Patrick Colbeck

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On May 31, 2017, Colbeck filed to run for Michigan gubernatorial office to replace the then term-limited Republican incumbent governor Rick Snyder, whose second and final gubernatorial term expired specifically on January 1, 2019. [26] [27] Colbeck was widely recognized as the most conservative candidate for governor in the 2018 gubernatorial race. [28] [29]

Colbeck ran on what he called "principled solutions", asserting that the "solutions to the issues we face as a state are driven by guiding principles, not the whims of powerful special interests." His "principled solutions" are: job growth, excellence in education, no state income tax, budgets driven by priorities of the citizens of the state, better roads, quality and affordable healthcare, affordable auto insurance, defending one's rights and supporting those who secure rights. [30]

In August 2018, Colbeck lost the Republican primary to then-Attorney General Bill Schuette. He received 13% of the Republican primary vote in a four-way primary race. [1]

Post-political career

In November 2020, Colbeck was a certified poll challenger at the TCF Center in Detroit, Michigan. He later appeared at the 2020 Wayne County Board of Canvassers and Michigan State Board of Canvassers certification meetings sharing concerns over unsubstantiated claims of election fraud. [31] An affidavit filed by Colbeck claims that the computers used by election officials were connected to the Internet, which "opens the door" to possible vote manipulation. [32] However, chief judge Timothy Kenny found that there was "no evidence" to support these claims. [33]

Colbeck assisted My Pillow founder Mike Lindell in the production of a two-hour documentary, Absolute Proof , [34] that aired on conservative media outlets and social media February 5, 2021, asserting Chinese cyber hacking was largely responsible for Joe Biden winning the presidency in 2020. The New York Times described the production the same day as "a falsehood-laden film about election fraud," reliant upon discredited testimony and baseless speculation. [35] Colbeck appeared on FlashPoint February 12, 2021, as a guest of Kenneth Copeland Ministries' Victory Channel, insisting that Lindell's documentary stuck to "100% objective facts" and not "conjecture" and that Colbeck's role in Absolute Proof earned him "no fallout," and that "people are hungry for this information." [36] The "fallout" relates to negative consequences Lindell incurred since promoting Donald Trump's 2020 election grievances and conspiracies propagated since November by lawyers associated with Trump.

In June 2021, Colbeck participated in a rally at Lansing, calling for an audit of Michigan's 2020 election similar to the Arizona audit. In the rally, Colbeck called the event a "spiritual battle" and compared the 2020 election to the persecution of Jesus Christ [37] and in 2022 chronicled the 2020 election in The 2020 Coup: What happened. What we can do. [10]

Colbeck has continued to push his claims of election fraud since the 2020 election, falsely asserting that Dominion Voting Systems' ballot-counting machines were connected to the internet and could have been hacked. As recently as May 2024, Colbeck claimed to have proof the voting machines were hacked from Serbia, a false claim amplified on social media by the polling firm Rasmussen Reports. [38]

