A blog that I post on whenever I see something that makes me want to go off on a Republican (Libertarian every once in a while) rant. I will cover stories from all over the nation and world, but I will try to cover as many stories about my home state of Michigan as I can (I’ll also talk a lot about Texas, because Texas is awesome!). Note, all times are for the Eastern time zone, daylight savings time when applicable, so stop leaving comments that it’s only noon in California and I said 3:00 P.M.
Dennis Lennox, Wikipedia vandal … I mean Cheboygan County Drain Commissioner has been charged with a one-year, $1000 criminal misdemeanor for allegedly sending 250 Christmas cards using county-paid postage, but including campaign literature in the Christmas cards, meaning that he was allegedly using taxpayer funds to finance his campaign. Lennox is expected to surrender himself to the Cheboygan city police by early next week.
A press release from Cheboygan County prosecutor Daryl Vizina said that Lennox had been asked to reimburse the county for the cost of the postage, but originally refused; however, once the criminal investigation began, he offered to pay.
Vizina said, “If this was any other citizen we would charge him, so we want to be consistent. If a employee at Subway was taking company resources for themselves, we would charge them.”
Lennox, on the other hand, says that this is all a political vendetta from the Democratic prosecutor (Lennox is a Republican – although I’ve always thought that he makes our party look bad). Lennox said, “This is a Democratic political vendetta. I campaigned against this prosecutor, who is a Democrat, and I campaigned to get rid of this police department. I also campaigned against the judge. My lawyer will probably be the candidate who ran against her.”
What’s even more ironic is that Denny Lenny ran on a platform of abolishing the position of Drain Commissioner because it was a “waste of taxpayer money.” He even went so far as to say, “There is nothing for the drain commissioner to do in Cheboygan County except waste taxpayer money.” Well, that turned out to be more true than he originally intended us to think it was.
Lennox should be ashamed of himself – he has let down the citizens of Cheboygan County, and he has disgraced the Republican Party. For the sake of the Republican Party, Republicans across Michigan should come out against Lennox, somebody who has shown hypocrisy and dishonesty in the past.
This pretty much kills his chances of winning the race for the 105th State House District, but we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.
This was a pretty funny moment from early this morning. I figured I’d share it with you all as a little Christmas present from me. The following video is a clip from the Senate’s Roll Call vote on the health care bill (H.R. 3590, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act). I wasn’t able to set the start time for the clip, so skip ahead to 25:30 (and if that’s not working, the video is also here: http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/290899-1).
Apparently Mr. Reid was running on not quite enough sleep there.
The vote ended up being 60-39 (with all Democrats voting AYE, all of the Republicans voting NO, and Jim Bunning (R-KY) not voting).
While I personally would’ve voted against the bill, I don’t think this bill was all that bad considering other possibilities the Senate was looking at, but I really don’t feel like getting into the politics of the bill on Christmas Eve (I’ll save that for when the House and Senate come together to iron out a bill that both chambers agree on).
I just wanted to give everybody a little laugh, and wish everybody a very merry and safe Christmas!
God bless all of you and your families! If you celebrate Christmas, Merry Christmas! If you don’t, Happy Holidays!
I know it’s been a while since I’ve done a blog post, but this was just too interesting to pass up. Yesterday night, a friend showed me this video:
Now, how many Hanukkah songs do you think have been written by a Mormon Senator? My guess is that that’s the only one.
Tablet Magazine discusses the details of how the song ended up getting written, including an interesting story where Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) called columnist Jeffery Goldberg on Christmas Eve to talk to him about the song that he had written, “Eight Days of Hanukkah”.
It’s quite an interesting story, so check it out. And the song is pretty catchy too.
Senator Hatch has always been one of my favorite Senators, but I honestly had no idea that Hatch was a songwriter. My opinion of him went up a little more after seeing this.
And to any of my Jewish readers, have a safe and happy Hanukkah.
Done (I don’t even know what to describe this post as),
Now – here’s my reasoning: The polls have had question 1 failing most of the time; however, Public Policy Polling, a Democratic polling firm has shown it with a 4% lead as of the last poll (and that was the latest poll to come out). Other polls have shown the margin narrowing, so with the PPP poll having the Yes’s taking over the No’s, I think the question will pass.
