From left: Republican gubernatorial candidates Tom George, Mike Bouchard, Mike Cox and Pete Hoekstra. Their debate Tuesday at Oakland University was tamer than previous ones. (Elizabeth Conley / The Detroit News)
Rochester -- Republican candidates for governor Tuesday night hashed over issues ranging from immigration and jobs to their own pension benefits.
In the final pre-primary debate, the candidates called for public sector retirement benefits to be pared back to reflect private plans as part of the solution to the state's budget crisis. But when questioned about the value of their own pension plans by moderator Devin Scillian, they hedged on the values.
In the showdown telecast live on WDIV-TV from Oakland University -- the only clash in voter-rich Metro Detroit with three weeks until the Aug. 3 primary -- Attorney General Mike Cox said he has only a 401(k) plan from his government service, but he's not sure of its value.
U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra of Holland said federal employee retirement should be changed to a 401(k) program. But he didn't answer a question about how much he'll get in public retirement for his 18 years in Congress. He said later he's not sure of precise numbers but noted his pension amount is public record.
Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said he's also in a 401(k) from his county. When pressed about the prospective benefits from his separate pension from eight years in the Legislature, Bouchard guessed around $1,500 to $2,000 a month.
State Sen. Tom George of Kalamazoo said he has only a 401(k) and "it has $40,000 in it after 10 years of service."
Compared to previous debates, this one was fairly tame. George, who is far behind in the polls, was the only aggressor, saying often that the other candidates are offering unrealistic -- but politically popular -- plans to cut taxes and increase spending.
"We can't do tax cuts until we do spending cuts to balance our books," he said.
On other issues:
"It's not unreasonable for folks who come to this country to show (documentation) if stopped by police, if it's a reasonable stop," Cox said.
George, who operates a medical clinic, said he's the only candidate who has run a small business. Snyder has led the Gateway computer company and a couple of venture capital companies.
Cox repeatedly referred to the values he received from his immigrant parents and his service in the Marine Corps. "If you want to fight the hill of overspending and overtaxation, get a Marine to charge that hill. I'm your Marine," he said.
Hoekstra said several times that Michigan's turnaround depends on "government getting out of the way," which is a theme of a TV ad his campaign took statewide Tuesday.
Leaders in 3-way tie
The hourlong debate was sponsored by the Michigan Republican Party. It was the third televised matchup sponsored by the party.
Republican Party Chairman Ron Weiser said the debates "accomplished what they were intended to do." He said viewers who watched can make decisions based on policy differences rather than name recognition.
A new poll released Tuesday showed Cox, Hoekstra and Rick Snyder -- who skipped Tuesday's debate in favor of his own town hall session -- locked in a three-way tie.
"The GOP race is up for grabs. Whichever campaign is able to cut through the clutter with a compelling message and turn out its supporters will win. This is an incredibly close race," said Steve Mitchell, president of Mitchell Research. & Communications. Mitchell has been an unpaid adviser to the Cox campaign.
Dillon leads Dems
In the Democratic race, the Mitchell poll of 445 likely Democratic primary voters has House Speaker Andy Dillon with a 20-point lead over Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero, 35 percent to 15 percent. Half of Democratic voters are undecided.
Mitchell said Dillon "has a big lead now because of his early TV buy," but didn't rule out a Bernero victory if he raises enough money to get out the message that he's pro-choice on abortion. The Bernero camp has not started TV ads, but the Genesee County Democratic Party has launched statewide issue ads on his behalf.
The margin of error in the GOP survey is 3.3 percentage points. It's 4.5 percentage points for the Democratic survey.
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