The
Michigan Democratic governor Gretchen Whitmer has handed over control of the state’s new contact-tracing operation to one of her own campaign vendors and one of the left’s biggest technology firms. The move has sparked concern that she is using the coronavirus to strengthen the Democratic Party’s data operation, potentially at the expense of public health.
The Whitmer administration announced Monday that it had awarded a contract for contact tracing in the state to Every Action VAN, an arm of the Democratic data behemoth NGP VAN ... The group is run by Stuart Trevelyan, a longtime Democratic campaign operative who worked in the Clinton White House and is currently assisting presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s campaign with voter outreach and fundraising, according to Federal Election Commission reports. Whitmer’s own gubernatorial campaign paid NGP VAN nearly $5,000 in 2019, according to state campaign finance records. Every Action is a branch of the firm that works with nonprofit organizations.
. . .
Partnering with Every Action, Michigan hopes to collect information from thousands of individuals across the state to better understand the spread of the coronavirus. Trained volunteers are placing phone calls to those who have been in contact with coronavirus-infected individuals, inquiring about their health and advising them on appropriate precautions.
But state Republicans are raising concerns that the project will give the Democratic firm access to health and other private data of unwitting residents.
There's more at the link.
The public outcry was immediate, and so strong that Whitmer rapidly backtracked.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's administration acknowledged Tuesday that normal protocols were bypassed when a no-bid contract for coronavirus contact tracing was awarded by the state to Great Lakes Community Engagement, which is operated by a well-known Democratic consultant Michael Kolehouse -- who has previously written that President Trump should "get Coronavirus ASAP" and that someone should "do the country a favor and cough on that man," Facebook posts reviewed by Fox News show.
. . .
The state abruptly canceled the contract Tuesday.
“Nearly every major Democratic campaign in America is powered by NGP VAN's software, including the Obama campaign’s voter contact, volunteer, fundraising and compliance operations in all 50 states," NGP VAN boasts on its website. The Washington Post has described NGP VAN as "the voter file provider for Democratic campaigns and independent groups up and down ballot."
NGP VAN has previously exposed secretive and proprietary information due to technical glitches, The Washington Post has reported, including when a software patch was improperly applied.
. . .
“I want to know how Gov. Whitmer’s administration decided to hire this company without a competitive bid process, or letting the Legislature — charged with ensuring accountability within state government — know about it,” wrote GOP state Rep. Shane Hernandez in a letter to Whitmer that was first reported by The Detroit News. “I want to know what safeguards the governor has in place to ensure the information gathered during this COVID-19 response doesn’t wind up in the hands of any campaigns."
Again, more at the link.
I'm mind-boggled by the sheer chutzpah displayed by the Governor. How on earth did she think she was going to get away with this? Did she really think her opponents were going to turn a blind eye to such malfeasance of office, or roll over and play dead and allow her to ride roughshod over normal State acquisition and purchasing rules and procedures to benefit her own partisan supporters?
From issuing plainly nonsensical (not to mention unconstitutional) orders, to managing the state of Michigan for the benefit of her partisan supporters rather than all its citizens and residents, Governor Whitmer is demonstrating every day that she's unfit for office. I don't know how Michiganders propose to remove her, but they'd better do so as quickly as possible, before she and her cronies ruin or destroy their state around their ears. She's a disaster in the making.
Peter
16 comments:
Up until this latest development, I'd been willing to grant Gretched Halfwhit the benefit of the doubt, and assume that she was merely incompetent, over her head, and panicking - with a side of being totally out of touch with her subjects, obviously. The latest? Could still be all of the above, plus being totally out of touch with any concept of ethics.
Darth Noisome, on the other hand, has had his Imperial ambitions on display at least since he was Mayor of SF, and when he proclaims that the restrictions will not be relaxed until everything can be guaranteed 100% safe, he's just using Nerfworldism as a smokescreen for exercising one-man rule and furthering his favored agenda.
Remember, they are MISSIONARIES to create a one-world Socialist government. What's one way to do that? CHAOS.
https://redpilljew.blogspot.com/2018/04/socialisms-gateway-drug.html
And specifically, the chaos that comes from open and fetid corruption done in plain sight. It makes people not want to fight or defend what is.
"Did she really think her opponents were going to turn a blind eye to such malfeasance of office..."
Yes, she did. She's got cover by the lefties in Ann Arbor, such as State Senator Jeff Irwin, as well as Detroit (they're a little busy right now).
Jeff's a nice chameleonesque lefty too. Another lifetime politician on the way up. He's polite, soft spoken, listens, then votes left. He's held a "Michigan's Truth in Sentencing Law hosted by the UM Poverty Solutions, the Student Union at the UM School of Social Work, and the Prison Creative Arts Project." but has not intention of hosting a town hall on reopening the state and getting back to work. Feel free to bring it up at a 'virtual" town hall.
