Always follow the money: Rich White people and the 3rd Ward Grand Rapids City Commission Race
As we reported a few days ago, in the 1st Ward Grand Rapids City Commission, candidate Andrew Robbins has been the recipient of thousands of dollars from a few Political Action Committees and thousands more from members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure.
The Rev. Kenneth Hoskins is running against Kelsey Perdue to represent the 3rd Ward of Grand Rapids. Hoskins, like Andrew Robbins in the 1st Ward, has been the recipient of $10,500 of campaign funds from the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, as we reported on last week.
Hoskins has run for office before, being part of the Grand Rapids School Board beginning in 2004 and served multiple terms. It is possible that powerful people are backing him because of his electoral experience. However, my take on why Hoskins is receiving so much money from the Grand Rapids Power Structure is because of his as Executive Director of Oakdale Neighbors and its relationship to the DeVos entity known as AmplifyGR.
Oakdale Neighbors has received at least $300,000 from several of the DeVos family foundations since AmplifyGR was first conceptualized in 2016. GRIID reported on this in 2017, and have continued to document DeVos Foundation support of Oakdale Neighbors. In fact, Oakdale Neighbors was contracted by AmlifyGR to conduct community surveys in the Boston Square neighborhood. The DeVos family is very big on these kinds of relationships with organizations and individuals that have bought into their vision for Grand Rapids.
However, people can draw their own conclusions, based upon the campaign finance data from the two 3rd Ward candidates. We have posted both the final documentation for the 2022 election on the GRIID site, with the campaign finance data for Hoskins here and the data for Perdue here.
Kenneth Hoskins
Total raised: $51,824.61
Total spent: $17,372.11
Total # of contributions: 95
Largest contributors:
Political Action Committees and organizations
- Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce PAC – $10,500
- Grand Rapids Fire Fighters Union PAC – $2000
- Realtors Political Action Committee of Michigan – $1000
- Priority Health PAC – $500
Individuals
- Richard DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Betsy DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Pamela DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Daniel DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Suzanne DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Steve Ehmann, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Doug DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Maria DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Johnny Brann Jr., President of Interphase Interiors – $1050
- Mark Meijer, President of LifeEMS Ambulance – $1050
- Terri Land, Property Management – $1050
- Dan Hibma, Land & Company – $1050
- Russell Richter, Richter Realty – $1050
- Jim Bossenbroek, Northgate Resorts – $1050
- David Lyngklip, Power Generation Sales – $1050
- Rick Baker, CEO of GR Chamber of Commerce – $1000
- Daniel Meyering, CEO of Trillium Investments – $1000
- John Kennedy, President Autocam Corp. – $1000
- Sam Cummings, CWD Real Estate Investment – $1000
- Michael Jandernoa, Owner 42 North Partners – $1000
- Susan Jandernoa, Board of Trustees GVSU – $1000
- John Brann Sr., owner Brann’s Steakhouse – $1000
- Gayle VanGessel, Owner of Rockford Construction – $1000
- James Hackett, Retired – $750
- Robert Hughes, Advantage Benefits Group – $550
- Shaquanda Gordon, Spartan Nash – $500
- Mark Murray, Meijer Inc. – $500
- Charlie Secchia, Attico Ventures LLC. – $500
- Robert Schermer, Meritage Hospitality Group – $500
- Doug Dozeman, Warner Norcross – $500
- Matt Missad, Universal Forrest Products – $500
- Timothy Schowalter, Pioneer Construction – $500
- Mike VanGessel, Rockford Construction – $500
- Michael Houseman, Wolverine Building Group – $500
38 contributions were $500 or more.
Kelsey Perdue
Total raised: $42,711.95
Total spent: $31,397.51
Total # of contributions: 244
Largest contributors:
Political Action Committees & Organizations
- Progressive Women’s Alliance – $2000
- Equity PAC – $1500
- West Michigan Cannabis Guild – $1000
- Rental Property Owners Association – $500
Individuals
- Kayla Smith, Manager FMC – $1000
- Carla Erikson, Atomic Object – $1000
- Joe Glover, Well House – $1000
- Chris Burtley, Barnes and Thornburg – $734.90
- Joe Jones – $525
- Annemarie Valdez – $500
- Darell Ross, Forty Acres – $500
- Lynn Heemstra, Retired – $500
- Amber Wagner, Treadstone Mortgage – $500
- Arlen-Deam Gaddy, Erhardt Construction – $500
- Angel Duff, Price Waterhouse Coopers – $500
- Christopher Spain, Acrisure – $500
- Kate Wolters, KRW Foundation – $500
- Marlin Feyen, Retired – $500
18 contributions were $500 or more.
