WEST MICHIGAN POLITICS

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Calley+Colbeck Agree To Voter Townhall Tour, Schuette Refuses

By Brandon Hall
(Email Him At WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com)

Lt. Governor Brian Calley has proposed a series of town hall meetings for Republican primary voters to ask candidates for Governor questions, six in six weeks.

State Senator Patrick Colbeck and Dr. Jim Hines have accepted Calley's invitation, but Attorney General Bill Schuette is refusing, apparently unwilling to take his case directly to the voters.

Schuette says he will participate in townhalls at another time, to be determined.

According to Emily Lawler of MLive:

"Lt. Gov. Brian Calley is challenging his Republican primary opponents in the governor's race to travel the state with him over the next month and a half, participating in six town-hall style debates.

"The next state election will determine whether Michigan continues its comeback or goes in a different direction, so Michigan Republican primary voters deserve the opportunity to ask all the GOP candidates for governor questions about their visions for the future of our state," Calley said in a press release.

"That's why I'm calling on all the candidates seeking the GOP nomination to commit with me to participating in a series of candidate town hall events throughout Michigan over a period of six weeks."

Attorney General Bill Schuette, a big hitter in the Republican gubernatorial field, does not plan to participate, according to spokeswoman Katie Hills.

"Bill believes they should be at work trying to cut taxes. We are looking forward to things like town halls at a later time," Hills said.

But other gubernatorial candidates are primed for the challenge.

Sen. Patrick Colbeck, on WJR's Frank Beckmann show Monday, said he, Jim Hines and Calley had agreed to the series of town halls.

"We've all agreed on a suite of town halls that we're going to have, sharing our respective visions for where we want to take Michigan," Colbeck said.

Hines is open to participating in the debates, a member of his campaign staff confirmed."

The decision comes as Schuette has been in the hot seat for threatening to fire state employees who did not support his Gubernatorial campaign.

Schuette has also seen a nearly 40% lead over Calley disappear down to around 10%...

__________________________________________________________________
Brandon Hall is a lifelong political nerd from Grand Haven, and is the Managing Editor of West Michigan Politics.

>>>Email him at WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com
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Wednesday, January 3, 2018

FBI: We Have Evidence Leading Conyers Replacement+Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon Is Corrupt

Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon

By Brandon Hall
(Email Him At WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com)

The FBI says it has evidence Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon is corrupt, but they don't have enough to bring charges at this time.

The revelation came to light recently after FBI documents were mistakenly released publicly for a brief time.

Napoleon is the leading candidate to replace controversial Congressman John Conyers, who recently resigned after a sexual harassment scandal ended his 60 year political career.

Recent polling shows Napoleon leading the field in the 13th with 26% of the vote, Westland Mayor Bill Weld was 2nd with 16%...

"Looking ahead to who could fill Conyers newly vacant seat in Congress, MIRS also asked the participants who they’d vote for in next fall’s election. The current leader is Sheriff Benny Napoleon of Wayne County with 26 percent of the votes, followed by undecided voters at 17 percent, Westland Mayor Bill Wild at 16 percent and State Senator Coleman Young II at 12 percent."

According to Robert Snell,George Hunter and Christine Ferretti of the Detroit News:

"Several previously undisclosed Metro Detroit public officials and politicians drew scrutiny from federal agents during a public corruption investigation that started in Macomb County and spread to Wayne County and Detroit, according to federal court records obtained by The Detroit News.

The records, for the first time, publicly mention former Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Anthony Marrocco in a criminal investigation that has led to charges against his former right-hand man, Dino Bucci.

Federal wiretap documents filed in federal court contain a list of “target subjects” that includes several public officials. Among them: Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon, Wayne County Circuit Judge Vonda Evans, two former state representatives and Detroit City Councilman Gabe Leland.

FBI agents were investigating conspiracy to distribute marijuana, bribery, extortion and other crimes in connection with Detroit towing mogul Gasper Fiore or others, according to court records obtained by The News. The records included an application to continue wiretapping Fiore’s cellphone.

In one document, FBI Special Agent Robert Beeckman, who helped prosecute former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, describes the ongoing investigation.

“Evidence has been gathered showing that crimes involving corruption have been committed by some of the target subjects, including Tinsley-Talabi, Napoleon and Casab,” the agent wrote. “However, those investigations have been pending for months or years and the evidence so far has not been sufficient to bring federal charges.”

Stay tuned!

