As you might expect, now that we’ve had our fill of holidays and family there was a full house for Friday’s Rotary lunch. Our green and white President Rebecca Bahar-Cook took the gavel and called our meeting to order. Given our political speaker, there was a fair amount of side eye today with everyone making sure nobody skipped out on reciting a single prong of the Four Way Test. Not even the reflection of the day was immune, with Lolo Robison harrumphing the virtues of clean hands and pure hearts and better to serve than be served. The tone of the day was downright ominous. And then it happened, the call for patriotic music. A resounding “NO!, She WON’T” cried out from the orchestra pit. When the piano player puts her foot down on patriotic music, you know things are about to get real. And they did, but in an oh so delightful way. Our playful cube microphones were paraded around the room like a Romper Room Magic Mirror and we saw a Chris, a Jen, an Adam and a Katie. A dog lover, a Joan and an Ashleigh and yet another dog lover. They all stood up to be introduced, recognized, celebrated and welcomed with applause. Just when we thought the tension had been lifted, BOOM! Another mic drop. No special music! The expectant crowd’s hopes and dreams dashed. What to do without our weekly fix? Quickly, Cathy ran to the buffet and grabbed the massive tray of comfort food brownies and popped one in everyone’s mouth. Crisis averted. A brownie a day keeps depression away. Food coma, twenty five minutes away. Nathan Triplett was the chair of the day and he gave an introduction of today’s guest speaker worthy of a 13th Century troubadour. Our speaker, State Senator Sarah Anthony represents all of Eaton County and the West half of Lansing. Now before you all go jumping on your political bandwagons, we’ve got a policy on political speech: Rotary Club Policy No. 8. Policy 8 lays down the Rotary law on speakers of the political persuasion. No campaign pending? Substantive topic? Avoided overtly partisan commentary? Check, check and check. Phew!  As you would expect, Senator Anthony was comfortable at the podium. She did however confess to a previous bout with imposter syndrome which has been thankfully cured! Senator Anthony gave us an overview of enacting a state wide budget is akin to a Pirates of the Caribbean pot luck. First, you convene a group to estimate the plunder (tax receipts). This is done in the Consensus Revenue Estimate Conference. Their job is to guesstimate how much money the government will have to spend. Once you think you know how big the pot is going to be, you hand it over to the Governor for an executive “recommendation”. Think, “guidelines”. Not really rules that have to be followed, more like suggestions. Then the House and the Senate engage in a “pirate parley”: a small group of enemies in a back room making recommendations as to how to divide and spend the plunder. After the pirates, I mean the House and the Senate agree on how to spend the plunder, the budget goes back to the Governor for a vote or a veto (same letters, different outcome). After years of SE and W Michigan plundering the spoils, finally mid Michigan made it to the front of the line. Recent funding for our area included: $65 million for housing support including apartments, condos, the Walter French development. Placemaking included $6.2 million for Moores Park Pool, $5 million for the Lansing Center, $1.7 million for a riverfront performance venue in Old Town and $40 million for a new Lansing City Hall. Spending on our youth was also prioritized with Mikey 23 Foundation (skilled trades for youth) and All of the Above (hip hop academy). Democrats no longer hold the power trifecta as the House will now be controlled by the Republicans. Senator Anthony regards Michigan as a purple state which calls for richer debate, forces negotiation and results in multiple perspectives being represented in legislative outcomes. There were tons of questions, including one from a stylin’ well-dressed yet angry clerk! No surprise, Senator Anthony fielded all questions with aplomb. Email for Kevin Schumacher: schumacher@glassenrhead.com |