{"id":1030737,"date":"2024-04-16T12:02:04","date_gmt":"2024-04-16T12:02:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?p=1030737"},"modified":"2024-05-10T15:59:56","modified_gmt":"2024-05-10T15:59:56","slug":"michigan-gop-follows-trumps-playbook-messiness-money-mishaps-and-maga-extremism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/michigan-gop-follows-trumps-playbook-messiness-money-mishaps-and-maga-extremism\/","title":{"rendered":"Michigan GOP Follows Trump\u2019s Playbook: Messiness, Money Mishaps, and MAGA Extremism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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As Michiganders head to the polls today for special elections that will decide control<\/a> of the state House, the Michigan GOP remains entrenched in madness. As they face incessant infighting, ongoing money problems, and continue to support unhinged and extreme candidates, there\u2019s no question that the Michigan GOP has abandoned Michigan voters for Trump\u2019s MAGA extremism. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s the MAGA mayhem Michigan voters will remember at the ballot box today: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year, Michigan MAGA Republicans grew so dysfunctional that the Republican National Committee itself had to get involved \u2013 not a good look in a battleground state at any point, let alone an election year.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NBC News<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cAfter weeks of infighting, no one knows who\u2019s in charge of the Michigan Republican Party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKristina Karamo, who was elected chairwoman last year, insists she still has the job, even after a sizable group of state party committee members voted to oust her this month. She refuses to leave the post, even as the opposition\u2019s pick to replace her, former Ambassador Pete Hoekstra, issues statements under the state party logo declaring himself the chairman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe leadership crisis has resulted in chaos and confusion in what\u2019s expected to be a top battleground state for control of the White House and Senate in 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[…]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHoekstra welcomed the RNC’s involvement and vowed to move \u2018full steam ahead\u2019 in the role he says is rightfully his. Karamo\u2019s team, meanwhile, responded to the letter with defiance. The impasse continues.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Michigan GOP\u2019s infighting was followed by reporting that it\u2019s flat broke, with the party unable to pay off its numerous debts or build up the skeletal infrastructure left behind by its previous leadership \u2013 and the Trump campaign doesn\u2019t seem to want to help in any way, with little investment in the state so far.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Associated Press<\/strong><\/a>:  \u201cThe Trump campaign and its partners at the Republican National Committee haven\u2019t yet made significant general election investments in the state, according to Michigan Republican Party Chairman Pete Hoekstra. The national committee, he said, hasn\u2019t transferred any money to the state party to help bolster its operations heading into the general election. There are no specific programs in place to court voters of color. And there\u2019s no general election field staff in place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Detroit News<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cThe new leader of the Michigan Republican Party says his administration is having trouble taking control of the state GOP’s website and tracking down computers that are reportedly worth $113,000, seven months before a pivotal presidential election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[…]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt’s also unclear when Hoekstra’s administration will get full control over the Michigan Republican Party’s longtime website, www.migop.org, and its official Twitter handle, @MIGOP.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bridge Michigan<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cThe state party had just $35,000 left in its bank accounts as of mid-August, according to leaked statements first reported by The Detroit News. Karamo has since said the state party took out a $110,000 loan to pay a speaker for  September\u2019s Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference, which had traditionally been a profitable fundraiser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe party is now facing  \u2018imminent default\u2019 on its line of credit, according to a warning from state committee member Jessica Barefield, one of two Republicans who resigned from the Michigan GOP\u2019s internal budget committee this month.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bridge Michigan<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cThe Michigan Republican Party is in default on a $500,000 loan and ignored a recent demand for immediate payment, according to a new court filing from Comerica Bank. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2018The MRP has not responded to the Demand Letter and, as of the date of this Motion, has been in default for over 120 days,\u2019 bank attorneys wrote in an Ingham County Circuit Court response as the state party seeks control of its former headquarters for potential sale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe bank\u2019s renewed notice of default, dated Dec. 12, detailed more than $10,000 in accrued interest and $707 in late fines for missed payments on the $509,009 loan principal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In peak extremism, the Michigan GOP continues to be rife with MAGA Republicans who oppose abortion without exceptions and spread dangerous, racist views.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michigan Advance<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cJosh Powell, a candidate for a special Michigan House election this month, said during a GOP event that he opposes all abortion \u2018\u201cwithout exception\u2019\u201d \u2014 and, if elected, is open to repealing the state\u2019s landmark abortion law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[…]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPowell then responded: \u2018Yeah. No. I mean, personally, I\u2019m 100% pro life. I know Prop 3 kind of takes away the choice in the Legislature, but if there\u2019s any opportunities to go that route\u2026\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[…]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe attendee then asked: \u2018But on principle, 100% pro-life, without exception?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2018Yeah. Me personally? Yeah,\u2019 Powell responded.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Detroit News<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cA Michigan Republican state lawmaker is taking heat after alleging \u2018”illegal invaders\u2019” were loaded Wednesday evening from airplanes at Detroit Metro airport onto buses that had pulled on the tarmac.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut the buses, in fact, were brought planeside to transport men’s college basketball athletes arriving in Detroit for the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 tournament games at Little Caesars Arena, the airport said in a statement. The teams arrived midweek; the games are Friday.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Detroit Free Press<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cState Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford, lost his staff and his spot on a legislative committee as punishment for sharing a social media post amplifying a racist conspiracy theory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[…]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLast week, Schriver shared a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, from right-wing commentator Jack Posobiec with a graphic with the text \u2018The great replacement!\u2019 showing a world map with white human figures in the U.S., Europe and Australia and black human figures dotted across the rest of the land. Tate and lawmakers from both parties condemned Schriver’s post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe conspiracy theory asserts that there is a coordinated and clandestine effort to replace white populations in majority-white countries, and has been described as racist and a \u2018paranoid narrative,\u2019 by the Southern Poverty Law Center.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As Michiganders head to the polls today for special elections that will decide control of the state House, the Michigan GOP remains entrenched in madness. As they face incessant infighting, ongoing money problems, and continue to support unhinged and extreme candidates, there\u2019s no question that the Michigan GOP has abandoned Michigan voters for Trump\u2019s MAGA […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":263,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1030737","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMichigan GOP Follows Trump\u2019s Playbook: Messiness, Money Mishaps, and MAGA Extremism - Democrats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/michigan-gop-follows-trumps-playbook-messiness-money-mishaps-and-maga-extremism\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democrats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-04-16T12:02:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-05-10T15:59:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/War-Room-Master-Image.png?w=1024\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Claire DePree\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Claire DePree\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/michigan-gop-follows-trumps-playbook-messiness-money-mishaps-and-maga-extremism\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/michigan-gop-follows-trumps-playbook-messiness-money-mishaps-and-maga-extremism\/\",\"name\":\"Michigan GOP Follows Trump\u2019s Playbook: Messiness, Money Mishaps, and MAGA Extremism - 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