In Case You Missed It

"Gubernatorial Candidate Rick Snyder Tells Ann Arbor Crowd Michigan Needs A Nerd" - AnnArbor.com

By Ryan J. Stanton
March 26, 2010

Ann Arbor businessman Rick Snyder said other kids — and even parents — laughed at him when they heard about his educational plan as a teenager. 

What did he do about it? 

"I started in community college," he said. "Then I came up to the university here and I got my bachelor's when I was 19, my MBA when I was 20, my law degree when I was 23, and I was an adjunct assistant professor of accounting in Michigan's MBA program when I was 24. Now if that's not a nerd, I don't know how you define that." 

just as he appealed to voters in a Super Bowl ad last month, the former president of Gateway Computers played the "nerd" card Thursday evening as he asked an Ann Arbor crowd to support him in his bid for Michigan governor. 

Making his fourth town hall appearance in recent weeks, Snyder shared his 10-point plan to reinvent Michigan with a standing-room-only audience of more than 200 people who turned out for the free event at Cobblestone Farm in Ann Arbor. 

"Our government is broken. Bureaucracy needs to go," Snyder said, getting a round of applause. "The role of government should be to treat you the citizens as the customer - look at life through your eyes and say, 'How do we help you be more successful and how do we get out of your way?'" 

…

 "We are at a defining moment in Michigan's history. We are at an all-time low point," Snyder said. "Sometimes people want to argue and bring up the Depression. We had 47 other states with us on that one, folks. We're on this one on our own. And unfortunately, if we don't change, we're still going downhill." 

Snyder, a virtual unknown in Michigan's political circles before last summer, is now tied for first place in the Republican primary race with U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra and Attorney General Mike Cox, according to a recent poll. At Thursday's forum, he billed himself as the alternative to "career politicians." 

"If you believe our government works right today, if you like how our political system operates, I'll tell you flat out you should vote for one of those people," he said. "If you believe our government system is broken, our political system is broken, I am running to provide us that alternative." 

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Snyder said Michigan has seen a fundamental lack of leadership that has led to the shutdown of state government in two of the last three years. He said state officials haven't structurally balanced a budget in seven or eight years, only appearing to do so by using accounting gimmicks, federal dollars and rainy day funds. 

He hammered on the first point in his plan to reinvent Michigan, which includes creating more and better jobs. He said it's not the role of government to create jobs but to create an environment where free enterprise works and jobs flourish. 

He said he wants to eliminate the Michigan Business Tax entirely and replace it with a flat corporate income tax of 6 percent, amounting to a $1.5 billion tax reduction on Michigan businesses. 

"People are getting angry about government," Snyder said. "And if you look at what's the underlying driver of that, largely my belief is there's a perception that when you write a tax check or you send in your money, you think you might as well be dropping it in the fireplace." 

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To read the entire article, click here.

Upcoming Macomb Town Hall Event

The Rick For Michigan Campaign will continue its statewide tour with its next stop in Macomb County on Wednesday, March 31 from 6:30PM - 8:00PM at the following location:

Best Western Sterling Inn
34911 Van Dyke Avenue at 15 Mile Road
Sterling Heights, MI 48312

The format of the town hall will follow those of the past events, with Rick presenting his vision for Reinventing Michigan and taking questions directly from those in attendance. The event, open to the media and the public, is free to attend and participants are asked to register online at www.rickformichigan.com.

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