Analysis
The story headline leads you to believe that it was about the DeVos bus tour that ended up in Grand Rapids on May 5. While the Press article does mention some of this, the bulk of the story is devoted to poll information and comments from “political consultants.” Readers here from Bill Ballinger, former GOP State Legislator who runs an online information source on state politics called Inside Michigan Politics. The Press also cites Graig Ruff who is with Public Sector Consultants, a Lansing based policy research group. Ruff used to work for the state government under Milliken’s administration. He is also the main political analyst/consultant for WZZM 13. There are a few comments from DeVos in this article, but the Press provides no verification of claims made by the candidate.
Article Text
GRAND RAPIDS — After five days, 1,700 miles and stops in 29 cities, Dick DeVos has the line down pat. “I know one thing: We’re going to get it done,” the GOP gubernatorial candidate told a cheering crowd of about 300 at the DeltaPlex in Walker Friday.
He uttered this moments after stepping off the “Get It Done” bus, his last stop in a tour calculated to put across one message above any other — Michigan is in trouble and he’s the guy to fix it.
He delivered a similar message earlier in stops at Stevensville, Muskegon, Holland and Kalamazoo.
DeVos told the DeltaPlex crowd he “had a blast” on the tour, flashing a smile that might be due in part to his dramatic climb in a race some said a few months ago he had no chance to win.
In a bit of carefully managed stagecraft, his entrance to the DeltaPlex aimed for the dramatic as well. Following a rendition of the national anthem, a spotlight hovered on a sliding door to the building, and as it retracted the bus rolled right up to the stage, allowing the candidate to step off.
Recent polls find Granholm and DeVos locked in a dead heat, a position one analyst expects will hold right to Election Day.
DeVos closed the poll numbers with the help of a series of TV ads that began airing in February, perhaps aided by a drumbeat of news about layoffs and plant closings. Granholm has yet to respond with ads of her own.
“When a state’s in trouble, the governor gets the blame,” said Craig Ruff of Public Sector Consultants in Lansing. Among other sobering news, he noted Michigan’s unemployment rate stands at 6.8 percent, second-highest in the nation.
“George Bush isn’t on the ballot, which makes it very difficult for Granholm to say, ‘Vote against the president.’ ”
Most troubling for Granholm, Ruff noted, might be a March poll by Marketing Resource Group in which 75 percent said Michigan is on “the wrong track.” He said it was the highest such number in the 22 years the Lansing firm has asked the question.
Lansing political analyst Bill Ballenger said those kinds of numbers often spell doom for an incumbent.
“How can it be good? If you are presiding over a state where the population is that depressed over their state’s status, you’ve got a tough road to hoe,” Ballenger said.
At this point in the race, Ballenger said, DeVos might be a slight favorite, adding he was a bit surprised to be making that prediction.
“If anyone would have told you last year that Dick DeVos would be tied with Jennifer Granholm at this point, you would have said, ‘What kind of blue cheese are you eating?’ ”
As DeVos tells voters he can turn Michigan around, Democrats continue to paint him as out-of-touch and captive of corporate special interests.
It was an attack line they used Thursday as chairman Mark Brewer called a news conference to accuse him of influencing tax policy for personal and corporate benefit.
At this point in the campaign, DeVos is setting tone as much as proposing detailed policy.
Throughout his tour, he cited statistics that have Michigan at or near the bottom of a variety of economic measures: personal income growth, unemployment and bankruptcies.
“If you like it the way it is, you should vote to re-elect the current leader,” DeVos told the rally.
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