LANSING — Mike Rogers is just going in circles (through the revolving door). From receiving “more than a half million dollars from two dark money groups” to being on IronNet’s board which “engaged in questionable business practices, produced subpar products and services, and entered into associations that could have left the firm vulnerable to meddling by the Kremlin,” it’s clear that Rogers will stop at nothing to enrich himself and his special interest backers.
Meanwhile, Michiganders across the state are sounding the alarm on Rogers for his “extensive anti-abortion record” and how he “will do anything to enrich himself even when it hurts working families.”
Here’s the latest on Revolving Door Rogers’ rough week:
- Sugar high… Rogers re-upped being “passionately against” allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices, calling it “sugar high politics.” He is, after all, a self-professed “champion” for Big Pharma.
- …And a sugar crash. Rogers reiterates his opposition to “subsidizing” prescription drugs, instead urging that “we have got to get more free market efficiencies back into Medicare.”
- Another week, another report of Rogers selling out to boost himself. A bombshell new report from Politico Influence details how Rogers “received more than a half million dollars from two dark money groups” as he “advocated [for the company] in press hits and op-eds.”
- AP notes that Rogers served on IronNet’s board which “engaged in questionable business practices, produced subpar products and services, and entered into associations that could have left the firm vulnerable to meddling by the Kremlin.”
- Even more election conspiracy theories? Just another day in the life of Rogers. “Rogers cast doubt on the legitimacy of elections in Southeast Michigan,” and claimed that “we have to over perform everywhere so when we get down to the Southeast, we can hopefully contain any shenanigans that they may be planning.”
- Anti-abortion extremist. Rogers “voted consistently for laws that would interfere with the bodily autonomy” of Michiganders, including “a national abortion ban” and bills that “could threaten access to IVF and contraception.”
- And Michiganders are calling him out on it. On Wednesday, Flint doctors and leaders sounded the alarm on Rogers’ extensive anti-abortion record.
- Michiganders across the state “blast” Rogers who “will do anything to enrich himself even when it hurts working families,” as he “continually sidesteps questions,” “tries to shift the blame,” and “refus[es] any accountability.”
- Rogers can’t run away from his toxic plans to slash Social Security and Medicare.
See for yourself:
Michigan Advance: Rogers says Medicare negotiating drug price reductions is ‘sugar high politics’
- Former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-White Lake)said he was “passionately against” allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices, which he referred to as “sugar high politics.”
- The comments made by Rogers, who is running against U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat, came during a senior town hall meeting held in Troy on Sept. 20.
- According to audio obtained by the Michigan Advance, Rogers said that when it came to negotiating drug prices, it was his belief that the federal government “shouldn’t be engaged in that.”
- He then went on to say that Democrats’ support for drug price negotiation was a campaign gimmick.
- “So this sugar high politics that you get, I’m going to throw it right at you and this is going to help you,” he said. “It’s going to take a hundred dollars off this month, but it’s going to cost you $10,000 in the next five years. We shouldn’t be engaged in that. I call ’em political cicadas. Everything that you see, the Democrats doing it now. They come out, they pop their head out of the hole. It’s election season, right? They’re going to throw money at you and tell you they’re going to stay here, save Medicare and Social Security, all of this stuff and then you don’t see ’em again for four years, right?”
- Rogers has come under fire for his links to the pharmaceutical industry after Bridge Michigan reported that while in Congress, Rogers was a “leading advocate for greater access to pain medications,” while receiving “hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the same drug companies that now are paying billions of dollars in national opioid settlements for their roles in causing the epidemic.”
Tom Jordan Live: Rogers: “We have got to get more free market efficiencies back into Medicare so that you get better care and it’s more affordable, and that’s just not happening. And the longer they’re playing this shell game, I mean they’re subsidizing now the subsidies in prescription drugs, that is just the most unsustainable thing.”
Politico Influence: 500K to Deregulate 5G
- Mike Rogers, the Republican running for Senate in Michigan, several years ago received more than a half million dollars from two dark money groups that were in favor of a deregulatory policy on 5G that he advocated in press hits and op-eds, Daniel reports.
- In 2020, the former representative was announced as the chair of 5G Action Now, a group that was urging the Federal Communications Commission to move faster on approving fifth-generation wireless technology. He warned that China was going to be the leader in 5G unless government agencies removed barriers to 5G implementation. Rogers was paid $225,000 by the coalition in 2020, according to a 990 form from the organization seen by POLITICO.
- 5G Action Now described itself as a “501(c)4 advocacy organization that works to educate members of Congress and the American people” about the issue but did not disclose its donors. Rogers declined to tell the Washington Post back in 2020 who was funding the effort but said he expected the group to release more details soon.
- Rogers wrote several op-eds about 5G policy during his time as chair of the coalition, although one he did for DefenseOne in 2020 didn’t disclose his connection with the group.
