In choosing Rick Snyder, the voters of Michigan have made a very big, positive step!

I really like his chances against Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero, who defeated Andy Dillon on the Democratic side.

Visit RickForMichigan.com for live coverage of the victory party in Ann Arbor.

I’ve enjoyed the hundreds of hours spent reading, researching, writing, and responding to the scores of emails, comments and other inquiries.

And today, Tuesday, August 3, is Election Day.

The Republican race is truly “too close to call” between three candidates, Attorney General Mike Cox, US Representative Pete Hoekstra, and Ann Arbor businessman, Rick Snyder.

I’ve given you plenty of reasons to NOT vote for Pete Hoekstra. From the fact that he’s a career politician — he’s been in Washington DC for 18 years (after promising to serve no more than 12) — to his divisive, polarizing style, I’ve clearly articulated why Michigan can, and must, do better.

I’ve also given extensive background on why Cox isn’t the right guy, either. His campaign has been primarily negative and attacking candidates, and he attempts to pander to the hard-core right wing of Republican voters with his pro-Life, anti-immigration message — two issues that have absolutely nothing to do with fixing Michigan’s economy, creating jobs, and bringing confidence and optimism back to the state.

But my endorsement for Rick Snyder isn’t based on a “process of elimination”. It’s because Michigan has a unique opportunity to elect someone with extensive, relevant business experience, who isn’t bought and paid for by special interests, and has deep personal ties and a love of the State of Michigan.

Rick Snyder is the right man for the job, and he deserves your vote.

My rationale is very simple:

Michigan’s economy is among the worst in the nation.

And many of the jobs that we’ve lost aren’t the type that will simply come back as the economy recovers. Many of these jobs are gone for good.

Rick Snyder correctly asserts that Michigan needs to “re-invent” itself. And he’s put up a tremendous amount of his own money to get his message out.

For some cynics, he’s a “rich guy trying to buy an election”.

Yep, he’s wealthy.

Good for him for achieving “the American Dream”!

We should celebrate Snyder for his success and thank him for raising his hand to offer assistance.

If there were more Rick Snyder’s involved in politics, chances are we wouldn’t be in such a mess.

But the process is ugly. It’s invasive. It’s nasty. Some of the best, most qualified folks don’t run for office because they don’t want the aggravation associated with political campaigns.

I’m sure there are lots of things more fun for Rick Snyder to do with his time than canvassing the state, going from town hall meetings to other functions, giving similar speeches hundreds of times and answering similar questions by thousands of people.

But he did it, because he loves Michigan and wants to give back.

So I’m asking that you please give Rick Snyder the chance.

Thanks for following this blog.

Ben Padnos

P.S. On the Democratic side, if you don’t want to cross over and vote for Rick Snyder on the Republican ballot, I urge you to vote for Andy Dillon.

So Pete’s last hurrah is sending two wingnut, fringe extremists — two folks whose messages, under the guise of “family values”, consistently have undercurrents of discrimination and hate – to speak on his behalf.

These two are very, very bad people.

And it says a lot about Pete Hoekstra.

There is nothing inclusive about James Dobson and Michele Bachmann.

It’s their way or the highway, and you’re not welcome if you happen to be a person of color, or are gay, or aren’t Christian, or if you have a child without being married, or if you, or perhaps your parents happened to enter the US illegally, looking only to better your or your family’s lives.

I try to be respectful, but I draw a line with intolerant, hate-mongering bigots.

And that’s who Pete Hoekstra has chosen to speak on his behalf, just hours before the election.

These two folks are very far out of lockstep with most Americans, but Hoekstra has so little respect for the people in Michigan that he thinks the key to victory on Tuesday is pandering to the lunatic fringe.

Man, I hope he’s wrong.

Michigan can, and must, do better!

To refresh your memory, Hoekstra says President Obama came to Pete’s backyard to try and stop him from becoming governor.

There are two possibilities about this statement, and both are actually arguments AGAINST a vote for Pete.

Let’s think about this for a minute…

Hoekstra says the President came to Holland in order to thwart his election bid. This reminds me of personalities who have an “it’s all about me” outlook on life. They’re the types who react “were you talkin’ to me?” to someone who in fact wasn’t, and end up in extra, unnecessary and completely unproductive conflicts.

Who needs a governor like that?

How is that going to help Michigan?

Now let’s consider, what if Pete actually was correct?

If that’s actually the case, somehow along the way, Hoekstra has so irritated President of the United States, that Obama took the trouble to schedule an unprecedented Presidential trip to Holland, Michigan, just to “diss” Pete and obstruct his campaign.

What does that say about Pete’s history and prospects for “reaching across the aisle” to solve problems?

Who needs a governor who has a personal animosity with the most powerful man in the world?

I know Pete likes to say we can fix our economy without government help.

Perhaps Pete is simply trying to make SURE that if he is elected, Michigan will indeed NOT GET ANY (or very little) governmental assistance.

Thanks, but no thanks, Pete.

We need all the help we can get!

Michigan can, and must, do better.

TUESDAY IS THE BIG DAY!

So Cox is going negative. And he’s looking desperate.

Cox and his supporters are behind a new negative attack that launched on Friday hitting Snyder and US Representative Pete Hoekstra with various charges.

