Michigan Democratic Party chair visits Ironwood

By RICHARD JENKINS

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Ironwood — Brandon Dillon, the chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party, visited Ironwood Tuesday to talk to party supporters.

“We’re doing our annual winter tour of the U.P., trying to talk to as many Democrats as possible to find out what’s going on, to find out what issues are on people’s minds and making sure the party is listening,” Dillon told the Daily Globe. “Often times ... we don’t pay enough attention to the concerns of local county parties and local issues and this is a chance to let people give their input and make sure we have a message that resonates up here when it’s campaign time.”

Dillon — who previously represented the Grand Rapids area in the state house — sat down with the Daily Globe prior to a meeting with the county democratic organization, discussing a range of issues including the presidential race and why he thinks the Democrat’s platform resonates with voters.

He said as he travelled the U.P. he has found people are concerned with jobs and keeping young people in the area, as well as a frustration about the system being skewed in favor of the rich and powerful.

“A lot of the issues we hear in the U.P. are not that different than the issues you hear broadly across the state,” Dillon said.

1st Congressional Seat

Dillon said the Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula would likely be in the national spotlight this election cycle as both parties compete to replace Republican Dan Benishek representing the 1st Congressional District. The district, stretching from near Ludington to Ironwood, is the geographically largest district east of the Mississippi.

“Obviously that first congressional is going to be a top priority, not just for the Michigan Democratic Party but for the national Democrats,” Dillon said. “It’s one of the top five races in the country. I think it’s going to take a lot of money to win.”

On the Democratic side, former party chairman Lon Johnson is facing off against Jerry Cannon, a retired Kalkaska County sheriff.

Johnson is expected to announce record-breaking fundraising numbers in the next day or so, according to Dillon. While the party remains neutral until after the primary, Dillon said the money gives Johnson a definite boost.

“Right now — given the fundraising advantage Lon has — I think it’s hard to imagine that he’s not going to be the Democratic candidate.”

Democratic leaders expect a lot of outside money to enter the race, calling it a “50-50 seat” as it swings between favoring Republicans and Democrats.

“You will see an influx in outside spending on this race that has never been seen before,” Dillon said.

This prediction was seconded by Democratic Senior Field Organizer G.T. Long, who is accompanying Dillon on the trip.

Long said the Republican race — which consists of State Sen. Tom Casperson and former state legislator Jason Allen, of Traverse City — will also feature heavy spending.

“The Republican primary alone will set records,” Long told the Daily Globe. “I mean Allen versus Casperson will be a blood bath, it will set a record. I mean they are both going to spend unbelievable amounts of money.”

With 60 percent of the district’s voters coming from below the Bridge and Allen’s connections as a former state senator and with a wife who is connected to the Republican establishment, Dillon is leaning toward an Allen victory.

“It’s going to be a very tough fight. My sense is that Jason Allen is going to win that primary, that he is going to beat Casperson, just because of the money, the voting base down there and the fact that he is going to run hard at Casperson from the right.”

Long said the fact that Grand Traverse County is both Allen’s home county and the largest Republican county in the district can’t be discounted either.

Dillon also noted that the person nominated at the top of the ticket will also play a role on the race to represent the district.

“In districts that are 50-50, I think (the apparent nomination of Donald Trump or Sen. Ted Cruz as the Republican presidential candidates) is going to be a severe disadvantage for whoever the Republican is, it’s just going to be a drag on the ticket,” Dillon said.

Dillon also argued he feels the party’s message gives it an edge in the race.

“The Democratic message is going to be pretty consistent at the congressional level,” Dillon said. “It’s going to be about jobs, it’s going to be about making sure average folks have an actual chance to compete and get heard, education, the environment and who can best appeal to those issues. ... I think we’re going to have the wind at our backs this year, as opposed the last few cycles where we’ve been facing some pretty strong headwinds.”

While they may feel the numbers lean in their favor in the race, Democratic leaders agree the race will be one to remember.

“You’ve never seen a race like this,” Long said. “Not since (Bart) Stupak first ran, and that was many, many years ago.”

Flint Water Crisis

Another issue that Dillon is hearing a lot about as he tours the state is the crisis in Flint regarding high rates of lead in the drinking water.

Dillon sees the situation as a demonstration of the problems with the philosophy of government that has been advocated by Gov. Rick Snyder and the state’s Republican leaders.

