ICYMI: Coverage of breakfast with Governor Johnson

Justin Engler of The Saginaw News wrote about tomorrow’s breakfast with former Governor, and likely 2012 presidential candidate, Gary Johnston.

You can read the article here.

Update: The event was also covered by MIRS, a news service for Lansing politicos:

The Campus Conservatives at Central Michigan University are hosting a breakfast with former New Mexico governor and likely 2012 Republican presidential candidate Gary JOHNSON.

“It’s an honor to host Governor Johnson in Mount Pleasant,” said Campus Conservatives Vice President Evan AGNELLO in a press release. “This is an opportunity to have an open discussion on the challenges facing our country.”

Johnson has been described as “the next Ron PAUL” by politico.com, and is chairman of the Our America Initiative, which aims to increase discussion of public policy issues.

Meeting tonight

Don’t forget about tonight’s meeting. Nominations for president, vice president, secretary and treasurer will be taken up as well as other business before Campus Conservatives.

Reminder: Breakfast with Governor Gary Johnson

Former Governor Gary Johnson of New Mexico, a likely 2012 presidential candidate, will be in Mount Pleasant for a discussion with students and community members over breakfast on Saturday.

The breakfast, hosted by Campus Conservatives, will be from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at the Big Boy Restaurant, 1623 South Mission Street.

Discuss the issues with Governor Johnson over breakfast

February 10 — Campus Conservatives will host former Governor Gary Johnson of New Mexico for a breakfast with students and community members on February 27.

Johnson, a Republican, is currently chairman of the Our America Initiative and is a rumored presidential candidate in 2012.

A successful businessman, he defeated the incumbent Democratic governor in 1994. He was re-elected for a second term in 1998 and served until 2002 when the state’s term limits prohibited from seeking re-election.

As the governor of New Mexico, Johnson was fiscally responsible and stopped tax and budget increases. He vetoed 750 bills while in office — more than all the other governors combined. Johnson was known for his common-sense business approach to governing. He eliminated New Mexico’s budget deficit, cut the rate of growth in state government in half and privatized half of the state prisons.

Johnson also shifted state Medicaid to managed care (which led to better healthcare by creating a state-wide healthcare network that previously did not exist and which saved money) and reduced state employees by over 1000, with no firings. During his term, New Mexico experienced the longest period without a tax increase in the state’s history.

He is an outspoken advocate of physical fitness and has competed in numerous triathlons, marathons and cycling events. Johnson has climbed the highest mountains on four of the seven continents, including the summit of Mount Everest in 2003.

Further details on the breakfast event will be released shortly.

Meeting tonight

Don’t forget about tonight’s meeting with guest speaker Bill Schuette.

The meeting begins at 8 p.m. in the Bovee University Center Lake St. Clair Room.

Nominations will also be taken for the Board of Trustees.

Central Michigan Life bias?

What are the odds that student journalist Ryan Czachorski from Central Michigan Life covering last night’s event with Senator Tom George, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, would recognize the daughter of the Democratic mayor of Lansing — who just happens to be a candidate for governor?

Well, that’s what happened:

George’s speech drew interest from Lansing freshman Virginia Bernero, the daughter of Lansing mayor and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Virgil Bernero.

“I’m kind of here to scope out the competition,” she said. “But he’s a candidate for governor in my state, so I’m interested. I want to be informed.”

According to a whistle-blower, who commented on the Central Michigan Life article,  Czachorski is a member of Students for Barack Obama, which should disqualify him from writing political news.

Nevertheless, he was assigned to cover the event, which the newspaper disparaged in an editorial on Monday, and he somehow found the Democratic mayor-cum-gubernatorial candidate’s daughter for comment — yet he couldn’t find any members of Campus Conservatives, who organized the event, nor did he follow-up with George afterward to clarify any of his remarks.

Oh yeah . . . he also made sure to point out that one of the students in the audience, Amy Pape, was required to attend the event. It’s great to know the faculty are giving equal-time to conservative events on campus, but since when has Central Michigan Life ever referenced students required to attend liberal events? Do you really think students come out to hear leftists like Michael Moore, Jesse Jackson, Tom Hayden, Angela Davis and Morris Dees — to name a few — unless a professor requires them to attend?