The numbers for the campaign contributions going to the candidates in the 3rd Ward Grand Rapids City Commission race speak for themselves. More importantly, the amount of money that was contributed to Kenneth Hoskins campaign from members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure are astonishing. The DeVos family & Associates collectively contributed $9450 alone. This amount of money from the wealthiest people in Grand Rapids, which are almost exclusively White, is also very troubling in a political Ward that has the largest Black population in Grand Rapids. White rich people seeking to install Black candidates is nothing short of Managerial Racism, Institutionalized White Supremacy and White Saviorism.
Always follow the money: Grand Rapids 1st Ward City Commission race has members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure seeking to buy a candidate
Within the past week, GRIID has discovered that one of the 1st Ward candidates for City Commission, Andrew Robbins, has been the recipient of major funding from two very conservative organizations in Grand Rapids.
On Tuesday, GRIID reported that the Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association PAC had contributed $10,000 to Andrew Robbins, and on the same day we reported that Robbins had received an additional $10,500 from the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce.
The GR Chamber of Commerce is part of the Grand Rapids Power Structure, while the GRPD police union essentially serves the same power structure.
On Friday, GRIID accessed the campaign finance report, which you can find at this link, for both Andrew Robbins and the incumbent Kurt Reppart. What follows is a breakdown of those reports – total funds, amount spent, number of contributions and a listing of the largest contributors.
Andrew Robbins
Total raised: $59,620.00
Total spent: $46,918.93
Total # of contributions: 105
Largest contributors:
Political Action Committees and organizations
- Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce PAC – $10,500
- Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association PAC – $10,000
- Grand Rapids Fire Fighters Union PAC – $2000
- Realtors Political Action Committee of Michigan – $1000
Individuals
- Andrew Robbins, candidate – $1050
- Johnny Brann Jr., President of Interphase Interiors – $1050
- Samuel Moore, ED of Kent County Parks Foundation – $1050
- Sam Cummings, CWD Real Estate Investment – $1050
- John Brann Sr., owner Brann’s Steakhouse – $1050
- Sandra Brann, Manager of Brann’s Steakhouse – $1050
- Mark Meijer, President of LifeEMS Ambulance – $1050
- Randy Damstra, Ottawa Avenue Private Capital (DeVos-owned) – $1050
- Richard DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Betsy DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Pamela DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Daniel DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Suzanne DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Steve Ehmann, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Doug DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Maria DeVos, RDV Corp. – $1050
- Terri Lynn, GML Companies – $1050
- Zachary Bossenbroek, Northgate Resorts – $1050
- Jim Bossenbroek, Northgate Resorts – $1050
- David Lyngklip, Power Generation Sales – $1050
- Daniel Meyering, CEO of Trillium Investments – $1000
- John Kennedy, President Autocam Corp. – $1000
- Michael Jandernoa, Owner 42 North Partners – $1000
- Susan Jandernoa, Board of Trustees GVSU – $1000
- Gayle VanGessel, Owner of Rockford Construction – $1000
- Rick Baker, CEO of GR Chamber of Commerce – $1000
- Mark Murray, Vice Chair of the Board Meijer Inc. – $500
- Mike VanGessel, CEO of Rockford Construction – $500
- Charlie Secchia, Partner Sibsco – $500
- JC Huizenga, CEO of West Water Group – $500
- Dan Hibma, Owner Land & Company – $500
- Doug Dozeman, Managing Partner Warner Norcross – $500
- Robert Schermer, Meritage Hospitality – $500
37 contributions were $500 or more.
Kurt Reppart
Total raised: $26,260.30
Total spent: $18,863.07
Total # of contributions: 114
Largest contributors:
Political Action Committees & Organizations
- Equity PAC – $1500
- West Michigan Cannabis Guild – $1050
Individuals
- Rochelle Reppart, retired – $1050
- Casey Kornoelje, Owner Pharmhouse Wellness – $1000
- Dale Spencer, retired – $1000
- Aaron Jonker, President Wolverine Building Group – $1000
- Tamara Vandenberg, Owner Pyramid Scheme – $1000
- John Glover, ED Wellhouse – $800
- Joe Jones, CEO Hekima Group LLC – $650
- Patrice Jonker, Social Worker – $500
- Jonathan Peerboom, Co-owner of Pear tree Homes – $500
- Elizabeth Sharda, Professor Hope College – $500
- Paul Knust, Partner Studiocraft – $500
- Philip Scipio, Reporter London Stock Exchange Group – $500
- Megan Kornoelje, Realtor Keller Williams – $500
15 contributions were $500 or more.
