THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2025 |
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In today's newsletter, Michigan will eliminate Medicaid work requirements, Homeland Security and ICE working to make arrests in Michigan and Michigan’s tribal experts want to save wild rice. |
Let's get ready for the weekend |
We have reached that point of the week where its time to start lining up fun things to do this weekend. Whether it's spending time in the great outdoors or stopping by a festival, there's something in store for everyone. Get ready to see 30 ice sculptures, grab a bowl of chili at a cook-off, and watch competitors fling frozen fish during South Haven’s Ice Breaker Festival, which kicks off Friday, Jan. 31. For the foodies who want a side of adventure to accompany their meal, check out the Wiener Ski event on Saturday, Feb. 1 at Shady Lane Cellars near Suttons Bay. Guests can choose to ski, hike or snowshoe along groomed trails. |
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Wild rice grains in varying colors from brown and yellow to purple and lime green are ready to be spread into Spectacle Lake on the Bay Mills Indian Community reservation on Sept. 20, 2023, near Brimley. (Sheri McWhirter | MLive.com) |
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Pete Buttigieg ‘taking a serious look’ at Michigan Senate run, Whitmer not interested |
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has ruled out a bid for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat next year, but a number of other high profile politicians are potentially weighing a run. U.S. Sen. Gary Peters announced Tuesday, Jan. 28, he will not seek reelection when his term ends in 2027, setting the stage for an open 2026 race. Following the announcement, Axios reported that former U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is “taking a serious look” at running for the seat, citing a person close to Buttigieg. FOIA: Michigan lawmakers are once again advancing a decade-long effort to shine a light on the inner workings of state government, with nearly unanimous bipartisan support. By a 33-2 vote, two bills that would remove Freedom of Information Act exemptions for the governor and lawmakers were passed Wednesday, Jan. 29, by the Michigan Senate. President Donald Trump’s budget office on Wednesday rescinded a memo freezing spending on federal grants, less than two days after it sparked widespread confusion and legal challenges across the country. |
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Michigan will eliminate Medicaid work requirements |
Not required: Michigan will soon eliminate an inactive requirement that able-bodied adults receiving Medicaid must work. The bill removing that requirement was signed into law Jan. 21 by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer after passing in the House and Senate in December along party lines, with Democrats in favor. The law will take effect April 2. In business: The Michigan Strategic Fund has allocated $2.8 million to build a road from the city of Grayling to a planned Saab Inc. munitions plant in nearby Grayling Township. Saab expects to invest $75 million in the facility, where workers will assemble ground-launched bomb systems and shoulder-launched munitions for the U.S. Department of Defense. New jobs on the way: The Michigan Strategic Fund has approved a $9 million bond for Kraft Avenue Properties to build a 128,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Cascade Township. Once complete, Kraft Avenue Properties plans to lease the building to Trane U.S. Inc., a manufacturer of heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment. The project is expected to be completed this summer and create 100 jobs, according to a memo from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation |
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What might an RFK Jr.-run U.S. health department mean for Michigan? |
In health: U.S. senators will soon determine whether Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will be the nation’s next health secretary. Kennedy, 71, is considered a controversial choice by President Donald Trump to lead the federal health department, given his lack of medical background, opposition to vaccines, and history of spreading conspiracy theories including those related to the COVID-19 infectious disease. Here's a look at what Trump, Kennedy Jr., and Michigan health officials have said about a few health-related topics as they relate to Michigan’s future. Detroit is at the center of the nation’s sexually transmitted infection (STI) conversation. The metro area led all others across the country in 2023 with 1,491 reported STIs per 100,000 people, according to an analysis of national data conducted by Innerbody, a California-based research company. Detroit climbed from No. 9 on the 2022 list to take the top spot, surpassing last year’s top reporter, Philadelphia, which ranked No. 2 in the latest assessment. New technology: Innovations in healthcare education are changing the apprenticeship model in Grand Rapids. The Corewell Health Clinical Simulation Center consists of high-fidelity manikins, an immersive virtual reality room and simulated operating and patient care rooms. According to company officials, it is the largest health care simulation center of its kind in the region. |
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Homeland Security, ICE working to make arrests in Michigan |
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Michigan’s tribal experts want to save wild rice. Here’s how they’ll do it. |
Restoration efforts: There’s a new plan to help restore and protect Michigan’s remaining native wild rice beds. Michigan’s wild rice, or manoomin stewardship plan was discussed in depth on Jan. 24 during an environmental conference hosted by Ann Arbor-based nonprofit The Stewardship Network. The stewardship plan comes one year after manoomin – or “the good berry” in the Anishinaabemowin language – was officially made Michigan’s state native grain. It’s a symbolic designation like the white pine being the state tree or the Petoskey as the state stone. Manoomin is integral to the Anishinaabe migration story, the history of how the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi peoples came to settle in the Great Lakes region. Those tribes are collectively known as Anishinaabe, and they consider wild rice to be a sacred relative with its own spirit. On the farm: Bird flu is forcing farmers to slaughter millions of chickens a month, pushing U.S. egg prices to more than double their cost in the summer of 2023. And it appears there may be no relief in sight, given the surge in demand as Easter approaches. |
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You're all caught up on this morning's news. I'm glad you decided to start your day with the Morning Briefing. Catch up on the the latest Michigan news at MLive.com. While you're there, consider becoming a subscriber. See you tomorrow! — Cara |
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