‘We’re gonna fight like hell’: Local opposition kills hyperscale data center in Kalkaska

A proposal to build a massive data center on state-owned land in Kalkaska County is dead, thanks to locals who flooded recent community meetings to voice their strong opposition.

“We sought public input because we want to be partners with the community we live and work in. And we heard you. That is why my company and Kalkaska Go will end its pursuit of a data center,” Traverse City geologist Matt Rine, with Rocklocker LLC, wrote in a statement posted to Facebook by state Rep. Cam Cavett, R-Cheboygan.

“We are grateful we had the opportunity to engage in public discourse – it is important to work together as a community when making decisions about the future, even when there is disagreement,” Rine wrote. Click here to read more.

 

Public will be ‘disappointed’ when it comes to Epstein files, says former US Attorney

What will come next now that the Epstein files bill has been signed into law by President Donald Trump?

Former U.S. Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. said the public will be “disappointed” in what the Department of Justice decides to release of the files.

There’s not going to be a huge unveiling of all the Epstein files.” Fishwick told The National News Desk.

The recent Epstein files saga all began with a discharge petition led by members of Congress. This eventually led to the bill swiftly moving through the House and the Senate and being signed into law by Trump.

Despite the bill stating the files must be released by Trump within 30 days, Fishwick expects only some files to be released. Click here to read more.

 

Do Vaccines Cause Autism? CDC Moves From Denial to Doubt

The CDC has updated its information on the potential link between autism and vaccines, no longer ruling out the possibility of causation.

“We (the Department of Health and Human Services) are updating the CDC’s website to reflect gold standard, evidence-based science,” HHS press secretary Emily Hilliard told The Daily Signal.

On Wednesday, the CDC updated its page titled “Autism and Vaccines.” The website now includes three key points:

• The claim “vaccines do not cause autism” is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism.

• Studies supporting a link have been ignored by health authorities.

• HHS has launched a comprehensive assessment of the causes of autism, including investigations on plausible biologic mechanisms and potential causal links. Click here to read more.

 

High School Principal Arrested For Allegedly Plotting To Attack ICE Agents

Authorities arrested a high school assistant principal in Virginia on Wednesday after he and his brother allegedly made detailed plans to attack federal immigration agents and other law enforcement officers, according to local reports.

Kempsville High School assistant principal John W. Bennett, 54, is accused of plotting the violence alongside his brother Mark B. Bennett, 59. An off-duty Norfolk police officer overheard the pair discussing their plans as they dined at a local pho restaurant on November 15, according to ABC13, citing court documents.

The brothers were allegedly heard saying Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were “kidnapping individuals,” while Mark Bennett mentioned plans to fly to Las Vegas to meet with “like-minded individuals” and return with “enforcement ideas and plans.” Click here to read more.

 

Michigan taxpayers foot $1 million bill for an imaginary job threat

The Michigan Economic Development Corporation gave $1 million to OVD Insurance, a Kent County firm, to keep it from doing more business out-of-state, according to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

More than 100 pages of documents obtained by Michigan Capitol Confidential show that 80% of OVD’s clients are in Michigan. The documents did not include evidence that other states or economic development agencies were actively courting the company with incentives to expand elsewhere.

The $1 million taxpayer subsidy will help OVD but hurt competitors who are also based in Michigan, Robert L. Hughes, founder and president of Grand Rapids-based Advantage Benefits Group, told CapCon. Click here to read more.

 

 

Your Financial Data Now Has a Cost — Courtesy of JPMorgan Chase

JPMorgan Chase has secured deals ensuring it will get paid by the fintech firms responsible for nearly all the data requests made by third-party apps connected to customer bank accounts.

The bank has signed updated contracts with the fintech middlemen that make up more than 95 percent of the data pulls on its systems, including Plaid, Yodlee, Morningstar and Akoya, according to JPMorgan spokesman Drew Pusateri.

“We’ve come to agreements that will make the open banking ecosystem safer and more sustainable and allow customers to continue reliably and securely accessing their favorite financial products,” Pusateri said in a statement. “The free market worked.” Click here to read more.

 

Michigan Poverty Task Force Rolls Out the Red Carpet…for Foreigners

Michigan’s Poverty Task Force has a new webinar available, and it appears to have less to do with helping struggling Michiganders and more to do with hosting a job recruitment drive for people who are noncitizens.

Today’s big event? A state-promoted Zoom webinar offered by the Michigan Dept. of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) and spotlighting “employment opportunities for immigrants and refugees.” Yes, Michigan tax dollars are sponsoring a statewide job- search pep rally and information session for who the Democrats in Michigan government often call “newcomers.” Click here to read more.

 

Biden-era executive order harms business owners, forcing them into union agreements

The Trump administration recently enforced a Biden-era executive order, harming contractors and subcontractors that provide services to federal entities, and Bill Slayden is one of the many contractors who have been harmed by this rule. If Bill wants to continue providing construction services to the federal government, which is a major source of his company’s revenue, the company must enter into a forced agreement with labor unions—something that neither Bill nor his employees wants to do.

Bill Slayden started his plumbing business in 1979, performing residential and light commercial jobs. His small start-up eventually grew into a leading mechanical engineering company, which provides vital contracting services to the federal government—and what once was as a garage business has scaled to a company that employs over 60 people. Click here to read more.