The numbers for the campaign contributions going to the candidates in the 1st Wars Grand Rapids City Commission speak for themselves. More importantly, the amount of money that was contributed to Andrew Robbins campaign from members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure was astonishing. The DeVos family & Associates collectively contributed $9450 alone. Other members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure that contributed to Andrew Robbins were Michael & Susan Jandernoa, John Kennedy, Sam Cummings, Gayle & Mike VanGessel, Mark Murray, Rick Baker, JC Huizenga and Charlie Secchia. Anytime these people contribute to political candidates, those who claim to stand for social justice and collective liberation should reject those candidates.
Editor’s Note: On Monday, we will post information about the other Grand Rapids City Commission Races, followed by candidates for the Grand Rapids School Board, Kent County Commission, State offices and more.
Witness testimony and character assassination: Local news coverage of the court hearing of Chris Schurr, the man who shot and killed Patrick Lyoya
As we reported yesterday, there was a protest outside the 61st District Court in support of a guilty conviction of the former GRPD cop Christopher Schurr. On April 4, Schurr, while sitting on top of Patrick Lyoya, shot him in the back of the head, killing him instantly.
There was a great deal of news coverage, especially from the West Michigan commercial news media outlets, which is the focus of this post. MLive, channel 8, 13 and 17 on reported on the court case for Thursday, October 27. In addition, there was coverage on WGVU radio and the NPR affiliate, Michigan Radio. We will look at the coverage from each of these news outlets, which sources they used, how they framed their stories and what was omitted.
MLive
There were four separate stories on MLive, reporting on the court proceedings for October 27. The first article explained the basics of the case and let readers of MLive know that they could watch the court proceedings live online. The article also included 65 photos, many of them from before the October 27th court case, but there were also pictures from yesterday as well that are worth mentioning. The image on the left here is a still image of one of the videos captured from April 4, the day that Christopher Schurr killed Patrick Lyoya. The image is a freeze frame of the video that the Defense was using to make arguments about how Lyoya “took control” of the taser from Schurr. The image on the right is of a former cop and video expert, Robert McFarlane, who was also brought in by the defense attorneys to bolster their case. Here is a link to McFarlane’s Linkedin page, which provides additional details on his history.
A second MLive article centers around a witness in the case, Wayne Butler, who said he pleaded with Patrick to stop resisting the GRPD cop who shot and killed Lyoya. This article is for MLive subscribers only, so I am unable to comment on it.
A third MLive article is headlined, Patrick Lyoya took control of officer’s Taser before fatal shooting, defense claims. In this article both the defense lawyers and the prosecuting attorney are cited, although more space was given to the defense attorneys who argued points about the taser, the blood/alcohol level of Patrick and the claim from the defense attorney that Lyoya was “living as another person.” It is clear that the defense attorneys want to attack the character of Patrick Lyoya and make the claim that he was living a “different life.”
A fourth MLive article centers around the likelihood that the law office of Ven Johnson will likely file a lawsuit against Christopher Schurr for the murder of Patrick Lyoya. In this article, a witness for the defense, once again attempted to denigrate Lyoya. A lawyer with Ven Johnson’s firm responded to the character assassination of Lyoya, stating:
“The family finds it upsetting, as we do, that they bring out things that don’t have anything to do with the killing,” Waun said.
“He didn’t shoot him because they had a Bridge card in the back of the car. He didn’t shoot him because he had somebody else’s ID in the car. He didn’t shoot him because (Lyoya) was intoxicated.
“To bring out all of these things just to kind of muddy the waters with regard to Patrick, to make him look bad, to try and justify what happened, I believe that’s just wrong,” he said
WZZM 13
There were two stories on October 27th that appeared on WZZM 13. In the first story posted by channel 13, it provides some preliminary information about the case, a fair amount of testimony offered by the witness, Wayne Butler, and similar commentary from the defense, commentary meant to discredit the character of Patrick Lyoya.
The other story from WZZM 13, rehashes much of the information already known to the public, but in this story they also cite a criminal defense attorney who works for a law firm in Kalamazoo. The lawyer provided some scenarios about how the case could go and made a few clarifying comments about the case. However, this source offered no significant information or analysis about these types of criminal cases.
WOOD TV8
Channel 8 aired just one story from October 27 about the court hearing. In their story they cited Aime Tuyishime, a friend of Lyoya and the passenger of his car on April 4, the day he died. In addition, the neighbor who witnesses what happened was cited, along with an expert for the defense and a GRPD cop, Sgt. Nicholas Calati. Channel 8 gave Calati some airtime, but if you wanted to read his police report statement, go to this link and read page 5.
The WOOD TV8 story did include information about both supporters of Schurr and supports of Patrick Lyoya who were there yesterday. No one who supported Schurr opted to speak with the news media, but someone who was there as part of the protest spoke with channel 8.
