South Kent News

State Representative Angela Rigas has criticized Michigan House Democrats for their recent decision to vote against a supplemental funding package. The package was designed to ensure continued funding for schools and emergency services in the event of a government shutdown later this year.

"House Democrats voted to defund our police, our schools, and our communities because they want to hold the whole state hostage," Rigas stated. She emphasized that the proposed "shutdown prevention plan would ensure that essential services like prisons, police, schools, and local governments are funded in the event we don’t agree to a full budget in time for the next fiscal year."

The legislative measures, House Bills 4161 and 4162, aimed at maintaining funding for essential services and K-12 school aid if a shutdown occurs. Both bills were passed by the House with a vote of 59-49. Rigas expressed her dissatisfaction with how Democrats conducted themselves during the voting process.

"The radical left completely broke down screaming on the floor like it was a repeat of the State of the Union," she remarked. Rigas also noted an incident where "one Democrat also made the remark that 45 minutes wasn’t enough time to read one-and-a-half pages." She pointed out what she perceives as "a serious reading and comprehension problem in our state that transcends to the Michigan House Democrats."

Rigas is hopeful that both Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the Senate will adopt a different stance than their Democratic counterparts in the House. "The governor spoke a lot last week about bipartisanship in her State of the State address," she said. "I sincerely hope that she and the Senate can actually read our bills and come together to provide essential funding to keep our residents safe, unlike House Democrats. Lives are on the line and Democrats are sacrificing them to the woke gods."