Morning Briefing

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2022

In today's newsletter, an early look at the Thanksgiving weather forecast, credit card rates are skyrocketing during prime holiday shopping season and a nuclear power plant on Lake Michigan will not reopen after a federal application is denied.

Want more snow? You'll have to shuffle off to Buffalo.

Some of us here in Michigan got a lot of snow last week. I mean A LOT OF SNOW. I had about two feet fall where I live. My shoveling arms got a serious workout over the weekend. But two feet is nothing, if you ask some residents of New York State.

Our friends in Buffalo, New York, got walloped with a level of lake effect snow that we have never seen. Seriously, never. As MLive Chief Meteorologist Mark Torregrossa reports, even Michigan's most extreme blizzard couldn't compare to the six feet of snow that fell on Buffalo.

We have more weather content from Mark in today's newsletter because we can't get enough of it. I love it. You love it. So keep on reading.

Curated by Jessica Shepherd

Ice covers the boardwalk railings at Grand Haven State Park in Grand Haven, Michigan on Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022. Photojournalist Joel Bissell spent time at the park Sunday documenting the ice, along with interesting sand formations found on the beach. See all of his images here.

In-person voting was the winner during Michigan's midterm, overtaking absentee ballots.

Michigan preferred in-person voting: A change from 2020, when the pandemic was in full swing and absentee voting was the preferred method, this year Michigan voters preferred visiting the voting booth. We have numbers on where in-person voting was most popular and least popular.

An interesting statistic: The data shows a correlation between voting type and party preference. Counties that voted in larger shares for Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer were more likely to have a higher percentage absentee ballot rate.

More election-related news: With the country on the precipice of cementing protections for same-sex marriage into federal law, questions of whether Michigan will do the same has arisen in recent days. And the state’s top law enforcement official is pushing for a citizen-led referendum on the issue.

Read more

Curious about Thanksgiving travel? We have an early look at the forecast.

Mark's forecast: Our favorite meteorologist Mark Torregrossa is helping you plan for the holiday week. Here he has an early look at what Thanksgiving and the weekend will look like, as far as weather is concerned. And stay tuned, because he will have updates, as always.

More in weather: There is a long line of well-developed storms stretching across the Pacific Ocean. Eventually, this means Michigan and the Great Lakes region will get into significant moisture. If the tracks of some of these storms are south of Michigan, we could get into real snow.

Speaking of snow: If you have been waiting to hit the slopes, your moment is here — ski resorts across Michigan are announcing their opening dates. And the really good news? Some of them are already open.

Read more

Doing your holiday shopping? Watch out for those credit card rates.

Skyrocketing rates: Inflation is pushing holiday shoppers to shop strategically and buy early, but they’ll need to be careful about swiping now and paying later. The nationally average credit card rate is at 19.14%, the highest rate since it started being tracked in 1985.

Tips for avoiding debt: Bankrate’s holiday consumer survey found 27% of shoppers will go into debt this season. Experts say to avoid that, you should shop for sales early, use rewards to stack savings and avoid pay-later promos. For more tips, read this.

While we are talking about money: The state of Michigan has asked a court to dismiss a class-action lawsuit against the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency involving pandemic benefits.

Read more

Let's take a look at the many current emotions of football fans in Michigan.

Feeling elite: A still undefeated team of Wolverines is No. 3 in the College Football Playoff poll with one regular-season game to go (against Ohio State). How did Jim Harbaugh transform this team in recent years? Here's an in-depth look at that.

Feeling on fire: Just a month ago, many Lions fans had pretty much written off the team for this season. But after a winning streak (the best currently in the NFC North), playoff chances are being discussed. They are only 1.5 games back. Plus, now Jameson Williams is cleared to practice.

Feeling only slight hope for a bowl game: One last shot. That's all the Spartans have in terms of securing bowl eligibility. And it would have to be an upset, as they head to Penn State. But, hey, there's still Izzo and the basketball season, Michigan State fans.

Read more

A nuclear power plant along Lake Michigan will not reopen after a federal application is denied.

No return for Palisades:A last-ditch effort to restart the Palisades Nuclear Plant has failed. The proposal to restart the nuclear power plant along Lake Michigan was contingent on approval from the federal government, which was denied last week.

Why did it close? The closure was in part because of financial issues and because fuel is running out, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said previously. The shutdown was announced in 2017.

In case you missed it: In other energy-related news, DTE Energy customers will see a rate hike for electricity starting on Friday, Nov. 25, the utility recently announced.

Read more

That's all for now.

Thanks for spending part of your Tuesday morning here with me in the newsletter.

Any time of day, you can find the latest Michigan news at MLive.com. And here's the link to become an MLive subscriber.

I'll see you back in your inbox tomorrow morning.

— Jessica Shepherd

OTHER TOP STORIES

GAMES & COMICS

Today’s Crossword
More free puzzles & games
Today’s Comics

TODAY'S OBITUARIES

Click here to for access to Michigan obituaries.

DAILY AUDIO BRIEFING

Want the top headlines but don't have time to read? Listen to MLive’s daily news briefing on Spotify, Google or Apple Podcasts.

NOT ENOUGH NEWS?

The Daily Digital Edition is included with both print and digital subscriptions to MLive.com. You can also choose from our selection of local news, sports or lifestyle newsletters and apps.

WANT TO SHARE THIS NEWSLETTER WITH A FRIEND?

Did someone share this newsletter with you? Click here to never miss a day!

CONTACT THE NEWSROOM

To contact the newsrooms for any of our publications regarding technical support, news tips, classified ads and other inquiries, please click here.

Your news. Your way.

New Custom Email Alerts let you select your favorite topics happening in your town. Choose the topics you love, we'll do the rest!

Choose your alerts

INTERESTED IN ADVERTISING
OR SPONSORING OUR NEWSLETTERS?

Contact advertising@mlive.com

GET YOUR LOCAL NEWS 24/7

Ann Arbor | Bay City | Flint | Grand Rapids

Jackson | Kalamazoo | Muskegon | Saginaw

You received this email because you opted in to the newsletter. To ensure receipt of our emails, please add newsletters@update.mlive.com to your address book or safe sender list.

MLive Media Group 169 Monroe NW #100Grand Rapids, MI 49503