JR Afternoon with Chris Renwick
Can Bipartisanship Tackle Michigan’s Hot Topics?
So as of yesterday, lawmakers return to Lansing for the lame duck because between yesterday and January 8th, Democrats still do have control of all three chambers in Lansing. They've got the Senate. They've got the house and they've got the governor's office and they've enjoyed a power that they haven't had for many, many years, 40 years ish going back that far. And as of this last election, Republicans won control of the house. And so what are the the major plans for the Republican Party going forward? How will Lansing work over the next two years? Let's bring in representative Mike Harris. He's the Republican caucus whip for the party in the house and he joins me here this afternoon. It's good to have you. That's good to have you to have me on. Thank you. I want to start a little bit with the lame duck. What do you expect over the next couple of weeks before you take power back in the house? Well, it's a it's a huge gamble. We're not sure exactly what's going to come up. The one benefit to us is the Democrats have not been showing up for work that does allow us a little bit more leverage and in helping to craft the agenda. But if they decide they want to come to work, I think it could be anybody's game. You know, they they control what goes up for a vote and we'll have to see what kind of radical policies they they try and complete before the end of the year. Well, a couple of things that are going to be on the table, obviously, is minimum wage, paid sick time are a couple of things that are being considered. And then of course, this proposal for $250 million in in state funding, taxpayer dollars to go towards the remodeling of the rent send down on the river. Are these some of the things that that we might see up for a vote? Well, we hope and pray that the tip minimum wage and the paid sick leave comes up. I'm not sure why it hasn't come up for a vote yet. This should be a number one priority to take care of our small businesses and our food service industry. And we have yet to see the movement on it. I hope to God that we actually do. I mean, we have businesses that are ready to shut their doors that are still recovering from the pandemic. So, so we are pushing for that. And so hopefully that will be one of the issues that comes up. I don't see the rents and going through and I think there's some. There are some people that that would like to see it happen. But I think there's fractures from the Democrat caucus on it. And I'm not sure the Republicans are going to give them the votes to help. So then as of January 8th, Republicans will be back in control in the House of Representatives. Let's start a little bit. What's the wish list for you guys when when you're whipping votes up on the floor or when you're talking to your colleagues? What are some of the big to do's for Republicans in this in this next go around? Sure. Well, I think first and foremost, if the tip minimum wage and the paid sick leave do not get handled in lame duck. I think that needs to be top priority for us come January. A follow up would be road funding, which as I'm sure you've heard, speaker, like all has put together a very promising plan on how to fund our roads. But the third and maybe the biggest for next term would be the oversight factor. So right now we basically have two legs for our committee structure. And that's, you know, policy and appropriations will speaker like all is going to really advocate and put in place in oversight leg on the committees. And you know, for the last two years and even before, we've seen some failures in the bureaucratic side of government. And we think that the taxpayers need to get their money's worth. And so we want to make sure that we have correct oversight that we're looking into things that need to be handled and make sure that the taxpayers get what they're asking for. Well, and then of course, even this situation is a little different, even going back to 2018, 2000 and and 20 when when the governor was elected and then even going into 2022. I mean, things, things have been very different in Lansing over the last couple of years. What's the plan to work with the governor's office? What's the plan to work with with your colleagues in the Senate to get things done? Is, is, are we expecting stone walling or how, how do we expect this, this version of Lansing to work? Or how should we expect that? Well, right. Well, I think the taxpayers should expect that we're going to find ways to work together and find some common goals that will actually benefit the state. And, you know, I'm sure stone walling or, you know, some difference of opinions on things could happen with some, some more partisan type issues. But the majority of what we do truly should be bipartisan work. And I think there's plenty of things for us to tackle, especially when it comes to raining in what we've seen over the last couple of years with government overreach. And I think there's people on both sides of the aisle that have the temperament to handle that. We truly do hope for good things and hope that we can bring things back to legitimate government, especially with our spending, our spending's been out of control. So we hope to bring that in. Do you feel like Republicans have some momentum coming in? I mean, you look at what happened obviously at the national stage, but is there something to be said for having this kind of momentum coming off this particular election? What do you think the people of Michigan want here? I think that people in Michigan are looking for a change. I mean, I think we saw that at the voting precincts this time. And you know, we saw major changes federally. We saw major changes in us being able to flip the house. And I think as long as we are acting responsibly, we're going to look forward to more of that come two years from now. But we need to make sure that we are, again, bringing government back to responsible legitimate purposes that I think we haven't seen that in a while. You know, one of your responsibilities as the whip is you're kind of you're all over the place, right? You're talking to Republicans from all corners of the state of Michigan to see where they're at or how they're feeling on certain issues. You mentioned a couple of minutes ago on the minimum wage and paid sick leave that there are fractions even in the Democratic Party that are hesitant to make moves on this. What is your feeling about Republicans coming in to this next year and this next term? Do you feel like everybody is relatively rowing in the same direction? I do. I do, especially when it comes to our business community. This is one of the pillars of our Republican principles is looking at what really drives our economy. And, you know, the bigger picture is why have people left Michigan, you know, and a lot of it has to do with everything from regulatory structure to us not creating a good environment economically for our people and our businesses. So I think you're going to see that be one of the major pillars going into this next term for us to all navigate together. And I think that's a it's a huge piece that I think our clock is ready to move on. You talked about being responsible, being responsible responsible with the budget, being responsible for people's for people's money. And I think that that should be paramount in every version of Lansing, whatever it may be. How does how do you take that principle and put it into practice then coming up? Well, a lot of it, like, like you said, as the whip, you know, it's trying to get everybody together. We did everybody to ruin the same direction. And where we may have some smaller differences of opinion, I think not only are the Republicans, but I think we have some of the Democrats that are ready to want to push the state forward. And I'm not sure that their current leadership has allowed them to do that. So I think there's some that are even breathing a little sigh of relief that maybe they can act on some principles that are responsible government. I mean, not not everyone on the other side is, you know, progressive. We, you know, we do have some moderates that really look at especially business communities and how it hurts their communities. They look at it somewhat similar to us. And I think we'll find some backing on their side as well. Now, Mike Harris, the caucus whip for the Republicans in the house, appreciate your time. Stay in touch and we'll talk again very soon. Awesome. Thanks for having me. Yep. You got it. I'd love to hear from you. What do you expect from from this incoming group of lawmakers in Lansing as of January 8th, Republicans take over the House of Representatives love to hear from you 800-859-0957 more next. You
December 4, 2024 ~ Chris Renwick discusses with Representative Mike Harris the legislative priorities in Lansing’s lame duck session, highlighting bipartisan efforts on economic policies and addressing concerns over Democratic attendance.