Mike Cox running for governor

**kraig** · May-27-09, 10:22 AM

May 27, 2009

Attorney General Cox announces run for governor

By Dawson Bell
Free Press Lansing Bureau LANSING - Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox announced today he will run for governor in 2010.
Cox, who has been exploring a bid for the Republican nomination for months, made the announcement online early today. He joins a field of candidates which includes Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land, Ann Arbor businessman Rick Snyder, U.S. Rep. Peter Hoekstra and state Sen. Tom George.
Democrats exploring a run include Lt. Gov. John Cherry, state Sen. Alma Wheeler Smith and former state Rep. John Freeman.

I don't know about the rest of you, but, I don't want to see anyone with ties to McNamara getting elected to anything else.

**Johnlodge** · May-27-09, 10:23 AM

His announcement to campaign for governor is just urban legend.

gravitymachine · May-27-09, 10:25 AM

john cherry vs. mike cox, what an abyssmal prospect that would be for this election. did all the good politicians leave the state with everyone else?

**kraig** · May-27-09, 10:34 AM

Originally Posted by gravitymachine

john cherry vs. mike cox, what an abyssmal prospect that would be for this election. did all the good politicians leave the state with everyone else?

Once Dennis Archer decided not to run I figured all the democrats would have is John Cherry. Once L. Brooks Patterson decided not to run, I figured the republicans would run Mike Cox.

Too bad, I thought Archer and Patterson were the best choices for their respective parties. Even though I'm not a fan of L. Brooks' politics, I can admit that, similar to Engler, he does have very good administrative skills. As far as Archer, even some of his staunchest critics can appreciate just how good he was for the City of Detroit.

**detourdetroit** · May-27-09, 10:38 AM

as much as i can't believe i am typing this, what about starting a grassroots campaign to get brooksie to run for governor?

**kraig** · May-27-09, 10:43 AM

Originally Posted by detourdetroit

as much as i can't believe i am typing this, what about starting a grassroots campaign to get brooksie to run for governor?

I don't like his administrative skills that much. LOL. I can get with that on Archer, though.

I wonder if Kym Worthy is going to run for AG?

**Novine** · May-27-09, 11:24 AM

Cox lied to his wife and was breaking the law while he did it. His unwillingness to give up his political office tells you everything you need to know about Cox.

**Hypestyles** · May-27-09, 01:53 PM

curious... I wonder how many public appearances/debates will be held in detroit?
how much, if any, detroit-bashing have any of the candidates done.. what, if any, detroit-uplifting have any of the candidates done..

**Danny** · May-27-09, 02:00 PM

Cox is going to LOSE! Michigan has no room for conservatives.

Stosh · May-27-09, 02:01 PM

Cox will be lucky to get past the primary for the Rebublicans. The character card will be played by his competitors as well as the "party" alleged coverup. Terri Lynn Land, I think, will be his strongest competition. She's a native of the West side of the State, and reasonably competent, at least that's how it appears anyway.

The Dems, so far, don't impress me much. Cherry has done nothing as far as I can see. They need someone else to run with some name recognition, or they might be toast in November.

**R8RBOB** · May-27-09, 04:13 PM

Can we stop the madness of attorney generals running for governor? Michigan already experience one attorney general who was not governor material now we got another one attempting to do the same thing.

**Crumbled_pavement** · May-27-09, 04:36 PM

Originally Posted by Stosh

The Dems, so far, don't impress me much. Cherry has done nothing as far as I can see. They need someone else to run with some name recognition, or they might be toast in November.

Trust, Michigan's economy is far down in the shitter under Democratic leadership. Blame the Dems or not, but they don't stand a chance. Our next governor will definitely be a Republican.

**gnome** · May-27-09, 05:26 PM

There is a loyality gene that is missing with Mr. Cocks. There is the "affair thing". But there is also the little thing of signing on as John McCain's state chairman, then dropping out when Huckaby was showing strength ... too bad Cocks had to beg to get back on the McCain bandwagon, then fought for control, splintering what Michigan support McCain did have.

