Heading into a longer weekend for some, let’s see which campaigns made moves over the past week as in the crowded and messy primary:
Garrett Soldano Comes Out Swinging Against James Craig…
Still refusing to call him out by name, Soldano still managed to kick off the week with a pointed attack aimed squarely at MIGOP-insider favorite James Craig on national television, joining the chorus of scrutiny over the changing story in which the then-Detroit Police Department chief “fled a suspected carjacker who approached his unmarked police car one night.” Wait until you see the rest of his record, Garrett!
…But Misses With His Attempt to Credibly Claim He’s a Candidate of Transparency and Truth
Later in the week, Soldano became the first candidate to roll out an actual policy plan. In the spirit of bipartisanship, we’ll happily award half-credit for the attempt to inject some semblance of substance into a race that remains dominated by hyperpartisan platitudes and “very similar talking points.” Unfortunately, the praise will have to end there.
Soldano’s introduction of his “sunshine” agenda fell flat for several reasons. First, it’s kinda tough to rebrand yourself as a champion of transparency and truth when you made a living off being a snake oil salesman selling COVID-19 miracle cures. Soldano has also been banned from social platforms multiple times for “spreading false vaccine information.”
Second, despite making a requirement of “personal financial disclosure for all state candidates and senior administration officials” a pillar of his transparency plan, Soldano didn’t pledge to voluntarily disclose his own information or call on any of his opponents to.
And lastly … Soldano ignores Whitmer’s success. She’s implemented executive orders to reduce response time on public records requests and ban the previous practice of conducting state business on personal email. Oh, and she was also “the first governor in state history to voluntarily disclose tax returns, personal financial information, use of the state plane, and public calendars.”
Better luck next time.
Tudor Dixon Straight Up Lied to Michiganders
Hyperpartisan extremism is one helluva drug, making Republicans bend themselves into all kinds of logical pretzels in order to shift blame and reject the violent reality of things like the January 6th insurrection of the U.S. Capitol. This week, an advisor for Tudor Dixon’s campaign admitted to spreading dangerous, false comparisons between Governor Whitmer’s support of Michiganders rallying for workers’ rights and the actions that lead insurrectionists to injure 140 officers in Washington DC. The Detroit Free Press had to dismiss the wild attack as “a massive stretch, at best.” But what else are we to expect from the same candidate that used a rally appearance to make the “illogical claim that Whitmer supports rapists and cartels?”
Kevin Rinke Wore a Watch Worth 50 Auto Checks on His Wrist to Continue Campaigning Against Cutting Costs for Michigan Drivers
What do you get the out-of-touch millionaire that has everything? Something to remind him of his complete and total disregard for working families every second of the day of course! This week, Kevin Rinke pulled up to a gun show sporting a $20,000 Rolex, or in auto insurance refund math, 50 of the $400 per vehicle checks Michiganders will receive later this year as a result of Governor Whitmer working with the Legislature to ink an “historic,” bipartisan deal that lowering Michigan’s previous “highest-in-the-nation auto insurance rates.”
Rinke has described the reform as a “fatal mistake” and said he would have vetoed it had he been governor instead. We’re assuming it’s because he couldn’t bear the thought of 50 single-car households pooling their checks to buy a newer model of his Submariner. The horror!
