Lawmakers took the state past the midnight deadline for a shutdown, but moved to avert the full impact of the crisis by approving a flurry of bills this morning including a boost in the state’s income tax from 3.9 to 4.35 percent and sales tax expansion.The deadline slipped by with the House approving Republican-sought reforms of public employee health care that were seen as a key to a deal. The Republican-led Senate gave final approval to that legislation at 1:04 a.m. today.

The Senate passed the sales tax bill on a 20-19 vote, with Lt. Gov. John Cherry casting the tie-breaking vote. The bill headed to Granholm. All told, the tax hikes would raise $1.35 billion. No significant action was taken on cutting government spending, with $400 million in cuts to be made in coming weeks.

The Detroit News

I was grinning ear to ear as I read over this. As I predicted earlier this summer, the sorry excuse of a Republican Senate in the Michigan State Legislature caved and voted for the income and sales tax increases in Michigan. I have no pity for the state. In the wake of having the largest unemployment rate in the nation and ever rising taxes, what did the residents there see fit to do? They reelected one of the worst governor’s in the state’s history and flipped their State House from R to D. And they are shocked, actually shocked, that taxes have been raised yet again and hardly an effort was made to cut out the waste instead.

And of course the whining has begun over the tax increase. Unbelievable.

And here are your four spineless RINOs in the Republican lead Senate that voted to take more money out of your paycheck :

Patricia Birkholz

24th District - Saugutuck

Tom George

20th District - Kalamazoo

Ron Jelinek

21st District - Three Oaks

Gerald Van Woerkom

34th District - Muskegon

Roll Call No.397

The bill would ratchet up the levy from 3.9 percent to 4.35 percent to raise $760 million. The rate would begin a gradual rollback in 2011 and return to 3.9 percent by 2015.

Don’t bet on it.

California Rep. John Doolittle said Thursday that the Justice Department has issued subpoenas to him and five of his staff members seeking office records going back 11 years in connection to the congressman’s relationship with jailed lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Doolittle’s attorney indicated that he might fight having to comply.

Doolittle, a Republican, declined further comment about the subpoenas. But his criminal defense attorney, David Barger, said in a prepared statement that the subpoenas “raise serious constitutional issues going to the very core” of the separation of powers between the Congress and the executive branch.

The statement didn’t say what records are being sought but said they include “virtually every record, including legislative records, for the congressman for the past 11 years.”

McClatchy

Anyone who can read between the lines can see there is a lot of shady business that went on here, which really makes it somewhat disgraceful that Barger would raise questions of Constitutionality. Doolittle needs to do his constituency and the GOP a favor and not run for reelection next year. He already has a primary challenger.