Second time around

There are elections where voters seem confused, perhaps ambivalent, about candidates and their performance and positions on issues. Not so this year, certainly not for Gov. Rick Snyder.

That he and the Democratic challenger, former U.S. Rep. Mark Schauer, are essentially tied two months before the election suggests that voters have paid attention during Snyder´s first term. At this point in his first run for office, Snyder was ahead of Democratic Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero by 20 points in most polls. This time, it´s not so easy.

Snyder stormed into office in 2010 election as a political novice, promoting his successful business background. Now he´s just another politician. But not really. Snyder in 2014 has the baggage of a politician, but lacks the temperament and instincts of one. And that´s a problem.

His campaign seems stuck in 2010. The “I´m with the Nerd” shtick, prominent on his campaign website, passed for clever and self-depreciating four years ago. Today, it seems forced and dated. His signature issues — jobs creation and the economy — aren´t resonating with voters. Certainly, Michigan has clawed its way out of the pit that was the Great Recession. But Michigan still has one of the worst performing economies in the nation, and people know it.

Snyder offers a mixed record to voters this election. Whether the good outweighs the bad depend on one´s politics and, very likely, one´s pocketbook. For example, he orchestrated a tax on senior citizen pensions while pushing successfully for lower taxes on business. As a result, pensioners are unhappy; businesses are thrilled. For voters, it all depends … .

Acknowledging that there are winners and losers on most issues, here´s where Snyder´s record shines.

Detroit: Snyder forced the city into bankruptcy — a formality, really; it´s been bankrupt for years. He appointed a financial manager, ignored the howling and cajoled the Republican-controlled Legislature to allocate $195 million for Detroit´s “Grand Bargain,” which will minimize pension cuts and help preserve the Detroit Institute of Art´s collection. It´s a chance for a new start for the state´s most important city.

Health Care: Deciding to work with, rather than against, the Affordable Healthcare Act, Snyder boasts that Michigan now has 63,000 more low-income citizens signed up for Medicaid and that his Healthy Michigan plan has added 385,000 people to its rolls. A recent poll indicates that 50 percent of people surveyed support Healthy Michigan; 26 percent don´t.

The bridge: Snyder has been steadfast in his support of the $2.1 billion New International Trade Crossing bridge to Canada. It´s been a messy project with multiple suits filed by the Maroun family, owners of the Ambassador Bridge and various other issues. Snyder has led the campaign. The bridge ELECTION 2014 could open by 2020.

Minimum wage: Snyder may have backed this to avoid a threatened referendum that would have raised wages by even more than the new law mandates. Still, the wage increased to $8.15 on Labor Day and will increase to $9.25 by 2018.

Education: This is where it starts getting tricky. Snyder claims that education spending has increased by $600 per pupil during his tenure. But the funding formulas are complex. An analysis by the former director of the House Fiscal Agency, Mitch Bean, sums up school spending by acknowledging that Snyder´s figure is correct, but that much of it isn´t going to the classroom. Rather it is used for pensions, debt service, the Michigan Virtual University and other education related expenses. This could easily slide onto the loser board.

Now for the problems.

The economy: Recent polls indicate that voters are unhappy with Michigan´s economic recovery. Conditions in the state are better than they were when Snyder was elected, but Michigan´s economy is still pretty bad. Unemployment is rising slightly, many people have dropped out of the job market, and while there may be jobs available for some, they aren´t the good middle class jobs that once were the foundation of the Michigan economy.

Right-to-work: Snyder burned his moderate credentials with his sudden embrace of the Republican Legislature´s rushed rightto-work legislation. His earlier claims that this assault on unions “wasn´t on his agenda” proved hollow. Portrayed as a job creation tool, there is little if any evidence that business has come to the state in response to the law. The manufacturing segment that has helped the state regain some economic footing is the successfully unionized auto industry.

Pension tax: While there may be no rationale for pension income to be treated different from other income, Snyder´s push to tax these earnings has stoked the ire of the state´s senior citizens. A recent poll by Public Policy Polling found that 74 percent of those surveyed “opposed the increase in taxes on retirement income from pensions that was passed in 2011.” Seniors are a dangerous group to anger, because they vote in large numbers.

Prisons: The wretched performance of the Aramark, chosen by Snyder and his lieutenants to privatize Michigan´s prison food service, is a gift to the Schauer campaign. Each week seems to bring some new report of problems: drug smuggling, sex acts with prisoners, maggots in food, a $200,000 fine, another $98,000 fine quietly waived. The $145 million contract allowed the state to eliminate 370 food service jobs and project $14 million in savings.

The Nerd Fund: Snyder, using hidden private donations, raised over $1.6 million in 2011 and 2012 for his NERD Fund, which was used to pay for travel, salaries and other semi-government expenses. The fund was dissolved in October 2013. At that time Snyder said the fund “was becoming a distraction.” He has consistently refused to identify the donors.

Same-sex marriage: Snyder has aligned himself with Attorney General Bill Schuette and other seeking to preserve Michigan´s ban on same-sex marriage. Relying on the state´s costly appeal of a Federal Court rulings that invalidated the marriage ban, Snyder said in March “We won’t recognize the benefits of the marriage until there’s a removal of the stay.” But he acknowledged the legality of 300 nuptials performed before a federal Appeals Court stay. Staking out a confusing middle ground, both for and against, has alienated both sides.

The little cuts: There a host of niggling issues that play out during a reelection bid. For Snyder, these include:

— A tardy response to the tasteless anti-gay and anti-Muslim remarks of former Michigan state legislator and RNC Committeeman Dave Agema.

— The lavish expense account billings — expensive meals and luxury hotel rooms — and subsequent resignation of Michigan State Housing Development Authority Executive Director Scott Woosley.

— A campaign intern who tried to infiltrate the Schauer campaign. He was quickly fired by the Snyder campaign.