Dec. 20, 2024 | This Week in Government: Democratic Trifecta Crashes and Burns, Killing Hundreds Of Bills; House Republicans Prevail; Battle Ongoing in Senate

Disaster.

The first Democratic trifecta – control of the governor’s office, House and Senate – in 40 years and only the second since World War II imploded Thursday. The House was again unable to muster a quorum as Rep. Karen Whitsett (D-Detroit) refused to enter the House Chamber after coming to the Capitol, and instead, hid in the office of Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland), the speaker-elect.

With Republicans staying away from the House again and no quorum, the remnants of the House Democratic majority adjourned at 2:17 p.m. until 1:30 p.m. Dec. 31, driving a stake through more than 200 Senate-passed bills eligible for action in the House.

The stunned Democratic majority in the Senate, which at least had all its members present Thursday, caucused at-length before deciding they would pass priority House-passed bills sitting in their chamber to get them to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Senate Democrats appeared resolved to make the best of a bad situation, queuing up more than 100 bills for action.

As of 4 a.m., it had passed 40 of them, including some significant ones like a major overhaul on initiative and candidate petitions, the maternal and child health bills, and some charter school regulations.

“I am deeply disappointed that the House of Representatives called it quits while so many great pieces of legislation were ready for the green light,” Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) said in a statement. “Legislators are tasked with the responsibility of using every tool available to advocate for their constituents and communities, and ‘frustrated’ is too light of a word to describe my dismay that the House failed to meet its obligations in this historic moment.”

Brinks added, “The Michigan Senate is still in session and we have the opportunity to do good – a lot of good. In the coming hours, residents can count on us to act on key items that will protect the state’s children, improve on-the-job rights for workers, and more.”

Still, there was no fixing the reality that many Democratic priorities died in the House.

It is a scenario impossible to have imagined two years ago when Democrats were aglow at their forthcoming 20-18 Senate and 56-54 House majorities.

There was a yin and yang to the events. For every Democrat in tears, muttering four-letter words and staring blankly, there was a Republican in good spirits, knowing an avalanche of left-of-center legislation was toast. For every group that was absolutely devastated and furious to see their bills die on the one-yard line, there was a group savoring victory at that legislation’s defeat.

As just one example, a series of tobacco licensing bills that had passed the Senate and were queued up for final passage on the House floor (SB 651, SB 652, SB 653, SB 654) instead will have to start over next year. There was a companion House package (HB 6002, HB 6003, HB 6004, HB 6005), but the bills had all been sliced and diced to accommodate sponsorship and tie-bars installed, meaning the bills would have no effect without all of them becoming law.

“As a mother, a Detroiter, a health advocate, and a Black woman, I am beyond disgusted by the political gamesmanship that took precedence over the health of our kids,” said Minou Jones, chair of the Detroit Wayne Oakland Tobacco Free Coalition, in a statement. “Our elected officials didn’t finish the job and that is not acceptable. This childish behavior didn’t benefit anyone, and our kids are truly the big losers here today.”

Another unbelievable casualty was a bill – sponsored by a House Republican and receiving considerable support from GOP lawmakers – that would require state funding for juvenile defense as well as provide training for legal defenders and more oversight for juvenile judicial representation. HB 4630 passed the House 85-25 in October 2023. The Senate passed it a week ago 26-10.

But the Senate made a small change when it passed the bill, striking an outdated effective date. That meant it needed a concurrence vote from the House before it went to Whitmer’s desk. It never got one. The Senate filed a desperation request Thursday for the House to return the bill, presumably so the Senate could reconsider the vote by which it adopted the amendment striking the effective date, which would mean the bill could go to Whitmer.

The House, with no quorum, could not grant the request. The bill will die there.

It was a catastrophic end to the speakership of House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit), who finally acceded to pleas that he issue a Call of the House to force the attendance of Whitsett, as well as all 54 Republicans who walked out in protest last Friday after Tate killed action on road funding, changes to the wage law on tipped workers and paid sick time. But instead of finally corralling the members into the House Chamber, it appeared another example of how the House Democratic Caucus fell apart when the move stunned Whitsett, who had been told by one Democratic member working for her return a Call of the House would not be imposed.

It was a triumph for House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland), the House speaker-elect, who can now put on his trophy shelf the twin victories of putting an end date on Democratic rule by leading Republicans to House control in the November elections and halting the legislative express Democrats had planned for lame duck.

