Today on Stateside, the UAW strike against General Motors is stretching into week two. What does that mean for the Michigan economy? Plus, craft beer is big business in Michigan, but some small craft brewers say current state law is preventing them from expanding.
Listen to the full show above or find individual segments below.
As UAW strike continues, threat of wider economic ripples grows larger
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Stateside's conversation with John Gallagher
- The UAW strike against General Motors is now stretching into its second week. Detroit Free Press columnist John Gallagher says it’s unclear where the tipping point is, but if the union and GM don’t reach a deal soon, there will likely be an economic ripple effect on the region and beyond. He explains when we can expect to see the strike start impacting the broader economy, and what long-term effects it could have on the auto industry’s culture.
How Michigan Republicans are feeling as the 2020 election draws closer
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Stateside’s conversation with John Sellek
- The Michigan Republican Party gathered on Mackinac Island over the weekend for the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference, which was attended by Vice President Mike Pence. Harbor Strategic Public Affairs CEO John Sellek was also at the conference. He joined Stateside to talk about how national shifts in the Republican Party are playing out in Michigan, and what state Republican leaders see as their major challenges and best strategy going into the 2020 presidential election.
The politics of brewing, and selling, craft beer in Michigan
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Stateside’s conversation with Dayne Bartscht, Dan Riley, and Larry Bell
- The craft beer industry in Michigan has seen rapid expansion over the past decade. But some brewers argue that state law is prohibiting small breweries from growing as much as they could. Dayne Bartscht is with Eastern Market Brewing in Detroit and Dan Riley is with Axel Brewing in Ferndale, which recently folded as a company and sold its assets to Eastern Market. They talk about why they think the state's 1,000 barrel limit for self-distribution is stifling small breweries.
- If there’s one beer brand that serves as a shining example of the culture and possibilities of Michigan’s craft beer industry, it’s arguably Bell’s Brewing out of Kalamazoo. Bell’s founder, Larry Bell, began brewing beer in the 1980s before small-batch brewing was in vogue. Bell explains why he believes that current state law supports the success of breweries of all sizes.
- Stateside reached out to Founders, which declined an interview opportunity. We also reached out to the Michigan Beer and Wine Wholesalers Association, which has yet to respond to our request for comment.
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