LET THE GAMES BEGIN

Politics has often been compared to chess, as the movement of players to reach the end game for political parties. Take, for example, the new 10th District for Congress, which includes southern Macomb and eastern Oakland County, including the Rochester Hills area. On the GOP side, John James has finally thrown his hat in the ring – no surprise there – and declared candidate Eric Esshaki, who took 47.8 percent of the 2020 general election vote against Congresswoman Haley Stevens, has announced his withdrawal from the 10th District contest. That said, Oakland Confidential has been told that former Macomb congresswoman and now Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candice Miller met with Esshaki in January and asked him to pull out of the race. Miller, whose Republican political career began in 1986 and has spanned local, county, state (SOS) and federal office, as well as being an often-hoped-for candidate for governor against incumbent Gretchen Whitmer, holds a hallowed place in the party, so we can buy the unconfirmed rumor that the party had her do its bidding. National and state Republican Party bigwigs have wanted to find a home in D.C. for James, following his two previous failed U.S. Senate attempts, hence the attempt to clear the field in this race. After James announced, Miller and former U.S. House member Mike Bishop (a once-rumored possible contender for this spot) were named as co-chairs of the James’ campaign. How much better for James can it get than a district currently ranked as +6 Republican leaning?