by Chris Andrews
August 16, 2008

The book by Bruce A. Rubenstein and Lawrence E. Ziewacz that gave birth to the Michigan Political History Society.

For Sharman Moore, it was one of those “Who knew?” moments. Certainly she didn’t. She couldn’t believe what she was reading.

In the summer of 1992, her friends Kevin and Jamie Kelly gave her a copy of “Three Bullets Sealed His Lips,” a book of corruption and scandal, murder and mystery. A state senator gunned down gangland style on the eve of grand jury testimony.

And it was all about Michigan.

“I read it, and I thought I didn’t know this happened in Michigan for real,” Moore recalled. “Other people needed to know.”

The book led to dinner-party discussion at the Lansing City Club, and, well, the rest is history. The Michigan Political History Society was formed in September 1993, and it has been looking back ever since.

This year the Michigan Political History Society celebrates its 15th year as a place for political junkies of all persuasions to gather to share stories, learn from the past and think about how it applies to the present and future.

“What we wanted to do is not only let people know that something happened on this date in Michigan, but why it happened politically speaking,” said Moore, who grew up in a Democratically active family and works for the Michigan Department of Information Technology. “It’s nice to know that something happened in 1950 or 1952, but I think it’s important to know why it happened and the philosophy at the time.”

Moore and Kevin Kelly, now executive director of the Michigan State Medical Society and one of the most connected “movers” in the capital, were part of a small group of political history buffs that worked to turn the idea of a political society into reality. Richard McLellan, prominent lawyer and close friend of Republican Governor John Engler, and Tom Downs, the legendary Democratic attorney, were among them.

They got an early inkling of the group’s potential when they sent out 30 invitations to serve on the society’s board, expecting perhaps 10 affirmative responses. They got 22. “Thus we have a 22-member board,” Moore said.

About 80 people attended the group’s first dinner meeting in November 1993. It featured the authors of “Three Bullets Sealed His Lips,” Bruce A Rubenstein and Lawrence E. Ziewacz. It was held at Dusty’s English Inn in Eaton Rapids — not far from where Senator Warren Hooper had been killed in 1945 just before he had the chance to name names in a stunningly broad scandal.

Over the years, the Michigan Political History Society has captured reminiscences and history that is less lurid but nonetheless provides insights into Michigan’s political past.

“For those of us that have been active in the legislative and political arena, this gives us an opportunity to look back perhaps to a day before we were intimately involved in the politics of a particular situation,” said Robert LaBrant, senior vice president for the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and lifetime member of the society. “I always get a kick out of hearing Con-Con (Michigan Constitutional Convention) war stories.”

One of LaBrant’s favorite programs featured former House Co-Speakers Curtis Hertel and Paul Hillegonds following the publication of former Hertel staffer (now Blue Cross CEO) Daniel J. Loepp’s “Sharing the Balance of Power.” Hertel and Hillegonds split leadership duties after the 1992 elections created a 55-55 Democratic/Republican split. To many observers’ surprise, the arrangement worked out well and was one of the more productive and civil sessions in recent history.

“A lot of people look back on that as kind of the Golden Era of the legislative process,” LaBrant said. “At least compared to the era of term limits.”

Moore, who grew up in the Upper Peninsula, wasn’t aware of the political controversies surrounding construction of the Mackinac Bridge — its history was detailed at an MPHS function held at Mackinac Island’s Grand Hotel.

Another event highlighted Democratic activist Millie Jeffries and Elly Peterson, the first woman chair of the Michigan Republican Party. “Millie Jeffries is just world-renowned, and most people in Michigan don’t know who she is,” Moore said.

Capturing the past
A centerpiece of the society’s activities is oral histories, recorded in videotaped interviews, that have been taken of prominent Michigan citizens about their lives and reflections on Michigan’s political past.

The idea came from Tom Downs, who financed the project at the start. He conducted several of the early interviews with such notables as Appeals Court Judge Glenn Allen, UAW Vice President Irv Bluestone and Millie Jeffries.

Later, he was the subject of an interview himself, conducted by LaBrant.

Society President David Murley at last fall’s celebration of Gov. Blanchard.

