Efforts to reform local police departments — along with an influx of targeted local, state and federal funding over the past decade — are fueling an expansion of community policing units.
Agriculture
Feds warn Michigan to improve speed, accuracy of food assistance program
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SNAP DELAYS: USDA has criticized Michigan for delays and errors in handling applications for SNAP food benefits for low-income residents. One result is increased demand on already-stressed food banks. Whitmer and the governors of neighboring Ohio and Indiana have received warning letters from Washington. We talk to the Food Bank Council of Michigan and the National Center for Budget and Policy. By Alex Walters. FOR DETROIT, MICHIGAN FARM NEWS, HILLSDALE, COLDWATER, STURGIS, THREE RIVERS, MONROE, BLISSFIELD, ADRIAN, LANSING CITY PULSE AND ALL POINTS.
Campus News
Protests disrupt Pete Buttigieg speaking event at Michigan State
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On Nov. 29, several protests took place outside of Michigan State University’s Kellogg Center as U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg held a speaking event inside the venue. The event was one of many along the secretary’s recent speaking tour that has been met with protests.
Three distinct groups protested the event: the Sunrise Movement, Michigan State’s Hurriya Coalition, and Climate Defiance. The Sunrise Movement, which is a national grassroots movement advocating for climate justice, hung banners out of the Kellogg Center’s main parking garage, where most event attendees were entering. The three banners read in all capital letters: You have blood on your hands; Biden: Fund climate action not genocide; and Biden: Declare a climate emergency
Environment
VIDEO: Ingham County resident survives tornado damages
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LANSING, Mich.—Timothy Hillock is one of the many people that suffered damages to his home after the severe tornadoes that occurred across the state on Aug. 24–26. A tree was blown over during the storm and fell on Hillock’s roof, destroying his home. On Sept. 19, FEMA and the Michigan State Police assessed the damages following the tornadoes.
Federal Government
Supreme Court ruling on LGBTQ+ case sparks controversy in state
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When the Supreme Court ruled that Lori Smith, a website designer from Colorado, could deny her services to those of the LGBTQ+, it was unclear how the decision would affect LGBTQ+ clients nationwide. But Fenton resident Ky Orvis wasn’t too worried — yet. “Specifically in Fenton, I don’t see it foreseeing it being a problem,” said Orvis, the president of the Fenton Pride Collective. “The concern of a lot of people, not just in Fenton, not just in Michigan, but across the U.S. is like what does this set the precedent of and justify discrimination against a class of people.”
The ruling is sparking controversy as to what this means for groups, such as minorities and LGBTQ+, and raises concerns for those it affects. “Why does this exist?
Federal Government
Students React to Arrest of Former President Donald Trump
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Earlier this month, prosecutors announced that they are filing criminal charges against Donald Trump, accusing him of taking part in a plot to conceal a possible sex scandal during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Energy
Ohio train derailment raises safety concerns about nation’s infrastructure
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The derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals in Ohio has captured the nation’s attention for weeks as government and local officials have struggled to contain the hazardous waste and provide answers to the public.
Federal Government
Early presidential primary could shift campaign strategies
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PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY: Traditionally, presidential candidates have focused their efforts in Michigan on a handful of heavily populated metropolitan areas such as Detroit and Grand Rapids. But iIf Michigan moves the date of its primary to be earlier in 2024 – and earlier in the nominating process – that could change. The Senate has passed a bill to do that. We hear from a former Northern Michigan University political scientist and legislators from Groveland Township and Royal Oak. With Marquette and Traverse City references By Andrew Roth. FOR DETROIT, MARQUETTE, TRAVERSE CITY, LANSING CITY PULSE AND ALL POINTS.
Construction & Development
Federal funds aid efforts to plug orphan wells
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ORPHAN WELLS: Orphan oil wells plague the Midwest, but new federal funds will help plug them. Michigan has around 450 orphan wells throughout the Lower Peninsula, with large concentrations in Manistee and Benzie counties and along the border of Charlevoix and Otsego counties. A Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy official explains. By Jake Christie. FOR MANISTEE, LUDINGTON, BENZIE COUNTY, CHEBOYGAN, TRAVERSE CITY AND ALL POINTS.
Business & Economy
End of child tax credit expansion could return some Michigan children to poverty
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TAX CREDIT: The expansion of a federal tax credit to low-income families during the pandemic lifted more than half a million Michigan children out of poverty. That is set to end at the end of the year, and advocates worry some of those children, especially in rural families, could slip back into poverty. By Sarah Atwood FOR ALL POINTS
Elections & Politics
Obama visits Detroit for the Democratic Get-out-the-vote rally
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Former President Barack Obama stopped at Renaissance High School in Detroit this past weekend for a limited national tour to support democratic candidates up and down the ballot. More than three thousand Michiganders attended the event.