Michigan voters petitioned to get sick leave on the November ballot this year. The Repub legislature quickly passed a bill on sick leave to make the proposal moot (so it did not appear on the ballot). Usually, I’d say great! The legislature should be responsive to what the citizens want and laws passed by ballot proposal always need work.

Except that they passed it fully intending to largely re-write or flat-out repeal the new law during the lame duck session. They claim that the petitioners, being mostly from Detroit, Flint and Lansing (read poor, and minorities) “do not reflect the wishes of real Michiganders.” But they weren’t going to risk letting “real Michiganders” vote on it. This is what our political system has become - intentionally subverting the will of the electorate.