OFF ENDANGERED LIST

You certainly wouldn’t know it based on the attack ads on TV, but according to Roll Call, the news site on all things Congress and White House-related, U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Township) is no longer on the “vulnerable” list of senators who look unlikely to win re-election in November. “While Peters still has a real race against Republican John James, the state appears to be a less competitive presidential battleground for President Donald Trump’s campaign.” As of September 1, polling data has Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden leading Trump in Michigan anywhere from 11 points, according to EPIC-MRA, to six points, according to CNBC/YouGov. In addition, Politifact fact-checked those “invisible man” ads James has been running against Peters, asserting Peters has a record of not showing for committee meetings. In actuality, Politifact stated, the China committee is a staff run commission which exists to monitor activity in China. A more important metric, Politifact said, is percentage of floor votes missed. There, Peters excelled – in 2019, he missed zero floor votes, tying him with the chamber’s two leaders, Mitch McConnell (R-VA) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY). “That record shows Peters was on the job,” said Steven B. Smith, a political scientist at Washington University in St. Louis. But as we all know, it’s not over ‘til the fat lady sings.