While we know Central Michigan Life journalists are students still learning the craft, it’s important that they have a basic understanding of journalistic ethics

Schuette speaking at CMU

February 3 — Midland politician Bill Schuette will discuss politics and his campaign for state attorney general with Central Michigan University students on February 9.

Schuette will speak during the Campus Conservatives meeting at 8 p.m. in the Bovee University Center, 103 East Preston St., on the CMU campus.

“Judge Schuette brings a wealth of experience in politics at the state and federal levels,” said Campus Conservatives president Bryant Greiner. “It will be great to hear his insight on the issues facing our state as well as what’s happening with his campaign for attorney general.”

Schuette was elected to U.S. House of Representatives on the Republican ticket with President Ronald Reagan in 1984. He served three terms before running against Democrat Carl Levin for the U.S. Senate seat in 1990. Schuette later became a member of then-Governor John Engler’s cabinet, served eight years in the state Senate and six years as a state Court of Appeals judge.

He is currently a Republican candidate for attorney general. The nomination will be decided by delegates to the Michigan Republican Party convention in August.

George speaks at CMU

Senator Tom George, Republican gubernatorial candidate, spoke to 50 students tonight in a townhall-style forum sponsored by Campus Conservatives.

You can read Central Michigan Life’s coverage of his appearance here.

Commenting on his opponents skipping the debate, he told the student newspaper: “I think my opponents got up this morning and, like the groundhog, saw their shadow and scurried back into their burrows.”

Gubernatorial Forum tonight

While the Republican Gubernatorial Debate was canceled, a Gubernatorial Forum will be held tonight at 7 p.m. in the Bovee University Center Lake Michigan Room.

Senator Tom George, one of the Republican candidates for governor, will speak with students, faculty and community members about his campaign and the issues facing Michigan.

An open letter to the CMU community

To all:–

We were very disappointed to read the editorial in Monday’s edition of the newspaper.

Instead of praising a student organization for becoming engaged in the discussion of Michigan’s future, Central Michigan Life decided to criticize the school’s oldest and most active political organization for something totally out of its control.

Our organization has tried for months to arrange and coordinate the first public gubernatorial debate of this year’s campaign. We lined up a team of moderators, coordinated with local, regional and state-wide media for coverage and went to great lengths to secure the major Republican Party candidates for governor.

Unfortunately, we can’t control the schedules of the candidates. Central Michigan Life’s editorial rebuked us for waiting until the last-minute to cancel the debate. That criticism is misguided.

Senator Tom George and Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard committed to attend, Congressman Pete Hoekstra’s campaign said they would come if there were no votes on Capitol Hill, Ann Arbor businessman Rick Snyder’s handlers said their boss would participate if the debate rules were agreeable and Attorney General Mike Cox said fund-raising was more important than debating the issues in front of Michigan’s next generation.

We had strong indications that at least three of the five candidates would participate — giving us no reason to cancel the debate because one candidate felt hob-noising with rich donors was more important and another was afraid to discuss the issues unless the rules favored him.

We worked tirelessly for more than three months to organize the debate and ensure a memorable evening for students, faculty and community members. Unfortunately the candidates claimed more important things to attend that night except forGeorge who graciously accepted the invitation first and was true to his word.

Sadly, the debate was ruined by the sabotage of College Republicans chairman Nathan Inks, a Central Michigan Life columnist, who repeatedly harassed the candidates and media outlets covering our efforts with absurd accusations and threats of protesting the debate.

And because the College Republicans had volunteered for Bouchard at past Republican Party events, they were able to convince his campaign to cancel — citing a “scheduling conflict” even though the sheriff had pledged to debate even if it was only him and George on the stage.

Instead of pointing a finger at Campus Conservatives, Central Michigan Life should be criticizing the candidates who decided students weren’t important enough as well as blasting the immature, unprofessional and absurd actions of CMU’s Republican-in-name-only organization.

Sincerely,

Campus Conservatives Board of Trustees