Bernero and Cox gubernatorial campaigns descend on Ann Arbor Art Fairs
Kelly Bernero, a recent University of Michigan graduate and daughter of Michigan governor hopeful Virg Bernero, campaigns for her father during the Ann Arbor Art Fairs.
Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com
The Ann Arbor Art Fairs turned into political stumping grounds today as two Michigan gubernatorial campaigns descended upon the art-filled streets of downtown Ann Arbor.
At one end of East Liberty Street, Attorney General Mike Cox, a Republican contender in the Aug. 3 primary, moved through the crowd of fairgoers, shaking hands and talking about his plan to cut taxes and reduce the size of state government.
Attorney General Mike Cox talks with Bob Lazebnik of Jackson at the Ann Arbor Art Fairs during a campaign stop today.
Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com
"Most of these folks are from outside Ann Arbor. They're from all across Michigan, so it's a good microcosm of the voters here in Michigan," Cox explained of his reasons for campaigning in such a heavily Democratic town.
Further down Liberty Street, Kelly Bernero passed out campaign literature for her father, Democrat Virg Bernero, describing him to fairgoers as the fighter for working families that Michigan needs.
"Our message today is that it's a grassroots effort and that it depends on people telling their friends and their family that Virg has the right message for Michigan," Kelly Bernero said. "Michigan needs a fighter like Virg Bernero in the governor's office who knows how to create and maintain jobs and defend working families. The more people who hear this message, the more our numbers are going to shoot up."
A new poll shows Bernero has surged past House Speaker Andy Dillon, his primary opponent, to take a 14-point lead — 35.6 percent to 21.8 percent — but with more than 40 percent undecided. That compares with Dillon's double-digit leads in other recent polls.
Despite obvious political differences, Cox and Kelly Bernero share some common ground: They're both University of Michigan graduates, and they both love Ann Arbor.
"I hated leaving here when I graduated from the U of M," said Cox, who finished his undergraduate degree here in 1986 and law degree in '89.
"I've been coming for years," he added about the Art Fairs. "I love it. This year I'm working it. Most other years I'm walking it, enjoying it and spending some money."
Kelly Bernero, 22, was joined by her younger sister, Virginia, and a friend as they knocked on 55 doors before heading down to the Art Fairs. She said there are big differences between Dillon and Bernero, and that's the message they pitched to voters.
"Most people who are voting in the primary, they haven't heard much about either candidate actually," Kelly Bernero said. "I was at the doors for an hour straight. Between the three of us, we talked to 55 voters. Once we said a few things about my dad, they were like, 'Oh, he's the only pro-stem cell research candidate? Oh, he's the only pro-choice candidate? Oh, he fought for the unions and he's for working families? OK, yeah, can I have a yard sign?' Even on the Democratic side, there are big differences."
Kelly Bernero talks with a voter about her father's candidacy during the Ann Arbor Art Fairs.
Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com
Polls show Cox and U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra are battling it out for the lead in the five-way Republican primary. Other candidates running include Ann Arbor venture capitalist Rick Snyder, Sen. Tom George of Kalamazoo and Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard.
"I'm talking about reducing the size of government, cutting the business tax and income tax and talking about the reasons why I've been endorsed by so many major Republican players," Cox said of the message he shared today.
"Quite simply, I've talked the talk and walked the walk," he said. "I've actually reduced the size of our department. We're 20 percent smaller than we were when I began, and at the same time, we're doing more than ever before. And if people look at what I'm doing, whether it's ObamaCare or Arizona, I'm the only one who will absolutely say no to taxes. None of my other opponents will say that."
Cutting taxes, Cox believes, will put Michigan on the path to recovery.
"We have to take the price tag off us that says we're the third worst place to start a business or to create a job in the country," he said. "Under my plan, next year I cut the Michigan Business Tax in half. If we cut it in half, we'll move from the third worst to the seventh best place in the country to create a job, to start a business. So that's really the starting point, and everything else falls from there."
Kelly Bernero has been in South Africa for the past year studying abroad at the University of Cape Town, where she did some volunteer teaching and interned at an online historical society. Fresh from graduating from U-M with degrees in history and political science, she now is volunteering full-time on her father's gubernatorial campaign.
"I flew back from South Africa three weeks early just to do this," she said. "So I really dove headfirst into the campaign, and I'm working on it from the first minute I wake up until sometimes 2 a.m."
Kelly Bernero came to Ann Arbor four years ago to study at U-M. She was one of Hillary Clinton's main campus organizers during the 2008 presidential primary and has been politically active since. In addition to her most recent experience in South Africa, she also has traveled abroad through U-M to study in Vietnam.
Virg Bernero, a former state lawmaker and current mayor of Lansing, has earned a reputation in recent years as a fierce fighter for the middle class. He made national news when he lobbied Washington, D.C., for federal bridge loans for U.S. automakers.
"The Energizer Bunny you see and the guy who talks a mile a minute is the same on camera as off camera," Kelly Bernero says. "My dad is just a really passionate and energetic guy in all aspects of his life, whether it's supporting me when I played soccer or when I was a cheerleader here at Michigan. He'd come and be supportive of me, and my sister when she played softball."
But there is a lighter side to Virg Bernero, his daughter says.
"He's a funny guy. He's goofy," she says. "You should see him do the Cupid Shuffle. I think he's done it at a few of the retirement centers in Detroit and he just thinks he's the world's greatest Cupid Shuffle dancer, but you would really have to see it to believe it. I'm trying to post a YouTube video, so look out for that."
Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529.
Comments
Marshall Applewhite
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 9:38 p.m.
