Gore endorses Obama in Detroit

Michigan might matter this election!

DETROIT - Al Gore made his debut in the 2008 presidential campaign Monday night, encouraging voters to back Barack Obama because "take it from me, elections matter."

The former vice president's speech at the Joe Louis Arena was part endorsement and part blistering attack on the man who denied him the White House eight years ago.

"After eight years of incompetence, neglect and failure, we need change," Gore said. "After eight years when our Constitution has been dishonored and disrespected, we need changes."

Hey Al? BJ Clinton wasn't President the last 8 years you know.

Edwards Endorses Obama in Grand Rapids

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards endorsed Sen. Barack Obama on Wednesday at a campaign event in Grand Rapids, Michigan.


Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John Edwards in a CNN sponsored debate in South Carolina in January.

"The reason I'm here tonight is because the Democratic voters have made their choice, and so have I," he told the boisterous crowd.

"There is one man who knows and understands that this is a time for bold leadership. There is one man that knows how to create the change, the lasting change, that you have to build from the ground up," Edwards said. "There is one man who knows in his heart there is time to create one America, not two ... and that man is Barack Obama."

Edwards also praised Sen. Hillary Clinton's candidacy.

"What she has shown ... is strength and character, and what drives her is something that every single one of us can and should appreciate," Edwards said. "She is a woman who, in my judgment, is made of steel, and she's a leader in this country not because of her husband but because of what she has done."

Edwards is such a phoney. He wants the Attorney General spot so badly, he waited until an obvious nominee and then this.

Update!
A couple pics from inside. The arena was filled to capacity, over 10k people attended.

More pictures here.

Obama To Come To VanAndel Arena

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) -- Sen. Barack Obama will be in Grand Rapids Wednesday for a public appearance beginning at 7 p.m. at Van Andel Arena.

Doors open at 5 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Tickets are NOT required, but an RSVP is encouraged. To RSVP, members of the public can do so at BarackObama.com.

Many Democrats see Obama's visit as a sign the drought is over, with Michigan returning to the national political stage.

The controversy over how to seat Michigan's delegates at the national convention after the state broke party rules by holding their primary early. Armand Robinson is a delegate - officially listed as "Uncommitted" - but is a staunch Obama supporter and eager for the visit.

"I'm willing to bet 99.9 percent I'm going to be there in Denver with a seat," he told 24 Hour News 8. "He needs to be part of us, he needs to be here. He needed to be here three months ago, but the way he saw it, playing by the rules, I think he wasn't able to."

Robinson is hoping Obama's visit will heal any rifts in the party, and convince the undecideds, adding momentum that will carry through November.

If anyone attends, please give us a report on the event.

Michigan Will Sit Down

The beat goes on.

LANSING, Mich. - Michigan Democratic leaders on Wednesday settled on a plan to give presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton 69 delegates and Barack Obama 59 as a way to get the state's delegates seated at the national convention.

Clinton won the Jan. 15 Michigan primary and was to get 73 pledged delegates under state party rules, while Obama was to get 55. The state also has 29 superdelegates.

The state party's executive committee voted Wednesday to ask the national party's Rules and Bylaws Committee to approve the 69-59 delegate split when it meets May 31. The plan would allow the state's 157 delegates and superdelegates to be seated at the convention.

A separate plan submitted to the rules committee by Democratic National Committee members Joel Ferguson of Michigan and Jon Ausman of Florida, both superdelegates, apparently will be withdrawn now that the Michigan executive committee has settled on the 69-59 plan. Under their proposal, delegates would have been allocated based on the primary election results, but have had only half a vote each. The superdelegates would have had full voting rights.

The 69-59 split was proposed last week by four prominent Michigan Democrats who have been working for months to find a way to get Michigan's delegates seated at the Aug. 25-28 convention in Denver: Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger, Sen. Carl Levin and DNC member Debbie Dingell, wife of Rep. John Dingell.

Granholm made a fine mess of the primaries.

Isn't She Precious

I'm glad I don't live in Detroit, and if I did, I think I'd deny it.

Cockrel brought a special investigative hearing into the police whistle-blower lawsuit settlement to a temporary adjournment Friday after Conyers interrupted him and the two got into an argument.

Conyers, wife of U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, demanded that Cockrel respect her and twice called him Shrek.

"You're not my daddy," Conyers yelled. "You do that at home, not here. Give me some respect 'cause I'm tired of that. You may not do that at home, but you gon do it up in here.

"Grow up!" she continued. "Control your house and you'll know how to treat women better."

Cockrel responded by saying that Conyers had little room to talk about the issue of respect and interrupting others.

Monica Conyers gets into physical bar brawls and threatens to shoot. Cockrel is right on.

Moments later, Conyers interrupted Cockrel as he was questioning Carl Edwards, an independent Detroit attorney who was testifying at the hearing. Cockrel reminded Conyers that he had the floor and banged his gavel repeatedly.

When he threatened to adjourn the meeting, she responded: "Do it, baby. Do it. Do it."

As the two yelled at each other, residents attending the hearings yelled, as well: "You're disrespecting the citizens!" and "This is a shame!"

Conyers later told the Free Press that she does not have a temper, and that her Shrek moniker for Cockrel was spontaneous.

"My position is about the Shrek is ... he's a big guy ... the president is a big guy," she said. "I felt as if he was trying to bully me into not letting people know the information.

Unbelievable.

The exchange.

Kwame Kills Kareer

Finally!

Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and former chief of staff Christine Beatty were charged today in a 12-county indictment with perjury, obstruction of justice, misconduct in office and conspiracy because of their conduct in last year’s police whistle-blower trial, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy announced.

Kilpatrick is charged with eight felonies and Beatty with seven. They are: perjury, conspiracy to obstruct justice, obstruction of justice and misconduct in office.

Worthy said the perjury charges accuse the two of lying during a whistle-blower lawsuit about the firing of Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown and about their romantic relationship.

See here.
And here.

Charges against Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and former Chief of Staff Christine Beatty include conspiracy to obstruct justice, a five year felony.

Worthy said Kilpatrick is also charged with a count of misconduct in office and perjury in a court proceeding, a 15 year felony. Beatty will face separate perjury charges, Worthy said.

"Our investigation has clearly shown that public dollars were used, people's lives were ruined, the justice system was severely mocked and the public trust was trampled on," Worthy said.

Justice hurry up!
Hip-Hop Mayor faces 15 years.
Perjury, conspiracy, misconduct.

Kym Worthy announcing indictments.
Kwame Kilpatrick's statement to the media.

Granholm's Gaffe

Governor Granholm would not pay for $10 million Michigan re-do
neither would national party

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean is urging Michigan and Florida party officials to come up with plans to repeat their contests so state delegates can be counted in the close race.

Governor Granholm said she does not disagree, but "it would have to be a primary-like election, probably on a Saturday."

Granholm also told WJR radio in Detroit that the tab for a May or June election run by the Michigan Democratic Party could approach $10 million. She warned the cost and logistics could be insurmountable.

The Democratic National Committee stripped Michigan of all 156 delegates to the national convention as punishment for moving its primary to Jan. 15 in violation of party rules.

Governor Granholm is backing Hillary Clinton, whose campaign long has called for the Jan. 15 results to be honored. Barack Obama's campaign opposes that.

Of course she is.