G4G Talking points for 10-3-

[SharonRB]

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3 (35 Days until Victory 2006)

DEBATE RECAP: Governor Granholm showed that she is a leader who fights for Michigan citizens every day. She has a plan to turn around Michigan’s economy, and no one will work harder to bring jobs here than Jennifer Granholm. While there’s more work to be done, her plan is already starting to pay off. At the same time she fights for jobs, she is fighting to protect our families’ pocketbooks and safety.
The stakes of this debate were very high for Dick DeVos, and he was “disappointing.” Dick DeVos wouldn’t give straight answers to Governor Granholm’s questions. He refused to admit he lobbied for unfair trade agreements. He won’t tell us what companies he owns. He won’t disclose his tax returns - unlike every modern day candidate for Governor. He won’t take stances on the issues. Michigan can’t trust him. DeVos knows that if Michigan learned the truth about him they wouldn’t like what they saw – an extreme candidate that helped himself at the expense of Michigan families.
The Governor said it best: “Dick DeVos’ gain causes Michigan’s pain.” DeVos made millions off the unfair foreign trade agreements that he lobbied for -- the same agreements that are sending thousands of Michigan jobs overseas. DeVos is trying to tell people he’s a Michigan jobs maker -- but the truth is he cut jobs in Michigan and created them in China. Not even a soap salesman like DeVos can convince Michigan that’s good for our state.
Dick DeVos attacked the Governor because he is desperate to improve his poll numbers. Governor Granholm has spent her whole career fighting to protect our families. And his baseless attempts to question the Governor’s truthfulness are ridiculous. DeVos is trying to divert attention away from his own record of eliminating jobs in Michigan and creating jobs in China. It’s DeVos whose ads are untruthful – his latest ad claims that Governor Granholm didn’t meet with Honda in Japan. The fact is she did. You can see pictures of her meeting with executives at this link... http://www.granholmforgov.com/site/PhotoAlbumUser?AlbumID=8169&view=UserAlbum


The Republicans are trying to spin DeVos’ performance by email blasting the online polls – please take a moment to read the Detroit Free Press editorial below, vote in these polls and then forward this to your contacts:
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage
http://www.wjr.com/
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/myfox/
http://www.wilx.com/
http://info.detnews.com/feedback/lettersindex.cfm


Detroit Free Press Editorial: Advantage: Granholm – Governor won debate with specifics
Political debates usually find challengers on the attack and incumbents playing defense. But Gov. Jennifer Granholm reversed roles on Dick DeVos in their first debate Monday night, keeping her Republican opponent on the defensive for much of their hour together… Granholm again challenged DeVos to disclose his income tax returns -- as she has -- and noted that a summary DeVos has released of his finances did not mention a $200-million investment in a nursing home chain that was troubled by allegations of patient abuse. "He didn't include that in his 'comprehensive' disclosure," Granholm said. "Obviously, he didn't want us to know. ... Are there other things he doesn't want us to know about? ... $200 million, I think that's a big investment, even for you." DeVos said he was only a small investor in the chain and had no management responsibility. "It was just a tragic situation," he said. "Turned out to be a bad investment as well." The governor also accused DeVos of making false statements about her in one of his ads -- he charged her with the same -- but neither said they'd change any commercials. And Granholm also said DeVos lobbied for foreign trade policies that have been harmful to Michigan's manufacturing-based economy. Granholm said that when DeVos was running Grand Rapids-based Amway, the company was "sort of the poster child for how to manipulate the levers of government." DeVos has recently called for much tighter restrictions on the activities of lobbyists in Michigan.
Click here to read the full article...http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061003/OPINION01/610030467/1068/OPINION