All year, amid the total inertia in the House (few voting sessions, far less committee activity and essentially only running a full-time operation in May and June), House Democrats told the supporters of all manner of issues, “We’ll get to it in lame duck.” Lame duck arrived, and when Hall said Tate crossed him, he pushed the nuclear button, pulled Republican members off the floor and obliterated a raft of Democratic priorities, as well as some noncontroversial bipartisan bills.

When the Democrats won majority, there was an immediate question about Whitsett and whether she would be a reliable 56th member. There were even rumors she might caucus with the Republicans to put the House in a 55-55 tie. But Whitsett batted those away, and for most of the two-year term, she was a relatively reliable vote for the Democrats and a loyal backer of Tate.

It was other Democrats who presented obstacles on some issues, Rep. Dylan Wegela (D-Garden City) particularly in early 2023.

Whitmer kept herself message-wise as far away as possible from the implosion at the Capitol.

There was no shortage of questions going around Lansing wondering why Whitmer was not stationed in the House Chamber or in the Governor’s Ceremonial Office around the corner trying to help work out a compromise of some sort as governors have done in the past at key moments. Then again, it’s unclear what, if anything, she could have accomplished in such a dumpster fire by being there.

At 1:29 p.m., her social media team posted a photo of Whitmer and husband Marc Mallory sitting for an interview in the governor’s residence in Lansing with reporter Tim Skubick for Michigan Public Television’s annual “Evening with the Governor” year-end interview.

“Michigan’s future is bright, and I’m focused on continuing to deliver for hardworking families across our state,” she said in the post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The governor’s press team put out an email at 4:03 p.m., about 90 minutes after the House adjourned, with the subject line, “Together, we made a lot of progress in 2024.”

That mood was clearly not shared in the House Chamber where Whitmer served 20 years ago.

The House Appropriations Committee chair, Rep. Angela Witwer (D-Delta Township), was in tears. Rep. Kelly Breen (D-Novi), the House Judiciary Committee chair, appeared devastated coming out of the caucus room. Rep. Christine Morse (D-Texas Township), set to become a judge, struggled to overcome her emotions while delivering her farewell speech as her colleagues looked on ashen-faced.

Tate, the subject of near caucus-wide scorn in the past week, skipped the speeches, nor did he pose for a family photo of sorts with the caucus just before they parted ways.

Supporters of a $50 million taxpayer grant to support the Copperwood mine project in Gogebic County suffered a setback Wednesday when the Senate Appropriations Committee took no action on the proposed legislative transfer.

The committee split up Legislative Transfer 2025-2, removing the $50 million to support infrastructure around the mine but leaving intact $120 million to support modernization of multiple Dow Chemical Company facilities in the Midland area.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Sen. Sarah Anthony (D-Lansing) told reporters the votes were not there for the Copperwood mine item on Wednesday because they were short a member and Republicans opposed the transfers.

“We want to make sure that every single member’s vote is counted, and at this point, I’m just not clear where the votes are,” Anthony said.

Sen. Sylvia Santana (D-Detroit), a member of the panel, did not attend session Wednesday, which threw session into flux with only a few days remaining and preventing the Senate from moving legislation (see separate stories).

When asked if there may be some Republicans who could support the mine project, Anthony said there have been discussions with some members including Sen. Ed McBroom (R-Vulcan), whose district includes the mine site.

“To my knowledge, there seems to be some support, but again, without knowing specifically who’s going to show up and the gesture today of no bipartisan votes, doesn’t give me much confidence,” Anthony said.

Environmentalists have been railing against the mine as a threat to clean air and water, but backers of the mine have said it would provide a vital economic lift to a struggling area (See Gongwer Michigan Report, Dec. 17, 2024).

Sen. Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor) told reporters after the meeting he had expressed concerns about the mine project at a previous hearing and was opposed to it. He did not have a problem with the $50 million being removed from the transfer request.

“If you look at the value of what’s estimated to be underground in terms of the copper, we’re looking at $4 billion of copper,” Irwin said. “I don’t understand how this $50 million is the key that unlocks this project.”

Members voted 11-7 in favor of Legislative Transfer 2025-2, with Sen. Rosemary Bayer (D-Keego Harbor) siding with Republicans in opposition.

