President Obama last week dubbed Gov. Jennifer Granholm one of “the best governors in the country.” Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and Obama’s economic polices have tracked Granholm’s misbegotten efforts to resuscitate Michigan’s listing economy. Granholm has passed millions in government stimulus dollars and passed legislation remaking the state’s electric grid with a 20 percent Renewable Power Standard by 2020. Meanwhile, Michigan’s unemployment rate has continued to soar, reaching 15.2 percent this June.
So what’s next in Michigan that Americans might want to know about?
On Wednesday, with Granholm’s blessing, state Democratic chair Mark Brewer announced that the party was exploring putting a proposal on the 2010 ballot that would require state utilities to reduce their rates by 20 percent.
To summarize then: Having required state utilities to generate 20 percent of their electricity from more expensive wind sources (a similar program in Denmark has driven power rates to 30 cents per kWh compared with Michigan’s current 8.5 cents), Democrats now may require the same utilities to cut their bills by 20 percent.
You heard that right: Granholm will require utilities to provide costlier energy — and cap the prices customers pay for it. Does anyone in the Michigan Democratic party know basic economics? They plan to artificially prop up demand at the same time as they artificially restrict supply: the only way to square that circle is to ration the product.
California, here we come! Can you say “rolling blackouts?”