Tom Gantert, Senior Capitol Correspondent [Mackinac Center]

Tom Gantert is senior capitol correspondent for Michigan Capitol Confidential, a daily news site of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.

When Gantert arrived at Capitol Confidential in February 2010, he already had extensive experience as a journalist, having worked for more than 20 years at Michigan daily newspapers, including The Jackson Citizen Patriot, Lansing State Journal and Ann Arbor News. Gantert also served a four-month stint at USA Today as part of a Gannett Corporation loaner program. In 2008, Gantert was The Ann Arbor News writer of the year, and in September 2009, he founded Reporting Michigan, a nonprofit news Web site.

Gantert holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Michigan State University. He has two sons and lives in Jackson, Mich.

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Government Report Shows Film Jobs Stagnant Despite Incentives

Published on June 18, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Misplaced Blame for Albion Schools Problems

Published on June 17, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Majority of Fastest-Growing U.S. Cities Are In Right-to-Work States

Published on June 15, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

MEA Ignores Socioeconomic Status In Claiming Public Charter School is 'Failing'

Published on June 14, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Medicaid Expansion Bill Heads to the House

Published on June 13, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Michigan House Republicans Buckle on Obamacare Medicaid Expansion

Published on June 12, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Union Salary Schedule Ensures State 'Teacher of the Year' Earns Near Bottom In Pay

Published on June 10, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Increased School Funding Did Not Slow Districts In Deficit

Published on June 8, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Defenders Of Public School Monopoly Slam 'Big Profit' Competitors; Haul In Big Money For Themselves

Published on June 6, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Gov. Snyder Calls On Obamacare Advocate No. 1

Published on June 5, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Democratic Strategist Calls Charter School Official 'The Human Herpes Virus'

Published on May 30, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Government Entities Stymie FOIA Requests To Hide Information

Published on May 29, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School Official Uses Social Media To Attack Policy Makers Again

Published on May 28, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School District Denies Teacher's Claim of Bias in Evaluations

Published on May 24, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

No Free Lunch: $15 an Hour Fast Food Workers Would Lead to Lost Jobs

Published on May 22, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Loss of Funding Not To Blame For School District Failures

Published on May 20, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Commentary: IRS Scrutiny Hits Close to Home

Published on May 17, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Union President Blames State, School Officials for Problems at Buena Vista, Pontiac Schools

Published on May 15, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Some School Districts and Unions Embrace Right-to-Work

Published on May 14, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Survey: Teachers in Right-to-Work States Live Quite Comfortably

Published on May 11, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Court Rules School Districts Cannot Use Public Resources to Withhold Union Dues

Published on May 10, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Students Shut Out of School After District, Union Agree to Unrealistic Contract

Published on May 9, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Taxpayer Funded Films Flop With Viewers

Published on May 8, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Michigan School Districts In Perpetual 'Funding Crisis'

Published on May 3, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Democrat Contradictions: Corporate Tax Breaks Bad, But Incentives for Hollywood Good

Published on May 3, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Another Film Subsidy Failure

Published on May 1, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Riches-to-Rags Story Developing For Movie Operations in Michigan

Published on May 1, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Gambling With Welfare Money: Investigation Finds $87K From Bridge Cards Spent In Casino

Published on April 29, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

State Has Weak History of Punishing School Campaign Finance Law Violators

Published on April 24, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Economists: Business Tax Reform Helping, Not Hurting, Michigan

Published on April 23, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

MichiganVotes: Bill Would Allow Community Colleges To Offer Some Bachelor Degrees

Published on April 20, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Reopening Union Contracts Could Free Workers

Published on April 18, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Dozens of School Districts Consider All Teachers the Same

Published on April 17, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Seniority No Longer Supreme For Teacher Recalls

Published on April 15, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

MSNBC Host Who Said Kids Belong To Community Also Says Education Funding Desperately Inadequate

Published on April 12, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

State Government Has Poor Record Predicting Jobs

Published on April 11, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Fiscal Problems Not Stopping Flint From Pursuing $2.4M Hydrogen Bus

Published on April 9, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Is the Problem In Detroit Really A Lack Of Revenue?

Published on April 4, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

State Economic Development Group Has Little To Do With Job Success

Published on April 2, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

County's Rush to Approve New Union Contracts Could Prove Futile

Published on March 29, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Kroger Reaches Deal With Union Postponing Right-to-Work Law

Published on March 27, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Bill Would Help Stop 'National Effort' Mandating Paid Work Leave

Published on March 23, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Hollywood Transforms Itself to Milk Multiple States for Movie Money

Published on March 21, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Michigan 'Green' Jobs Declining

Published on March 20, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

CMU, Ferris State Protecting Worker Rights

Published on March 16, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Multiple School Districts Breaking the Law On Transparency

Published on March 15, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Teacher Says She Qualifies For Food Stamps; School Salary Schedule Suggests Otherwise

Published on March 13, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

In Pontiac, MEA Local Raises $12K For School Supplies While Union Health Insurance Arm Sues District for $7.8 Million

Published on March 11, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Public Employee Pension Systems Raided To Pay Film Studio Bills

