LANSING — With less than a year to go until Michiganders cast ballots and more Republicans considering bids, here’s this week’s developments as the GOP gubernatorial primary begins to take shape:
Both Kevin Rinke and Betsy DeVos continue to churn the 2022 rumor mill. Rinke has launched a Facebook page featuring boilerplate language that will do little to distinguish himself from the field he’s expected to make even more crowded in the next coming weeks. Meanwhile, DeVos continued to stoke weeks of speculation by refusing to deny she was considering a run this week when asked point blank by the Detroit Free Press.
James Craig attended a birthday party for embattled Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido who has a lengthy history of sexually harassing women both verbally and physically, doing the latter again to a young woman attendee at the bash. By the looks of the photos of Craig and Lucido at the event, we’ll assume that the Republican gubernatorial candidate did not show up to condemn Lucido’s instances of ‘inappropriate workplace behavior’ that led legislators in his own party to strip him of a committee chairmanship during his brief stint in the state Senate.
The mess did not stop there. MDP pointed out earlier this week that online commentator Tudor Dixon dropped her own recall petition against Governor Whitmer. Last week, her consultant made the bold choice to place the blame for the sustained failure to remove Whitmer from office at the feet of the very same “grassroots conservatives” Dixon has been courting since she entered the race.
Because recalls have become a pastime of Michigan Republicans — motivated by a ‘moral obligation’ to pursue these efforts without cause — yet another one was launched with the Board of Canvassers just as quickly as Dixon dissolved hers, leaving the number of remaining recalls against the Governor in the dozens.
And not to be outdone by Craig’s proximity to unsavory members of society, Dixon’s recall dissolution didn’t deter at least one key grassroots extremist from supporting her campaign. This week, Stand Up Michigan executive director Tammy Clark endorsed Dixon. A staunch opponent of every public health safety measure she’s ever come across, Clark has obviously been having a normal one since the pandemic began. Just a few of her greatest hits include claiming that vaccines are a gateway drug to “microchip ID marker[s],” likening mask requirements to “slavery,” and urging Michiganders to reject the guidance of health officials in order to “experience miracles.” At this point, even the conspiracy theories are developing their own variants.
We’ll see what antics these members of the “party of family values” get into next week. Have a great weekend from MDP.