“I think the Flint situation has — unfortunately it’s taken a human tragedy like that to really bring into real clear focus the flaws in a style of government that puts profits and cutting budgets over people and public safety and taking away democracy at the local level,” Dillon said.

“What we were promised is more accountability and good government and what we’ve gotten is the exact opposite — less accountability and a cost now in human misery and taxpayer dollars that’s going to be almost incalculable.”

For Dillon, the situation also demonstrates why democracy is important.

“Democracy is not good just for democracy’s sake — I mean that would be enough — but it actually works better than any other form of government, and we’ve seen that. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than a system where people are not accountable to the people they serve,” he said. “These emergency managers are accountable to the governor and the governor only and there is reason that people have to stand for election.”

While Dillon is clearly critical of Republicans and the state government’s actions that caused the crisis, he argues he is not politicizing the issue.

“We want accountability and asking the Governor and the folks that work for him to be totally forthcoming, to come clean instead of covering up, is not playing politics — it’s not playing politics, it’s trying to get to the bottom of a tragedy so we can make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Dillon said.

“Look, the Governor made a real big point when he took over cities like Flint the buck was going to stop with him and that these folks couldn’t handle it and it was time for the state to come in and take over. Well the state allowed this to happen and we need to know why.”

Dillon thinks the situation in Flint will also have an adverse impact on the state’s ability to attract business and grow its economy.

“Unfortunately, all the talk about ‘Michigan is the comeback state’ and ‘Pure Michigan,’ that’s pretty much all gone down the drain with what’s happened in Flint. The really negative light that it’s put Michigan in is going to have devastating consequences for business attraction and business creation.”

Dillon argued Michigan residents are ready for a change.

“This is the kind of stuff that happens when you are in power for too long and there is no accountability,” he said. “The message I think Democrats will be delivering is ‘look, they’ve had total control for 5 years, this is what we’ve got. If you like this, the way things are going in Flint and other parts of the state, then by all means, continue to vote for Republicans. But if you think we can do better, you know there is an alternative out there and it’s Democrats running at the state, local and federal levels.’”

Democratic Policy Goals

Naturally, Dillon also has ideas for polices he’d like to see when the party regains power in the state.

“I think you’ll see an aggressive push to move to some real reforms, first of which I think is to remove the ridiculous exemption that the legislature and the governor have from the Freedom of Information Act,” Dillon said. “I think there is a very strong and credible argument that if we would have had a strong FIOA law, like they do in 48 other states, then a lot of the crazy stuff that has gone on — whether it’s the indifference to the struggles in Flint or overturning the emergency manager law — would have been harder to do if they have known that those communications and discussions would have been open to public scrutiny.”

He also discussed reforming or repealing the state’s emergency manager law, pushing for no-reason absentee voting and other structural reforms to the system, as well as advocated for a fairer tax system that both generates the money needed to invest in the state’s infrastructure and makes the tax burden more equitable.

“I think you will see a real attempt to try to make sure that the system is fairer for average people, and when you have schools that are improving, and when you have roads that are better, and when you have parks and neighborhoods and clean water — things that we’ve always taken for granted — those attract businesses and people that want to live there.”

Presidential Race

Dillon also discussed the presidential race, saying that the lack of a clear Democratic frontrunner likely means Michigan will become increasingly important in deciding the candidate.

“I think (Sen. Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton) both think it looks like (the primary race) is going to stretch on. It’s not going to be over after New Hampshire, and it’s not going to be over after probably Nevada or South Carolina. I think the campaigns are starting to actually think — which is I think is good — that they are going to have to compete (in Michigan),” Dillon said.

While some may not appreciate a long campaign, Dillon said he feels it energizes supporters and the debate has been worthwhile so far.

“The debate’s been good on the Democratic side, frankly. It’s been about issues, it hasn’t been the kind of personal attacks (seen at times during the Republican race),” Dillon said. “In many ways the Republican presidential race, it’s like a junior high school fight. You know, people yelling at each other on Twitter, it’s just bizarre and I’m glad it’s their side and not mine.”

While it is a long time until the election, Dillon is cautiously optimistic regarding his party’s chances on election day.

“We know that Michigan has a history of voters splitting their ballots and voting for candidates over parties sometimes, but we feel pretty strongly that our message is resonating strongly with voters and the match-up of candidates from the top of the ticket on the way down will be favorable to us.”