WXMI 17
The coverage from WXMI 17 provided much of the same information that the other commercial media sources reported. However, there were two significant differences, First, it their main story, WXMI provides a complete recording of the entire court proceedings from October 27, in three parts, thus allowing people to watch and listen to everything that took place that day.
The other story that WXMI aired centered around those protesting outside the court building, which included an interview with one of the organizers and even footage of the march that took place later in the day.
Radio coverage
There was also some radio news coverage of the preliminary hearing in the case of Christopher Schurr. WGVU radio ran a very brief story that added no new information or perspective on what happened yesterday.
The other radio news story was from Michigan Radio. In that story, one of the witnesses, Wayne Butler, was cited extensively, along with an acknowledgement that another GRPD cop testified. The Michigan Radio story concluded by stating that the judge in this case would likely decide on Friday if and when a trial would take place.
The news coverage was over all fairly balanced in terms of hearing from both of the legal sides of this case. Overall there was a typical narrative that all of the commercial news outlets stuck to, but it is worth noting that WXMI 17 did post – in three parts – the entire court proceedings from October 27 and they provided a more robust story on the people who were protesting in support of Patrick Lyoya and demanding that the courts convict Chris Schurr. As we noted last month, much of the commercial news coverage up to this point had been demonstrating a bias in favor of Chris Schurr, although that may change, especially if this case goes to trial.
While all the attention was given to the court hearing that began today in the case against the former GRPD officer Christopher Schurr, the cop who shot Patrick Lyoya in the back of the head, there was an organized protest outside the 61st District Court in downtown Grand Rapids.
About 30 people began to gather outside of the Kent County Court building around noon on Thursday to continue to public demonstrate solidarity with the Lyoya family. One organizer told this writer that it was important that we continue to take action and apply pressure, any kind of pressure to win justice for Patrick Lyoya’s family.
Some of the people in the Justice4Patrick camp were inside the courtroom, to listen to what was being said and to monitor the process. This information was being shared with activists on the outside, with regular updates.
A brief rally was held outside the 61st District Court, where organizers kept making demands around convicting Schurr, around ending qualified immunity, around greater accountability of the police, and to defund the GRPD. It has been almost 7 months since Patrick Lyoya was pulled over for having an expired license plate on his car, where the cop escalated the situation, used his taser on Lyoya, kicked him repeatedly, then sat on top of him while he laid faced down on the ground and shot him in the back of the head.
There was constant GRPD presence outside during the protest, with cops on foot and cops in cars, monitoring those who were protesting. Eventually, those who had gathered in front of the court building began to walk and chant through downtown Grand Rapids, thus letting those working, shopping or living in downtown that there was still a community of people who were demanding justice for Patrick Lyoya.
People honked their horns in support, gave a thumbs up and some even yelled in favor of those who were marching for Patrick Lyoya. Not everyone was happy about the protest, nor the march. Some people in cars became impatient with the marchers, having to wait a few seconds more at an intersection, while the march weaved its way through the city. There were also a few people who, walking by the protest in front of the court building, made comments that were critical of those demonstrating. One woman even made the comment that, “he got what he deserved,” referring to Lyoya.
Having been part of the organized resistance since Patrick Lyoya was murdered on April 4th of this year, I was heartened by the turnout on this sunny Fall day. While the so-called justice system is often a system of oppression, I was struck by all the people who came, their passion, their dedication and how much they cared about each other and the affected community.
The preliminary hearing will continue Friday, followed by a timeline for when the actual trial will begin. Considering it is almost November, it seems likely that the trial will not take place until after the New Year. In tomorrow’s post, we will deconstruct the local news coverage of the court proceedings in the case against Chris Schurr for the murder of Patrick Lyoya.
Always follow the money: Real Estate and Rental Property Owners Political Action Committee campaign contributions for the November Election
As we have noted in the past two days, those that have Political Action Committees (PACs) that have a stake in policing – the Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association, and those that have an interest in making profits from the labor of others – the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, have both made significant campaign contributions to candidates in the upcoming election on November 8.
In addition, throughout our coverage of candidates running for City, County and State office, we have always looked at how candidates response to some of the most pressing issues of the day, such as policing and the growing wealth gap in the Greater Grand Rapids area.
Another major issue that has been the topic of much debate in this city is the issue of housing. The cost of housing in Grand Rapids has increased significantly in the past decade, both the cost of buying a home, along with the cost of rent. Many individuals and families have been priced out of the Grand Rapids housing market, both in terms of buying a home and rental fees.