The committee approved both transfers in Legislative Transfer 2025-3, $27.7 million for the Detroit Diesel Corporation and $100 million to support advanced computing facilities near the University of Michigan in collaboration with the Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The vote on Legislative Transfer 2025-3 was 12-6 along party lines.

Senate Appropriations does have a Thursday meeting scheduled but nothing on the agenda so far, with Anthony in closing remarks Wednesday afternoon seemed to signal this might be their last meeting, thanking staff and departing Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Bay City) for their work on appropriations issues this year.

All of the transferred funds come from the state’s Strategic Outreach and Attraction Reserve fund.

Senate Republicans laid into Democrats on Thursday over a charter schools transparency package before the chamber, calling it an attack on school choice and a policy that would create a double standard in reporting requirements compared to traditional public schools.

The debate centered on House bills that received final passage that would require charter schools to include the authorizing body of such schools on school signs, website and promotional materials.

Supporters have said it would be an important tool in providing additional transparency for charter schools.

No one rose to speak in favor of HB 5231, HB 5232, HB 5233, and HB 5234, which passed 20-18 along party lines.

Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt (R-Porter Township) called the proposals unnecessary burdens on charter schools. He added that charters are being subjected to excessive scrutiny not applied to traditional public schools.

“Yet again … we are confronted with another partisan left-wing attack on alternative educational institutions, another attack on the very essence of educational choice and innovation,” Nesbitt said. “This is a deliberate attempt by the majority to stifle their ability to focus on what matters most: education. We’re creating a glaring double-standard and transparency between public schools and public charter schools and traditional public schools.”

Sen. John Damoose (R-Harbor Springs) also ripped the bills, saying they unfairly target charter schools and parents seeking different educational options for their children.

“These bills would disproportionately impact students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, who make up three-quarters of all charter school attendance,” Damoose said. “Michigan students keep falling further behind and these bills will make it worse.”

Senators also passed legislation that would create a peer-to-peer vehicle sharing program, a move supporters said is already in place in more than half of the states in the country.

The bills, HB 5949, HB 5950, and HB 5951 would create the program and enable motorists to rent their vehicles, similar to an AirBnB for homes. The vote on HB 5949 was 33-2 while HB 5950 and HB 5951 passed 33-5.

Collectively, the bills would enable a person who needs a vehicle for a few hours or a day to use a phone app to find someone interested in renting their vehicle temporarily. The bills would require insurance. Twenty-seven other states have similar programs.

Passing 24-14 was HB 5406, which would increase the fees court reporters can charge for original pages, copies and transcripts.

“HB 5406 is a testament to the hard work and resilience of Michigan’s stenographic court reporters,” Colin Brehm, state government relations manager for the National Court Reporters Association, said in a statement. “This bill not only acknowledges the essential service provided by these public servants but also sets a precedent for recognizing the value of court reporting across the country.”

As lawmakers got stuck in a logjam Wednesday with no quorum in the House and Democrats’ Senate majority not present, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer‘s only public communication was a 30-second video touting previous legislative victories while discussing potential policy priorities for 2025.

In the video, Whitmer reminds viewers of Democratic trifecta accomplishments like expansions of the Earned Income Tax Credit and free school meals.

“Since I took office, I’ve been focused on getting things done that make a real difference for working families,” Whitmer said in the video. “In 2025, we’ll stay focused on these fundamental issues and fight for working families.”

The video was posted to the governor’s social media accounts while lawmakers in her party were struggling to coax members back to session in both chambers and the entirety of the House Republican Caucus was absent and the Democratic trifecta stood at the precipice of having hundreds of policy bills die, many unlikely to stand a chance in 2025 with Republicans controlling the House.

Whitmer’s office declined to comment on any action the governor has taken to nudge the Legislature towards action this week, but she reportedly delivered an ultimatum to Democratic legislative leadership earlier this week that she may withhold her signature from passed legislation if a long-term road funding plan and legislation to assure continued state funding for economic development incentives don’t land on her desk by the end of the year.

That appeared to land with a thud among Democratic lawmakers. It even prompted Sen. Sylvia Santana (D-Detroit) to fire back at Whitmer and sit out Wednesday’s session, bringing the Senate to a halt.

