. But several highlighted the need to invest more in neighborhoods. 'We need to make sure that there is a commercial corridor in each of the seven districts. We have to ensure that our planning is intentional and that it is inclusive, and when we are having discussions about tax abatements, discussions about affordable housing, we have a real plan in place that is driving development and affordable housing and public transit in a way that is building our neighborhoods, and we also have to include schools,' Jenkins said. Durhal and Sheffield pointed out that Duggan's successes also stemmed from working alongside City Council. Durhal hit hard on the continuing need to change the city's high property taxes. 'What nobody's talking about when we talk about comprehensive property tax reform, all of those ropes lead through Lansing … so when we take our plans to Lansing, we're going to lower property taxes, we're going to work on preemption to give our city the ability to have the determination of our future. And I think we can have a better job of delivering from Lansing to continue Detroit's growth. You're going to need that experienced leadership to continue that growth." Kinloch credited Duggan but also pointed out that the city needs to tackle homelessness and poverty, and bring equitable jobs to help residents 'not only just survive, but thrive.' Craig critiqued the 'red tape bureaucracy,' indicating it holds back business owners from opening up their establishments due to dozens of steps they have to face, which Duggan addressed last week. Sheffield stressed that boosting the middle class and raising the income levels of Detroiters, who face a median income below the statewide average, is important to creating a pipeline of future jobs. 'Without a doubt, we have to ensure that more investment comes back into our neighborhoods and that we're activating our commercial corridors. I'm very excited for my administration to be way more hands-on as it relates to the education of our youth,' Sheffield said. Moderators questioned candidates about leaving their roles, leaning toward a political party — despite the mayoral post being nonpartisan — running a religious institution while potentially balancing public office and proving their abilities. Jenkins served on City Council amid Detroit's bankruptcy but resigned early to pursue an executive role with The Heat and Warmth Fund. She added that her last day on council was when officials announced Detroit was exiting bankruptcy. 'We had a plan in place that would not be changed for the next 10 years, no matter who was on council. So I did something that's actually very similar to what our current mayor did. I left my elected position and went to serve as CEO of a multi-million dollar organization that was serving some of the most vulnerable citizens across the state of Michigan.' Sheffield has been an advocate involved with numerous politically progressive individuals, though concerns about a deeply conservative White House do not deter the council president. 'I know how to find common ground,' Sheffield said. 'I come from a legacy of fighters. It is really about bringing resources back to Detroit, improving the quality of life for Detroiters.' Craig has publicly declared himself conservative and flexed his relationship with the White House but pointed out that he is 'a Detroiter first' and expects to draw out more federal money, if elected. Kinloch expects to run his church simultaneously with his role as mayor, if elected. He promises to serve as a full-time mayor and go to church on Sundays, preach, and leave the day-to-day responsibilities to an executive team at the church. Durhal addressed his past leadership experiences in Lansing as an assistant Democratic leader of the House, and his experience chairing City Council committees, as proof he can manage more than what his resume shows. 'You've got to have relationships up there. Folks talk about working across the aisle. We've got a proven track record of doing it,' Durhal said. The city maintained a balanced budget since bankruptcy and has since received more than $800 million in federal money. Officials are in the process of transferring any remaining federal money that must be spent by next year, along with retaining employees. Boosting revenue will require some creativity from the next mayor. 'We have to diversify our revenue streams,' Sheffield said, suggesting ideas such as an entertainment tax, but noting the city needs a 'phenomenal' chief financial officer to maintain fiscal discipline. Durhal said that an amusement tax would not generate enough, though it's projected to raise about $10 million a year. 'That's not enough funding to move this city forward,' Durhal said. Jenkins added that adopting a balanced budget, which Durhal and Sheffield touted, does not make one a good fiscal leader. Although she credited city officials throughout the years for maintaining a balanced budget, simply because it is their duty. Dana Afana is the Detroit city hall reporter for the Free Press. Contact: dafana@ Follow her: @DanaAfana This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit mayoral candidates debate at Mackinac Policy Conference
