Our Money, Our Vote, Our Town: Debate Brings Dialogue on Economy to OU

Oakland County is an apt spot for Republic presidential hopefuls to . That topic is Priority One for area residents and Michigan voters have a key election role next year, two area political specialists say.

Michigan's historic role as a pivotal state in presidential campaigns could be stronger if  no Republican is dominant early next year, suggests says Steve Mitchell of West Boomfield, a national polling and consulting firm chairman. "Michigan has moved its primary up to Feb. 28," he notes. "However, the key to the nomination is in the three earliest states -- Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

The candidates' ninth debate, with a theme of "Your Money, Your Vote," will be televised live on CNBC from 8-10 p.m. and streamed at CNBC.com. Featuring eight canduidates, it's sponsored by the cable channel and the Michigan Republican Party.

"Michiganders want to hear a realistic plan for creating jobs, jump-starting the economy and aiding lower-income and middle-class workers," says political scientist Terri Towner of Rochester, an assistant professor at Oakland University. She'll be in the Rochester campus audience at the 1,400-seat O'Rena athletic arena.

OU President Gary Russi agreed. "We were chosen as the debate site because Michigan is at the epicenter for job loss," said Russi, who has been leader of the university for 15 years. "These topics  — job loss, the economy — are things we've all lived through."

Towner sees Michigan as a must-win for each party next fall, a familiar role. "If Republicans intend to take back the White House in 2012, then the state of Michigan must be in play -- along with other swing states such as Ohio, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. The presidential candidate from both parties must seriously campaign in Michigan."

Replay of 2008 unlikely

George H.W. Bush, who won this state's electoral votes in 1988, was the last Republican presidential candidate to carry Michigan. This time, the state is up for grabs, according to predicts Mitchell, a respected election analyst and media commentator who'll watch the debate from home.  

"The election will not be a repeat of Obama’s 16-percent win in 2008," he predicts. "Instead, it will be more like 2004 when John Kerry beat President George W. Bush by just 3.5 percent."

A September survey of 600 likely 2012 state voters by Mitchell Research & Communications, showed them evenly divided on the president's job performance.  Fifty percent disapproved, while 47 percent approved.

That same statewide polling showed Mitt Romney leading Rick Perry, his closest opponent then, by a margin of more than two to one. "Romney is from Michigan," explains Mitchell, who has offices in East Lansing and West Bloomfield. "Romney won Michigan in the 2008 presidential primary.  He has very strong support here.

Each of the two political specialists puts joblessness atop the list of pressing economic issues.

"With unemployment still high here," Mitchell says, "Michigan voters are going to be looking for the best candidate to turn around the economy and create jobs."

What scares voters

At the university, Professor Towner agrees. "Michigan’s unemployment rate still tops other states at 11 percent," she said after news last Friday of a slight dip in the national rate to  9 percent during October.

"Oakland County voters are also worried about soaring home foreclosures, failing small and medium-sized businesses," adds the assistant professor, who came to OU in 2007 after earning a doctorate from Purdue University in her home state of Indiana. "Michiganders want to hear a realistic plan for creating jobs, jump starting the economy and aiding lower-income and middle-class workers."

The moderators, CNBC correspondents Maria Bartiromo and John Harwood, shouldn't ask about past sexual harassment charges against Herman Cain, Towner believes. "The debate should be about the substantive political issues," she says.

"Your Money, Your Vote," will be televised live on CNBC and streamed at CNBC.com. The Michigan Republican Party invites proposed questions "about jobs, housing, the economy, taxes or your money" via an online form or by tweeting @migop with the hashtag #CNBCdebate.