Breaking: Mike Mitchell Faces Imminent Arrest By FBI, Busted With Stolen Government Property In Garage

Mike Mitchell, left, with Attorney General Bill Schuette, right (DarKen Photography)

By Brandon Hall
(Email Him At WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com)

Former 11th Congressional District Republican Chair Mike Mitchell will be arrested imminently after stolen Plymouth Township property was found in his garage, a source close to the investigation tells West Michigan Politics. The arrest could come any minute.

Mitchell was allegedly involved in a scam surrounding his work in Plymouth Township government when he worked under Supervisor Shannon Price. Price is also the target of an investigation, but the FBI does not have enough evidence to bring any charges at this time.

WMP has learned that the township property found in Mitchell's garage included a lawnmower, as well as a Gator, a nifty looking, golf cartesque vehicle. He also had offroad ATV's known as quads/ four wheelers.

The items had been missing from Plymouth Township for weeks when they were discovered. Mitchell apparently had a large garage full of Township items. The total value of the items is believed to be around $25,000.

The source's information matches with a blockbuster new article from the Plymouth Voice by Don Howard.

According to Howard:

"Plymouth Township Supervisor Kurt Heise has confirmed that federal prosecutors are expected to reveal criminal charges involving the theft of municipal property. Heise, speaking last Wednesday during an exclusive interview with The Eagle, said that the charges are imminent in the investigation which is ongoing. Refusing to name the involved parties, Heise confirmed that FBI agents have visited Plymouth Township Hall several times in the past three months. Rumors about a criminal investigation within the township have run rampant since July after Township Police Chief Tom Tiderington confirmed certain former township employees were being investigated for an alleged large-scale theft of township property.

Heise would only confirm that in addition to a pending indictment of a former employee, federal agents have expressed a “great interest” in township interaction involving the now defunct company owned by former trash titan Chuck Rizzo, and his father, Charles Rizzo, Rizzo Environmental Services, and “matters involving former township personnel that occurred during the tenure of the former Supervisor Shannon Price.” The Rizzo investigation is part of a wideranging probe of political corruption in local governments.

Rizzo, the former CEO, and his father Charles Rizzo Sr., have recently pleaded guilty and face up to 10 years in federal prison after admitting they bribed Macomb County politicians to build their trash business. Rizzo senior, charged in a 43-page indictment this fall, allegedly stole funds from his own company to bribe local politicians while building his trash-hauling business into a colossal enterprise. The father and son businessmen were the subject of a court-ordered wiretap and admitted responsibility when confronted by federal authorities. The ongoing scandal led to criminal charges of multiple elected officials and municipal employees in several communities. During a contentious 3-1/2 hour Plymouth Township Board of Trustees meeting in May 2015, one month after Price took office, Plymouth Township officials awarded Rizzo a seven-year, $11 million waste hauling contract and dismissed Duncan Disposal System, Inc. The meeting was punctuated with raised voices and obvious displays of temper but then-officials claimed Rizzo was the low bidder of five competing companies and the contact was approved by a 5-1 vote.

Heise said after the initial discovery of the missing property in the spring of last year, township officials considered turning the investigation over to the office of Attorney General Bill Schuette, but declined to do so because of the state official’s involvement with Price. Heise described that move as being “problematic” and said one of the main reasons for the decision to involve federal authorities was that Price was a former employee of the attorney general and Schuette had conducted fundraisers and provided political endorsements for Price. Price worked in the department of constituent relations for Schuette from 2011 until 2015 when he left to become the Wayne County Commissioner from the 11 th District

The federal prosecutor in charge of the township investigation is Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Bullotta. Bullotta was the prosecutor for the Rizzo case and is known for his role in the prosecution of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, a historic case that sent the former mayor of Detroit to prison for 28 years.

"One law enforcement official close to the situation said that multiple sources have confirmed that there is an ongoing federal investigation into thefts of township property. He added that his information was that federal indictments are pending.

“It appears that the investigation is focused on the former Township Director of Parks and Grants Mike Mitchell,” the official, who asked not to be named, said. Mitchell was Price’s former aide during his tenure as a Wayne County Commissioner and was hired by Price soon after his controversial appointment as Plymouth Township supervisor, replacing Richard Reaume, who resigned mid-term."

Michigan Conservative Coalition Hosts 11th District Republican Candidate Debate January 8th In Novi

By Brandon Hall
(Email Him At WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com)

The candidates competing to replace Rep. David Trott in the US House will be in Novi for a debate on January 8th.

