Reporting like this only happens with your financial support. Donate to WKAR today!
It was a week of political drama, public fallout, and finger-pointing at the Michigan Capitol — and it all came to a head during this week’s taping of Off the Record, where reporters unpacked one of the most chaotic stretches of the summer session so far.
From a stripped committee seat to stalled storm recovery, the show tackled the deepening cracks in House leadership and the growing gap between federal relief and what Michigan communities actually need.
You can watch the full episode by clicking on the embedded video below.
One of the biggest flashpoints: the removal of Democratic Representative Alabas Farhat from his vice chair role on the House Appropriations Committee. The move came after Farhat voted against a Republican-led juvenile sentencing bill — a bill Speaker Matt Hall was counting on him to support.
“I did what I believed was right,” Farhat told reporters. “I voted my conscience. And if that costs me a title, so be it.”
Bridge Michigan reporter Jordyn Hermani noted during the show that Hall delivered the letter to remove Farhat during the actual House session, not afterward — a move that came off as deliberate and public.
“Speaker Hall gave Farhat that vice chairmanship,” Hermani said. “But when Farhat didn’t fall in line, Hall took it away.”
Reporter Simon Schuster added that the moment reflected a broader leadership challenge: “When you have this thin a majority, one or two members start acting like mini-speakers.”
That instability is playing out in other ways — most notably in the state’s delayed budget and mounting questions over storm recovery funding.
This week, Governor Whitmer announced that the Trump administration approved $50 million in federal disaster relief for northern Michigan. But the total damage from March’s devastating ice storm is estimated at more than $130 million.
“They’re still gunning for more,” Hermani said. “Losses are much higher than what’s been approved.”
The storm’s impact is already being felt across the state. In a WKAR News report published earlier this week, farmers markets in Lansing and Meridian Township showed signs of strain — with vendors offering fewer fresh fruits and vegetables due to delayed planting and damaged infrastructure.
“There was a lot of destruction from the weight of the ice,” said Jenny Radon of the Michigan Farmers Market Association. “A lot of farmers had damage to their land or their infrastructure that made it hard for them to farm.”
With budget talks still stalled and GOP leadership facing internal fractures, panelists said Lansing is entering a critical stretch — one where political missteps could impact real communities still waiting for help.
“Yesterday was not encouraging,” one panelist said bluntly. “And if they don’t get it together, we could be staring at a shutdown.”
Click on the video above to watch the full episode of Off the Record, airing Friday nights at 8:30 p.m. on WKAR-TV.
This article was produced with assistance from generative AI tools and reporting from this week’s Off the Record taping.