The City of Grand Rapids has made some effort to address the housing disparities, but the amount of money they have allocated for affordable housing is inadequate. City officials continue to provide significant tax breaks and tax incentives to housing developers, who also double dip by applying for state housing funds. This means that the public is making a significant investment in housing, without really have much of a say in it.
Then there is the issue of gentrification, where several neighborhoods have been gentrified, with families being displaced because the; 1) property values/property taxes have gone up, making it difficult or impossible for people to pay the increased property taxes; 2) developers level buildings and housing units that have been allowed to fall apart to make room for newer and costlier housing options; and 3) the process of development proposals happens in such a way as to almost guarantee that residents will not be able to have a say in the housing needs, the design and most importantly the process even before development plans are submitted.
What follows are a list of candidates on the November 8th ballot that have received campaign contributions from the Realtors Political Action Committee Michigan and the Rental Property Owners Association of Kent County. These associations both have as a primary interest the profitability of housing, which means they don’t believe that people have a right to a safe place to live. These associations also have lobbyist that will constantly pressure candidates once they are elected, so that they will adopt legislation that is often crafted by housing industry associations or to defeat proposed legislation that would would be detrimental to their bottom line. One example of legislation that would be detrimental would be rent control, which would regulate the cost of rent to make sure that people could still afford the cost of rent.
These are just some of the reasons that those in the housing for profit industry contribute to political candidates.
Realtors Political Action Committee Michigan – Secretary of State online Campaign Finance data at this link.
Here are a list of candidates the Realtors Political Action Committee Michigan has made campaign contritions to who are running for State seats:
- Thomas Albert – 18th State Senate candidate: $6500
- Mark Huizenga – 28th State Senate candidate: $15,000
- Winnie Brinks – 29th State Senate candidate: $2000
- Kristian Grant – 82nd State Representative candidate: $1500
- Mike Milanowski – 84th State Representative candidate: $3500
- Carol Glanville – 84th State Representative candidate: $250
- Lynn Afendoulis – 81st State Representative candidate: $5150
- Rachel Hood – 81st State Representative candidate: $250
- Bryan Posthumus – 90th State Representative candidate: $8500
Here are a list of candidates the Realtors Political Action Committee Michigan has made campaign contritions to who are running for Kent County Commission seats:
- Ben Greene – 1st District Kent County Commission candidate: $3000
- Jennifer Merchant – 3rd District Kent County Commission candidate: $2000
- Dave Hildenbrand – 5th District Kent County Commission candidate: $2000
- Stan Stek – 6th District Kent County Commission candidate: $3000
- Stan Ponstein – 7th District Kent County Commission candidate: $500
- Dan Burrill – 8th District Kent County Commission candidate: $3000
- Emily Post Brieve – 10th District Kent County Commission candidate: $3000
- Lindsey Thiel – 11th District Kent County Commission candidate: $3250
- Monica Sparks – 12th District Kent County Commission candidate: $1750
- Tom McKelvey – 13th District Kent County Commission candidate: $2000
- Carol Hennessy – 14th District Kent County Commission candidate: $500
- Melissa LaGrand – 16th District Kent County Commission candidate: $750
- Tony Baker – 17th District Kent County Commission candidate: $750
Here are a list of candidates the Realtors Political Action Committee Michigan has made campaign contritions to who are running for Grand Rapids City Commission seats:
- Andrew Robbins – 1st Ward Grand Rapids City Commission candidate: $1300
- Kenneth Hoskins – 3rd Ward Grand Rapids City Commission candidate: $1300
- Joe Jones – 2nd Ward Grand Rapids City Commission candidate: $800
Rental Property Owners Association of Kent County – Secretary of State online Campaign Finance data at this link.
Here are a list of candidates that the Rental Property Owners Association of Kent County has made campaign contritions to who are running for seats at the State level, with one candidate running for a Grand Rapids City Commission seat.
- Thomas Albert – 18th State Senate candidate: $500
- Mark Huizenga – 28th State Senate candidate: $500
- Tommy Brann – 29th State Senate candidate: $500
- Luke Meerman – 89th State Representative candidate: $500
- Jeffrey Johnson – 80th State Representative candidate: $500
- Lynn Afendoulis – 81st State Representative candidate: $500
- Lisa Dekryger – 83rd State Representative candidate: $500
Kelsey Perdue – 3rd Ward Grand Rapids City Commission candidate: $500
The Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, like all Chambers of Commerce, has a long history of supporting political candidates that will represent their interests and the interests of their members, known as the Capitalist Class.
In preparation for the November 8th Election, the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce has made campaign contributions to several candidates running for seats at the State, County and City of Grand Rapids level.
Here are a list of candidates the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce has made campaign contritions to who are running for State seats:
- Mark Huizenga running for the 30th District State Senate seat has received $1300.
