Trump came for another sham visit while MIGOP failed to fundraise
LANSING — This week, Michigan Democrats called out Trump for his most recent stunt visit to Michigan where he tried to rewrite history by pretending he did good things for Michiganders all while promoting his extremist agenda. Thankfully, Michiganders weren’t buying it — from anyone in the Republican Party.
Even the Republican state House caucus is struggling. The Michigan Democratic House Caucus raised nearly double what the Michigan Republican Campaign Committee brought in from January to April of this year, with Democrats raising $2.2 million to the MAGA House Caucus’ paltry $1.3 million.
Finally, Michigan Dems are holding Republican state leadership accountable by looking to find out exactly how MAGA Matt Hall and Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt paid for their trip to the southern border last month. With the aim to get clarity on whether they used taxpayer dollars for this performative trip. In six requests for financial records from their trip, Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes highlighted Hall’s recent demands to send the state National Guard to the border — after voting against their funding.
Read more about the Republican hijinks from the past week:
First, Michigan Dems took a victory lap as the Michigan Democratic House caucus outraised the MIGOP’s Republican Campaign Committee in yet another resounding show of disapproval for the MIGOP’s extremist agenda. In an almost 2 to 1 difference, the Michigan Democratic House Caucus raised $2.2 million from January to April of 2024, when, in the same time, the Michigan Republican Campaign Committee managed to raise barely over half of that:
Detroit News: Michigan House Democrats cut into Republicans’ money lead
- “It’s going to be a big lift, just like it was a big lift to get the majority,” Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes told Bridge Michigan. “I think the good news is that we now have a terrific record to run on to talk to the people of Michigan about the difference that has been made in their lives.”
- The campaign cash is already flowing. Political action committee fundraising totals filed this week showed House Democrats raised $2.2 million this quarter…
- House Republicans raised $1.3 million over the same time frame…
Bridge Michigan: Battle lines drawn in fight for Michigan House majority: What to know
- The main fundraising committee of Michigan House Democrats out-raised House Republicans’ competing group over the first months of the year, ahead of what’s expected to be an intense fight for control of the chamber this fall.
- The House Democratic Fund reported raising $2.2 million from Jan. 1 through April 20 in a disclosure due Thursday evening. Over the same time period, the House Republican Campaign Committee brought in $1.3 million.
- “Between another record-breaking fundraising report and our over-performance in special elections, we are poised to expand our majority in 2024,” House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, said on Thursday.
Then, Chair of the Michigan Democratic Party Lavora Barnes slammed Trump’s phony attempts to spread his extremist agenda during his stunt visit to Michigan — despite how wildly out of line he is with Michigan values. No matter how many times he visits Michigan, his record of breaking promises and abandoning Michiganders won’t be forgotten:
Detroit Free Press: Trump repeats false fraud claims, vows to prevent cheating in Michigan speech
- Trump is currently facing criminal charges brought by the Justice Department for efforts to overturn the election, being accused of leading an effort to arrange fake slates of electors in Michigan and other states, pressuring officials to reject the outcomes of the election and spurring a mob of his supporters to attack the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, as Congress met to certify the election…
- “Plain and simple, Trump is a fraud,” Michigan Democratic Party Chairwoman Lavora Barnes said ahead of Trump’s visit. “He has lied to Michiganders again and again — on jobs, on abortion and on every other promise he’s made. These visits don’t mask the fact that he has failed Michiganders for years and doesn’t actually care about helping them in the future.”
Bridge Michigan: Trump warns of tax hikes, EV doom in Michigan rally. Here are the facts
- Trump’s warning of a looming middle-class tax hike under Biden contradicts recent comments by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who this week told a U.S. House committee the president remains committed to his previous campaign pledge to not raise taxes on Americans who earn less than $400,000 a year…
- “These visits don’t mask the fact that he has failed Michiganders for years and doesn’t actually care about helping them in the future,” Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes said in a statement.
Michigan Democrats ended the week by demanding proof that MAGA Matt Hall and Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt didn’t pay for their political stunt trip to the southern border using Michigan taxpayers’ dollars. Let’s be clear, Michiganders deserve to know how MAGA Matt prioritizes the use of taxpayer dollars – it’s well past time that he proves that he didn’t waste any public funds for his excursion this past April:
Michigan Advance: Michigan Democratic Party seeks records related to border trip by GOP leaders
- The Michigan Democratic Party (MDP) on Thursday filed a flurry of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests seeking details on how a recent trip to the U.S. southern border by state Republican leaders was paid for…
- Signed by MDP Chair Lavora Barnes, the FOIA requests note that both Republican legislators called for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to send National Guard troops to the southern border. “These demands – and this trip – appear to be part of a bad-faith political stunt,” stated Barnes…
- “Moreover, last year, both Leader Hall and Leader Nesbitt voted against $94 million in funding for Michigan’s National Guard and military operations,” said Barnes, referencing their votes against the $82 billion Fiscal Year 2024 budget that included National Guard funding.
- “Given Hall’s and Nesbitt’s apparent hypocrisy, the people of the State of Michigan deserve to know what political calculations went into planning this trip – and whether State public funds paid for these officials’ travels,” wrote Barnes.
- Tommy Kubitschek, spokesperson for the Michigan Democratic Party, told the Michigan Advance called it an “indictment of their ability to lead” in Michigan if Hall and Nesbitt used taxpayer dollars for their trip.
Our arms are tired from slapping down the MIGOP and any other extremists that try to spread misinformation in our state. But don’t worry, we’ll be back on Monday to do more of the same! Til next week.
Signing off,
Michigan Dems
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