A source with knowledge of the situation said Whitmer has been in communication with legislative leadership throughout the week, expressing her desire to see movement on road funding and economic development items. Whitmer’s ultimatum for lawmakers, the source said, arose from repeated legislative promises from Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit), Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids), and House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) that went unfulfilled while leadership continued to “move the goalposts.”

It was not clear if Whitmer was at the Capitol on Wednesday.

Brinks pushed back against Whitmer’s warning on Tuesday, saying there’s simply “too much opportunity for good to unnecessarily narrow it down to one or two priorities with just a few days left in the trifecta.”

Sources said Whitmer doesn’t necessarily see her two priority items as the only options for the Legislature to vote on in the final days of lame duck, but rather as some of the most important issues for Democrats to act upon that ought to rise to the top of lawmakers’ to-do lists.

Santana reacted to Whitmer’s ultimatum with a Facebook post featuring a screenshot of actress Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda the Good Witch, quipping that it was “a privileged way of threatening members of your own party because you can’t have your way.”

“Sorry Glinda, your magic wand, I mean your pen, ran out of ink a long time ago,” Santana said in the post.

With the House preparing for its final scheduled session day of the year on Thursday and the possibility of a Dec. 23 Senate session, Whitmer’s influence over the Legislature remains unseen. Hall commended the governor for her efforts during a Wednesday press conference, and maintained that he wants to work with Brinks, but said Tate remains the holdout in negotiations.

Just before 1 p.m. Thursday afternoon, Rep. Karen Whitsett (D-Detroit) was arriving at the Capitol to provide House Democrats with quorum and potentially their 56th vote on a few Democratic priorities outstanding in the House.

By 2:15 p.m. it was all over. The House adjourned without quorum, without a sine die resolution and without any chance to pass legislation for the remainder of the year.

In between, House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit) ordered a Call of the House, despite being previously reticent to do so, even while House Democrats lost precious days of their waning majority to attendance issues following the.

Whitsett never appeared on the House floor, nor did any of the Republicans who were in the Capitol or nearby in Lansing.

So, what happened between Whitsett’s arrival at the Capitol and the House’s sudden and unceremonious adjournment?

The crux of the matter rests in how negotiations unraveled between Whitsett, Tate, Speaker-elect and Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland), Majority Floor Leader Abraham Aiyash (D-Hamtramck), Rep. Peter Herzberg (D-Westland), and the House Democratic Caucus.

Thursday morning, Whitsett told Gongwer News Service she would come to session.

During the week, Whitsett changed her mind several times on when and whether she would be present in Lansing, saying she felt that House Democrats would force her to vote on bills she didn’t support. But she told Gongwer Thursday morning, there were bills she wanted to see passed in coordination with the Senate and Sen. Sylvia Santana (D-Detroit), who also didn’t attend session on Wednesday. Whitsett told Gongwer that Hall would accompany her on the floor.

Detroit School Board Member and former Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo drove Whitsett to Lansing.

When Whitsett arrived at the Capitol, she was seen walking in with Annette Glenn, a former House member who works for House Republicans central staff and Whitsett’s friend.

Upon entering the Capitol, Whitsett did not go to the floor. Instead, she went to Hall’s office, where she was in a meeting with Hall, Aiyash, and Hassan Beydoun, legal counsel for Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the meeting.

Following Whitsett’s arrival, a Republican source speaking on background said that neither Hall nor the GOP caucus intended to step on the floor, contrary to what Whitsett had said.

Multiple sources said Aiyash was in conversations with Whitsett this week and Santana on Wednesday, trying to bring them to agree on agenda items that would get them to Lansing. One of Whitsett’s priorities was the water affordability package. She changed her mind about coming into session earlier this week when she learned that House Democrats didn’t have a solid 56 votes to pass the legislation. She repeatedly said she felt misled and that she didn’t know who she could trust.

Herzberg was the no vote on water affordability, Aiyash said, and told Whitsett.

Herzberg, when asked Thursday morning, said he was undecided on the bills.

“I was working with the bill sponsors to try and tweak how the program would be funded, how it would be implemented on water bills and when the program would begin,” he said.

Aiyash said that Herzberg never engaged in those negotiations in good faith, despite being offered multiple amendments.

Still, Thursday morning, despite knowing that water affordability was likely dead, Whitsett decided to come to the Capitol. She told Gongwer that she intended to vote on the bills she supported, and did not want to be pressured to vote on anything else.

