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LANSING, Mich - Gov. Gretchen Whitmer touted “announced” auto jobs instead of actual jobs created in a press release supporting a new legislative package for more taxpayer-funded corporate handouts.

“Since I took office, we have announced 38,000 new auto jobs and driven unemployment to historic lows,” Whitmer said.

Whitmer has previously announced that auto jobs were being “created” but was accused of misleading the public because announced jobs don’t equate to jobs created. In a 2023 news release, the governor claimed to have “secured” 35,000 auto jobs.

Jobs data show more losses than gains in the auto sector since Whitmer took office. Michigan leaders are often quick to issue press releases about taxpayer-funded jobs that will be coming to Michigan. These jobs usually do not come to fruition. Click here to read more.

 

KANSAS CITY, KS, Kansas on Monday sued Pfizer, accusing the company of misleading the public about its COVID-19 vaccine by hiding risks while making false claims about its effectiveness.

In a lawsuit filed in the District Court of Thomas County, the state said the New York-based drugmaker’s alleged false statements violated the Kansas Consumer Protection Act. It is seeking unspecified money damages.

“Pfizer made multiple misleading statements to deceive the public about its vaccine at a time when Americans needed the truth,” Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, a Republican, said in a statement. Click here to read more.

 

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rico’s elections commission said Tuesday that it’s reviewing its contract with a U.S. electronic voting company after hundreds of discrepancies were discovered following the island’s heated primaries.

The problem stemmed from a software issue that caused machines supplied by Dominion Voting Systems to incorrectly calculate vote totals, said Jessika Padilla Rivera, the commission’s interim president.

While no one is contesting the results from the June 2 primary that correctly identify the winners, machine-reported vote counts were lower than the paper ones in some cases, and some machines reversed certain totals or reported zero votes for some candidates.

“The concern is that we obviously have elections in November, and we must provide the (island) not only with the assurance that the machine produces a correct result, but also that the result it produces is the same one that is reported,” Padilla said. Click here to read more.

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WASHINGTON D.C. - Erin Fox has tracked drug shortages for more than 20 years, and she sees no easy solutions for what has become a record run

Drug shortages keep on growing. Older, injectable medicines are among the most vulnerable. Total active shortages hit an all-time high of 323 in this year’s first quarter, according to the University of Utah Drug Information Service. That’s up about 86% from a 10-year low of 174 last reached in 2017.

There were 48 new shortages recorded this year through March, according to the data, published by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Click here to read more.

 

NEW YORK, NY - Good Samaritans were seen on video leaping into action to save a man who collapsed onto subway tracks in Brooklyn, as a tourist put himself in harm's way in an act of bravery rescuing a complete stranger.

The scary incident occurred Wednesday morning, as Jordan Cannon was at the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station. The 30-year-old professional rock climber from Las Vegas was visiting New York City to celebrate his birthday when he saw a man collapse on the opposite platform and fall onto the tracks.

"Too much time was going by, we don’t want to see somebody die on the subway in front of all this people," Cannon told NBC New York in an exclusive interview. "You don’t know how much time you have before a train comes."

Cannon said he didn't hear any trains coming and felt he had to do something, then a friend started to record the underground action. That cellphone video shows the moment when Cannon and two others hoisted the man up onto the platform. Click here to read more.

TOPEKA — Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach has filed a civil lawsuit against pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, accusing the company of misleading the public about the safety and effectiveness of its COVID-19 vaccine. The lawsuit, filed on Monday, claims Pfizer violated the state’s Consumer Protection Act.

Kobach is seeking civil monetary penalties, damages, and injunctive relief, alleging that Pfizer made deceptive statements in marketing its vaccine. The complaint asserts that Pfizer willfully concealed and omitted crucial information about the vaccine, particularly concerning its safety for pregnant women, its impact on heart conditions, its effectiveness against variants, and its ability to prevent transmission.

"Pfizer marketed its vaccine as safe for pregnant women," Kobach stated. "However, in February 2021, they had reports of 458 pregnant women who received the vaccine, with more than half reporting adverse events, and over 10% experiencing miscarriages."

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A study published in the journal Medicine in February 2022 found a higher percentage of adverse events among pregnant women compared to the general population. Conversely, a study in the New England Journal of Medicine in April 2021 showed no significant safety concerns for pregnant individuals receiving the mRNA vaccine.