- Lynn Afendoulis running for the 81st District State Representative seat has received $300.
- Mike Milanowski running for the 84th District State Representative seat has received $1100.
Here are a list of candidates the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce has made campaign contritions to who are running for Kent County Commission seats:
- Ben Greene running for the 1st District Kent County Commission seat has received $2650.
- Dave Hildenbrand running for the 5th District Kent County Commission seat has received $2500.
- Emily Post Brieve running for the 10th District Kent County Commission seat has received $2000.
- Dan Burrill running for the 8th District Kent County Commission seat has received $1000.
- Stan Stek running for the 6th District Kent County Commission seat has received $1000.
Here are a list of candidates the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce has made campaign contritions to who are running for Grand Rapids City Commission seats:
- Andrew Robbins running for the 1st Ward Grand Rapids City Commission seat has received $10,500.
- Kenneth Hoskins running for the 3rd Ward Grand Rapids City Commission seat has received $10,500.
Both Hoskins and Robbins received $5000 in June and an additional $5500 in August from the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce.
It is instructive that the more local political races received the larger number, beginning with the Grand Rapids City Commission races, followed by the Kent County Commission races, then those running for State office in this area.
It is also worth noting that the two candidates running for Grand Rapids City Commission seats – Andrew Robbins (1st Ward) and Kenneth Hoskins (3rd Ward) are seen as the candidates that would best represent the interest of the GR Chamber, which centers around business development, tax breaks/subsidies for developers, providing incentives for businesses to relocate to Grand Rapids, creating a Talent pool for business, and making sure that the City is politically and socially stable for these interests – which means lots of police presence to deal with the unhoused, undesirables and social movements that are making demands of the Grand Rapids City Officials.
(All of the above data is based upon information taken from the Michigan Secretary of State site for Campaign Finances. Go to this link to get information on the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, also known as the Friends of West Michigan Business. https://cfrsearch.nictusa.com/committees/000912)
Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association gave $10,000 to a Grand Rapids City Commission Candidate
For several years now, GRIID has been monitoring the GRPD’s union around numerous issues, like campaign contributions to candidates running for office in the Grand Rapids area.
Even though GRIID has written about the police union’s campaign contributions for the past 5 years, there has been greater scrutiny of this issue since the 2020 uprising that took place in Grand Rapids and cities all across the country.
In June of 2020, GRIID posted an article that looked at the Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association PAC contributions since 2014. Numerous Grand Rapids City Commission candidates have received anywhere from $500 to $5000 from the local cop union.
However, in looking at the most recent campaign finance records for the Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association PAC, they only provided one contribution to a candidate in 2022. On August 8th of this year, the police union gave $10,000 to Grand Rapids 1st Ward Candidate Drew Robbins.
Robbins, who is running against incumbent Kurt Reppart, has policing as his #1 campaign priority:
Protecting the community is the number one job of any city. I want to help our new Police Chief, Eric Winstrom, make his changes to the department, to transition from warriors to guardians. Good policing starts with good Commissioners. I want to be your voice on the commission to be helpful, not a hinderance, and to make sure we can all feel we are safe.
The pro-policing stance from Robbins has also earned him endorsements from the former Grand Rapids Chief of Police, the Kent County Sheriff, the Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association and Johnny Brann Sr. Brann is the President of the police apologist group, Voice for the Badge, which has been denouncing anyone calling for the defunding of the GRPD.
On top of the pro-police position by Robbins, MLive recently revealed that the group SafeGR, has been using Dark Money funds to run a campaign that also denounces anyone who even considers a reduction in the GRPD budget. The SafeGR campaign has also targeted Reppart, even though Robbins claims he is not associated with that group.
As we have been reporting for the past two years, those who are apologists for the GRPD have not only denounced those who are not zealously behind the GRPD, they have used inaccurate and defamatory rhetoric to attack organizations working to radically transform the conversation and the practice of community safety that does not rely on cops.
Lastly, it is worth noting that the Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association has a Stand with Schurr graphic as their Facebook page banner. The cop union has not only defended the former cop who murdered Patrick Lyoya, they have defended virtually every instance of police abuse directed against Black and Brown residents in Grand Rapids. The fact that the Grand Rapids Police Officer’s Association PAC has contributed $10,000 to Drew Robbins, the most they have ever given to a political candidate, should tell us something about both Robbins and the police union.
Well, another year, and another of the 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders in West Michigan have been chosen. Actually, many on the 200 list were on the list last year.
