Recall Bluster

 

     Former State Rep. Leon Drolett hovered over last fall's contentious budget debate like a vulture ready to pounce on anyone who voted for a tax increase.

     At one time he gleefully floated  a list of twelve legislators who were on his recall hit list.  Turns out the list was more bravado than reality for when the recall chips were counted, there was only one to count.

     Drolett is left with trying to bag the first Speaker of the House in state history. He claims to have collected 11,000 valid signatures to put the recall heat on the top banana Speaker Andy Dillon of Redford.

     Filing the names is one thing, but by the time Dillon and his democratic buddies are done, Drolett will have seen the inside of every courthouse between here and Lansing as Dillon fights to avoid a recall election.  Droletts already been in plenty, as one by one, his dozen recall efforts fell by the way side.

     He explains he didn't know state Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer would be so aggressive about beating back the recall movement.

    That may be the case, but the real story here is that the Drolett fanned so-called tax revolt over the income tax hike failed to sprout neither enough grassroots nor enough passion to trump the organized opposition from Brewer et.al.

    In fact the polling data suggested the typical voter begrudgingly accepted the bigger bite out of their weekly check.

    Dillon remains confident he won't be recalled but if he is, he predicts a chilling effect on future legislatures that might be forced to revisit the tax increase issue.

    And that chilling effect is exactly what Drolett wants even though he didn't vulturize eleven other lawmakers who said yes to higher taxes.

    In a weird twist, even if Dillon is recalled in August, his name will be on the ballot in November where he could be reelected. Go figure.

    

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