When Michigan was too fractured, McCain pulled out thereby giving the State's republicans no one to gather around. In 2008 the Repubs suffered their worse collective loss since '74.

Cocks has one friend in the world, and it ain't you, ain't me...

Ms. Land is competent, innovative but milky-toasty, give me McCotter. He's one of the few Repubs that has defended us in Congress, can give a stemwinder and knows how the legislative process works.

**gazhekwe** · May-27-09, 05:34 PM

What are the chances of Dick Posthumus running again? He was the longest serving Senate Majority leader in the state, and ran against Granholm in 2002. She narrowly defeated him. I rather liked him in the Senate, he had a good way of listening and finding even-handed pragmatic solutions to knotty problems.

**dtowncitylover** · May-27-09, 06:52 PM

I am willing to vote for a Republican, but not for Cox. I hear he is a jackath. I would not for Cherry, either. He would continue what Granholm has done: not much [[IMO). I hope there will be others. I wonder who the 3rd party candidates are going to be...

**Detroitej72** · May-27-09, 07:00 PM

Originally Posted by gazhekwe

What are the chances of Dick Posthumus running again? He was the longest serving Senate Majority leader in the state, and ran against Granholm in 2002. She narrowly defeated him. I rather liked him in the Senate, he had a good way of listening and finding even-handed pragmatic solutions to knotty problems.

Yes, but the only thing we learned about him while he was running is that he was a lifelong Michigander! He never gave any clue what he would have done for the state.

As far as a Republican running the state next, thats probably true, even though it would have fared pretty much as it is now had there been a Republican in the governor's mansion the last 8 years. Unfortunately, Michigan is tied too much to the auto industry.

**JDKeepsmiling** · May-27-09, 07:02 PM

I could be all about a write in campaign to get Roger Penske to run for Governor. That would be leadership I could live with.

**irish_mafia** · May-27-09, 09:51 PM

detourdetroit
"as much as i can't believe i am typing this, what about starting a grassroots campaign to get brooksie to run for governor?"

Detour, I don't see it happening..and I am a big fan of Brooks. That said, I'll sign it!

MIRepublic · May-28-09, 12:36 AM

Cox is a total prig; I can think of very few people who I have a more viscerally negative reaction to just upon seeing or hearing them.

Cherry is widely respected in the political establishment and gets a lot of praise even from establishment Republicans, I hear. He has also supposedly been Granholm's hatchet man all of these years, working behind the scenes to pressure the legislature on things they wanted. That said, in the charisma department, there is no way you can follow up someone like Granholm with someone like Cherry and expect to win, that's not even to mention that he's going to be blamed for everything Granholm did and didn't do. Oh, an lieutenant governors don't ever win the governership, at least not in modern Michigan history.

One thing I will say is that given the dreadful choices coming up, as long as both the state Dems and GOP can keep the governorship out of the hands of the bat-shit crazy religious conservatives of West Michigan, I'll gladly cut my loses. It's why I'm rooting for the defeat of Hoekstra and Land. I'd really rather have even Cox or Patterson before I had either of the other two.

I was really hoping that Archer would have ran. IMO, he was the Dems only real hope at retaining the governor's office. They will surely lose, now. A recent poll released yesterday showed Hoekstra and Stabenow [[who's not even running) leading their respective parties in a gubernatorial preference poll. Stabenow got something like 50% in the Dem field, and Cherry got something ridiculously low like 12% and that's who the Dems are going to be putting up, next year? Yeah, the Michigan Dems are doomed unless someone exciting comes out of the shadows, and I can't imagine who that'd be.

