The idea: Transform Michigan into theMidwest’s premier inland port and transportation hub, uniquely linking air, sea, rail and road capabilities. Create a new industry — a Great Lakes Global Gateway — forged from our existing manufacturing and agricultural sectors. The vision: Take advantage of our geography and infrastructure to become the lowest-cost transportation center for […]
Phil Power
Former newspaper publisher and University of Michigan Regent Phil Power is a longtime observer of Michigan politics and economics. He is also the founder and former chairman of the Center for Michigan which publishes Bridge Michigan and BridgeDetroit.
Posted inPhil's Column
Everyone loses if Detroit's course doesn't change
Oddly, the first question the politicians asked after the Detroit City Council finally voted to approve the consent agreement with the state of Michigan was not “will it work,” but “Who won?” Short Answer No. 1: Too early to tell. Short Answer No. 2: Wrong question. Third Answer, a little longer: Sadly, in most cases, […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Time to discuss radical options for Detroit
Most of the sound and fury enveloping Detroit these past few weeks has been about the near-bankrupt city’s immediate financial survival, whether via a consent agreement between the city and the state or, failing that, an emergency manager. No one doubts Detroit is in terrible financial shape. The reported annual operating deficit is near $270 million. There’s […]
Posted inPhil's Column
A birthday letter to Bill Milliken
Dear Governor: You celebrated your 90th birthday Monday. I’m sure you and Helen did it in your usual low-key manner, enjoying the serene beauty of the Old Mission Peninsula near Traverse City. All of your friends know how proud you are of the tradition of public service that has run through your family for generations. […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Legislature yaps at critical part of state's recovery
For years, physicists and science-fiction writers have speculated about whether parallel universes might exist alongside our own. I’m certainly not qualified to get into the domain of theoretical physics, but I can testify that when it comes to higher education, there are parallel universes existing right here in Michigan: Universe One has to do with the […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Battle lines being drawn in Michigan
I’m not sure how many people realize it yet, but … This year is clearly shaping up to be one of the most fiercely partisan in Michigan political history — and I’m not even talking about any of the races involving candidates. Completely apart from the personalities, it seems likely that there will be two […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Smoke-filled rooms beat robocalls
Well, the votes are in; the millions spent on TV ads and the candidates have moved on. But when you survey the results of the Michigan Republican primary election, all I can say is: “Bring back the smoke-filled room!” That’s not because of the way things turned out. What bothers me are all the evils […]
Posted inPhil's Column
A plan to curb carp, before it's too late
Since the St. Lawrence Seaway opened in 1959, the Great Lakes have been locked in an unhealthy marriage with the Atlantic Ocean and the rest of the world. Before then, the Great Lakes had evolved over the millennia their own ecosystem, physically separated from invasion by non-native species. But once oceangoing freighters could take on […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Pressure mounts on Michigan's K-12 schools
There was a lot of education news last week — much of it grim, and all of it indicating that this state needs to make big changes. Pronto. First of all, The Education Trust-Midwest, a statewide policy organization, released a new report that showed academic achievement among Michigan’s higher-income and white students has declined when compared […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Big bucks silence views of ordinary folks
Surprise! Would you believe that … political systems are stacked in favor of those with money? That’s probably been true since the days of the pharaohs, if not before. But these days, two things make the normal much worse in our country: First, the U.S. Supreme Court, in the Citizens United case, essentially ruled two […]