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Reality Matters / The Game Desk

The People’s Scoreboard

Who makes the call? What did they decide? Where did the money go? Start with one question and check the original record.

Start the plain-language training →

Who makes the call?

Start with the office that can help. Read the role, then tap the name or record. This is a directory, not a rating or endorsement.

Michigan House · District 04

Karen Whitsett

Democrat · 2025–26 term. Michigan House members vote on state laws and budgets.

Karen’s official record ↗
Michigan House · District 28

Jamie Thompson

Republican · 2025–26 term. The district includes parts of Wayne and Monroe counties.

Jamie’s official record ↗
Original people to follow

Abdul El-Sayed, Sherry Berecz & Regina Ross

Three names in the original player-card draft. Check official results before treating an election result as final.

Michigan election records ↗
Find official office and delegate records →

Official directories cover different kinds of offices, from local boards to Congress. The private research roster distinguishes current office, appointment and election-result records. An unofficial result is not proof someone already holds office. Check your address with the U.S. House or the Michigan House.

Find an office by level

Starter links, not a complete roster. A mailing city can cover more than one district. Check your address before contacting an office.

The full, source-linked roster remains in separate private review. It is not yet available inside this Game Desk.

Start in your neighborhood

A precinct is a local voting area. A precinct delegate serves in a political party. A block club or association brings neighbors together. These are different jobs.

Neighborhood groups

Find a block club

Detroit’s directory is a starting point. An older listing does not show that a group is still active.

Detroit’s block club program ↗
Community violence intervention

Find a local program

Detroit lists ShotStoppers groups and service areas. HD28 coverage is not yet verified here.

Detroit’s CVI program ↗
See the public funding records below →

See how a bill moves

Special coverage · Michigan + national context

Free Expression Review Desk

The rulebook, the ruling and the receipts. Compare religious-bias measures, campus discipline and constitutional safeguards, with Michigan local records, court decisions and a limited 50-state research board.

Christians, Jews and Muslims: shared protections and specific differences, without treating proposals as laws.

Enter the special coverage desk →
New Jersey · Source review · November 11, 2026

A1146 · Islamophobia definition and free speech

What the proposed definition would do, its explicit constitutional safeguard, the sponsor and cosponsors, and an attributed concern about its breadth. No standalone crime of criticizing Islam is created by this text.

Last verified official action: January 13 committee referral. Current official status access is limited.

Read the bill and the debate →
New bill breakdown · November 11, 2026

Lebanon TPS Act · H.R.10986

Rashida Tlaib introduced the proposal on November 10. All 19 original cosponsors, their districts, the committee stage, the reported support and the original records are now in one place.

Introduced and referred to House Judiciary. Not a law.

Open the full bill breakdown →

A bill is an idea for a law. A sponsor brings it forward. Cosponsors put their names on it. A committee reviews it. A roll call records how each lawmaker voted. These are separate actions.

SB 1 (2019): Michigan auto insurance

Status: Public Act 21 of 2019. The law changed Michigan’s no-fault auto insurance rules, including choices for medical coverage after a crash. Check the law and your policy before assuming what is covered or what a bill will cost.

Lead sponsor: Aric Nesbitt. Other sponsors listed on the enrolled bill: Lana Theis, Kimberly LaSata, Kenneth Horn, Ed McBroom, Tom Barrett, Dan Lauwers and Curtis VanderWall.

Committees: Senate Insurance and Banking; House Select Committee on Reducing Car Insurance Rates.

May 24, 2019: House roll call 105: 94 yes, 15 no, 1 not voting. Senate roll call 122: 34 yes, 4 no.

Signed law ↗ · Official committee-stage analysis ↗ · Vote index ↗
HB 4493 (2025): Food licensing exemptions

Status: Public Act 43 of 2025. It changes which operators need a license under Michigan’s Food Law. One provision applies to certain concession operations run by people who are blind. An exemption from a license is not a blanket exemption from food safety rules.

Sponsor: Jamie Thompson. Cosponsors: None listed.

Committees: House Regulatory Reform; Senate Regulatory Affairs (the Senate discharged the bill from committee before it passed).

December 18, 2025: Senate roll call 362: 29 yes, 6 no, 2 excused. House roll call 374: 85 yes, 3 no, 22 not voting.

Signed law ↗ · House committee minutes ↗ · Vote index ↗
How could a bill affect my neighborhood?

Ask who is covered, what changes, and when. Then check what was signed. A vote for a bill is not evidence that a program helped your neighborhood.

Library of Michigan: track a bill ↗

Follow the money

Four records can tell four different stories. Never add the stages together or call a request a payment.

  1. Request

    Someone asks for money.

  2. Approval

    An official decision allows funds for a purpose.

  3. Award

    An agency names the recipient or issues a grant or contract.

  4. Payment

    A financial record shows money went out.

Public funding example: FORCE Detroit

Senator Mary Cavanagh’s $2 million state request is a request only; no cosponsors are listed. A separate MCOLES record lists a $500,000 allocation. Those records do not prove an award or payment on the $2 million request. No recipient payment was independently confirmed here. Do not combine the amounts or credit them to Karen or Jamie.

Michigan Senate request ↗ · MCOLES grant records ↗
Campaign money and organizations

Start with a committee’s filings. Check who gave or spent, the dates, and what kind of transaction was reported. A contribution is not proof someone bought a vote. An independent expenditure is not a contribution to the candidate. For an organization’s own funding, match the exact legal name and ID before linking its filings or awards. Some donors are not public, and a matching name is not enough.

Michigan campaign finance ↗ · Federal campaign finance ↗ · IRS nonprofit filings ↗ · Federal award and spending records ↗

Watch. Work with Karen.

Services and sponsorship

Bring Karen into the room

Speaking, moderation, research, training and sponsorship inquiries. An inquiry is not a booking or endorsement.

Work with Karen →

Karen owns Karen Whitsett Media. Project collaborators are independent; collaboration does not imply ownership.

Leadership Training Camp

Candidate and community leadership school · pilot proposal. Start by learning to serve a neighborhood. Then decide which role fits. No dates or enrollment are open.

Foundation

Community leaders & delegates

Find the right office, use an official source and make a 30-day service plan.

Next route · proposed

People considering a run

Learn the job, check the rules and decide if now is the right time.

Later route · proposed

Declared candidates

Practice planning, financial recordkeeping and clear public communication.

Later route · proposed

Newly elected leaders

Learn meetings, records, ethics, budgets and the first 90 days of service.

See the six-session foundation
  1. Listen to the neighborhood and choose one issue.
  2. Find out who has the power to act.
  3. Turn a public process into clear steps.
  4. Check one claim and follow the money.
  5. Explain what you learned and lead a short meeting.
  6. Build a 30-day service plan.

Proposed: 12 adults, six weekly 90-minute sessions. Participants can practice aloud, on paper or digitally. Completion would not be an endorsement, qualification for office or accreditation.