IJP Newsletter

This week, attorneys for Michigan Senate Democrats faced off against House GOP lawyers in a Michigan Court of Appeals courtroom in Detroit to argue constitutional law, legislative prerogatives and who is ultimately responsible for ensuring nine bills remaining in legislation limbo get moved to the governor’s desk.

House Republicans in Lansing approve a bill to restrict students’ access to school bathrooms. Democrats say the bill is a distraction deployed by the GOP to use transgender teenagers as political pawns while the state budget remains unfinished less than a month before the October 1 deadline to avert a partial government shutdown.

A proposal to delay paychecks for future governors and legislators if the state budget is not wrapped up by the July 1 legal deadline failed Thursday in the state House. Plus, Detroit Mayor and gubernatorial candidate Mike Duggan has a good week.

Former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm shares her thoughts on the budget stalemate at the state Capitol, today’s political divisiveness, and Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s independent bid for governor.

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.

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.

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.

The Detroit Regional Chamber endorsed Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan in his run for governor as an Independent candidate in 2026. Why so early in the race? Plus, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation is asking a judge to shield documents seized in a raid on its offices from an investigation by Attorney General Dana Nessel.

As legal and political drama unfolds surrounding the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, questions remain about who will be held accountable for mishandling of taxpayer dollars and whether Michigan’s business incentives program will face changes moving forward.

After a Republican subpoena, Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson files a legal brief in the Michigan Court of Claims arguing she is a political target. Plus, Michigan U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin offers a centrist remedy for Democrats’ doldrums and the latest on state budget negotiations.