References

  1. 1 2 Jocelyn Benson, Secretary of State (August 7, 2018). "2018 Michigan Election Results". State of Michigan. Archived from the original on March 1, 2023. Retrieved November 29, 2020. Colbeck, Patrick 129,646 13.10%
  2. Colbeck, Patrick (October 8, 2016). "LinkedIn Profile for Patrick Colbeck". LinkedIn Profile.
  3. "Gongwer News Service - Michigan". www.gongwer.com.
  4. Colbeck, Patrick J. (2006). Amazon listing. Perspective Shifts Press. ISBN   0978504909.
  5. "Principles Matter". Principles Matter. February 26, 2007. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  6. Livengood, Chad; Heinlein, Gary; Pardo, Steve; Burr, Richard; Shepardson, David (January 2, 2015). "Did veteran Michigan senator get snubbed?". The Detroit News . Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  7. 1 2 Gray, Kathleen (October 11, 2017). "GOP leadership kicks state Sen. Patrick Colbeck off 4 committees". Detroit Free Press . Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  8. "Board of Directors". MI Freedom Center. Michigan Armed Forces Hospitality Center, Inc. Archived from the original on February 18, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  9. Colbeck, Patrick; Combs Jr., Ira (May 9, 2018). Wrestling Gators: An Outsider's Guide to Draining the Swamp. Illumify Media Group. ISBN   978-1947360136.
  10. 1 2 "Catalog | McHenry Press". mchenrypress.com. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  11. Moy, Jonathan (August 21, 2015). "Michigan's Obamacare Medicaid Expansion". Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Retrieved November 29, 2020. State Sen. Patrick Colbeck (R-Canton) was perhaps the most vocal critic of Medicaid expansion in the state Senate.
  12. Colbeck, Patrick (October 12, 2016). "A Free Market Healthcare Revolution: Why And How". Forbes . Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  13. Colbeck, Patrick (July 18, 2017). "The Case For Medicaid Block Grants". Forbes . Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  14. Based upon quarterly metrics reports filed by MI DMVA
  15. Michigan Senator challenges 'any state elected official' to gas tax debate. MLive. October 7, 2015. Retrieved February 17, 2023 via YouTube.
  16. Sen. Colbeck participates in road funding debate. SenatorPatColbeck. October 21, 2015. Archived from the original on March 13, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2023 via YouTube.
  17. Wireless Tech Forum: Introduction (Patrick Colbeck). Patrick Colbeck. January 7, 2019. Archived from the original on April 18, 2022. Retrieved February 17, 2023 via YouTube.
  18. "Wireless Technology Forum". YouTube . Lansing. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  19. Colbeck, Patrick (November 10, 2016). "Senate Bill 1164 (2016)". Michigan Legislature. Michigan Legislative Service Bureau. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  20. "An Explanatory Memorandum: From the Archives of the Muslim Brotherhood in America". Center for Security Policy. May 25, 2013.
  21. Oosting, Jonathan. "'Islamophobia' charge rocks Michigan governor debate". The Detroit News.
  22. Zavala-Offman, Alysa. "Michigan senator calls his 72k salary a 'fixed income'". Detroit Metro Times. Archived from the original on April 8, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  23. Herndon, Dave. "State senator prides himself on living on fixed income of over $70,000 a year". The News Herald. Media Newsgroup, Inc. Archived from the original on April 8, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  24. Kelsey, Nancy (January 30, 2011). "Column From Sen. Colbeck: Michigan Business Tax Needs Repeal". Patch Media.
  25. "No. 41 STATE OF MICHIGAN Journal of the Senate 96th Legislature REGULAR SESSION OF 2011".
  26. Oosting, Jonathan (May 31, 2017). "Colbeck files to run for Michigan governor". The Detroit News . Mackinac Island. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  27. Egan, Paul (June 3, 2016). "2018 Michigan governor's election bubbles below surface at Mackinac". Detroit Free Press . Mackinac Island. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  28. Egan, Paul (May 11, 2018). "He's Michigan's most conservative Republican candidate for governor". Detroit Free Press . Canton. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  29. LeBlanc, Beth (June 6, 2018). "Faith, 'principled' conservatism drive GOP governor hopeful Colbeck". The Detroit News . Grand Rapids. Retrieved November 29, 2020. Colbeck opposed pension taxes, the Medicaid expansion, minimum wage increases and gasoline tax hikes to fund road repairs — at times alienating his own party ... Colbeck alienated colleagues by telling them how to get things done in the Senate even though he had little experience doing so himself, the Monroe Republican said.
  30. "Meet the Candidates: Patrick Colbeck (R) for Governor". WILX-TV . July 25, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  31. Boucher, Dave (November 23, 2020). "Michigan board votes to certify election results despite GOP calls to delay". Detroit Free Press . Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  32. Jones, Ross (November 17, 2020). "Claims of rampant voter fraud in Michigan don't hold up to scrutiny". WXYZ-TV . Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  33. Kenny, Timothy (November 13, 2020). "Case No. 20-014780-AW" (PDF). State of Michigan in the Third Judicial Circuit Court for the County of Wayne. pp. 6–7. Retrieved November 29, 2020. No evidence supports Mr. Colbeck's position.
  34. Howse, Brannon (February 5, 2021), Absolute Proof (Documentary), Shiva Ayyadurai, Melissa Carone, Patrick Colbeck, Eric Coomer, retrieved February 15, 2021
  35. Browning, Kellen; Hsu, Tiffany (February 6, 2021). "Three false claims about the election made in Mike Lindell's new film". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  36. Colbeck, Patrick (February 12, 2021). "Victory News: Trump's Defense, Gavin Newsom Recall & Hypocrisy". THE VICTORY CHANNEL. Kenneth Copeland Ministries. Archived from the original on February 13, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  37. "GOP activists ask God, demand lawmakers deliver Arizona-style audit of Michigan's 2020 election". mlive. June 17, 2021. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  38. Kessler, Glenn (May 28, 2024). "Prominent pollster spreads Dominion voting machine misinformation". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
Patrick Colbeck
Patrick Colbeck.jpg
Member of the Michigan Senate
from the 7th district
In office
January 1, 2011 January 1, 2019