The highly anticipated debate is being sponsored by the Michigan Conservative Coalition and will take place at Emagine Theater.

In attendance will be business owner and former Trump Michigan Co Chair Lena Epstein, businessman and former State Rep. Rocky Raczkowski, former Rep. Kerry Bentivolio, and Plymouth Twp. Supervisor Kurt Heise.

The event's Facebook page says:

"Voters are anxious to hear from the candidates running for the 11th U.S. Congressional seat. This is the first candidate forum for the 11th District in 2018.

Due to the anticipated size of attendance this event has been moved to the Novi Emagine Theater.
For questions about this event contact the host coordinator Marian Sheridan - 248 225-1846"

_________________________________________________________________________

Brandon Hall is a lifelong political nerd from Grand Haven, and is the Managing Editor of West Michigan Politics.

>>>Email him at WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com
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Breaking: Ted Cruz Endorses Pat Colbeck For Governor

Colbeck, center, with wife Angie, Senator Cruz, and supporters (DarKen Photography)

By Brandon Hall
(Email Him At WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com)

Texas Senator Ted Cruz is endorsing State Senator Patrick Colbeck for Governor.

“I’m proud to endorse Patrick Colbeck in the race to become Michigan’s next Governor," Cruz said in a statement. "He is exactly the sort of principled leader the citizens of Michigan need.”

Colbeck touted the Cruz endorsement in a press release Wednesday afternoon.

"Senator Cruz’s conservative record attracted millions of supporters in 2016 as he sought the Republican nomination for President. Colbeck served as the state chair for Cruz’s presidential campaign in Michigan in which Cruz came in second behind Donald Trump. Colbeck later encouraged voters to elect Donald Trump in the general election and Trump went on to become the first Republican to win the state since 1988.

Colbeck has been recognized by Michigan State Senator Jim Ananich (D) as “Michigan’s Ted Cruz.” In fact, Colbeck and Cruz align on many fronts, most recently on education. As a state senator, Colbeck introduced bills that leveraged federal 529 tax exemptions to create “Enhanced MESP (Michigan Education Savings Program) Accounts” allowing families to get more access to education funds without Michigan having to raise taxes. Similarly, Senator Cruz, as detailed in The Hill, introduced an amendment in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that would expand 529 savings accounts for K-12 expenses.

Also like Cruz, Colbeck is not afraid to distance himself from Republicans when they stray from the principles on which the party was built. Both have been fierce opponents of Obamacare. As George Will noted during the Michigan Presidential primary, Colbeck is a “thorn in the side of the GOP’s legislative leadership on spending and other matters. Which is to say, he is somewhat like Ted Cruz.”

Colbeck is also a supporter of the reforms Senator Cruz advocated in the national tax reform package. Colbeck says under the plan, it is important now more than ever for Michigan to eliminate the state income tax. The federal plan restricts the state income and property tax deduction and state income tax elimination could be the chance for Michigan to attract employers from high tax states, like Illinois. Colbeck has outlined a practical, milestone-based plan to eliminate the state income tax through efficiency-based expense reductions and economic growth."

Colbeck faces Attorney General Bill Schuette and Lt. Governor Brian Calley in the Republican primary for Governor.

Friday, December 22, 2017

Calley Cuts Into Schuette's Lead As More Republican Primary Voters Say They're Undecided

By Brandon Hall
(Email Him At WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com)

Attorney General Bill Schuette's 39% lead has disappeared as more likely Republican primary voters move to the undecided column.

According to a new poll from Steve Mitchell's Mitchell Research And Communications, Schuette leads Lt. Governor Brian Calley 25%-14%. State Senator Patrick Colbeck comes in at 2%, and Dr. Jim Hines also received 2%.

Previously, just over 30% were undecided as Schuette led 52-13. Now, nearly 60% of Republican primary voters are undecided.

Mitchell tells MIRS Calley's entrance into the Governor's race, as well as his campaign for a Part Time Legislature, helped the LG close the gap.

According to MIRS:

"Steve MITCHELL, president of Mitchell Research & Communications, credited Schuette's eroded support to the fact Calley recently announced his candidacy...

In the last two months, Calley has transferred leadership of his part-time legislature ballot initiative to other Republican activists, announced his candidacy and touted the gains Michigan has made since Gov. Rick SNYDER and Calley were elected in 2010, Mitchell said.

"This is clearly now a close race," Mitchell said."

