Best Of The Best

Michigan Capitol Confidential’s most-viewed story during 2017 focused on one likely outcome if Hillary Clinton and not Donald Trump had won the presidency.

Here are the headlines, excerpts and links to this and the rest of CapCon’s 10 most popular stories from 2017:

No. 1 story: Had Hillary Won, Granholm And Not DeVos Would Be Prepping For Confirmation

A new report suggests that former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm would have been a top candidate for secretary of education in Hillary Clinton’s cabinet had the Democratic nominee won the presidential election.

No. 2 story: Harvard Study Says Michigan Elections Less Democratic Than Cuba, North Korea, Iran

A study ranked Michigan’s elections as less democratic than those of Cuba, Iran and North Korea.

No. 3 story: The Best-Paying Public School Districts In Michigan

Utica Community Schools had the highest-paid teachers on average in the state at $80,334. Utica was followed by Farmington Public Schools ($78,345), Walled Lake Consolidated Schools ($76,911), Warren Consolidated Schools ($76,465) and Allen Park ($76,359).

No. 4 story: U-M Student Newspaper: Shouting Down Speakers Doesn’t Infringe Free Speech

The University of Michigan’s main student newspaper, the Michigan Daily, published an editorial criticizing recently introduced legislation dealing with campus speech. The proposals would require Michigan’s state universities and colleges to adopt policies to protect freedom of speech, including sanctions for activists who prohibit others from speaking by shouting down their presentations.

No. 5 story: No More ‘Chippewas,’ ‘Eskymos’ or ‘Fighting Scots’? Bill Bans Ethnic Mascots

The Caledonia Fighting Scots, Escanaba Eskymos, and dozens of school district teams with mascots such as “Warriors,” “Braves” or “Indians” would have to find new names and mascots under a bill introduced in the Michigan Senate last week. The legislation would require specified state officials to determine which public school team names and mascots must be dropped.

No. 6 story: Proposed Wind Turbines In Michigan County Taller Than ‘Mighty Mac’

The main towers of the Mackinac Bridge are 552 feet tall. That makes the bridge 48 feet shorter than wind turbines being proposed for Shiawassee County.

No. 7 story: Medical Pot Bringing $8.8M, 48 New Positions to Michigan State Police

Nearly $8.8 million of a proposed $33.1 million increase in the Michigan State Police budget next year would go toward hiring 48 new full-time employees to assist in medical marijuana licensure oversight, according to a House Fiscal Agency summary.

No. 8 story: Michigan House Dems Propose State Contract Preference for Immigrants

Democratic lawmakers in the Michigan House have introduced a bill that would require state contract managers to pursue a goal of awarding at least 5 percent of the spending on state contracts to businesses owned by immigrants.

No. 9 story: Where the Money from Higher Transportation Taxes Goes

What if the Legislature and governor hike gas and vehicle registration taxes to fix the roads, but then hardly any extra money goes to fix the roads?

No. 10 story: ‘Richest Person in Michigan’ Could Get Richer With New State Subsidies

Forbes Magazine has just named Detroit developer Dan Gilbert the richest person in Michigan. The magazine estimates Gilbert’s net worth at $5.1 billion. The listing comes just a few weeks after Gov. Rick Snyder signed a law approved by bipartisan majorities in the state House and Senate that makes Gilbert’s companies eligible for state payments worth tens of millions of dollars each year for up to 20 years.