In this clip, Rachel Maddow naturally uses left-right political labeling to explain the situation. Beyond this, however, the situation in Michigan is truly as alarming as she states. The cronyism is on full display as Governor Rick Snyder will raise taxes on the backs of seniors and the poor by eliminating tax breaks, as well as income tax deductions for such things as donations to public universities. The $1.7 billion that is projected to be saved will immediately be given over to corporations as a $1.8 billion tax break, resulting in a less-than-zero benefit to the state of Michigan.
Even worse, in the case of “financial emergency” (which Snyder himself can create by cutting funding to cities and towns) the Governor becomes a de facto dictator of the state with the power to unilaterally choose his own local governments by employing financial overseers to determine fiscal health, then offer the remedy. It would be a perfect microcosm of Problem-Reaction-Solution except for the fact that there will be no need for even a reaction; it’s just straight from problem to solution with the Governor of Michigan as the creator of both — the essence of a dictatorial policy.
Maddow correctly calls this out for what it is: using a “crisis” to push an agenda that would never be accepted without the declaration of a crisis situation.
Predictably, the protests have begun, but they need to become a lot more vocal, or it won’t only be a eulogy for unions being given; it will be a eulogy for the state of Michigan.
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