Infighting in the crowded, chaotic Republican gubernatorial race is already well underway as candidates in the 13-way primary are settling into the fact that they will have to go through each other in order to be on the ballot in November.
This week, veteran Michigan reporter Tim Skubick dedicated an entire segment on WLAJ ABC to walking through two major proof points that the gloves are coming off ahead of the August primary.
Read key excerpts below and WATCH the full clip here.
First, Tim Skubick Brought Attention to “Simply Unelectable,” the Ad Produced by a PAC Supporting Tudor Dixon That Highlight’s Kevin Rinke’s Multiple Workplace Harassment Lawsuits.
TIM SKUBICK: A group known as [Michigan Strong] is swiping at former car guy Kevin Rinke for being an alleged liberal and for facing and settling some lawsuits around alleged workplace misconduct, charges that the candidate dismisses as false.
KEVIN RINKE: The accusations were not true then and they’re not true today.
SKUBICK: The ad goes on to say that Mr. Rinke’s problems are making him a sitting duck for attacks from Gretchen Whitmer, the Democratic incumbent. […]
Late last year, The Detroit News released a report detailing the toxic workplace environment gubernatorial candidate Kevin Rinke created and maintained. According to court records, working for the Toyota car salesman was a deeply uncomfortable experience because Rinke “believed he could get away with anything.”
Rinke was sued multiple times by employees, who said he asked a female employee if she was wearing matching underwear, made lewd sexual gestures, employed “relentless racial slurs,” and even made sexually suggestive comments about infants. The constant barrage of offensive comments and racist language pushed employees to quit and cost Rinke thousands in settlement fees.
Then Skubick Focused on James Craig’s Accusations That Both Rinke and Perry Johnson, the Multimillionaire Self-Funders, Were Attempting to Buy Their Support.
SKUBICK: Meanwhile, Republican candidate and former Detroit police chief James Craig is taking a shot or two at two millionaires in the primary contest. Republican Perry Johnson has ponied up $1.5 million for an ad campaign, and the aforementioned Mr. Rinke is shelling out $2 million of his money as part of a $10 million personal pledge for the race. For his part, former police chief and candidate James Craig has this to say about the millionaires in the race: “People respect candidates who put in the work to earn, not buy their vote. As for the political pundits doing their punditry, I’ll be speaking directly with Michiganders to earn their support.”
Meanwhile, supporters of the Democratic governor Gretchen Whitmer must love all this back and forth, Republicans fighting each other instead of fighting her. They’ll eventually get around to taking on Mrs. Whitmer, but right now, it appears they’re taking on each other.
MDP spokesperson Rodericka Applewhaite issued the following statement:
“When you have 13 candidates all vying for the same seat, it’s bound to get messy. This week, Tudor Dixon and James Craig made some moves to break away from the bloated pack, but at the end of the day it won’t be enough. That’s because they share the same extreme agendas with those they deem unelectable and too out-of-touch to earn the support of real Michiganders. While the Republicans remained consumed by desperate infighting, Governor Whitmer spent the week unveiling her state budget that prioritized ongoing efforts to fix the damn roads and other common sense initiatives to keep working families first.”
