Governor Candidate Rick Snyder @ Ramada Inn Thurs for Town Hall

[Dave]

For those of you that might be interested, Rick "One Tough Nerd" Snyder will be in town on Thursday.

Thursday, June 22
Ramada Inn
12pm to 1pm

[Dave]

If interested in attending, RSVP here:

https://www.rickformichigan.com/civicrm/event/register?id=195&r...

[Mary A.]

I hope someone goes to this and reports back here. I'm curious about this candidate.

[XLFD]

I've registered to go-- this happens to be a good time for me. He seems to have some reasonable ideas and priorities, as I reviewed Dave's link. I will try to get some photos and impressions of him that day.
I would like to see him ride his bicycle into town like a certain other guv candidate to make a statement.

[Dave]

I have Thursday off but might be headed toward Grand Rapids that day... wouldn't mind going to one of his events as well as events for the other candidates to hear what they have to say.

[XLFD]

I dropped by this event today. I've not been paying a lot of attention to the governor's race, because I considered myself fairly secure in the Hoekstra camp because he's from the area, he's been fairly solid as a congressman, and I love his symbolism (the bicycle).

But I was intrigued somewhat by what Rick Snyder represented. He is not a politician. That's a good thing. He has a vision of not just quick fixing what's wrong with Michigan, but 'reinventing' it. He claims to be a nerd. I went to the town hall meeting with a bit of skepticism.

I came out impressed. He was quick on his feet, but not slick on his feet. His introduction was pleasant and he (almost embarrassedly, it seemed) went through his personal history of academic achievement, business success, and vision for what he would do. He handled the questions admirably, coming off as an unapologetic tea party conservative.

Although he has a nerdy background, he doesn't come off as geeky as a Steve Forbes type-- just a self-deprecating normal guy with some fair ideas and a proven track record. My biggest hang up with Pete Hoekstra was his 20 years as a legislator in Washington-- leaving him little executive experience, isolating him from Michigan, and making him effectively a career politician. Snyder is an outsider with little political experience and a distrust of politicians. He has my vote now.

[Dave]

I haven't been closely following the governor's race so far.. been catching the commercials and stuff that are on TV. The thing I like most about Snyder is that he is not a politician coming into the race... he is a successful businessman. I'm pretty sure i'm not the only one that has had my fill of politicians for the time being. The politicians on both sides of the aisle have screwed up things pretty good and now is as good as any time to go a different direction with a different attitude.

[Mary A.]

I'm glad you were able to go, X. I've been interested in this man all along. He could certainly win the election as the dark horse candidate. He just needs to get himself out among the voters and get his message across. We have a very apathetic electorate in Michigan, so he has to work harder. I'm afraid I don't think highly of either Hoekstra or Cox.

[XLFD]

Rick has a pretty ambitious schedule of town hall style meetings coming up before the primary election, he had previously spoke at Pentwater that morning and had plans to speak more that day elsewhere. The LDN had a nice synopsis of this event in today's paper, and the link that Dave originally posted has the ten points he is focused on, and some of his white papers for policy geeks.

Compare and contrast with the other candidates you like. He is an intellectual, a businessman, and fiscally conservative, but best of all, as noted, he has no political mindset, and seems an honorable person. Help him out if you want to send a message to Lansing.

[Mary A.]

There's one other thing that piqued my interest in "the nerd" right away. I noticed that his TV ads focused on his experience and abilities, not on something negative about another candidate. This is not to say he won't be negative in the future, but I have a lot of respect for him so far. It could be that if he refuses to play dirty, he won't stand a chance in the primary. I wish for once that an individual who runs a clean campaign would be rewarded for doing so. I know that's idealistic, but I can hope for it in my lifetime. (Or maybe I've just always been attracted to nerds - LOL).

[Dave]

Your right Mary, it would be nice if someone that ran a basically clean campaign would end up getting rewarded for it. To this point I am leaning toward him in the primary but of course there is still time that I might change my mind.

[XLFD]

One of the questions at the town hall involved him making an appraisal of Pete Hoekstra, and he was very complimentary, but echoed my chief concerns about why Hoekstra may have some trouble at governing. The main question I have about Rick is whether he can work with the politicos in Lansing effectively; hope and a strong popular mandate would sure help.

[AQUAMAN]

First time I've heard of this candidate. From everything I read on his webpage, it looks like he is better qualified for this important duty for Michigan's future. I agree with Dave, another career politician for Michigan's next Governor would be a repeated mistake. One we can all ill afford at this critical time in our history. I wish him well in his endeavor and future.