The Grand Rapids Business Journal has chosen their 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders, without providing a definition or criterion for what makes one a leader. However, it might seem obvious to people, if we are thinking in terms of the most powerful. Indeed, there are a great deal of names in this year’s 200 that have significant economic and political power. GRIID has for years monitored that power and written a great deal about what we refer to as the Grand Rapids Power Structure. So let’s try to provide a little perspective on who was chosen to be part of the 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders in West Michigan for 2022.
DeVos Family members and those who manage their assets – 12 people. This family has a long history of being anti-labor union, undermining public education, being anti-LGBTQ, forcing Christianity into the public sphere and funding candidates that support structural racism.
West Michigan Policy Forum Board Members – 17 people. The West Michigan Policy Forum has a history of supporting the interests of the wealthiest in West Michigan – tax breaks for the rich and business community, anti-union, undermining public education, dismantling public services, using public money for private benefit.
Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce Staff/Board Members – 5 people. The GR Chamber of Commerce is part of the Grand Rapids Power Structure, has consistently opposed labor unions, supported public policy that benefits the Capitalist Class and funds candidates that will protect those interests.
The Economic Club of Grand Rapids – 23 people. This group provides regular “networking” opportunities for the most powerful in West Michigan.
The categories that the Grand Rapids Business Journal includes for those on the Most Powerful 200 list:
Art & Entertainment – primarily venues that cater to those with higher incomes and venues that are driven by profits
Banking & Finance – people who decide who has access to money and how it will be spent.
Business Services – This group includes Chambers of Commerce, PR Firms, Consultants, Security firms, and investment firms.
Civic Leaders – This group includes those who work in government, which is a very narrow definition of what it means to be civic.
Construction & Design – This group consists of developers, construction companies and design agencies.
Economic Development – This group is made up of entities that help “grow the economy”, which means they will threaten the interests of the Capitalist Class.
Education – This group only consists of the Presidents of local colleges and the Superintendent of the Grand Rapids Public Schools – a very narrow definition of education.
Food & Beverage – This group primarily consists those who own restaurants, bars, breweries or distilleries.
Foundations & Philanthropy – Wealthy people hiding some of their wealth from being taxed and providing funds to community groups with strings attached.
Health Care – This group primarily consists of the for-profit health care sector, with a few non-corporate representatives.
Insurance – Companies making money off of the lack of community care.
Law – Private and government attorneys
Manufacturing – companies that use workers to make stuff.
Media – This group consists of corporate media and a few media sources that don’t threaten corporate media interests.
Non-Profits – Organizations that often rely on funding from foundations (money from rich people) and that don’t generally address root causes of problems.
Real Estate Development – Companies that use property/land to make money, in order to purchase even more property/land.
Retail – Companies that rely on low wage workers.
Sports – Business people who make profits off of people being spectators.
Technology – IT people who make profits.
Travel & Tourism – Hotel owners, Ford Airport directors, and ballpark CEOs.
Living Legends – David Frey and Fred Keller – rich White guys.
Lastly, over half pf the 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders in West Michigan document is made up of ads from companies which celebrate the same people who are on the list of 200.
In the end, the 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders in West Michigan is simply another way of normalizing the fact that there is a class of people and organizations that wield tremendous political and economic influence in this area. These so-called leaders also make sure to maintain a business as usual approach to things, which often means they make sure that only a small percentage of people have access to wealth, they perpetuate inequality and they defend and promote structural racism, despite their Neo-liberal diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
Betsy DeVos, election deniers and campaign contributions: How she doesn’t give a damn about setting an example for children, not when it comes to power
Last week, Betsy DeVos was at the Gerald R. Ford Museum, talking about her new book with the Executive Director of the museum, Gleaves Whitney. DeVos loves this kinds of forum, since she knows that she will not be challenged by the likes of Whitney, who was the former speech writer for Gov. John Engler.
During the Q & A, DeVos was asked about the January 6th riot. According to MLive, this was response from DeVos:
“It was a very tough day,” she said. “I was in my office in the morning, and I could see the Capitol right in my office. I ultimately resigned because I didn’t feel the president … I didn’t feel he did what he needed to do to stop what was happening.”
She added, “I thought about kids watching what was happening on TV and their confusion around that, and just the kind of example that adults were setting in that case or not setting.”
Betsy DeVos sent the Trump Administration a letter of resignation two days after the January 6th riot, on January 8th. Here is what she wrote in that letter:
What is instructive about her comments from her resignation letter was the sentence, “There is no mistaking the impact your rhetoric had on the situation.”
Now, considering what DeVos said in her recent talk at the Ford Museum and what she wrote in her letter of resignation – where both statements make former President Trump complicit in what happened on January 6th – why would she and her family members provide significant campaign funding to candidates in the current election cycle, candidates who have publicly stated that they believe the 2020 Election was stolen from Donald Trump?