Also, there has never been a public vote that has gone in favor of gay marriage. I think Maine will keep this trend up, and I think the voters will overturn what the legislature did; however, the vote will be close – that’s for sure.
I already put out my predictions for the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial races. The other major race going on tomorrow is the special election for the New York 23rd Congressional District. Originally, there were 3 main candidates running: Republican Dede Scozzafava, Democrat Bill Owens, and Conservative Doug Hoffman. Hoffman entered the race because people had criticized Scozzafava as being too moderate, some saying she was even more liberal than the Democrat. Top Republicans were split in who they supported, with some Republicans like Newt Gingrich supporting Scozafava, and Sarah Palin supporting Doug Hoffman.
Last week, Scozzafava dropped out of the race and endorsed Owens. At that point, Scozzafava was trailing in the polls by over 10%, and the race between Owens and Hoffman was close. Since Scozzafava dropped out, Hoffman has skyrocketed in the polls, and I now expect him to win.
Even though Scozzafava dropped out, it’s too late to change the ballots, so she will remain on the ballot. Here’s my prediction:
Doug Hoffman (C) – 53%
Bill Owens – 42%
Dede Scozzafava – 5%
I really don’t see Hoffman having any problems now that Scozzafava has dropped out – the district leans Republican and hasn’t gone for a Democrat running for the District since 1992. I see Hoffman winning pretty easily tomorrow, but we’ll see – it’s been an interesting race so far – there could always be another surprise.
It’s that time again – election time! As always, I’ve been tracking the polls, and I’ve done my final predictions. This year, there are only 2 gubernatorial races: New Jersey and Virginia. In case you didn’t follow my predictions last year, you may find the color scheme on the maps to be a little bit weird – the colors are switched from what the normal media colors, so sorry about that, but that’s the way the website I use does it. The maps are courtesy of Dave Leip’s U.S. Election Atlas, and my most current prediction can always be found here. On to the predictions…
* = Party Pickup (Incumbent Loses Reelection); ^ = Party Pickup (Open Seat)
So here are my predictions, broken down by percentage:
New Jersey
Chris Christie (R) - 46.35%
Jon Corzine (D) – 45.47%
Chris Dagget (I) – 8.18%
Virginia
Bob McDonnell (R) – 57%
Creigh Deeds (D) – 42%
Other candidates – <1%
And here’s my confidence map:
Essentially – I could go either way on New Jersey. The numbers I posted are the results of an algorithm I’ve developed, and tweaked from last year. My heart is telling me that Corzine will probably pull out a win, but my mind and the numbers point toward Christie, I’m gonna stick with Christie. There’s no doubt that McDonnell will win in Virginia.
I don’t see New Jersey called until late into the night tomorrow. It should be an interesting night.
I just heard about a story out of Richmond, CA that really made my blood boil. On Saturday, a 15-year-old girl was beaten and gang raped for 2 hours after she left her school’s homecoming dance. After leaving the Richmond High School homecoming dance around 9:30 P.M. to get a ride home with her father, the girl ended up meeting up with some kids on the school campus who were drinking.
Richomnd Police Lieutenant Mark Gagan told reporters, “The series of events that occurred over the next two and a half hours got more severe and more vicious to where she was ultimately gang raped, beaten and her injuries were so severe that she had to be sent to the hospital in a helicopter.” The victim is still in the hospital, currently in stable condition.
There’s been some controversy over whether or not the school is safe. After being asked by reporters if he thought the school was safe, one male student said, “No it’s not. Not at night time.” Charles Ramsey, a Richmond school board member disagreed, saying, “It is a safe school, 95 percent of the students here perform well, do what they’re expected to do, but do we have a part of the campus element here that is out of control? Yes. We do understand and are not putting our head in the sand around the fact that Richmond has a lot of issues and problems in terms of safety.”
The school district spokesman, Marin Trujillo said, “There’s just so much control that one can do after that, once they leave the sidewalk we can’t follow them home,” regarding the safety of the homecoming dance.
Since the attack, 2 arrests have been made: a 15-year-old student, as well as a 19-year-old former student, Manuel Ortega, who was caught as he tried to flee the scene of the crime.
