Tickets Now Available for Spring Fling 2023

In this Email

MAY 23 2023

• Party News

  • NEW: Tickets Now Available for Spring Fling 2023

  • NEW: Leslie Love Joins the Senate Race

  • NEW: More Good Things Happening in Lansing

  • NEW: "What I've seen is a lot of grifting”

• Upcoming Events

  • NEW: Save the Date - Upcoming HCDP Events

  • NEW: Keweenaw Pridefest

  • NEW: Community Events

Party News

This year's Spring Fling will be held June 10th. Our annual get together and fund raiser will be at the Bonfire Grill @ the Continental Fire Co. on Montezuma Avenue in Houghton.
 
Tickets are now available online or by mail. The cost is $50 per person, with Seniors and Student tickets available at $40.

Former state Rep. Leslie Love announced last Monday that she is joining the race for the Democratic nomination to succeed US Senator Debbie Stabenow, who is retiring after her current term. Love represented the City of Detroit in the state House for six years, from 2015 through 2020, and left due to term limits.
 
Love joins Detroit businessman Nasser Beydoun and Ann Arbor lawyer Zack Burns in the primary race alongside US Rep. Elissa Slotkin, who raised $3 million in the first month after she announced in February.

What's happened in Lansing in the past week:

• The red flag law bill, the final piece of legislation in the 11 bill gun safety package put forward by Michigan Democrats, was signed by Governor Whitmer yesterday. The impetus for the package was the shooting that took place at Michigan State on February 13th. The new law, also known as "extreme risk protection orders", should go into effect next spring. “We have heard too many times from those who knew a mass shooter who had expressed concern in advance about that mass shooter’s intentions,” Whitmer said. “With extreme risk protection orders, we have a mechanism to step in and save lives.”

• This past Thursday Governor Whitmer signed Senate Bill 147 into law. The bill amends Michigan's Elliott-Larsen civil rights law again, this time to align it with last year's Proposal 3 by making it illegal for employers to discriminate against their employees for getting an abortion.

Given the title of this item you'd be forgiven for thinking that the focus might be on a few of our Federal Supreme Court justices.
 
But no, the title is a quote from Republican state Rep. Steven Johnson on the 2022 state budget process - the last budget under the former Republican controlled state legislature.
 
One particular deal done under that budget is getting attention from several news outlets, and Bridge Michigan has a pretty thorough write up. The deal is the now "paused" $25M grant for a healthcare campus in Clare, and it reeks of cronyism and corruption. The news reports are shedding some unflattering light on the former House Speaker, Republican Jason Wentworth.
 
With a quote like that - coming from the Republican side of the House no less - we can likely expect to see more of these deals exposed to the light of day.

Upcoming Events

 Here are dates to hold for upcoming HCDP activities:  

• June 16th: Bridgefest Parade and vendor booth

• July 4th: Independence Day Parades (Participation TBD, but likely Lake Linden & South Range)

• July 8th: Strawberry Festival Parade in Chassell

• August 19th: Pasty Fest Parade in Calumet

• August 24 thru 27th: Booth at Houghton County Fair

Wed 5/24

• The Houghton City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The Meeting Agenda can be found in the Searchable Document Center of the Council's website.

Mon 5/29

• Monday is Memorial Day. The Memorial Day tradition began as a way to honor fallen Union soldiers after the Civil War, and evolved over time as a way to remember the dead from all our wars. In 1971 the date was changed from every May 30th to the last Monday in May, forming a three day weekend. Beyond decorating graves and remembering our fallen, many treat the long weekend as the unofficial beginning of Summer.

 Month of May
 
In May, we celebrate a number of different communities and raise awareness on a number of topics. We'll highlight one month long May celebration and/or commemoration each week during the month.

• This is the second year that Governor Whitmer has proclaimed May as Michigan Moves Month. This initiative of the Governor's office along with the Michigan Fitness Club Association, the U of M Kinesiology Department, and others, is to make people aware of the fitness opportunities available throughout the state, and to encourage exercise and activity as a benefit to both our physical and mental health. You can learn more at Michigan Moves.