Off the Record

The University of Michigan Press

Contents

Foreword..............................................................ixAcknowledgments.......................................................xi1. A Granholm Wake-up Call............................................12. The Mauling in Marquette...........................................333. The 2002 Governor's Race...........................................524. Exclusive Interviews...............................................835. The Bumpy Romney-Milliken Transition...............................1126. The Even Bumpier Milliken-Blanchard Transition.....................1357. Debates Are Where It's At..........................................1538. The Reluctant Governor: Jennifer Who?..............................1759. First Ladies.......................................................19310. The Great Tax Debate..............................................21411. Pop Quiz..........................................................22912. The John Engler You Never Knew....................................23813. Lieutenant Governor...............................................26114. Upset Victories...................................................28215. Tough Decisions and Bad Choices...................................29516. Mr. Show Business.................................................32317. The Presidents of MSU.............................................33618. Class Clowns, Characters and Class Acts...........................35519. Good Ole Girls....................................................39620. Leave 'Em Laughing................................................412

Chapter One

The candidate turned champion was engulfed by a sea of humanity as the spontaneous victory celebration reached a fever pitch in a downtown Detroit hotel. The center of attention had just captured the Democratic nomination for governor, and the joint was rockin'.

Jennifer Mulhern Granholm had just done what no other woman in state history had ever accomplished-she had won a major party's nomination for governor. The primary victory ended phase one of what she affectionately labeled, "The longest job interview of my life."

After shaking as many hands and exchanging as many hugs as she could, her campaign entourage whisked her away. Safely away from the maddening crowd, an exhausted Jennifer Granholm leaned against the back of the dingy freight elevator as the closing door shut her off from the pandemonium. She exclaimed, "That was crazy. I want a Strohs!"

Who said she didn't have Michigan values?

A long and arduous sojourn ended that warm August night some 18 months after it began on March 6, 2001 ... with a phone call from me. I dialed the private number of the Granholm residence in Northville, just outside of Motown. It was 7:30 A.M. I was ready to break a huge political story. She and I needed to talk.

After three or four rings somebody picked up the receiver. "Hello," said the female voice on the other end of the line. It was State Attorney General Jennifer Granholm. I was in luck or so I hoped.

"Madam attorney general, this is Tim Skubick in Lansing. How are you?"

She blurted out, "I've got to get this number changed," and then she laughed. She probably did not remember giving me the number after taking office in 1998. There is an unwritten rule about using private phone numbers: Never abuse it, but use if it you have to. I had to. The story I was working on was very important to Ms. Granholm.

It was March 6, 2001 and speculation was approaching critical mass that Ms. Granholm wanted to exchange that title for something with a little more pop ... governor. Everyone pretty much knew she would go for it, but nobody knew where or when.

I did.

"Ms. Granholm, I want to give you a heads up. In about half an hour, I'm going to air a story on WWJ Newsradio 950 that you are running for governor and you will make the formal announcement in about three weeks." There was a cold silence on the other end of the line that lasted for at least a minute.

Finally, and calmly, she spoke: "Where did you get that information?" She was thinking there was a leak in her organization and long afterward she told me, "Not that I thought you would tell me, mind you."

Coming from an attorney and a savvy politician it was not an unexpected dodge and exactly the right retort. "I can't tell you, but I'm very comfortable with the information," I returned the dodge. (I'm comfortable enough to risk my credibility by blasting it all over southeast Michigan during morning drive time. Then I would follow it up with an in-depth commentary in my weekly political column in the Lansing State Journal and make it the lead story on our Off the Record public TV program that Friday.)

She did not want me on the line. Like any potential candidate she wanted to control every aspect of her candidacy-including when to announce it. Delaying that proclamation allows the candidate to gobble up free media as the press speculates day after day about the impending statement. That in turn creates a crescendo of public anticipation, which produces a bigger audience for announcement day. However, once her hat is in the ring, the media is obliged to take everything she says and seek reaction from her opponents. That gives them free time, which she doesn't want. As long as she is a non-candidate, she could use her office to stage news conferences all over the state. She was getting a ton of free media doing that, and here I was with a story that would change all that.

The phone conversation was at a critical point. The way I figured, she had several options: Wish me well and hang up the phone. Not wish me well and still hang up. Play along to see if I was bluffing or help me out.

Had it been Governor John Engler, he would have given me a sardonic laugh and click. In covering Engler for three decades, he never once confirmed an exclusive story and never came close to even whispering one in my ear. Former Governor William Milliken would have been reluctant to confirm the story but would not have hung up, and ex-Governor Jim Blanchard and I would have worked out a deal whereby I'd protect him and he'd give me the inside skinny.

Granholm did what I hoped she'd do. She easily took me into her confidence. But it wouldn't have happened if there wasn't some trust there. The only way to move inside this political game and be somewhat successful is to establish that bond and instill a sense of fair play with the persons you cover. It is not done overnight. Like any human relationship it takes time.

Lansing is a very small town where word gets around real fast. If some reporter is perceived as "out to get" some politician, the journalist will have a tough time getting anyone to talk, let alone giving guidance on a critical story. That doesn't mean you have to be a wimp to survive, but it does mean you have to be fair.

I think I sort of apologized for having to bother her at that early morning hour and then I asked some questions to make sure I had the story right. She told me the date I had written was wrong and then promptly gave me the right one. I read smidgens of my column to her. She made some minor suggestions. Fact is she was under no obligation to do it.

Here's what she was thinking during the give and take. First, she wanted to make sure I was not...