The pro-Snyder advocacy group Value for Michigan will counter Capitol protests with a month-long ad campaign that begins Monday with a round of cable TV ads designed to promote passage of Gov. Rick Snyder’s tax and budget proposal.
Political strategist John Yob today unveiled the second of two ads produced by the group, this one featuring five students who say the general plan that replaces the Michigan Business Tax with a new 6 percent income tax on profits would improve their economic prospects and keep them in the state after graduation.
The group Value for Michigan is located in Grand Rapids. Too bad their "values" include trying to emotionally manipulate people to think that our problem stems from teachers that are just being greedy.
“Why are teachers protesting?” the students ask. “At least they have jobs. They don’t need more more money. Our state needs more jobs.”
No mention of the deep cuts to education that brought on the protests, of course. Cuts that will leave some school districts close to bankruptcy. Cuts that are going to eliminate extracurricular activities like music and sports. Cuts that are going to slash jobs in schools, just so Republicans can put money in the pockets of business owners, who have admitted that they probably won't be using the money to create new jobs anyway.
The MEA has made noise about a strike. While I personally think that would be a bad idea, I can't say as I blame them for thinking in that direction - especially if they are going to get attacked in this misleading and demeaning way over the airwaves. And it wasn't just teachers protesting - the other unions, seniors, K-12 kids, and college students themselves have been there as well. To single out teachers is being intentionally deceptive - and only serves to divide the public against each other.
Governor Snyder is proving himself to be no different in policy than the brash Walker, or Kasich, or Scott, or any of the other Republican governors that are using "disaster capitalism" as an excuse to give the rich more tax cuts. He just makes other people do his dirty work - which makes him a coward too, I guess. Maybe that's why his approval numbers are plummeting rapidly.
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has quickly fallen out of favor with the citizens who elected him, reaching levels of unpopularity lower than first term Republican governors in neighboring states and almost as low as the end-of-term numbers reached by his Democratic predecessor, according to a new poll.
The poll by Public Policy Polling found 50% of Michiganders disapprove of Snyder’s job performance, compared to 33% who approve, and would prefer to have elected Snyder’s opponent last fall, Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero, by a 47%-45% margin.
(Edit to add: If we are going to bring up Granholm, Mr. Bell, her "job performance on the budget was rated 'positive' by 69 percent of the 600 respondents" in a March 2003 EPIC poll. That comes from George Weeks at the Detroit News. Probably a better comparison than the end-of-term numbers, wouldn't you think?)
Big time buyer's remorse here in Michigan - and according to PPP, he has fallen farther and faster than Kasich and Walker. Can't imagine this ad will make it any better.
I should feel some more vindication here, but I don't. I feel sad. I don't want this to be happening. We can't afford to waste all this time and talent on fighting and divisiveness and bad policy that is going to hurt our state and its people. And 2014 seems so far away...