Gagan said that police arrived as the 2+ hour-long rape was still taking place, and that “we’re looking at four to seven active participants of sexual assault and extremely violent felonies. We’re also suspecting there were up to a dozen people who witnessed what had happened and their involvement is unknown.”
The 15-year-old male was arrested after being pulled from class for questioning. Another student was pulled out of class for questioning, but was released.
What I’d like to know is how the heck could 12 people stand by and watch this happen? What kind of sick twisted person wouldn’t call the police! The people who joined in and raped and attacked this girl need to be arrested and locked up for the rest of their lives. I would argue that they should probably be given the death penalty, considering how heinous of a crime this was, but the death penalty isn’t an option in rape cases any more. But they should certainly be locked up for the rest of their lives. A crime this heinous and disgusting deserves a harsh punishment.
And while those who watched may not be charged with any crime (depending on whether or not they cheered it on, they could possibly be charged as conspirators or accomplices in the crime), they need to take a look at themselves and ask, “What the heck is wrong with me?” How could you sit by and let something like this happen to a 15-year-old girl! What’s wrong with you!
It’s stories like these that make me begin to lose hope in humanity. When 4-7 people gang rape a girl, and 12 people sit around and watch, there’s something wrong with what’s going through our children’s heads. I don’t know what, but something needs to be done. Sitting by and watching something like this is unacceptable, and the people who watched this rape are should have to live with a whole lot of guilt for the rest of their lives. I hope they realize how despicable it was for them to just sit by and watch.
And I hope the other attackers are caught and arrested. My thoughts and prayers are with the victim of this attack – hopefully she recovers soon, but I have no doubt that she will be mentally scarred for years to come.
UPDATE: Somebody from Newsy, a video news website asked me to embed their story covering the gang rape:
Earlier today, it was revealed that President Obama had won the Nobel Peace Prize “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.” President Obama has become the 4th U.S. President to win the honor, and only the 2nd sitting President to do so (the other was Teddy Roosevelt).
And while I would congratulate the President for such a high honor, I would also question whether or not it may have been a little too soon. When Roosevelt won the prize, he was already 5 years into his presidency, while President Obama hasn’t even finished his first year.
Some have said that President Obama deserves the award, and it gives him a goal for his presidency, while others, such as past 1983 Nobel laureate Fmr. Polish President Lech Wałęsa were surprised at how soon into his presidency he won the prize: “‘What? So quickly? … He is proposing, he’s started, but he still must act. We’ll see if he does what he proposes. Sometimes the Nobel committee [awards the prize] as a way of encouragement into action.”
I would agree with Walesa – I think this was somewhat premature. President Obama hasn’t really done anything yet – he’s just laid out plans for what he wants to do. So if he lives up to his promises, he’ll be alright, otherwise it’s going to leave him looking like he really didn’t deserve this.
But I do think that the President handled the situation well – he admitted that he really didn’t think deserve this right now, but that he will take the award “as a call to action”. Here’s the full transcript of the President’s address to the media earlier today:
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
___________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release October 9, 2009
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
ON WINNING THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE
Rose Garden
11:16 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Well, this is not how I expected to wake up this morning. After I received the news, Malia walked in and said, “Daddy, you won the Nobel Peace Prize, and it is Bo’s birthday!” And then Sasha added, “Plus, we have a three-day weekend coming up.” So it’s good to have kids to keep things in perspective.
I am both surprised and deeply humbled by the decision of the Nobel Committee. Let me be clear: I do not view it as a recognition of my own accomplishments, but rather as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations.
To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who’ve been honored by this prize — men and women who’ve inspired me and inspired the entire world through their courageous pursuit of peace.
But I also know that this prize reflects the kind of world that those men and women, and all Americans, want to build — a world that gives life to the promise of our founding documents. And I know that throughout history, the Nobel Peace Prize has not just been used to honor specific achievement; it’s also been used as a means to give momentum to a set of causes. And that is why I will accept this award as a call to action — a call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century.