Calley's campaign consultant John Yob tells MIRS he didn't think Schuette's numbers would fall so quickly. Yob blasted Schuette's Super PAC, also predicting Calley, Schuette, and Colbeck will be in a close race that mirrors the 2010 primary.

""We knew the race would tighten as voters compared the two candidates, but it is rare that you see polling numbers totally collapse so quickly," Yob told MIRS. "Voters will move from undecided to Brian Calley as they decide to continue the Michigan comeback rather than revert back to the failed policies of the lost decade.

"This primary is shaping up very similar to 2010 with Calley, Schuette, and Colbeck in a tight campaign down the stretch," Yob added. "We will once again prove that endorsements from politicians and poorly implemented cheap shots from SuperPACs don't win primaries in Michigan."

The most alarming aspect of these numbers for Mr. Schuette is clear: 75% of voters oppose his candidacy or are just not sold on him yet despite over 30 years as a power player in Michigan politics.

Stay tuned!

Ambassador Hoekstra Causes Controversy In The Netherlands Over Muslim "No Go Zones" (But Facts Prove Him Right)

By Brandon Hall
(Email Him At WestMIPolitics@Gmail.com)

Ambassador Pete Hoekstra has created a firestorm in the Netherlands after his 2015 comments have resurfaced regarding "no go zones," predominantly Muslim areas where Sharia is the defacto law of the land-or at least the desired goal-and police are afraid to patrol.

Hoekstra apparently forgot saying that the Netherlands had "no go zones," and the media is now attacking him for it.

If one looks beyond the cheap attacks though, Ambassador Hoekstra was completely correct.

The Netherlands has areas that are hotbeds of extremism, sympathy for ISIS, and Muslim immigrants trying to establish Sharia Law.

ISIS has even dubbed The Hague as "Jihad City," and they also have significant support in an area known as the "Sharia Triangle."

Don't take my word for it, check out some excerpts from an Al Jazeera article on the issue. Al Jazeera is hardly a right wing, anti Muslim media outlet...

"Three Dutch citizens were arrested last week on suspicion of recruiting for the hard-line Islamic State (IS) group in its armed struggle in Syria and Iraq, as tensions between radical Muslims and Holland's far-right Pro Patria organisation continue to rise.

The men detained come from The Hague, the city that positions itself as an international city of peace and justice, and which Islamic State sympathisers have also named "Jihad City". Mayor of The Hague, Jozias van Aartsen, said during a press conference that they had caught "big fish" who had "sown hatred and incited terrorism" on social media and news sites.

One of those detained is 32-year-old Azzedine Choukoud, known as Abou Moussa, a charismatic Dutchman of Moroccan descent. He has been involved in demonstrations in recent years, and has been in contact with fighters in Syria. In a YouTube video, he congratulated the Muslim community on the establishment of the caliphate in Iraq and Syria. A few young men hold up a black IS flag in the background.

According to the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service, the Islamic State movement in the Netherlands amounts to a few hundred followers and several thousand sympathisers. Edwin Bakker, director of the Centre for Terrorism and Counterterrorism at Leiden University, estimated that The Hague's Islamic State supporters consists of 200 men.

They come from Schilderswijk neighbourhood, which the media have renamed the "sharia triangle". This neighbourhood primarily houses immigrants, as do many neighbourhoods in large Dutch cities - in this case more than 90 percent of the population are immigrants. Dissatisfaction is common and unemployment, crime, and poverty rates are higher than in the rest of the country.

Over the past few months, several pro-Gaza demonstrations have been held in the district, at which a number of people were seen waving IS flags...

Some 100 to 200 Dutch citizens have gone to Syria and Iraq to fight, and 33 of them come from The Hague. A few recently made themselves heard in a video, in which they reported on their "territory monitoring in the abandoned city of Aleppo". At least 14 Dutch citizens are known to have died in Syria.

Several dozen religious fighters have since returned and it is feared that they will carry out attacks in the Netherlands."

Al Jazeera points out that radical Islam has been a problem in the Netherlands for years.

"The Hague's problems with radical Muslims are not new. Since 2000, popular Syrian imam Fawaz Jneid has given fierce sermons from the Salafist As-Soennah mosque. He has called for the deaths of critics of Islam, such as the politician Ayaan Hirsi Ali and filmmaker Theo van Gogh. A member of a radical group in The Hague, de Hofstadgroep, killed the filmmaker in 2004."

Sympathy for ISIS is rampant in the Netherlands.

