It's Just Politics
Wednesdays at 3:40 p.m. and 8:40 p.m.
Michigan politics is rough and tumble, sometimes confusing but definitely consequential. It’s Just Politics hosts Zoe Clark and Rick Pluta help make sense of the serious questions and the tomfoolery every week. Listen Wednesdays at 3:40p and 8:40p on Michigan Public and get the It’s Just Politics newsletter in your inbox every Friday afternoon. Plus, be sure to subscribe to the It’s Just Politics podcast wherever you get your podcasts.
The Latest from It's Just Politics
Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Speaker of the House Matt Hall, and Attorney General Dana Nessel all made news in 2025. A look back at the year in Michigan politics… and what’s in store in the new year.
On the Podcast
From the Newsletter
Radio Segments
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First, the former U-M president’s continuing journey. Plus, a two-part conversation on Medicaid cuts and on who might be taking the hit. -
First, the loopholes in Michigan law around manufactured home parks. And a Detroit artist who just received a national grant for her boundary-pushing contributions.
Elsewhere on Michigan Public
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Join It's Just Politics hosts Zoe Clark & Rick Pluta as they look back on this year in politics ... and look forward to what's on the horizon. Register. -
Petition signature gatherers can lie to you about what’s in the petition you’re signing. New legislation aims to curb fraud in the petition signature gathering process. Plus, lawmakers look to throw the legal cannabis industry a bone after passing the new 24 percent wholesale tax on marijuana.
More from It's Just Politics
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We are into week six of seemingly stalled budget negotiations in Lansing. Six weeks since K-12 schools, higher ed and some local governments started their fiscal years without knowing how much state money they’ll receive. Just what’s going on at the state Capitol? -
Republican Speaker of the House Matt Hall has an idea to move stalled budget negotiations forward in Lansing: leave the discussions to just him and Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Plus, Whitmer visits President Trump at the White House again and a Democratic candidate drops out of the Michigan U.S. Senate race. -
Detroit voters chose City Council President Mary Sheffield and Pastor Solomon Kinloch Jr. to move forward to November’s general election in the race to become the city’s next mayor. Plus, a majority of local Michigan officials think the state is on the wrong track. -
Complicating stalled budget negotiations in Lansing, new analysis shows the state will have $1.1 billion less heading into the new fiscal year because of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Plus, the campaign to tax Michigan’s wealthiest residents to pay more for schools moves forward with its petition campaign. -
Eye-raising fundraising numbers are released in Michigan’s 2026 race for governor. Plus, President Trump puts his thumb on Michigan’s political scale in the GOP primary race for U.S. Senate. -
The principal negotiators in the Republican led-House and the Democrat-controlled Senate all seem resigned to the fact that it’s going to take more time before there’s a budget deal in Lansing. Plus, President Trump endorses in Michigan’s U.S. Senate race and Jocelyn Benson and Mike Duggan announce huge fundraising totals. -
Three weeks since the July 1st statutory deadline and there is still no budget deal in Lansing. A Democrat and Republican lawmaker who are part of budget negotiations at the state Capitol describe where things stand: “the span between our budgets right now is about as big as the Mackinac Bridge.”
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