State Policy Director Announces Run for Ann Arbor City Council Ward 3
Ryan Bartholomew, policy director for State Representative Carrie Rheingans (D-Ann Arbor), has announced his candidacy for Ann Arbor City Council in Ward 3. On Feb. 18, 2025 Ashley Hall, the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners’…
Lawmakers unveil bipartisan plan to lower the cost of housing that could upend Ann Arbor’s proposed comprehensive land use plan (CLUP)
by Rep. Joe Aragona
A standard rule of thumb for personal budgeting used to be spend about a quarter of your income on housing. ("A week for a month.") Then that slowly inched up until the guideline became spend 30 percent of gross…
Letter to the Editor: Related Digital (AI) is Coming for Washtenaw County
by Joe Kazmierski
Since its inception, AI has been a mostly detached and seemingly consequence-free convenience in our lives. Other than premium plans, most AI companies don’t even charge you to use their services. So, excluding the…
New Poll: Michigan Residents Favor Statewide Legislation That Reins in ICE
by Emma Salter
The majority of Michiganders view U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) negatively and strongly favor state legislation that would rein in ICE and other federal law enforcement, according to a new poll released…
MPSC approves $242.2 million rate increase for DTE customers—customer outage times reduced
by Kyle Davidson
Members of the Michigan Public Service Commission gave their unanimous approval to DTE Energy’s request to collect an additional $242.4 million from its customers to support upgrades to its energy grid.
As one of the…
Zelensky’s Predicament
by Mel Gurtov
A Plan for Ukraine Without Ukraine's Consent
The U.S. has forged a peace proposal with Russia that, as the French are putting it, amounts to Ukraine’s capitulation. For President Volodymyr Zelensky, the worst possible…
The Emperor Has No Clothes
by Bob Topper
In my lifetime, presidents from both parties have given inspirational speeches – Kennedy in 1963 at the Berlin Wall saying to the German people, “Ich bin ein Berliner” (I am a Berliner) and Reagan in 1987, at the same…
Scio Twp. Trustees Continue to Violate Ordinance That Requires Reimbursement of Supervisor’s Legal Fees—Supervisor Threatens to Sue
by P.D. Lesko
In a two-page letter dated Nov. 24, 2025, Scio Twp. Supervisor Jillian Kerry wrote to the Scio Twp. Board of Trustees, "I sincerely hope the Township isn’t now inviting me to file a lawsuit to enforce its legal…
Scio Twp. Residents Complain Clerk Flintoft Ignores FOIAs and Delays Releases of Public Records
by P.D. Lesko
Scio Twp. resident Pam Boyd submitted a FOIA request to obtain a copy of "the note" several months ago. Boyd's FOIA request was approved by Scio Twp. Clerk Jessica Flintoft, but the Clerk did not provide Boyd a copy of the…
Former U-M Faculty Member Convicted of Felony Sexual Assault, Sues U-M for Sex Discrimination and Breach of Contract
by P.D. Lesko
David Daniels, a former tenured faculty member in the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre and Dance, filed suit in the Michigan Court of Claims on March 5, 2025. Daniels alleged (1) Breach of Contract, (2)…
