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Whitmer spent $216,000 on Japan trip
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s recent trip to Japan is expected to have cost $216,000, according to a document obtained by Michigan Capitol Confidential through a records request. The governor's trip to Japan ended up being part of a three-country tour that also included visits to Singapore and Germany.
When Whitmer landed in Tokyo, she immediately got to work making sushi before staying overnight at the Prince Sakura Tower. She met with representatives of Astemo, an automotive supplier, and toured the Astemo plant.
The second-term governor also met with members of the Japan External Trade Organization, a government economic development agency; HITACHI, JR Automation, XEX Nihonbashi, Subaru, Tenabe Tech, Nissan, Nippon Steel and Keidanren.
She took meetings with the president of Toyota and the chairman of the Japan Automotive Products Association. The governor also toured Daifuku’s facility and had dinner with Gov. Taizo Mikazuki of the Shiga prefecture as well as the mayor of Hino, a city in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Click here to read more.
The Gaming Connection: The Role of Online Culture in Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination, a national dialogue emerged over what contributed to Kirk’s alleged murderer, Tyler Robinson, resorting to violence. Debate has raged over his motivations, political allegiance, and his ties to gender ideology. While the FBI investigates further, one topic of discussion has been Robinson’s involvement online. Already, the investigation has unearthed some indicators as to the level of Robinson’s online presence.
Multiple friends of Robinson described him as “terminally online.” The bullet casings used by Robinson were each inscribed with messages containing numerous online and gaming references. The bullet that struck and killed Kirk read, “Notices, bulges, OwO what’s this?”, which comes from a meme commonly used by members of an online subculture known as “furries:” Click here to read more.
New York City wants $250,000 from SoHo artists just to stay in their homes
The blocks south of Houston Street (SoHo) in New York City were a ghost town in the 1960s. Factories had shuttered, warehouses were empty, and landlords struggled to fill vast cast-iron lofts. Then artists moved in, hauling easels and welding equipment into open spaces that no one else wanted. They patched holes, rebuilt staircases, and improvised kitchens where factory sinks once stood.
Artists gave SoHo its soul, turning a derelict manufacturing space into the world’s most famous arts district. Now those same pioneers and their successors are being told to pay the city $250,000 if they want to stay in the neighborhood. The residents have sued to stop that, and their lawsuit is on its way to the state’s highest court.
The dispute dates back to 1971, when the state created a special category of housing, Joint Living-Work Quarters for Artists, to legitimize what was already happening while still reserving the district primarily for industry. To live in these lofts, you had to be a city-certified artist. Click here to read more.
Reports on political violence may favor liberals and inflate right-wing numbers
WASHINGTON - In the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination, politicians and political pundits have been engrossed in discussion over the rise of political violence in the United States and what role current rhetoric may play in fueling it.
While Kirk's assassin was subscribed to leftist ideology, targeting Kirk because he "had enough of his hatred;" Democrat leadership has pushed the narrative thyat political violence is disproportionately committed by right-wing extremists rather than left-wing extremists.
Just five days after Kirk's assassination, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) tweeted out a pie chart created by the Washington Post based on a data analysis by the Anti-Defamation League, which shows that right-wing extremists are responsible for the majority of incidents and deaths from 2013 to 2022.
The ADL analysis found that 335 of 444 deaths were committed by right-wing extremists. According to the ADL, right-wing extremists were responsible for more murders than domestic Islamist extremists and left-wing extremists combined. The Washington Post article was published in February 2023 with the headline: "Underrecognized: Extremist murders are usually from right-wing actors." Click here to read more.
SOS Jocelyn Benson approves ’86 TRMP’ license plate, despite explicit rule violation
The day Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was assassinated, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson lectured her online followers about the “need to turn down the hateful rhetoric and move toward a renewed commitment to civility.”
Pictures recently posted online, however, call into question her department’s commitment to that ideal at a time when Benson is running her own campaign for governor in 2026.
“Saw this in the wild,” X user donnydoright posted Friday, along with an image of a Michigan license plate. “What the Hell!”
The attached image featured green a Nissan Titan with the license plate “86TRMP” – presumably a reference to eliminating the 47th POTUS. There was also a sticker on the back window of the truck that read, “Nothing says traitor quite like a Trump flag.”
Others, including Izzy Lyman, who shared an image of the plate noted the photo was taken in Traverse City, one of the few liberal enclaves in the northern half of Michigan, while others pointed to the Secretary of State’s policies on plates. Click here to read more.
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