@speechless I have a sneaking suspicion that whoever wins the Democrat nomination will largely become a sacrificial lamb in the general election. Luckily, the odds are in favor of me staying here. I appreciate the kind words, though.
Speechless
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 8:08 p.m.
Marshall Applewhite: "... If this state is ignorant enough to elect Virg Bernero, it will definitely be time to move elsewhere." I'm pulling the lever for Bernero, given that he's likely to do the right things more often than the other politicians in the race, especially in response to public pressure and grassroots activism (per my comment above). So, should Virg get elected, here's an advance goodbye, Marshall. Enjoy your future in Heaven's Gate, and hopefully one day soon you'll get beamed up to the holy Mothership!  (Maybe when George Clinton beams down for one of his stage appearances, you can take his place on the return flight and thereby bring your funky politics to Parliament.)
Jeremy
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 8:07 p.m.
Bernero kept his city's budget balanced the entire time he has been in office. I want that fiscal responsibility in the Governor's office. Furthermore, he's the only pro-choice, only pro-stem cell research candidate in the entire race. He's got my vote.
Speechless
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 7:48 p.m.
"... I always vote for the politician whose abject dishonesty I find least offensive. At the ripe old age of 58 I've long since given up hope that I can upgrade my standard." Looking back on history, politicians will most often do the right things consistently only when prodded by large, vibrant social movements comprised of many dedicated, mainly anonymous "little" people. Even then, numerous conservative politicians will continue to tenaciously resist. During eras when widely popular grassroots movements don't exist (both the 2008 Obama activism and the tea parties are historically small groups), a passive faith in elected politicians is only occasionally rewarded. The public hasn't been able to bring sufficient pressure to bear through voting alone, as monied interests respond by using influence, lobbying, and raw power to undercut and isolate officials who try to act on good intentions. The federal civil rights reforms between 1954-65 did not happen without on-the-ground advocacy from the 1930s through early '60s. The progressive era reforms, including women's suffrage, anti-trust legislation and the ending of child labor, required decades of determined activism far more than they did the signatures of Grover Cleveland, Theodore Roosevelt or Woodrow Wilson. Without a half-century of behind-the-scenes abolition work, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation may never have been written. More recently, a fear of reviving Vietnam-era mass organizing limited the hand of the Reagan administration in advancing its war interests in 1980s Central America. As social philosopher and Progressive-era organizer Jane Addams once remarked, "Action indeed is the sole medium of expression for ethics."
jameslucas
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 6:37 p.m.
Inside TheHall, sorry to disappoint you and Kelly but unemployment in Lansing has stayed about the same since Pops has been mayor, going from 10.8% to 10.5%.
jameslucas
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 6:18 p.m.
Lansing unemployment rate
jameslucas
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 3:42 p.m.
johnnya2, Dont confuse our beliefs with your facts.
unrulyfan
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 2:47 p.m.
@johnnya2 Its also interesting that New York as 49th (right behind New Jersey) as the overall worst business tax climate. Pretty sure Wall Street does okay in such a hostile climate.
Marshall Applewhite
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 2:33 p.m.
If this state is ignorant enough to elect Virg Bernero, it will definitely be time to move elsewhere.
Judy
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 2:27 p.m.
I have also given up but I am 70. That being said I must vote against any candidate who would deny a womans RIGHT TO CHOOSE. The candidate I will vote for is Virg Bernero. Being a freethinker and supporter of the consitution, and separation of church and state, it would be impossible for me to vote for anyone who cannot separation religious dogma from politics. Also like to point out that Mike Cox has a lot of baggage including his affair and the rumors surrounding the Manoogian party.
cmf_a2
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 9:12 a.m.
It is a challenge to get away from politics -- TV, news, and now art fairs. I am concerned about the candidates for our State as well as local representation in Ann Arbor. There is not one local rep from either party that I feel comfortable supporting for the August primary. Craig Lounsbury I am with you - the hope is dwindling for me too.
Craig Lounsbury
Sun, Jul 25, 2010 : 7:34 a.m.
I always vote for the politician whose abject dishonesty I find least offensive. At the ripe old age of 58 I've long since given up hope that I can upgrade my standard.
InsideTheHall
Sat, Jul 24, 2010 : 7:16 p.m.
Can't disagree Johnny, slim pickings on the DEM side. I'll probably end up in the Hoekstra camp.
johnnya2
Sat, Jul 24, 2010 : 6:33 p.m.
I wonder where Mike Cox pulls his data about Michigan being the third worst to start a business based on tax policy. Here is what the tax foundation has to say about this lie: http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/25229.html By the way, numbers 1-3 and 7 live off oil and natural resources money. Something that no matter how you change the Michigan tax structure, will never be readily available for financing the Michigan economy. These states do great when energy prices sky rocket. Number 4 and 5 are built on tourism. All the tax revenues come from their sales tax.
johnnya2
Sat, Jul 24, 2010 : 6:21 p.m.
Inside the Hall, The unemployment rate would be directly associated with the worst speaker in history, who now wants to be governor. Andy Dillon is a hack loser who changes positions like the wind. I also find it interesting how many people insulted the A2 City council for making a resolution about AZ, but Mike Cox comments on AZ and ObamaCare which is the LAW of the land. As AG, he is REQUIRED to follow the law. It is not open for him to say yes or no to.
frozenhotchocolate
Sat, Jul 24, 2010 : 5:41 p.m.
Finally Mike Cox makes an appearence. Then again most people at the art fair are not from Ann Arbor. But that's ok, Michigan is larger than one city, he needs to spread his appearences around.
InsideTheHall
Sat, Jul 24, 2010 : 5:35 p.m.
Kelly, sorry to disappoint you but unemployment has doubled in Lansing since Pops has been in office.