Politics & Government

The Detroit Free Press reports former Detroit City Council president Monica Conyers is asking a federal judge to let her serve the remaining time on her prison term at home. 

Walter Harris, Jr. worked as a bodyguard for former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick for nine years.

Harris' whistle-blower lawsuit helped lead to the unraveling of  the Kilpatrick administration.

His book about his experiences, Badge of Honor: Blowing the Whistle, was released Saturday.

Harris was quoted in the Detroit News: 

As both sides sort out who won and who lost in the deal to keep the government running, the next phase of budget wrangling ensues.

The current-year budget deal struck Friday night still needs full congressional approval this week.

President Obama will deliver a speech Wednesday on the budget and the long-range deficits.

And sometime during the week, the House is expected to approve a new budget plan for next year that includes big changes in Medicare and Medicaid.

And none of that is to mention the looming battle about raising the federal debt ceiling.

At the state Capitol, House Republican leaders will resume their efforts to pick up 11 or more Democratic votes to reverse the policy of letting unmarried state employees claim their live-in partners on their health benefits.

The state Civil Service Commission approved public employee contracts at the beginning of the year that allow live-in partner benefits. That’s the only way the state can legally allow coverage for same-sex couples.  

Budget talks are ramping up at the state Capitol with just more than a month and a half left before Governor Rick Snyder’s self-imposed budget deadline.      

Governor Snyder still stands by his May 31stbudget deadline, even as many lawmakers say they do not think a deal will be reached before this summer. Legislative leaders point out that the earliest a budget has been done was in June. That was back in the early 1990s, when the state was flush with revenue. But Governor Snyder says there’s no reason he and lawmakers cannot reach a deal before the Legislature’s summer break.     

One area of the budget that appears to be a sticking point is education spending. The governor has proposed deep cuts to per-pupil funding for K-through-12 schools, and a 15% reduction to state payments for public colleges and universities.