Jack Lessenberry Politics & Prejudices

What’s it like to actually be ON the Supreme Court? Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack was elected to the court in 2012 and became the Chief Justice last year. In addition to having a key role in deciding the constitutionality of laws, she also has the job of overseeing all of Michigan’s other state courts. Find out what goes on behind the bench, gavel, and black robes of the Michigan Supreme Court.

There’s no question that some people blame third parties – especially the Libertarians and the Green Party – for Donald Trump’s surprising election four years ago. Six million people voted for either the Green or Libertarian candidates for President, and the difference was more than Trump’s winning margins in most states, including Michigan. But the leaders of those parties say that not only do they have as much right as the Republicans or Democrats to run, they aren’t running to tip any...

Dana Nessel was elected Michigan’s Attorney General in November 2018. She is the first woman to hold that office in state history, the first openly gay person to hold that office, and the first Democrat to hold it in nearly twenty years. Since taking office, she has been a whirling dervish of activity and hasn’t been afraid of controversy or of standing up to interest groups in either party. Find out more about this gutsy Attorney General and her thoughts about the job, unemployment...

Geoffrey Fieger is one of Michigan’s most fascinating personalities and Michigan’s most successful medical malpractice lawyer. He became nationally famous in the 1990s for his defense of Dr. Jack Kevorkian in five trials and before the world’s media. He defied the odds and the party establishment to win the Democratic nomination for governor in 1998 and beat what he believes was a politically driven attempt by the Bush administration to convict him of campaign finance violations. Now, he...

Women who shouldn’t be in prison -- and the effort of a few dedicated people to free them. The vast majority of Michigan’s state prisoners are men. Women inmates are all housed in a single prison, the Huron Valley Correctional Facility near Ann Arbor, which has been plagued with problems from overcrowding to sanitation issues. Some of these women were dangerous criminals. But an appalling number of them were sentenced to long terms, often life, for crimes they were forced into by people,...

We have a President, Donald Trump, who often doesn’t appear to understand the nature of the presidency or its traditions. Nor does he seem to understand the central role of our Constitution. Mr. Trump also doesn’t seem to recognize that in our system, the President is not just a political leader, he is the head of state, the symbol of our nation and its heritage to our people and the world. It’s important to note that I am not talking here about his specific positions on the issues, but...

We all know that Detroit has made a big comeback in recent years – at least we have been told it has. And it’s true that anyone walking around downtown or the midtown area will see streets that look better than they have in decades. But how deep does the comeback go? And what needs to happen next? Joining me to talk about all of this: Karen Dumas is a communications and media professional who has been well-known and respected in Detroit for many years; she has hosted a number of radio shows,...

Metro Detroit is the place that put the world on wheels. Eleven years ago, there was a very real possibility that the domestic auto industry might not survive. Now, after billions to bail out the industry, a confusing landscape of what does “American Made” really mean, the growth of electric and driverless cars, and the far-reaching scandal in the UAW, where do we go from here and how will it impact this country and the “Motor City?” Joining me is Kristin Dziczek, VP of industry, labor, and...

U.S. District Judge Avern Cohn has now been a federal judge for more than forty years, has served during the administrations of seven presidents and witnessed a lot of history – and is still on the bench and going strong at 95. But what does he think about the judicial system he has served so long? Does the system still work? Does the public understand it? And what does he think about what’s happened to politics and government in America today?

Charles Eisendrath covered some of the major stories of the 1970s as a foreign correspondent for Time Magazine, before returning to Michigan to reinvent and revitalize one of the world’s most prestigious journalist fellowship programs. He knew everyone from Mike Wallace to top fashion mavens and brought them to Ann Arbor to speak. But he had another life as an inventor, hunter, cherry farmer and very much a man of northern Michigan. Now, he has written a fascinating memoir, “Downstream From...

