Tom Keller tuned in and kept a running diary of his impressions of the gubernatorial debate.
8 p.m. — In his opening comments, moderator Tim Skubick says of the night's debate, "There are no rules." I excitedly contemplate the possibilities. Blows below the belt? Metal chairs to the head?
8:02 — Both candidates bemoan the negative tone of this season's campaign ads, then spend several minutes explaining why the other candidate is a creep. And people wonder why our generation is reluctant to get into politics.
8:07 — We've just spent five minutes debating whether or not Granholm visited someone I've never heard of while she was in Japan. So far, on a scale of zero to relevant, this debate is a minus-12.
8:11 — Granholm says Michigan is struggling economically because it's the nation's foremost automotive state but never explains why. She then says her main focus is diversifying the state's economy. If my parents worked in the auto industry, I wouldn't be feeling too good right now.
8:17 — In an appeal to the Michiganian in all of us, Granholm uses her hand to point out where the small town of Greenville is. All she's got to do now is slip on a Steve Yzerman jersey and start sipping some Vernors ginger ale.
8:20 — Granholm calls DeVos "the poster child for how to manipulate levels of government in Washington." Oh, snap! I half expect DeVos to fire back with, "Oh yeah? Well, at least I'm not a Florence Henderson-looking Canuck! U-S-A! U-S-A!"
8:44 — DeVos is accused by Granholm of not disclosing his investment in a nursing home chain that allegedly abused Alzheimer's patients. He calls it "a bad investment." When Granholm asks if he had 12 million shares of the company's stock, he says he doesn't know. What a nice problem to have.
8:51 — DeVos is asked, on a scale of one to 10, how much his wife affects his political decisions. He dances around the question without giving a number, probably in fear of sleeping on the couch for a week. On the bright side, his head has been tilted to the left for almost an entire hour now. I'm impressed.
8:54 — In her closing remarks, Granholm says, "His gain has been Michigan's pain." DeVos counters with the less poetic, "I want you to hire me." I'm not sold on either of them yet, but I'll definitely be watching the next debate on Oct. 10. Maybe they'll pull out the metal chairs then.
Tom Keller, State News sports editor, can be reached at kellert1@msu.edu.