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Honda Plans To Lean Into Hybrids, Walk Back From EVs
Read the full story on The Auto Wire There's no doubt the EV market has cooled, which has caused Honda to walk back from its aggressive electrification plans. Instead, the Japanese automaker says it will lean into hybrids, something rival Toyota has been doing with great Honda was aiming to have 30 percent of global vehicle sales be electric cars by 2030. That goal coincided with EV mandates, either explicit or implicit, pushed by federal and state governments in the US. However, Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe said his company's slashing of its EV development investments from 10 trillion yen through 2031 to 7 trillion yen doesn't change the automaker's long term electrification strategy, per The Detroit News. Now that consumers aren't going to be forced into buying electric vehicles, automakers are having to pivot. We tried warning the industry before that forcing people to buy EVs was a bad idea, but the bandwagon and groupthink mentalities were strong just two years ago. While The Detroit News seems to blame Trump for the cooling EV market, the reality is quite different. Automakers would be wise to realize that consumers are tired of being told what they should buy and especially of being forced into new technologies, like electrification. Trump has just tapped into this market sentiment. Even as used EV values were plummeting back in December 2023, many in the auto industry as well as the media behaved like the electrification party would never end. Exactly how Honda will handle this short term transition wasn't spelled out by Mibe, only that it will start churning out a lot more hybrids. Of course, the automaker has a long history of developing and producing hybrid powertrains stretching back into the 90s, so we think it can manage. But it's also behind Toyota, which has been rolling out hybrid versions of just about every model line in production today. Will we see other automakers like GM and Ford turn back to hybrids more? Image via Honda Join our Newsletter, subscribe to our YouTube page, and follow us on Facebook.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Eminem Stalker Convicted After Second Home Invasion
Eminem's stalker was found guilty of first-degree home invasion and aggravated stalking after breaking into the rapper's home outside of Detroit for a second time last summer, The Detroit News reports. Matthew David Hughes, 32, was convicted earlier this week after a short trial that began Tuesday (May 6) and ended the following day. Eminem testified during the trial, as did his security chief, and the jury returned the guilty verdict after about 90 minutes of deliberation. Hughes will be sentenced June 17. More from Rolling Stone See Eminem's 'Lose Yourself' Re-Created With Dialogue From Over 330 Films Eminem's 'Stans' Doc to Premiere at SXSW London Eminem Is a Grandpa! Rapper's Daughter Hailie Honors Him With Baby Name Hughes has a history of stalking Eminem, going back to 2019 when he broke into one of the rapper's former homes looking for him. He was ultimately convicted of breaking and entering and sentenced to 90 days in prison. The following year, Hughes successfully broke into Eminem's actual home, with the rapper claiming that he woke up to find Hughes in his bedroom and that Hughes threatened to kill him. Hughes pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years probation, though a violation in an unrelated assault landed him back in prison. He was released on parole in May 2024. Prosecutor Seven Fox said that, like the 2020 incident, Eminem was sleeping when Hughes broke into his property early one morning last August. This time, however, Hughes did not make it to the rapper's bedroom. Fox said that Eminem has taken to sleeping in a padlocked room in a secluded part of his home because of the past incidents with Hughes. 'Marshall Mathers has taken extraordinary steps to protect himself and his family,' Fox said. 'Security 24/7. And each time that step has had to increase, but only as the result of one person's actions, Matthew Hughes. The world becomes smaller. He's on an island.' According to authorities, Eminem's security team spotted Hughes near Eminem's home at about 7 a.m. on Aug. 26, 2024. Hughes had apparently entered the property through an unlocked door and fled with a stolen bike, likely after realizing he'd been spotted. He was apprehended a few days later after one of Eminem's employees saw him while shopping at a Walmart. Police believe Hughes was homeless at the time and living in the woods nearby. Hughes had pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. His public defender called the case circumstantial, saying there was no direct evidence linking Hughes to the break-in, including a lack of potential DNA or fingerprints from the door he allegedly used to break into the home. A representative for Eminem did not immediately return Rolling Stone's request for comment. Best of Rolling Stone The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