 

Who is Clay Higgins, the only House member to vote against releasing the Epstein files?

Both Democrats and Republicans alike readied for a unanimous House vote Tuesday to pass a bill to force the release of the case files on the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But in the end, one lawmaker stood alone in opposition: Republican Rep. Clay Higgins.

Higgins, who is in his fifth term representing a congressional district in southwest Louisiana, explained in a lengthy statement that he was “a principled ‘NO’ on this bill from the beginning.” He raised some of the same objections that House Speaker Mike Johnson, another Louisiana Republican, had with the bill, yet even Johnson said Tuesday he would vote for it because, “None of us want to go on record and in any way be accused of not being for maximum transparency.” Click here for more.

 

K-12 moving to Labor as Trump administration accelerates bid to dismantle Education Department

The U.S. Education Department is moving management of K-12 and higher education to the Department of Labor and parceling out other job duties to other federal agencies in the most sweeping effort so far to dismantle the agency.

The Education Department announced the changes Tuesday, describing them as fulfilling President Donald Trump’s promise to “return education to the states.”

Management of both the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Office of Postsecondary Education will be moved to the Department of Labor, which oversees workforce development programs and protects workers’ rights, among other responsibilities. Click here to read more.

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After 2,500 days, Whitmer ignores her open government promise

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is running out of time to keep a campaign promise. During her first gubernatorial run, she pledged to open the governor’s office to the state Freedom of Information Act.

Nov. 4 marked day 2,500 of the Whitmer administration. The governor has yet to keep her promise.

Here’s what Whitmer wrote in 2018: “If the legislature won’t act, I will use the governor’s authority under the Michigan State Constitution to extend FOIA to the Lieutenant Governor and Governor’s Offices.”

This was a significant pledge because Michigan is the only stat in the country whose open records law expressly excuses the governor from following the law.

The Michigan Legislature enacted our public records law in 1976. The law had a simple and compelling purpose: “The people shall be informed so that they may fully participate in the democratic process.” Click here to read more.

 

Taxpayers pay $23.6M for Chicago Public Schools vacations

Chicago Public Schools employees spent $23.6 million in tax dollars on lavish vacations at 5-star hotels and overseas trips. Much of it was without approval.

Hotel rooms costing $945 per night. Anniversary trips to Las Vegas. South African safaris. Nearly $5,000 for trips to Hawaii.

Grand total: $23.6 million in six years. All at taxpayer expense. All by Chicago Public Schools employees and students.

Much of it was never approved.

While staffers were seeing Hawaii, students were seeing their achievement suffer. Only 2-in-5 CPS students can read at grade level. About 1-in-4 perform math proficiently. Click here to read more.

Clay Higgins Voted Not To Release Epstein Files — Here’s Why

The House voted 427-1 on Tuesday to force the Justice Department to release Jeffrey Epstein-related files, and the lone “no” came from Republican Louisiana Rep. Clay Higgins who says the bill endangers innocent people.

The Epstein Files Transparency Act would require DOJ to publish all unclassified records tied to the Epstein investigations. Congress’ summary says the department could still protect classified material and active probes.

“If enacted in its current form, this type of broad reveal of criminal investigative files, released to a rabid media, will absolutely result in innocent people being hurt,” Higgins wrote Tuesday on X, explaining his vote. He added that he would support a Senate-amended version that better shields victims and uncharged Americans named in the files. Click here to read more.

 

Yes, Millions Of Illegals Are Receiving Food Stamps

Despite legacy media claims, illegal immigrants do indeed receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, commonly known as food stamps.

In fact, it’s estimated that millions of illegal immigrants are collecting food stamps.

Though SNAP data is hard to come by, seemingly intentionally so, a 2024 Survey of Income and Program Participation that’s been analyzed by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) gives us some insight.

CIS estimates that up to 4.5 million illegals are using SNAP, even though SNAP is restricted to applicants who have legal status.

Notably, only the applicant, in theory, must have legal status in the U.S. Members of households who indirectly benefit from food stamps do not have to disclose legal status.

Moreover, illegal immigrants are already permitted to use WIC, which is another welfare food program, though it’s more restrictive than SNAP. Click here to read more.

 

Howell Township considers moratorium on data centers amid 1,000+ acre rezoning request

Residents in Livingston County’s Howell Township are expected to pack into Howell High School on Thursday as trustees mull how to address a rezoning request for a 1,000-acre data center.

The township’s board of trustees will consider whether to impose a moratorium on approvals for data centers as they review potential regulations, after local residents came out to voice their opposition at an informational meeting on Monday, MLive reports.

“There are a lot of things that could really go wrong,” Aaron Currie, a local real estate agent who organized the Monday town hall, told the news site. “There are no data centers in Livingston County, so I don’t think you’ll find anyone in the room who doesn’t have fears and concerns about the unknown.”

Developer Randee, LLC, submitted a conditional zoning request for more than 1,077 acres in Howell Township, claiming the $1 billion data center would create 1,000 temporary jobs and “likely generate more tax revenue than many of the largest taxpayers in Livingston County combined,” Planet Detroit reports. Click here to read more.