Granholm admits the obvious

Will you join me? That’s the question Gov. Jennifer Granholm had for her audience, Michigan, during her sixth State of the State speech Tuesday night.

She outlined many plans for the year, as usual, and was extremely nice toward Republicans. The governor also admitted the obvious; Michigan is angry at its legislators and the nation has noticed how silly Lansing has looked lately. This doesn’t mean a big kumbaya for the individual legislators facing re-election this year, so regardless of the bipartisan tone of the evening there will be blood. But don’t expect a Saw-style gore-fest again this year.

Higher education got plenty of shout-outs, with the Michigan Promise scholarship and the No Worker Left Behind program.

The scholarship needs to continue to be funded, but the money will dry years up before the commitment does. That needs to be addressed by legislators soon.

But the worker program gives universities increased support tied to graduation rates and turning ideas into business realities.

Granholm said this year’s huge demand for 100,000 free tuition opportunities will soon dry up the supply. When her budget is released next week we will see how much money is being put behind the idea.

CMU needs to make sure to attract those new students by increasing partnerships with Mid-Michigan Community College and offering new programs.

Education was only one of the four points of the evening; jobs, health care and public safety rounded out the speech.

The governor’s rhetoric called on everyone to agree time and again during her speech. But when it comes to action and joining Granholm, look to see Senate Republicans and House Democrats agreeing on popular proposals like mortgage protection and alternative energy while clashing on charged issues like prison reforms and health insurance.

Here are some general highlights from last night:

Winners:

lAlternative energy – methane, polycrystalline silicon (solar panels), wind turbines

lJeff Daniels – largest state advertising blitz (featuring the CMU alumnus?) and more investment in state film industry

lWayne Gretzky – “You skate to where the puck is going”

Losers:

l”Partisan Rancor” – had a bad night, but still winning the war

lAfternoon children’s programming – all day Kindergarten would be bad news for Hannah Montana

lPrisoners – could be losing money for their “homes” to fund more police

lCrime havens – 1,500 expected to be closed this year

lGranholm repeated many of her usual lines, but I never expected to hear her channel one from George H.W. Bush. Here’s when they all came up:

l”To create bold new jobs” – 1:26

l”Go anywhere, do anything to get jobs for Michigan” – 10:10

l”No new fees and no new taxes” – 14:14

l”Electrolux layoff success story” – 42:23