Other Govern Gretchen Greatest hits: Michigan unemployment:
"Eligible self-employed workers, gig workers, 1099-independent contractors, and low-wage workers will begin receiving their state benefit amount (paid with federal funds) and the $600 federal payment as early as April 20." (That's from Jeff's website. He passes along the info but his votes? If it ain't to the left he ain't getting reelected in A2)
April 20th is the first check if self-employed, which is Gov. Gretchen screwing about a quarter million Michigan residents. Florida made thiers effective the date of Governor De Santis shutdown order; suspended job hunting requirments through April (as if anyone is hiring). The biggest factor is the federal money, which is a short term need and a mid-term dis-incentive.
If you want other good news from the mitten feel free to look up the University Michigan president's salary and his enormous sacrifice to help the people of Michigan. Make sure you're sitting down first.
Doesn't matter that she dropped it.
They have the data now, for certain.
Just like way back when, when they found Hillary 'misplaced' or gave access to all sorts of background data to a flunky, they 'found' the files. Sure. After the data has been gleaned.
Michigan needs to audit the crap outta these people.
I agree with TechieDude. They have the data.
Money laundering of taxpayer money into the "D" coffers would just have been icing on the cake.
Not for nothing do I say There is no safety for Conservatives than to assume all evil of Liberals!
Hey Peter;
She is trying to be a presumptive Veep pick for the senile one(Biden) She figured if she go all totalitarian on the sheep, it will prove that she is a committed leftist to the cause and she has the stones to rule in his stead edging out Kamala Harris, Stacy Abrams and a couple other choices. What Whitmer has that the others don't have is "governorship".
Committed or commitible ... that point is debatable... She's gone totally Hitler up there, I haz tha POWAR! I can do anything I want!
Is there a common thread here? Women governors, women senators, women representatives, woman mayors, women city councilmen, women police chiefs and sheriffs, So many showing obvious signs of poor decision making, mismanagement and mind-boggling overreach for power and control. Don't get me wrong, I love women, but in positions of authority? Not so much anymore.
Of course she thought she could get away with it. As she really has with so many other things. The peasants railed and yelled, yet seeds still not sold...
Or like Noodle-Brain in Virginia who had to wait until nobody was allowed to assemble before signing all the stuff he wanted to sign but 22,000 GUN-LARPERS did nothing one day and stopped him from moving forward, well, until the Stayathome Orders...
All until one over-reach too far. This time in Michigan it was the NSDAP VAN, er the NVA VAN, er, the NCP VAN, er, you get the point...
As to what Bob brought up, sorry, but most female politicians elected to high power tend to be somewhat left of Lenin, or Lennon, or either. Like all those nice northwestern European countries that are now leftist poopholes (or even more left-leftist poopholes) due to Gal Power. Yes, exceptions abound, but those are exceptions.
I, for one, would like to see citizen initiatives (where allowed by law) to amend state constitutions along the lines of requiring ratification, within "x" days, by a 2/3 vote of the state legislature of any "order" issued by the governor under that state's "emergency" powers laws.
Those individual legislators who've stood aside and let these governors run amok with various rights should be accountable on the record for their support or withholding of support. A 2/3s vote might seem too high, but if it's a true "emergency," then the elected representatives of the people of that state should have no problem affirming such an outside-of-regular-order event.
Yep, she's truly earned her appellation of Governor Half-Whit.
She's been quite the disaster in the current crisis.
There's her trying out for the VP slot at our state's expense, her incompetence and inability to apply for federal disaster aid in a timely fashion (she was too busy ordering a "That Woman" custom t-shirt and berating President Trump), and with her overbearing executive orders she's been quite the Gov.
Her orders, that work to make this as painful and miserable as possible combined with her schoolmarm scolding to those who point out the idiocy of them is rather telling.
Not surprised she blatantly went for a bit of old fashioned corruption in making a no-bid and unannounced contract to Democrat companies that worked on her election and are currently working on her reelection campaign.
I suspect she figured it would be overlooked in all the goings on at present and they'd get away with it.
"How on earth did she think she was going to get away with this?"
Because she is more grounded in reality than all of those crying about it.
She did get away with it. "Backtracking" is a specious way of describing her actions. That is like a judge telling the jury to ignore some information that they just heard. Right.
She knew that she can and will get away with whatever she does because there never is and never will be any real accountability applied to her for her actions.
The R's push back? Dream on.
The leftists are will to fight, and there is nothing off of the table in terms of what they will do, by any means necessary. The R's? They are willing to talk about.
TechieDude,
They have probably had it from their friends and donors in the senior ranks of BCBS Michigan and the various universities and public hospitals around that state. They managed to lose in 2016 as you recall. I don't see them winning this time either.
"Who is Queen?"
https://www.comedy.co.uk/images/library/people/180x200/b/blackadder_s2_queen_elizabeth.jpg
I do not live in the Sultanate of Michiganistan, but I have a little advice for those who do- lamppost, rope, politician- some assembly required.
Simple fix, rope/tree, assembly required.
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