These challenges can’t be met by any one leader or any one nation. And that’s why my administration has worked to establish a new era of engagement in which all nations must take responsibility for the world we seek. We cannot tolerate a world in which nuclear weapons spread to more nations and in which the terror of a nuclear holocaust endangers more people. And that’s why we’ve begun to take concrete steps to pursue a world without nuclear weapons, because all nations have the right to pursue peaceful nuclear power, but all nations have the responsibility to demonstrate their peaceful intentions.
We cannot accept the growing threat posed by climate change, which could forever damage the world that we pass on to our children — sowing conflict and famine; destroying coastlines and emptying cities. And that’s why all nations must now accept their share of responsibility for transforming the way that we use energy.
We can’t allow the differences between peoples to define the way that we see one another, and that’s why we must pursue a new beginning among people of different faiths and races and religions; one based upon mutual interest and mutual respect.
And we must all do our part to resolve those conflicts that have caused so much pain and hardship over so many years, and that effort must include an unwavering commitment that finally realizes that the rights of all Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security in nations of their own.
We can’t accept a world in which more people are denied opportunity and dignity that all people yearn for — the ability to get an education and make a decent living; the security that you won’t have to live in fear of disease or violence without hope for the future.
And even as we strive to seek a world in which conflicts are resolved peacefully and prosperity is widely shared, we have to confront the world as we know it today. I am the Commander-in-Chief of a country that’s responsible for ending a war and working in another theater to confront a ruthless adversary that directly threatens the American people and our allies. I’m also aware that we are dealing with the impact of a global economic crisis that has left millions of Americans looking for work. These are concerns that I confront every day on behalf of the American people.
Some of the work confronting us will not be completed during my presidency. Some, like the elimination of nuclear weapons, may not be completed in my lifetime. But I know these challenges can be met so long as it’s recognized that they will not be met by one person or one nation alone. This award is not simply about the efforts of my administration — it’s about the courageous efforts of people around the world.
And that’s why this award must be shared with everyone who strives for justice and dignity — for the young woman who marches silently in the streets on behalf of her right to be heard even in the face of beatings and bullets; for the leader imprisoned in her own home because she refuses to abandon her commitment to democracy; for the soldier who sacrificed through tour after tour of duty on behalf of someone half a world away; and for all those men and women across the world who sacrifice their safety and their freedom and sometime their lives for the cause of peace.
That has always been the cause of America. That’s why the world has always looked to America. And that’s why I believe America will continue to lead.
Thank you very much.
END
11:22 A.M. EDT
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has rejected claims that the prize was awarded prematurely, and Geir Lundestad, the secretary of the committee told reporters, “We want to emphasise that he has already brought significant changes. We do of course hope that there will be many concrete changes over the years but … We felt it was right to strengthen him as much as we can in his further struggle for his ideals.”
Personally, I disagree – I think it was premature, but I am proud that an American won the prize, and I hope Obama is a champion of peace throughout his presidency.
Last week, Michigan saw its second government shutdown in the state’s history. In the history of this country, only two other states have had government shutdowns because of a budget crisis, and Michigan is the only state to have more than one shutdown. What’s even more sad is that the 2 shutdowns came only 2 years apart.
I ended up watching most of the late-night sessions last week, as I followed the budget crisis, and while there were some humorous segments (such as “I can count!” coming from the chairman of the Senate), most of what I saw was just sad – it’s sad that the Michigan legislature can’t pass a budget on time.
So why does Michigan have problems passing a budget? There has been a fundamental failure in leadership, as well as the overall impacts of having the state in such a poor economic state.
Michigan is essentially the same position as it was for the 2007 shutdown: a Democratic Governor with terrible economic policies, a Democratic-controlled House of Representatives with Andy Dillon (D-Redford) as Speaker of the House waiting until it is too late to work on the budget, and a Republican-controlled Senate who tried to get the budget done on time, but was unable to overcome the incompetency of the House.
In both the 2007 and 2009 shutdowns, work on the budget started too late, and many legislators (including Republicans) weren’t committed to finishing the budget on time.
While portions of the budget were being passed by the Senate late Tuesday night, the House had already recessed for the day. We saw the same thing in 2007: Andy Dillon would go would only have the House in session once or twice a week over the summer, and he even took a five-day weekend trip to Mackinac Island after acknowledging that the state was facing a budget crisis.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Rochester) had been getting Senate budget bills passed and sent over to the House faster than House bills were coming to the Senate.