Kobach also claims Pfizer misrepresented the vaccine's safety regarding heart conditions like myocarditis and pericarditis. He referenced Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla's January 2023 statement denying any significant issues with myocarditis, despite findings from the U.S. government and military indicating otherwise. According to the CDC, myocarditis and pericarditis cases related to the vaccine are rare, with most patients recovering fully by hospital discharge.

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Furthermore, Kobach alleges that Pfizer falsely marketed the vaccine as effective against COVID-19 variants and as a means to prevent transmission. "Pfizer urged Americans to get vaccinated to protect their loved ones, suggesting the vaccine stopped transmission," Kobach said. "However, Pfizer later admitted they never studied the vaccine's effect on transmission."

In response, Pfizer defended its vaccine, stating it has saved countless lives and that their claims were scientifically accurate. "The company believes the state’s case has no merit and will respond to the suit in due course," Pfizer said. "We are deeply committed to patient safety and the effectiveness of our treatments and vaccines."

Kansas is the first state to file such a lawsuit, but Kobach indicated that five other states, including Idaho, will be joining the effort. The lawsuit is filed in Thomas County, chosen for its lighter judicial workload.

When asked if he had received the Pfizer vaccine, Kobach declined to answer, stating, "I think whether I’ve received the vaccination is irrelevant to the lawsuit; it’s about the statements made to the people of Kansas."

This lawsuit follows a similar case in 2023, when Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued Pfizer for allegedly misrepresenting the vaccine's effectiveness and censoring public discussion about it, also under the state's Consumer Protection Act.

 

LANSING, Mich - A Michigan state agency is seeking to spend $200,000 on a consulting contract to help it develop a program with the stated intention of reducing emissions in the maritime sector.

The program will “advance greening, electrification, decarbonization, equity and environmental justice, infrastructure, and the sustainability of Michigan’s maritime sector while ensuring the efficient movement of goods,” according to an announcement from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.

The notice for the taxpayer-funded project includes creating an “engagement and dissemination strategy” to engage maritime stakeholders. The program aims to tug Michigan toward its MI Healthy Climate Plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Click here to read more.

 

FARGO, NORTH DAKOTA - During his tenure in office he refused to face the American flag during the pledge and at one point took a knee, emulating disgraced NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

Holden said the pledge did not represent the district’s commitment to “diversity, equity and inclusion.”

“Given that the word ‘God’ in the text of the Pledge of Allegiance is capitalized… the text is clearly referring to the Judeo-Christian God, and therefore, it does not include any other faiths such as Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism,” Holden said in 2022, adding that this made the pledge of allegiance a “non-inclusionary act.” Click here to read more.

 

LANSING, Mich - Michigan House Democrats on Thursday approved legislation to strip away verification and validity measures specifically enacted to prevent election fraud.

Senate bills 603 and 604 eliminate the current ability of county canvassers to investigate fraud during recounts, limiting the basis for requesting a recount to errors that could sway the outcome.

Proponents contend fraud investigations should be handled by law enforcement.

The legislation also increases fees for recounts based on the margin of victory.

“This fee structure includes per-precinct fees which charge less for precincts where the results are closer and more for precincts where the margin is so large that it is unlikely a recount could change the outcome,” Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou, D-East Lansing, told Michigan Public Radio.

Other changes included in the bills deal with precincts where ballot counts are out of balance, making all ballots in those precincts ineligible to be recounted, according to the news site. Click here to read more.

 

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - The Indiana Republican Party is moving forward with plans to appoint a new GOP candidate after the primary race for a U.S. congressional seat was won by a woman who passed away months before the election.

Jennifer Pace won a GOP primary for Indiana’s 7th Congressional District on May 7 with 31.2% of the vote, according to the Associated Press. The 59-year-old had been deceased since March 6 after suffering a heart attack. Pace’s name appeared on the ballot anyway, and the news of her death did not appear to be widely reported at the time of the election. Click here to read more.

 

LANSING, Mich - Since 2023, Michigan has authorized $4.4 billion of select corporate business subsidies.

Assuming that money is fungible, what could it have bought Michiganders?

The average price of a ticket to a Taylor Swift concert in 2023 was $1,088, as calculated by CNBC. At that rate, Michigan could have bought Taylor Swift tickets for 40% of the state population.

Or, Michigan taxpayers could have bought 33 million days — 90,000 years and then some — at Disney World via $130-day passes.

The money could have funded child care and living expenses for the roughly 10,000 Michigan kids in foster care. It could have lowered Michigan’s personal income tax rate to 2.85%, down from 4.25%. Click here to read more.

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