by Tim Skubick
October 9, 2009

She professes to have skin as tough as a rhinoceros. Good thing, because Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s hide has suffered wounds, some of them self-inflicted.

Since February, when she introduced her new budget, the governor has been playing defense.

As the state’s economy continued to tank, it was clear that her initial spending plan was out of date. Yet she took no visible steps to revamp it.

Meanwhile, her arch rival, Senator Mike Bishop, the GOP leader, passed a budget of his own and sent the $1.2 billion in state service cuts to the Michigan House.

The governor watched.

Perhaps there was a strategy to keep her out of the game, with the hopes that it would be easier to resolve the impasse if she said nothing to inflame the debate.

If so, it backfired, because it allowed her opponents to define her. A big no-no.

Bishop started the chant. “Where is her plan?” he asked out loud.

The governor said nothing.

Bishop repeated, “Where is her plan?” creating the impression that the governor was nowhere to be found.

Bishop then morphed his message into where was she?

To be sure, the governor was in the game consulting with Bishop and her Democratic House Speaker Andy Dillon behind closed doors. But it was out of view of the media and the public, which only fed the perception that she was not around.

Finally, Bishop and Dillon set out to craft their own budget.

But this time the media picked up on Bishop’s theme and demanded the governor release her new budget plan. The clamor got so loud that in early August the governor trotted out a plan that included tax increases to balance the books.

Even though the plan was obsolete, it gave the governor a respite from the criticism.

But that did not last long. Next she got on a plane for Japan to scrounge up some badly needed jobs for the state. The weekend she was gone came in the middle of an unresolved budget, which gave the boo-birds something new to crow about.

They suggested she should have stayed home. It was a no-win situation for her. Had she stayed home, critics would have accused her of missing an opportunity to create more jobs. So she went and got whacked for leaving.

Here’s where the Granholm team missed the boat. At this point she needed to up her visibility. Upon returning from Japan after a whirlwind three-day trip, she should have called in the media and announced the results of the trip and reassured everyone that she was in the game.

The next mistake was remaining in the executive office bunker for way too long. She should have allowed the TV cameras to record her face-to-face meetings with Bishop and Dillon, if just for 30 seconds and then kick the cameras out. Presidents do that sort of stuff daily. One picture is worth a thousand words.

She needed to show she was engaged, and had she done so, The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press could not have written scathing editorials blasting her for being missing in action.

While she has always been in the game back stage, she’s now decided to move center stage. It should have been the strategy from the opening bell, and if so, she would not have those battle scars on her rhinoceros hide.

Tim Skubick is Michigan’s senior Capitol correspondent and has anchored the weekly public TV series “Off the Record” since 1972. He also covers the Capitol and politics for WLNS-TV6 in Lansing.

Tim Skubick Extra Extra… (A weekly bonus for Dome readers)

Who’s the Non-Politician Now?

Ricky. Ricky. How could you possibly do that?

After spending all summer running around the state proclaiming from the mountain top that he was not a professional politician, Ann Arbor business guy Rick Snyder just proved that he is.

At the recent state GOP Leadership Conference on Mackinac Island, Snyder and the other four contenders in the race for governor were involved in a straw poll that, in the grand scheme of things, is basically meaningless.

Nonetheless, Mike Bouchard, Mike Cox and Snyder engaged in a little ballot strategy whereby they covered the costs of some of the conference participants in exchange for the participants’ vote in the poll.

The following memo reached this desk. In it, the Snyder folks look like they learned how to play politics in Chicago’s Cook County, which is notorious for questionable activity.

In the memo, Snyder supporters are advised that “you are in no way required to vote for any candidate, disclose or show your ballot to anyone.”

All nice and proper, with no gripes there.

Ah, but read on: “However, in order to remain eligible for Rick for Michigan receptions, ferries (to and from the island) and hotel room, you must show your ballot to Rick’s official representative at the ballot box…”

Hum, this is getting interesting.

And just to make sure none of the volunteers for Ricky didn’t miss the point, they were asked to sign a document that was blunt: “I have read and understand that staying in a Rick for Michigan sponsored hotel room and traveling on a Rick for Michigan ferry is contingent upon voting for Rick Snyder in the straw poll.”

Snyder’s team confessed to nothing, but admitted to running an “effective and efficient operation” on the island. And, in defending the above statement, the team explained it was used to weed out “infiltrators” from other campaigns who were supposedly posing as Snyder backers.

And, finally, it blamed the others for using mounds of “special interest” money to fund their efforts. Snyder used his own. A distinction without a difference. The fact is, money was used to influence the outcome — a political tradition as old as dirt.

Boss Tweed would be proud of non-politician Ricky Snyder.

Snyder, on the other hand, should probably drop all that bla bla about being one.

Could It Happen Here Too?

If it happened in New York, could it happen here?

You’ve probably read about the apparent efforts by the Obama administration to get the current New York governor out of that governor’s race.

What did Gov. David Paterson do to deserve that? Try his 20-percent approval ratings in the polls.

At first blush, one might ask: “What the heck is the president doing mucking around in a race for governor in New York? Doesn’t he have more important fish to fry?”

Fact is, he is taking care of a really big fish that will be on the table in four years: his own reelection bid. Obviously, somebody in the Obama inner circle has concluded the president needs to win New York, and the current governor won’t be much help. Period and adios.

Which brings us to Michigan and the 2010 race for governor. Mr. Obama needs to win this state next time, and if there is a conservative Republican sitting where Democrat Jennifer Granholm now sits, Obama’s chances are diminished.

Which brings us to the so-called Cherry problem. Everyone knows Lt. Governor John Cherry can win the Democratic primary with one arm tied behind his back. But then there’s the general election.

If you listen closely, you can hear the chatter below the radar: can Cherry win in November?

And listen even closer and you can hear the same thing in the White House.

Hence, is Mr. Cherry the next Mr. Paterson on the Obama hit list?

And does that open the door to an Andy Dillon run for the gov’s seat?

Great questions to ponder, wouldn’t you say?