**deweygal** · May-28-09, 01:25 AM

Originally Posted by Johnlodge

His announcement to campaign for governor is just urban legend.

omg I was thinking about that! I wonder if he can fully explain how competent he really is for the job when he states that party was an urban legend even though every other week there are new witnesses coming out the wood work. Plus I have heard that kilpatrick and cox have had other dealings in the past. Cox will always be a slime ball in my opinion, he looks like one too with his slicked backed hair!

**reddog289** · May-28-09, 01:47 AM

Good thing I have 15 min left on the computer. I say get rid of elections, Chose the next Govenor by way of Cowboy Poker.

**ThaFuzz** · May-28-09, 08:25 AM

Originally Posted by Detroitej72

As far as a Republican running the state next, thats probably true, even though it would have fared pretty much as it is now had there been a Republican in the governor's mansion the last 8 years. Unfortunately, Michigan is tied too much to the auto industry.

I disagree. The state legislature, until 2006, was under a Republican majority control. If Posthumous or DeVos had been elected, we would have seen the same nonsense we suffered under the Bush administration when the Republicans controlled both houses of Congress.

That's the most disappointing aspect of Granholm's tenure - she was saddled with a petulant, knee-jerk, obstructionist, Republican-controlled legislature for her first term, and she pretty much let them walk all over her. Yet as bad as that has been, what would have happened under a Posthumous or DeVos administration would have been far worse.

**ThaFuzz** · May-28-09, 08:31 AM

Originally Posted by MIRepublic

One thing I will say is that given the dreadful choices coming up, as long as both the state Dems and GOP can keep the governorship out of the hands of the bat-shit crazy religious conservatives of West Michigan, I'll gladly cut my loses. It's why I'm rooting for the defeat of Hoekstra and Land. I'd really rather have even Cox or Patterson before I had either of the other two.

I was really hoping that Archer would have ran. IMO, he was the Dems only real hope at retaining the governor's office. They will surely lose, now. A recent poll released yesterday showed Hoekstra and Stabenow [[who's not even running) leading their respective parties in a gubernatorial preference poll. Stabenow got something like 50% in the Dem field, and Cherry got something ridiculously low like 12% and that's who the Dems are going to be putting up, next year? Yeah, the Michigan Dems are doomed unless someone exciting comes out of the shadows, and I can't imagine who that'd be.

Re: Terri Lynn Land. A religious wacko - ugh, really? And here I was, thinking she was a half-way decent Republican. Then again, I thought the same thing of Candice Miller, and we all know how that turned out.

For argument's sake, let's say that Debbie Stabenow ran for and was elected governor. Does Michigan law allow her to appoint her Senate replacement under those circumstances?

**kraig** · May-28-09, 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by ThaFuzz

I disagree. The state legislature, until 2006, was under a Republican majority control. If Posthumous or DeVos had been elected, we would have seen the same nonsense we suffered under the Bush administration when the Republicans controlled both houses of Congress.

That's the most disappointing aspect of Granholm's tenure - she was saddled with a petulant, knee-jerk, obstructionist, Republican-controlled legislature for her first term, and she pretty much let them walk all over her. Yet as bad as that has been, what would have happened under a Posthumous or DeVos administration would have been far worse.

The most disappointing aspect of Granholm's tenure was Granholm herself. She ran her administration by the McNamara playbook, friends and family plan. She's given a number of former state reps appointments so that they can continue to feed at the public trough. She's the one that's appointed pulpit pimps like Swendell Anthony and Art Blackwell, not the republicans.

**mjs** · May-28-09, 08:58 AM

Originally Posted by ThaFuzz

For argument's sake, let's say that Debbie Stabenow ran for and was elected governor. Does Michigan law allow her to appoint her Senate replacement under those circumstances?

Yes. http://www.legislature.mi.gov/[[S[[n3u...me=mcl-168-105

However, if she wished to avoid it, she could resign from office before noon on January 1st which would allow her predecessor to choose her replacement. http://www.legislature.mi.gov/[[S[[n3u...ame=mcl-168-63 . http://www.legislature.mi.gov/[[S[[n3u...me=mcl-168-104