But this isn’t to say that all Republicans were trying to finish the budget on time or that all Democrats were uninterested in finishing on time. While the Senate Republicans seemed to generally work harder as the deadline got closer, NOBODY was working hard enough in the month and weeks beforehand. Instead of passing a budget 2 hours into the government shutdown, the legislature should be passing a budget weeks or even months beforehand.
Representative Tim Bledsoe (D-Grosse Pointe) has suggested that the Michigan Constitution be amended to require the budget be done by July 1st, and legislators wouldn’t get paid after that date until a budget was passed. Bledsoe told the Detroit Free Press, “We’ve had every opportunity to get this work done earlier in the year. There’s no excuse to be moving the budget as late as we did.”
Senator Hansen Clark (D-Detroit) has suggested fining legislators $1,000 a day for each day after the fiscal year that a budget isn’t completed, with the Speaker of the House and Senate Majority Leaders paying $3,000. He told reporters, “Even though many of us work long hours, we don’t have the same incentives as other sectors of the work force. Typically, our incentive would be to do a good job so we can get re-elected, but apparently that’s not enough. … The leaders have to be accountable for results. If you don’t perform the core mission of your job, and that’s to enact a balanced budget … there should be a penalty.”
Former Majority Leader Ken Sikkema (R) said that the problems run deeper than just legislators not cracking down in time: ”The gap between revenue and spending is so large that there isn’t any structural issue that can compensate for it. It’s a much deeper issue that legislators don’t want to deal with. Michigan as a state can’t continue the level of spending it’s enjoyed for many years. The economy has downsized underneath it. Until you change the tax structure and the spending process, this kind of paralysis is likely to continue. There is no process change that is going to make this a rational, timely, decision-making process. Until there are fundamental changes, you can’t avoid this kind of chaos.”
And in part, I would agree with that. The Democrats in the legislature have refused to accept that spending cuts are an inevitable result of the state’s deficit. Taxes can only be raised so many times and only to a certain level, and when you’ve exhausted that option, you have to cut spending. Michigan is not in a position to raise taxes. Businesses won’t come to Michigan if we raise taxes, and we’ve even seen film companies come to Michigan now that we have a tax credit for film companies. Raising taxes is only going to hurt the economy more and drive more people out of the state.
Fortunately, an interim budget was passed and signed by Governor Granholm only 2 hours into this year’s shutdown, but we aren’t in the clear yet. The legislature gavels into session tomorrow, and a permanent budget still needs to be passed for the new fiscal year. Unless legislators understand that spending cuts are not and option, but a necessity, and that they have to start cracking down and getting to work, we will wind up seeing a full government shutdown when the interim budget expires.
And we need to learn from our mistakes – this cannot happen in 2010. It’s just unacceptable. Fortunately, 2010 is an election year, and lawmakers will be trying to pass a budget on time so that they can get reelected, but unless things change, we will see ourselves back in this same position in 2011.
Earlier today, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard made a major campaign announcement: Secretary of State, and former Gubernatorial candidate, Terri Lynn Land would be joining his campaign as his official pick for Lt. Governor. I first heard the news a little after 9 this morning, but I’ve been in class until now.
Bouchard posted the following on his website earlier today:
Oakland County- Mike Bouchard, Republican candidate for governor, today announced his selection of Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land as his lieutenant governor running mate, citing her successful record of improving services for Michigan residents while cutting costs.
“Terri Lynn Land’s innovative leadership proves that state government can control spending while offering Michigan residents more,” Bouchard said. “From day one as Secretary of State, she looked to cut costs and make her department more efficient. I look forward to working with Terri as my lieutenant governor to fix Lansing so Michigan can get back to work.”
Bouchard, a former state lawmaker who now serves as Oakland County sheriff, made the announcement at press conferences in Detroit, Grand Rapids and Lansing. After the visits, Bouchard and Land launched a bus tour that will take them across Michigan to talk with state residents.
