Tag: Brian Zahra

Ad talking about it beats the hell out of emotion, fear mongering, etc.

The GOP convention was this past weekend, and as several news agencies have reported, the anger with the GOP-majority Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court was palpable.  In a particularly detailed account, MIRS (subscription required) reported that the Justices "faced a frosty reception," although that characterization may be a bit of an understatement.  MIRS went on to report that if there had been more time before the convention, it is likely that Justices Markman and Zahra would have faced challenges to their seats, and that "some donors have asked for their money back from the Supreme Court race."  Former MRP executive director Greg McNeilly stated that he believes the Justices "made a political decision," and when asked what resources would be left for the GOP's Supreme Court candidates, McNeilly is quoted as responding "F--k them."  And this is just what was said publicly; "Most Republican powerbrokers didn't want to air their frustration publicly, but heated words privately, however, have been exchanged."

In particular, Young concisely and persuasively explains why the Court's decision was proper, even if conservatives may feel some disappointment that proposals that represent bad policy will make it to the ballot this November.  

There shall be a meeting of the duly elected Precinct Delegates and the At-Large Delegates to the County Convention at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, January 10, 2011 at the Western Michigan University Conference Center in Grand Rapids (200 Ionia Ave SW, Grand Rapids, MI - 49503).

The purpose of this meeting shall be to elect Delegates and Alternates to the January 28 & 29, 2011 State Convention to be held at DeVos Place in the City of Grand Rapids.  The purpose of the State Convention is to elect district and state party leadership.

Only Precinct Delegates elected at the August 3, 2010 Primary Election, the most recent Republican nominees for County and State legislative offices, and Precinct Delegates seated on a permanent basis at the August 2010 County Convention will be seated and considered eligible to vote at this convention.  We will be using an apportionment method based on the 2010 General Election results for the Secretary of State by district.

My report on the convention follows the break.

However, with Governor Snyder tapping rule-of-law Justice Maura Corrigan to head the Department of Human Services, the voters of this state were understandably concerned that the governor might appoint someone who wouldn't square with the philosophy that they had voted for.  I had spoken with Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley back on last Tuesday (January 4th) regarding this, and had been assured by him that the strongest rule-of-law judge not currently serving on Michigan's State Supreme Court would be appointed to fill the vacancy.

I'm happy to notice that I've not been disappointed.

Worth the wait however.  As now reported in the major news outlets including the Detroit News:

"Judge Zahra's 16 years of judicial experience and his razor-sharp intelligence will make him an outstanding addition to the court," Snyder said.

Snyder, who campaigned as "one tough nerd" to win the governor's race in November, noted Zahra is "a self-described law geek."

"This is a case where it's nice to say a nerd gets to appoint a geek," Snyder said at a news conference."

"One area in which I can emphatically state we are better off today than eight years ago relates to the court system." Explaining that he shares the philosophy of Justice Maura Corrigan and the majority of the Michigan Supreme Court, Zahra said he aims to search for the rule of law and respects the separation of powers, "Leaving to the legislature the significant policy questions of the day."