I’ve found Cox’s campaign to be disgustingly pandering — from trying to associate himself with Ronald Reagan by “celebrating Reagan’s birthday” back in February, to his hawkish TV ads focused on his pro-Life and pro-Arizona immigration law, two issues which have absolutely nothing to do with creating jobs and revitalizing the economy in Michigan.

Cox assumes the only people who will come out to vote on August 3 are Republicans in hard-core right, so he’s kissing up to these folks.

And his playbook is heavily negative.

Cox comes across as a mean-spirited, angry man with a serious chip on his shoulder.

He absolutely will not inspire Michigan residents at this time of crisis.

I have the same feelings about Mike Cox as I do about Pete Hoekstra: Michigan can, and must, do better!

A solutions-minded individual like Rick Snyder, who’s positive and optimistic as well as a proven business success, is the right way to go!

It’s all going to come down to which way those 14% of undecideds vote!

For more details on each candidate’s last-minute efforts, click here.

Don’t tell me there’s yet another “Family Values”, social conservative Republican involved in a sex-related scandal!

The rumor, of course, is that Cox attended a wild party in 2002 thrown by then-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick at the Manoogian Mansion.

And this past week, WDIV TV, Fox 2, and Detroit Free Press all reported an eyewitness in sworn testimony said they saw Cox there getting lap dances from a stripper.

Back in May, a retired Detroit police officer testified under oath that he was personally at the party along with Cox. Watch WDIV’s televised coverage here.

Cox says he wasn’t even at the party.

It’s a “He Said, He Said” situation, according to The Grand Rapids Press.

Heading into the final weekend of the campaign, there are still a lot of questions about what happened. It sure is interesting how many people assume the Attorney General isn’t telling the truth — that at least indicates something….

Do we really want this guy running Michigan?

I don’t think so.

This logic is flawed and misguided on numerous levels.

First and foremost, Michigan’s sorry economic state has nothing to do with President Obama. Some Republicans are tired of the “blame it on Bush” mantra, but while Pete Hoekstra was back-slapping President George W. Bush at every opportunity, we went to war with the wrong country (Iraq) — and sorry, Pete, there were no WMDs — we took our eye off the ball on Afghanistan, and the entire world fell into a deep economic tailspin. When you talk to folks outside of the fringe, they categorically state Obama inherited most of the mess from his predecessor. And Hoekstra was as big a Bush cheerleader as there was.

Secondly, the only message voting for Pete sends is that Michigan wants to elect a guy who doesn’t like the current President, and goes out of his way to bash him.

Sure Obama knocked Pete for voting against the stimulus but coming to the ribbon cutting….But that was after $151MM of Federal dollars came into Western Michigan.

Can anyone reasonably state that Michigan would be better off without this new battery plant coming to town?

But whether you like Obama or not isn’t the issue. He’s still the President of the United States for at least two more years, and there’s absolutely no reason to hire a guy who won’t be able to have a decent working relationship with the White House.

It’s like talking trash after beating LeBron James or Kobe Bryant….It’s a short-term strategy because ultimately, they’re going to get even.

Michigan needs a Governor who can work with President Obama and other Democrats, as well as fellow Republicans. Someone who can unite people from different parts of the state and all walks of life.

Pete Hoekstra is not that guy.

Michigan can, and must, do better.

In supporting Rick Snyder, voters truly have an opportunity to vote for someone who can help re-invent Michigan!

I have a little different spin on Hoekstra’s message. What he should say is, “If you support George W. Bush and want to send a message that he was a great President, vote for me!”

The poll of 400 likely Republican voters taken July 26-27 has Snyder leading the Republican pack with 26% compared with 24% for Attorney General Mike Cox and 23% for Representative Pete Hoekstra. Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard is fourth at 10% and state Senator Tom George has 1% support. The margin of error is +/- 4.9%.

In the dead-heat, three-man race, Snyder definitely has momentum! EPIC-MRA’s last poll, release in June, showed Cox with a 2-point lead over Hoekstra with Snyder trailing by 6%.

Cox has taken hits for his role in the investigation of an alleged stripper-filled party in 2002 at Manoogian Mansion, the home of then-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. The AG denies allegations of any wrongdoing in the investigation, but was hit Monday with an alleged eyewitness saying he saw Cox in attendance at the raucous party.

On the Democratic side, Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero has pulled ahead of state House Speaker Andy Dillon, leading 40% to 32%. This is a HUGE, 16% move for Bernero since EPIC-MRA’s June survey, and follows significant pro-Bernero / anti-Dillon advertising blitz from labor unions.

Bernero is organized labor’s favorite, receiving support from the AFL-CIO, United Auto Workers (UAW) and the Michigan Education Association (MEA).

EPIC-MRA’s data for the Dems came from 400 likely Democratic voters surveyed July 24-26. See complete survey information here.

Special interests have given over $1 million dollars to four of the five Republican candidates. Rick Snyder is the lone exception. You can see a complete breakdown below.

Pete Hoekstra ran for Congress in 1992 promising he wouldn’t take money from Political Action Committees (PACs).

Once again, I have to ask: If he didn’t do what he ran on as a Congressman, how will he as a Governor?