Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Twp., speaks at a rally before Vice President JD Vance speaks about "America's industrial resurgence," Friday, March 14, 2025, at Vantage Plastics in Bay City, Mich. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

Last week, Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) bragged to reporters about the House Republicans’ decision to block $645 million in state funding in another controversial move on the speaker’s questionable record.

Michigan Republicans, who control the state House of Representatives, made the move in the House Appropriations Committee by invoking an obscure rule in state law to block funding for work projects without approval from the Democratic-controlled state Senate. The budget committee did not hold any discussion or public debate on the move and voted without Democratic support. 

Much of the funding was already approved for a variety of programs and projects. Notable cut projects include the Make It in Michigan Competitiveness Fund — which helps secure federal funding for local projects — a prenatal and infant support program, a food assistance program, a child mental health service program, a cash assistance program for new and expecting mothers, a voting equipment updating program, a grant for a Holocaust museum in Farmington Hills and a program that gives wigs to children with cancer.

Hall admitted that Appropriations Committee Republicans cut some good programs but wants to force a debate on the funding through a newly created ethics committee.

“Let’s put it [the project funding] in the general fund, and then let’s force a discussion about what is the best way to get value for your tax dollars,” Hall said Wednesday. According to MLive, just $351 million of the $645 million cut will go into the state’s general fund, with no answers for the other $294 million.

In response to the move, several Democrats blasted Hall and House Republicans for cruelty, including Stacey LaRouche, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s (D) press secretary.

“Even Ebenezer Scrooge wouldn’t dream of such cruel cuts, like eliminating support for students in Flint impacted by the water crisis and survivors of child sexual assault,” LaRouche said in a statement to Detroit Free Press. “Our administration will continue to review the full impact of these cuts, but Michiganders deserve to know who is responsible: Matt Hall and his caucus.”

Hall did not respond to an emailed request to comment for this story. However, Hall held a lengthy press conference last Wednesday, where he defended the funding reduction as a way to rein in “waste, fraud and abuse” perpetrated by Democrats. Without evidence, Hall claimed that Democrats in Michigan are putting $6 billion annually into slush funds.

Hall also said the obscure provisions that allowed the Republicans on the Appropriations Committee to move forward with the cuts is “his favorite law.”

Hall also pushed back on the cruelty claims by saying the Flint water crisis is over. While the vast majority of the lead pipes in Flint, Mich. have been replaced, many residents still deal with lingering health issues due to the crisis.

Hall’s controversial behavior

The move adds another controversy to Hall’s political record. Last year, The Daily Beast obtained police reports from a 2019 domestic violence incident. A girlfriend alleged that Hall engaged in angry, reckless driving when he misplaced his gambling money. The girlfriend claimed she was frightened by the behavior, which also saw Hall apparently break her phone when she attempted to record him. He also allegedly hung up his phone when she tried to call 911 on it.

Although the woman later backtracked some of her claims and Hall was never charged, audio recordings of the incident were later published by The Gateway Pundit. In the recording, Hall can be heard telling the woman to “shut up” multiple times, refusing to take her home, and admitting that his gambling is more important than her. The incident led to some Michigan lawmakers calling for Hall’s resignation, but he was later elected House speaker instead. 

A later report from Rolling Stone found that Hall’s gambling saw him place $73,000 in online sports bets in a single month. A spokesperson for Hall said the report was “blatantly untrue” but did not explain how or why.

Hall, who is frequently compared to President Donald Trump for his alleged quid pro quo governing style and open distaste of journalists, was also found to have sent multiple death threats to classmates while he was attending Western Michigan University in 2001. When the emails were first reported on in 2018, Hall said he was drunk when he sent them. He was disciplined by the school, and he has since learned from the incident, he said. 

As speaker, Hall praised a state representative that went on a racist rant on the House floor, and he ridiculed a hospital association CEO that expressed concerns over Medicaid cuts in his budget bill. In May, he called State Rep. Mai Xiong (D-Warren), an Asian American, a “very low IQ representative” after Xiong noted he canceled a House session so he could see Trump speak at an event.