- While the group never released its donors, Intelsat, a global satellite provider, was a primary backer of the group, a person directly familiar with the matter told PI. 5G Action Now was pushing for an outcome that Intelsat had a direct financial stake in, allowing a quick sale of its C-band spectrum for 5G. In 2020, Rogers also defended Intelsat’s financial status when asked how its bankruptcy affected the terms of any spectrum sale.
- He was also paid $380,000 by another dark-money group called Keeping America Safe, according to the organization’s 2021 and 2022 990s seen by POLITICO.
AP: Collapse of national security elites’ cyber firm leaves bitter wake
- Last September the never-profitable company announced it was shutting down and firing its employees after running out of money, providing yet another example of a tech firm that faltered after failing to deliver on overhyped promises.
- IronNet’s rise and fall also raises questions about the judgment of its well-credentialed leaders, a who’s who of the national security establishment. National security experts, former employees and analysts told The Associated Press that the firm collapsed, in part, because it engaged in questionable business practices, produced subpar products and services, and entered into associations that could have left the firm vulnerable to meddling by the Kremlin.
- IronNet’s board has included Mike McConnell, a former director of both the NSA and national intelligence; Jack Keane, a retired four-star general and Army vice chief of staff, and Mike Rogers, the former Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee who is running for the U.S. Senate in Michigan.
Michigan Independent: Mike Rogers’ support for ‘fetal personhood’ could threaten access to IVF and contraception
- However, while serving in Congress from 2001 to 2015, Rogers voted consistently for laws that would interfere with the bodily autonomy of his constituents, including so-called “fetal personhood” laws.
- In 2003, Rogers co-sponsored legislation that would have withdrawn federal approval of the abortion drug mifepristone. He co-sponsored it again in 2005.
- In 2012, Rogers voted for a national abortion ban, and in 2013 he co-sponsored a bill that would have made abortion illegal in all 50 states.
- In 2013, Roger co-sponsored the “Life at Conception Act,” which if enacted would restrict access to IVF and birth control methods such as intrauterine devices (IUDs) or emergency contraception such as Plan B. The bill would “implement equal protection under the 14th article of amendment to the Constitution for the right to life of each born and preborn human person”.
- If laws defining personhood as legally accruing to zygotes from the moment of fertilization are enacted, embryos or fertilized eggs created through IVF will be considered unborn children, and intentionally destroying or disposing of them will be considered murder. Those who support fetal personhood legislation say that life begins at fertilization and even contraception or emergency contraception will place that life in danger.
- In 2022, voters in Michigan approved an amendment to the state constitution that affirmed the right to abortion without restrictions on gestational age. Rogers, who was living in Florida at the time, said during a March 2023 interview with the WKAR television show “Off the Record” that while he was not familiar with the text of the measure, he probably would not have voted for it. He said, “I’m a pro-life guy, I’ve voted pro-life, and I don’t walk away from that.”
- “Mike Rogers can’t hide from his extensive record backing abortion bans which would rip away Michiganders’ freedom to make their own personal medical decisions,” Michigan Democratic Party spokesperson Sam Chan said in a statement posted on Sept. 17. “It’s clear that Rogers will say and do anything to benefit himself, and Michigan families can’t trust him to represent us.”
WEYI: Abortion rights are a focused topic of conversation on the Michigan campaign trail
- This week, State Representative Cynthia Neeley (Flint – D) was joined by two local doctors to discussRepublican candidate for U.S. Senate, Mike Rogers, and his stance on abortion.
- “Access to reproductive health care is an essential component of women’s health care, but Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers has an extensive anti-abortion record. Our next senator should be someone who will fight to protect reproductive rights, and that’s why I’m proud to support Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin,” said State Representative Cynthia Neeley.
- “Reproductive freedom is essential. It is not just abortion but broad access that impacts and saves lives. Mike Rogers has already shown us that he won’t fight to protect reproductive rights. Michiganders want to protect reproductive rights,” said Dr. Aisha Harris.
- “As a pediatrician, I see every day how important it is for families to have control over their reproductive health decisions. Protecting the right to safe and accessible abortion care is critical for the health of women, children, and families. Families, in consultation with their doctors, should be empowered to make these deeply personal decisions without political interference. We can’t afford to have politicians like Mike Rogers who want to ban abortion in the Senate,” said Dr. Brittany Tayler.
A2 Independent [LTE]: Republican Senate Candidate Mike Rogers Puts Michiganders Last
Oakland Press [LTE]: Letters to the Editor: Slotkin will fight the opioid crisis
Herald-Palladium [LTE]: Rogers’ record with drug industry alarming
Michigan Democratic Party: REMINDER: Mike Rogers Puts Seniors Last, Wants to Rip Away Michiganders’ Hard-Earned Benefits by Slashing Social Security and Medicare
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