There’s so much more to black history than that black people were once slaves, that Martin Luther King made a famous speech called “I Have A Dream,” that there were riots in the 1960s, that segregation has ended, and the fact that Barack Obama got elected President. Black history and black history in Detroit and Michigan is richly textured, endlessly interesting, and completely interwoven with all our history in a way few people know about it. It’s relevant, absolutely fascinating and...

Did you know violent crime dropped in Detroit last year? Even so, the city still ranked as the nation's most violent, according to FBI crime data. Whatever your background, income or status – you are concerned about crime. It affects everyone. What’s going on and what can be done to make Metro Detroit safer? Some top cops in Metro Detroit join me to talk about it. Michael Bouchard, Oakland County Sheriff, Benny Napoleon, Wayne County Sheriff, and Anthony Wickersham, Macomb County Sheriff.

For nearly twenty years, a battle has raged over building a new bridge across the Detroit River. The Ambassador Bridge is nearly ninety years old, in questionable shape, wasn’t built for today’s huge trucks and is in a location that, given today’s traffic patterns, doesn’t make much sense. But it is also privately owned. And its owner, 92-year-old billionaire Matty Moroun, has spent millions fighting every attempt to build a new bridge – even though Michigan business interests have been...

The House of Representatives has begun an “impeachment inquiry” into President Donald Trump’s behavior, specifically in regard to the Ukraine. It’s alleged he tried to get that nation’s President to get dirt on former Vice-President Joe Biden’s son in return for aid. A majority of Americans now think that’s justified, but there’s still a long way to go. Only two US presidents have ever been impeached, and none have ever been convicted and removed from office. There’s also a broad...

There is a crisis in mental health care in Michigan. A single mother had to wait for months to have her son hospitalized, even though he had repeatedly tried to kill her. A 19-year-old autistic, severely mentally ill man kicked an elderly man to death in an adult foster care facility. He needs help – but authorities could not find or agree on where to put him, and there is an increasing percentage of state prisoners are mentally ill, many severely so – and for them and society, prison is the...

Louise O’Connell is a senior banking executive, accountant and fraud investigator. Her husband Jim was semi-retired and spent time helping out at the church they belonged to and a preschool it ran. One day in 2013, a seven-year-old former pre-school student said “Mr. Jim” had abused her more than a year before. There was no evidence, no witnesses, and he had no prior record of any sexual misbehavior, but he was swiftly convicted and given what amounted to a life sentence. His wife Louise is...

The U.S. Census is next April -- and it’s more important than ever for Michigan. For the first time, redistricting has been taken away from the politicians and given to the people. Kurt Metzger is probably Michigan’s best-known and most experienced demographer and population expert. After working for the U.S. Census bureau for years, he ran a program at Wayne State and went on to work for United Way and then found Data Driven Detroit. Today, he still studies demographic trends and keeps an...

Almost everybody knows that it takes indecent amounts of money to run political campaigns nowadays. But what you might not know is that politicians often try to hide just how much is being spent – and more importantly, where it is coming from. But a too-little known nonprofit outfit called the Michigan Campaign Finance Network (MCFN.org) is out there trying to hold the campaigns accountable and bring the facts to you. Craig Mauger has been executive director of the Michigan Campaign Finance...

The nation’s citizens will be officially counted by the U.S. Census Bureau next April -- and for Michigan, this will be more important than ever. That’s because, for the first time, redistricting has been taken away from the politicians and given to the people. Kurt Metzger is probably Michigan’s best-known and most experienced demographer and population expert. After working for the U.S. Census bureau for years, he ran a program at Wayne State and went on to work for United Way and then...

Economically, China and the United States are the two most important superpowers in the world – and now they are involved in an escalating trade war. Does this make sense? Who is most likely to be hurt? The answer may surprise you. Listen to my guests, Tom Watkins, and Bernard Swiecki and let me know what YOU think. Tom Watkins has held a wide variety of important jobs in Michigan, from Director of the State Department of Health to State Superintendent of Schools, but he is now devoting...