Published on March 8, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Big Hollywood Bailout: Taxpayers Spent Nearly $40 Million To Subsidize Disney's 'Oz'

Published on March 7, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Despite Rhetoric, United States Outsourced Less Than 3,000 Jobs In 2012

Published on March 6, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School Districts Spends $16,400 Per Student; Union Blames Lack Of Funding For Toilet Paper Shortage

Published on March 4, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Lawsuit Filed To Protect Teachers' Rights

Published on Feb. 28, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Union President Receives 'Outstanding Organizing' Award For Shutting Down School To Protest Right-to-Work Law

Published on Feb. 27, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Charter School Superintendent Makes Over $339K A Year

Published on Feb. 26, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

District's P.E. Teachers Average Tens of Thousands of Dollars More Than Math and Science Employees

Published on Feb. 25, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Proposed Law Would Prevent Unemployment Benefits For Certain Drug Users

Published on Feb. 23, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

High-Priced Bus Drivers In Lansing

Published on Feb. 21, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

House Rep Wants To Force Homeschool Parents to Report Attendance to The State

Published on Feb. 19, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Taylor School Board Approves Contract Forcing Teachers To Pay Union

Published on Feb. 16, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

LG Chem: A Look Back At the Failed Predictions

Published on Feb. 15, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

State Board of Education President Complains Of 'Right-Wing' Agenda

Published on Feb. 13, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Average Michigan Government Employee Compensation Exceeds Six Figures For The First Time

Published on Feb. 12, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Slight Reduction In Education Funding Did Not Lead To Doomsday Predictions

Published on Feb. 11, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Charter Public Schools Give Detroit Schoolchildren Hope

Published on Feb. 8, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Michigan Teachers Rank No. 2 For Salary

Published on Feb. 7, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School District Late To Make Changes

Published on Feb. 5, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Right-to-Work States Gain Union Members While Other States Lose Hundreds of Thousands

Published on Feb. 4, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

$100K Teachers? For Some Educators, Unions Are Standing In the Way

Published on Feb. 1, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School District Reaches Five-Year Contract Preventing Teachers From Leaving the Union

Published on Jan. 30, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School Union Proposes 9-Year Contract To Prevent Members From Exercising Right To Not Pay Dues

Published on Jan. 30, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

University Union Wants Contract Through 2023 To Avoid Right-to-Work Law

Published on Jan. 28, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Employees In Right-to-Work States Are Richer

Published on Jan. 28, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Michigan Lost 42,000 Union Members Last Year

Published on Jan. 25, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Is Right-to-Work Racist?

Published on Jan. 23, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Government Workers Average Twice As Many Sick Days Per Year As Private-Sector Employees

Published on Jan. 22, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Union Will Use 'Any Legal Means' To Combat Members Who Want To Leave

Published on Jan. 21, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Proposed Michigan Law Would Protect Gun Owners

Published on Jan. 19, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

State Hired More Employees To Administer SEIU 'Dues Skim' Than Oversee Right-to-Work Law

Published on Jan. 18, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

MEA Memo Outlines Regrets and Possible Ways To Fight Right-to-Work Law

Published on Jan. 17, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Michigan Poorer Than Average Of Right-to-Work States

Published on Jan. 11, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Activist Group Claims Government Subsidized Green Energy Projects Are Worthwhile

Published on Jan. 9, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Despite Popular Thinking, Michigan Economy Is Not Determined By Automotive Industry

Published on Jan. 8, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

MEA Spends More On Salaries, Benefits Than Member Representation

Published on Jan. 7, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Status Quo School Defenders: Money For Me, But Bad For Thee

Published on Jan. 5, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School Officials Using Technology For Advocacy

Published on Jan. 2, 2013 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

District's Millage Urgency Claims Don't Match Facts

Published on Dec. 29, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Administrator Group Rails Against Education 'Profiteers;' Makes Millions Off Schools

Published on Dec. 27, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Union Leaders On Right-to-Work Law: 'There Is Going To Be Retribution'

Published on Dec. 21, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

School Official Apologizes For Calling State Reps 'Moron' And 'Mental Midget'

Published on Dec. 18, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Superintendents Spread Inaccurate Information on Education Reform Bills

Published on Dec. 15, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Superintendent Calls GOP Reps 'Moron' and 'Mental Midget' In Right-to-Work Debate

Published on Dec. 14, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Superintendents Falsely Claim Charter Schools Shortchange Poor Children

Published on Dec. 13, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

'Real Jobs' vs. 'Job Announcements' In Right-to-Work Debate

Published on Dec. 11, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Public Schools: 'Profit' Bad For Others, Good For Us

Published on Dec. 10, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Analyst: Income Argument Against Right-To-Work Legislation Isn't Valid

Published on Dec. 8, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Districts Use Taxpayer Resources To Oppose Education Bills

Published on Dec. 5, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Debate on Eduation Bills Focuses On Choice

Published on Dec. 1, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Education Choice For Students, Parents Won't Destroy Communities, Schools

Published on Nov. 29, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential

Media Plays Into 'Unfounded Hysteria' Over School Reforms

Published on Nov. 28, 2012 – Michigan Capitol Confidential