“I’m honored to join Mike’s campaign to turn Michigan around and again make it a national leader in job creation,” Secretary Land said. “His willingness to make the right decisions for Michigan now instead of focusing on the next election is exactly what Michigan needs. He has the knowledge, experience and backbone to get our state back on the right track.
“As both a sheriff and state senator, he has shown he believes that government should live within its means by reducing spending and cutting taxes.”
As Oakland County sheriff, Bouchard leads one of the nation’s largest sheriff’s departments with 1,200 personnel and has used creative ideas to save taxpayers’ dollars. Oakland County now saves $1.6 million a year because of his efforts to privatize the jail’s food services. As a state senator, his record of accomplishment includes protecting families by leading the push to create the Michigan Sex Offender Registry and passing laws that reduced the state’s real estate transfer tax, saving taxpayers to date over a billion dollars. He grew up in Oakland County and has three children with his wife, Pam.
Before becoming secretary of state, Land served as Kent County’s clerk and register of deeds. Highlights of her time as secretary of state include revolutionizing the branch office environment and employing the latest technology so Michigan residents, whether as voters or branch office customers, can expect fast, efficient service. She has two children with husband, Dan, and lives in Byron Center.
Land sent out the following e-mail:
Dear Friend,
As you remember, I offered my endorsement of Mike Bouchard back in June.
I told you then that Mike Bouchard had the diverse background both legislatively and administratively to fix Lansing so Michigan can get back to work.
Back then, I told you that Mike was a proven vote-getter; that I believed his experience winning a statewide primary in 2006 would be key to his success in November 2010.
Well, I’ve learned a lot in the past few months.
After spending the summer on the road with Mike, I’ve realized that he is even more impressive than I had originally thought.
First of all, Mike is an incredible campaigner.
Mike is tireless. After seven years on the road, I’m used to traveling the highways and byways of this state. Believe me, I know a “road warrior” when I see one! Mike loves connecting with people, learning what they care about, and sharing his vision with them. I am confident that he has the instinct and the heart to win both the primary and the general next fall.
Mike gets it. As a former leader in the state senate, Mike has experience working with the legislature, and as Oakland County Sheriff, he knows how to get things done administratively as well. But Mike is also a businessman. He has signed the front of a paycheck; not just the back. He understands firsthand that Michigan is hurting right now, and what it will take to start the healing process.
Finally, Mike is ready. I’ve been in this business a long time, and I know that sometimes a candidate may have all the “right stuff” on paper, but will have a hard time making that transition once they take office.
Not Mike Bouchard. Mike is ready to lead on Day One.
And Michigan can’t wait for its next governor to waste any time. Our families don’t have the luxury of waiting for our next governor to adjust to a learning curve. We need help now.
For those reasons, I am so pleased to join his team officially as his pick for Lt. Governor.
We believe that my experience traveling the state, streamlining services, keeping a balanced budget and delivering world class service even in these tight economic times will give Mike an advantage when we take office in January 2011.
I am so honored to be part of this team.
I am confident that we have the work ethic, the ideas and the passion to fix Lansing and get Michigan back to work!
Thank you for your continued support, and I look forward to seeing you soon on the campaign trail!
Sincerely,
Terri Lynn Land
Bouchard also held a press conference earlier today in Detroit, saying:
I am really excited to have her on board. Terri Lynn Land’s innovative leadership proves that state government can control spending while offering Michigan residents more.
…
The people of the State of Michigan see what happens to their tax dollars.
…
I am willing to be a one-term governor if that is what it takes to fix Michigan. It is long overdue. They have been forestalling tough decisions for the past 6 1/2 years.
Personally, I think this is a great move for Bouchard. I think everybody knew this was coming. I predicted it back in June when Land dropped her bid for Governor and endorsed Bouchard.
This will have the biggest impact on Pete Hoekstra, the Republican Congressman from the 2nd District. Land is also from the West side of Michigan, and her place on a Bouchard ticket will probably impact Hoekstra the most, but we’ll see.
With the addition of a big name like Land’s to the Bouchard ticket, I would put Bouchard as the frontrunner in this race; however, we still have just under a year until the primary, and a LOT of things could happen before then. This race is far from over.
I’ll continue to follow the candidates and the race, so make sure to check back here for my analysis on the race as we continue to get closer to the primary.