We know that the GOP Candidate for Governor stated in May that she believed the 2020 Election was stolen from Donald Trump. However, in recent months, Dixon has been more hesitant or even evasive in her response to questions about the 2020 Election. As we reported just after the Primary Election in early August, the DeVos/Prince family had collectively contributed $164,450 to Dixon, even though that number will likely go up after the October 25th campaign finance filing deadline before the November 8 Election.
You can check who Betsy DeVos has directly contributed to in the current election cycle, by going to this link on OpenSecrets.org, then compare that to an article from Michigan Advance that appeared on October 9th, with the headline, Here are the election deniers running for the Michigan House and Senate on Nov. 8.
It’s unfortunate that journalists who were at the Betsy DeVos Ford Museum talk, didn’t press her on the matter of her and her family’s financial backing of candidates who believe that Trump won the 2020 Election. When Betsy DeVos stated at that speaking engagement at the Ford Museum, “I thought about kids watching what was happening on TV and their confusion around that, and just the kind of example that adults were setting in that case or not setting.” Do you think Betsy has thought about the kind of example that her and her family’s campaign contributions to election deniers will have on children? In the end it doesn’t really matter to DeVos or anyone else with that kind of political or economic power, they could care less about setting an example for adults or children.
Earlier this week the national organization Roots Action held demonstrations in numerous cities across the US. The topic of those demonstrations was to pressure the Biden Administration and members of Congress to stop holding nuclear war rehearsals with NATO.
Roots Action also provided an online petition, with the following language:
NATO is rehearsing for nuclear war: flying B-52 long-range bombers from North Dakota to Europe, flying pretend bombing flights over Belgium, the North Sea, and the United Kingdom, and engaging in what NATO calls “a range of realistic and simulated events which can be found in a conflict.” The danger is of provoking an actual nuclear conflict.
The petition also included excellent links to background information, which was listed at the bottom of the petition page. Roots Action director Norman Solomon was also interviewed on Democracy Now! talking about the campaign.
I filled out the petition, since there was no organized action in Grand Rapids, which meant that my petition went to the Biden White House, Rep. Peter Meijer, along with Senator’s Peters & Stabenow.
On Wednesday, I received an e-mail response from Senator Stabenow, which said:
Thank you for contacting me about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Your concerns are very important to me as our nation debates how to best address this challenge.
Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has created a dire humanitarian crisis. The U.S. has provided over $5 billion in humanitarian assistance to internally displaced Ukrainians and those seeking refuge in neighboring nations. I will keep working to ensure that Ukrainians have the resources they so desperately need during this horrific time.
As one of the Senators who voted against going to war in Iraq, I strongly believe that we must be very thoughtful and deliberate whenever considering the commitment of resources, both financial and military. I will continue to monitor the situation in Ukraine and keep your views in mind whenever considering related legislation in the U.S. Senate.
First, the most glaring thing about the response from Senator Stabenow, is that it completely ignored the text of the petition message, which was centered around the US/NATO nuclear war games.
Second, Senator Stabenow decides to make her response about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, thus not taking any ownership of the role that the US has played in this conflict to date.
Third, while Senator Stabenow acknowledges the US financial commitment to supporting Ukrainians who have been displaced by the war, she completely ignores the larger amount of money the US has provided to the Ukrainian government for weapons, which she has voted for.
Fourth, Senator Stabenow then wants to present herself as an anti-war voice, citing her initial opposition to the US war/invasion of Iraq in 2003. While it is true that Senator Stabenow did vote against that war/invasion initially, she voted for the ongoing US military action in Iraq throughout the rest of the Bush years between 2003 – 2008. This meant that Senator Stabenow voted for more US military spending as the US occupation of Iraq continued, along with the fact that the US was supporting torture at Abu Ghraib and the ongoing funding of US Private Military contractors, who were also guilty of human rights violations.
Lastly, it is worth pointing out that since Senator Stabenow said that the US must be very thoughtful about US military aid, but this ignores the fact that Senator Stabenow has voted in favor of the Defense Department’s military budget every year while being a member of the US Senate. This mens that Senator Stabenow has voted to continue to provide over $3 Billion to the Israeli Apartheid regime, weapons sales to Saudi Arabia, US military action in Syria, Yemen & Afghanistan, and support for repressive military regimes in places like Colombia, Mexico, Honduras, along with supporting the ongoing US blockade of Cuba.
It seems that Senator Stabenow doesn’t want us to know about her support for US militarism abroad and she definitely doesn’t want to do anything to even acknowledge the US nuclear war games that are taking place right now with NATO. In fact, it seems clear that Senator Stabenow is in no way concerned about the threat of nuclear war and how that puts every living thing at risk.
