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To the Journal editor:
When my wife and I moved back to the UP a couple of years ago, we discovered a number of changes, positive and negative, in the state's political landscape. When we left for jobs in Illinois in the 1990s, John Engler was still putting his distinctive right-wing stamp on government operations in Lansing.
Here in the Upper Peninsula, Bart Stupak held the 1st District's congressional seat. Bart was an interesting independent-thinking Democrat. He had opposed a number of gun control measures, but--much to the annoyance of the National Rifle Association --voted in favor of legislation requiring federal background checks for gun purchases. He was also one of the House Democrats who voted against the Clinton-inspired sellout to corporate interests in the North American Free Trade Agreement.
The person who really stood out in Michigan politics when we left for Illinois was the state's senior U.S. senator, Carl Levin. He was an impressive critic of corporate and governmental abuses, supported various reforms to improve the life of middle and working class families and had a real gift for explaining the ins and outs of complicated political issues. I still remember his thoughtful answers to a range of questions one night at a town-hall session in Menominee.
Since returning to Michigan, I have been impressed with the competence of the state's current governor, Gretchen Whitmer. She seems to be on top of all the major issues facing the state and has dealt pretty effectively with the full-tilt craziness of the Trump administration. The person who took over Carl Levin's seat, Gary Peters, seems a pleasant enough fellow. But his record of accomplishment during his two terms in Washington seems rather slim.
Here in the U.P., with Jack Bergman as our current Congressional rep, we have an almost ghost-like operator. When it's election time, we see pictures of Jack cavorting around the district. Otherwise, he's the disappearing dude, off somewhere in Washington, Louisiana, who knows where. Bergman's website and press releases tell us that he's all in for Trump and everything Mr. T stands for. How nice: the straight skinny from our 1st District MAGA apparition.
Now that we're coming up to the August primary election, the only contest that's getting much attention in our Democratic-leaning household is the one for the U.S. Senate: Abdul El Sayed vs. Haley Stevens. We very much like El Sayed's politics. His support for Medicare for all, his belief in the need for policy reforms addressing the growing affordability crisis and his pledge to take no campaign money from corporate interests.
When we look at Haley Stevens, however, we see a politician with rather vague political values who is very good at one thing: raising lots of money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and a bevy of corporate groups. According to a recent story in The Mining Journal, Ms. Stevens has taken in almost $30 million from AIPAC for her campaign this year. This same group was a also a key supporter of her successful effort in 2022 to defeat Andy Levin, Carl Levin's nephew, for the 11th District Congressional seat.
Although Mr. El Sayed has never held elective office, we think he would likely be a senator very much in the mold of Carl Levin. But if Stevens wins the primary and the November election, Michigan would be saddled with a corporate Democrat who bears little resemblance to Levin.