Granholm is ready to tackle her agenda; Newly Democratic House should make work easier

BYLINE: Charlie Cain and Mark Hornbeck

Michiganians would get fatter college scholarships for their kids, have an easier time voting and gain greater access to health care coverage in the coming months under the agenda set out Wednesday by Gov. Jennifer Granholm.

And her ideas are sure to get a warmer legislative reception in the next two years than over the past four, because Democrats seized control of the House in this week's election and gnawed into Republicans' Senate margin.

The Democratic agenda moves front and center after Granholm's easier-than-expected win over Dick DeVos.

"The Senate needs to understand that the people have voted for a government that's going to fight for all Michigan's citizens," Granholm said at an IHOP in Detroit, the morning after her 56-42 percent triumph over Republican businessman DeVos.

"The Senate is going to have to follow through on what the people expressed."

Items topping her agend A: ¥ Increasing state scholarships from $2,500 to $4,000 for all students who compete two years of college or trade school. The Senate already approved this plan; she intends to win House passage by December.

¥ Universal basic health care insurance for the 1.1 million Michigan residents who are uninsured. The ambitious plan unveiled in her State of the State address nearly a year ago relies on getting a federal waiver.

¥ Reforms in election law to permit Election Day registration, no-reason absentee voting and other changes to make it easier for Michiganians to vote. Republicans have balked at these reforms because -- as illustrated in Tuesday's record 3.8 million midterm election turnout -- higher turnout generally benefits Democrats.

¥ Replacing the $2 billion Single Business Tax, scheduled to expire in a year, with a plan that broadens and shifts business levies and raises the same amount of revenue as the SBT, which is the state's main corporate tax.

She may reintroduce a plan shot down by legislative Republicans more than a year ago that would cut the tax rate, close loopholes and increase taxes on insurance and other service businesses.

¥ Continuing to implement her 21st Century Jobs Fund, a multiyear $2 billion public-private venture designed to lure emerging advanced technology businesses to diversify Michigan's economy. Granholm said the fledgling fund has already produced jobs and promises to grow. This is her main economic development strategy.

¥ Lifting state restrictions on embryonic stem cell research, which, advocates say, holds the promise of finding cures for debilitating diseases. Michigan has the strictest ban on such research in the nation. Some lawmakers have shied away from easing the ban because they see it as a destruction-of-life issue.

¥ Boosting fees on landfill trash disposal in an effort to make the state less attractive as a place for Canada to dump its waste. While Granholm is on board with this plan, it's mainly a Democratic legislative initiative that has been blocked by Republicans for a couple of years.

While the governor should have an easier time winning approval for her programs, she also faces increased expectations for her second term. It may not be so easy to meet them, said Craig Ruff, senior fellow from Public Sector Consultants Inc. of Lansing.

"Any governor would rather have control of one house than none," he said Wednesday. "But the fact that Democrats will soon control the House may well complicate her task of winning approval for her issues."

He noted that some of the newly elected House Democrats are in marginally Republican districts, so they'll be hesitant to swallow some Democratic ideas wholesale. They know they're vulnerable and won't want to be cast as tax-and-spend liberals for the next election in two years.

While Granholm may have to walk a careful line with her new Democratic majority in the House, she'll also have to put more time and effort into dealing one-on-one with legislative leaders. She drew criticism for pointing a finger of blame at Republican lawmakers during the last four years, but doing little to bridge the differences.

"When she came in, she saw a Republican majority and, after a few faint-hearted tries at getting engaged, she decided she didn't like it," said outgoing Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema, R-Wyoming.

"She has to engage with legislators on a regular basis, and she has to do that now. The government in Michigan in the next two years is going to be a centrist majority."

Against this complicated backdrop, Granholm is still strapped with a state with the nation's second highest unemployment rate, and a linchpin industry -- auto manufacturing -- that is mired in a global battle for survival.

As a result, state budget woes will continue. Granholm and lawmakers already have approved budget cuts, tax and fee hikes and accounting moves that have erased $4 billion in cumulative deficits over four years.

"The Legislature and the governor have to make a fundamental decision right away: Are we going to work together to solve these problems or are we going to engage in partisan warfare, which means gridlock?" Sikkema said. "It would be a serious mistake to do the latter."

Governor's race

5,681 of 5,681 precincts -- 100 percent

x-J. Granholm, D, (i) 2,139,839 -- 56 percent

Dick DeVos, R, 1,606,058 -- 42 percent

Gregory Creswell, Lib., 23,493 -- 1 percent

Douglas Campbell, Green, 19,989 -- 1 percent

Bhagwan Dashairya, UST, 7,070 -- 0 percent

Source: Associated Press