David Murley, legal adviser for House Republicans and current president of the society, has only been active in Michigan politics for 10 years. And he’s fascinated with those who preceded him.

For instance, he said, he gained insights from former House Speaker Bobby Crim’s oral history into how and why Michigan moved from a legislature with a minimal staff to the professionalized legislature of today. “To hear Bobby Crim explain how it happened, that really touches a button with me. It all makes sense.”

The society recently asked Lynn Jondahl, executive director of Michigan Prospect, and Bill Ballenger, publisher of Inside Michigan Politics, to conduct future oral history interviews to ensure consistent excellence.

“It’s a smart project. There are a lot of people with a lot of a wisdom and political savvy,” said Jondahl, a former Democratic state representative. “It’s very smart to try to keep in circulation their ideas, their experiences and reflections. To understand so much of what happens today, you really need to get some historical perspective.”

Jondahl, who has interviewed Crim and Democratic activist Olivia Maynard, said he seeks to draw out unique perspectives in his interviews.

“Libby Maynard was a person who kept a very strong social agenda in her mind that she was pursuing. She was always looking for ways to advance issues,” Jondahl said. “Those issues were values that she determined in many cases in family arguments around the dinner table at home.”

Murley said the project is focusing primarily on subjects who are older and out of the political fray themselves.

“Frankly, it’s kind of like the baseball Hall of Fame. We want a guy who’s been out of the business for probably five years. And then they are not caught up in today’s controversies,” he said. “They are able to reflect without having to worry about the politics of today.”

In some cases, Murley said, the society won’t be able to wait. “My guess is John Dingell and Carl Levin, who knows when they’ll retire, if at all,” he said. “We’ll have to get with them when they can do it with us.”

The political society camera just missed one of Michigan’s most important political figures — the late Governor George Romney. He died suddenly a couple of weeks before a scheduled interview. Moore said she had already designed the cover for the VHS tape.

The society was a sponsor of the 2007 re-enactment of President Teddy Roosevelt’s visit to the Michigan Capitol in 1905.

Murley is passionate about history and determined to make the Michigan Political History Society bigger and better. Under his leadership, the society is building an endowment to ensure that programs endure.

Last fall, the society hosted a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the election of James J. Blanchard as governor. The event drew a record crowd to the Country Club of Lansing, including many people who were prominent in his administration between 1983 and 1991. (The society hopes to set another record this fall when it honors former Gov. William Milliken at a fundraising dinner at Laurel Manor in Livonia on November 18).

The society is using proceeds from the Blanchard event to fund the Governor James J. Blanchard Living Library of Michigan Political History, the new name for the ongoing oral history project. The histories will be distributed to the State Library of Michigan as well as the libraries at Michigan State University, the University of Michigan and Wayne State University.

The society also is working closely with Michigan Government Television to put its programs and oral histories on cable television for a broader audience to see.

The society is always looking for new ways to look back. In May 2007 the society helped sponsor the centennial celebration of President Theodore Roosevelt’s address to the legislature. Roosevelt had come to Lansing to speak at the Michigan Agricultural College commencement and give an address to the legislature. A Teddy Roosevelt impersonator retraced TR’s trip from campus to the Capitol in a 1905 R.E.O. driven by the grandson of Ransom E. Olds, who was Roosevelt’s chauffeur for the original trip.

The society has also provided funding to support the research costs of retired Ingham County Circuit Judge Larry Glazer, who is writing a biography on former Governor John Swainson.

Promoting civility
Leaders of the Michigan Political History Society also believe that the group can contribute to a more cooperative spirit in Lansing — something that is too often missing.

Moore, who is active in Democratic circles, didn’t have many friends on the other side of the aisle until she met McLellan at a Michigan State University basketball game — she the guest of a Democratic trustee, he invited by a Republican.

“Most of us who are party activists have this mindset, if I’m one party, the other party can’t possibly have good people,” Moore said. “Richard has been a great friend and I have learned a great deal from him.”

The society’s events allow people who are engaged in the political process to put today’s conflicts aside — at least for an evening.

Said Murley: “It’s a way for the red and blue to get together.”

Chris Andrews is the award-winning former politics editor of the Lansing State Journal.