<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=36yXMw_1FU7Z8xz00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=36yXMw_1FU7Z8xz00" width="1160" height="773" ></figure>Courtesy | UnsplashMichigan’s gubernatorial candidates might be running on the same issues, but their solutions are very different.Although Democratic candidate Jocelyn Benson and Republican candidate John James both promise to increase affordability, improve healthcare, and strengthen education, only James has a plan that delivers.Affordability is the central issue of the Michigan November election. A recent poll commissioned by the Detroit News and WDIV reported that 25.7% of Michigan voters said affordability or the economy was their top issue. “As governor, my focus will be on driving down costs and growing our economy — making Michigan among the most affordable states in the country,” Benson said in an interview with Bridge Michigan.As nice as that sounds, Benson has demonstrated very little ability to achieve that vision. She is unwilling to repeal Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s gubernatorial mandate for the total elimination of fossil fuels by 2050, a move that the Mackinac Center for Public Policy reports would double utility bills.James, on the other hand, calls for ending Whitmer’s initiatives and maintaining the operation of the Line 5 pipeline, a major conduit of oil and natural gas to the state. Whitmer ordered the shutdown of the pipeline in 2020, but legal challenges have blocked her. Although Benson has not said whether she would also seek the shutdown of Line 5, her six years of silence while serving under Whitmer give every reason to believe that she would.To tackle housing prices, both candidates support relaxing zoning restrictions and decreasing other construction-related regulations. The key difference is that Benson supports increasing the income eligibility for Michigan’s Homestead Property Tax Credit, a tax reduction for homeowners who fall under a specified income. This move essentially expands a housing subsidy and betrays a belief inherent within many of her promises. She thinks more money will solve the problem.Take healthcare: Although both candidates say they seek to improve affordability and access in the face of increasing prices and closing rural hospitals, their methods vary. Benson plans to buy off medical loans and forgive doctors’ student debt while James aims to reduce chronic illnesses (through implementing preventive care models within the existing Medicaid system), and to secure federal funding through targeted reimbursement programs, moves that would lessen the load on Michigan’s own treasury. For James, redirecting money will solve the problem.In no place are these two competing fiscal habits more apparent than in Michigan’s floundering academics. The state is ranked 45th in K-12 education, according to U.S. News and World Report. Both candidates look to enact literacy programs that have been proven successful in other states, especially Mississippi. They also seek to increase teacher salaries to attract educators, but again differ in method. Benson proposes increasing government expenditure by establishing a $60,000 price floor on teacher salaries, a move that would undoubtedly cause salaries across public education to rise as older teachers and administrators demand raises. Contrast this with James’s policy: redistribute money to teachers by cutting down on administrative costs. Teachers still gain, but the administrators don’t. Furthermore, James pledges to opt Michigan into the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit, which reimburses individuals up to $1,700 for donations made to authorized scholarship-granting organizations. Those organizations then grant the money to eligible families for use in tuition, tutoring, and more. Benson says she will refuse this money, believing it will drain resources from Michigan’s public schools. Apparently it is better to have no families save money rather than only some.Only one candidate has a plan that is consistent with his promises: James. Benson’s policies mean higher utility prices and more government expenditure, things incompatible with securing long-term affordability for Michigan, and she can’t spend her way out of that.James Joski is a junior studying biochemistry. </div></body>

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Michigan’s gubernatorial candidates might be running on the same issues, but their solutions are very different. Although Democratic candidate Jocelyn Benson and Republican candidate John James both promise to increase affordability, improve healthcare, and strengthen education, only James has a plan that delivers. Affordability is the central issue of...

John James would be a cheaper governor

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Michigan’s gubernatorial candidates might be running on the same issues, but their solutions are very different. Although Democratic candidate Jocelyn Bens

John James would be a cheaper governor

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