"Every Muslim is basically in favour of the establishment of an Islamic state," claimed the Salafist preacher known as Abu Hafs. He is the spokesman for the Bewust Moslimgroup. "But it is premature to judge whether the IS is the designated party," he continued. "Not enough is known about the organisation, and the opinions among Muslim scholars are divided."

Ali Abu Safiya, spokesman for Moslims in Dialoog, a similar platform, said only a small part of the Muslim community in the Netherlands supports the IS unconditionally and "applauds everything they do".

"A larger group condemns the IS entirely. Like the vast majority, we are not for or against the IS, but we have a more nuanced position," he said."

Let's go back to the area known as the "Sharia Triangle" for a moment. According to The Irish Times, police won't patrol the controversial region:

"There have been calls for an urgent debate in the Dutch parliament about the integration of Muslim immigrants amid claims that one area of The Hague, known locally as “the Sharia triangle”, is being run by a form of unofficial Sharia police.

The claims relate to the district of Schilderswijk, about two kilometres from the city centre, where an almost entirely Muslim population of some 5,000 people surrounds the El Islam mosque, fuelling criticism that the government has failed to ensure a proper ethnic mix in schools and local housing. One recent investigation, in which local people were extensively interviewed, concluded that Schilderswijk had become “orthodox Muslim territory” which was now largely ignored by the city authorities, by politicians and even by the police, on the grounds that it had become self-regulating.

The investigation found that orthodox Muslims had become so dominant that they were dictating what people in the neighbourhood wore and how they behaved."

More on the Sharia Triangle from the BBC:

"Dutch counter-terrorism officials are talking of a "rebirth of jihadism in the Netherlands".

In the Schilderswijk district of The Hague last month, a group of some 20 men were captured on video waving the black flag of jihadist groups and voicing support for the militant group Islamic State (IS) that has seized broad swathes of northern Syria and Iraq.

In the footage posted on the internet, the demonstrators can be heard chanting slogans such as "Down with America" and "Death to the Jews..."

The idea of an Islamic state achieved by peaceful means appears to resonate with people in Schilderswijk. "We all want that eventually because it is fair and people look after each other, not like it is now," he adds.

According to the Dutch intelligence service, hundreds of Dutch nationals are considering missions abroad, and thousands more are sympathetic to the cause...The Dutch security services say the threat, currently seen as "substantial', is mutating and becoming harder to track.

Islamic State supporters are using multimedia propaganda tools to proliferate their message and attract ever younger recruits.

"We have girls aged 16 and 17 and even some of 14 who want to go to Syria or Iraq," says Rob Bertholee, the head of the Dutch General Intelligence and Security Agency (AIVD)."

According to Free West Media, Dutch citizens are frequently attacked in the Sharia Triangle.

"Dutch-born citizens are repeatedly attacked by foreigners in these zones. The perpetrators are often so sure of their impunity that they publish online videos of their crimes.

Non-Muslim residents often say they feel harassed even in taking care of their pets. In Islam dogs are considered haram (impure), and dog owners are asked to keep their pets indoors."

A few years ago, the Dutch government even released a list of 40 "problem areas," many of which are Muslim "no go zones."

According to the Gatestone Institute:

"In the Netherlands, a Dutch court ordered the government to release to the public a politically incorrect list of 40 "no-go" zones in Holland. The top five Muslim problem neighborhoods are in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht. The Kolenkit area in Amsterdam is the number one Muslim "problem district" in the country. The next three districts are in Rotterdam – Pendrecht, het Oude Noorden and Bloemhof. The Ondiep district in Utrecht is in the fifth position, followed by Rivierenwijk (Deventer), Spangen (Rotterdam), Oude Westen (Rotterdam), Heechterp/ Schieringen (Leeuwarden) and Noord-Oost (Maastricht)."

Last year, the Hungarian government said nearly 1,000 areas in Europe are "no go zones."

According to reports:

"London, Paris, Stockholm and Berlin are among the major European cities that feature on a bombshell list of 900 lawless zones with large immigrant populations.

The shock dossier, released by the Hungarian government, backs up claims made by Donald Trump in December that there are large swathes of Britain and Europe where police are now too afraid to patrol due to radical Islamist extremism.

Ministers from the central European nation wrote in their report that authorities had "no control" over residents in these neighbourhoods, adding that the growth of radical Islam is "increasing the terrorist risk and imperilling our culture."

Looks like Pete Hoekstra wasn't wrong at all!

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