Governor hopefuls make Berrien pitch
From the Herald-Palladium
NILES - State Republicans sense this is the year the party can reclaim the governor's office.
But choosing who will get the party's nomination appears the bigger challenge.
Two of those seeking the nod came to Niles over the weekend to make pitches at the Berrien County Republican Party's annual Lincoln Day Dinner.
State Sen. Tom George of Kalamazoo and U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra of Holland made presentations to the 165 people gathered at the Niles Elks Lodge. Secretary of State Terry Lynn Land, running for lieutenant governor with gubernatorial hopeful Mike Bouchard, also spoke at Saturday night's dinner. Bouchard is Oakland County sheriff.
Ann Arbor venture capitalist Rick Snyder and Attorney General Mike Cox are also seeking the GOP nomination for governor in the Aug. 3 primary.
The economy and state finances were the prime issues Saturday night in Niles.
Hoekstra joked that his Dutch heritage is a plus.
The Dutch "can make a penny squeal," the Holland resident said.
He said his emphasis will be on reducing regulations to keep businesses from being handcuffed, which will keep jobs in Michigan.
"The state can't do well if people aren't doing well," he said. "The state's answer has been 'no' when companies want to expand, so we're losing our jobs and our skilled labor."
He said he wants to reduce the budget by up to $4 billion and get rid of the Michigan business tax. He said he would like to see true tax reform with a consumption tax rather than an income tax.
George touted his experience as a state senator and practicing physician.
"There are good candidates running, but I am the only one currently serving in the Legislature and the only one with a private job," he said.
He said his three main issues are changing state health programs to emphasize personal responsibility, restructuring the government and fixing Michigan's image in the rest of the country.
"We've lost one million jobs in the state. We need to bring those jobs back, and we need to reduce taxes," he said. "The answer is not one thing but a series of steps."
George said spending money doesn't fix health care or other problems. On restructuring the government, he said he favored a part-time Legislature and retooling the state Constitution to make structural changes in government. He said a part-time legislature would cost less than half the current one.
Land spoke about her experience cutting costs as secretary of state and said she and Bouchard would do that through the rest of the state government.
Also on hand were state Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, running for attorney general, and secretary of state candidates state Sen. Cameron Brown and Calhoun County Clerk Anne Norlander.
Bishop is from Rochester; Brown is from Sturgis.
Bishop described himself as a "stand-up conservative leader." Norlander was register of deeds before she became county clerk.
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Posted: 3/15/2010