Whitsett said she came to Lansing with the understanding that no Call of the House would be ordered to lock her in the chamber. Multiple sources said that was something Aiyash communicated to her and to Gay-Dagnogo. Additionally, although Tate was aware that Aiyash was in communication with Whitsett, he was not aware of the specifics of their conversations. He also never agreed to any proposals Aiyash put before Whitsett, including their understanding on a Call of the House Order.

For weeks, Tate signaled he had no interest in compelling members to be in the chamber through a Call of the House.

Thursday morning, House Democrats were discussing the possibility of working around Tate and issuing a Call of the House through a caucus position and a roll call vote if they failed to meet quorum again, but that idea died when Whitsett said she would attend voluntarily.

Shortly after Whitsett arrived, a Call of the House was ordered. She was not yet in the chamber.

Multiple sources said Aiyash asked Tate to give him more time to talk to Whitsett and to wait before issuing the order. Sources also said Aiyash was surprised when it happened.

Other sources stressed that Tate was unaware of what Whitsett agreed to, and Tate himself never agreed to any proposals.

Aiyash said throughout the week he communicated that a Call of the House would harm the situation with Whitsett.

“I always made it clear that a Call of the House would be counterproductive for Karen Whitsett,” he said.

Multiple sources said that from the outset, the intention of the House on Thursday was to adjourn until the final sine die of the year, but members of the House Democratic Caucus wanted to try to move something out of the chamber, if possible.

Multiple sources said, however, that Tate had not signed off on any agenda Aiyash and Whitsett discussed, nor did he agree to no Call of the House.

Aiyash also told WDET Detroit Public Radio in an interview Thursday night that he had no engagement with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer throughout lame duck.

Earlier this week, Whitmer told Tate and Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) that she did not intend to sign any more bills if the Legislature couldn’t deliver on road funding and economic development legislation, and those were all but dead as of last week.

House Democrats thought they could still get something done, though, Aiyash said.

“I had multiple discussions with members of the Democratic Caucus to achieve quorum to move an agenda, and at no point was I told I had no authority to do so,” Aiyash said.

When the Call of the House order was issued, Whitsett was spooked away from the chamber.

The only person who returned to the chamber following the order was Herzberg, according to the House Journal, who had not been on the floor for several minutes prior to the Call of the House order.

No one else returned to the chamber after the order was given. Not Whitsett, not Hall, and not any of the 53 other House Republicans absent since Friday.

It is unclear why Tate decided to issue a Call of the House order when he did. The speaker’s office declined to comment on the decision.

Tate did issue a statement on the end of the term.

“Rep. Hall, Michigan House Republicans, and Rep. Whitsett haven’t show up for work as independently elected Michigan state representatives, officially since last Friday – and today they even refused to join House Democrats in the chamber to vote on critical legislation impacting Michigan residents. The bottom line is this they refuse to do their jobs and stifled the voices of their constituents who elected them to represent them.”

Multiple sources on background said that Tate did not agree to not issuing the call on Thursday. Some speculated that with a quorum nearly at hand, he may have acted to get the people he needed in the room to adopt a concurrent resolution to set the sine die adjournment session.

With 55 House Democrats accounted for, and the 56th, Whitsett, sequestered in Hall’s office, sources said Tate offered to lift the order to get Whitsett on the floor, but by that time, negotiations were broken down beyond repair.

“They promised me they were not going to lock me in here, and that’s what they did,” Whitsett said Thursday.

Rep. Graham Filler (R-Duplain Township), who has served several terms with Whitsett, said that Democrats poorly handled the negotiations.

“The Democrats aren’t talking to Karen. What they’re saying is you need to show up because Democrats need to run bills,” Filler said. “There’s no logical discussion. There’s no policy discussion.”

Hall also criticized the negotiations following adjournment on the House floor.

“You can’t get negotiation done when you do a Call of the House, and rule 31 and you force her to sit in that desk. That’s not how you get a negotiation done,” he said. “What you need to do to get something done like this… is you have to bring the Senate, the House and the governor together. Then you have to figure out if Rep. Whitsett comes up and votes, can you get it through the Senate? Can you get it through the governor? Can you do that? And how do you do it? And what other pieces do you have to have to have it happen.”