Schauer, Snyder Campaign To Sway Undecided, Swing Vote Before November Election

DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - With the gubernatorial election just weeks away candidates are in full force attempting to sway the undecided and swing voters to their camp.

The incumbent Republican governor Rick Snyder and his Democratic opponent Mark Schauer spoke to WWJ Newsradio 950 from the campaign trail ... both ready to tell their tale of education.

For months the topic of education and school funding has been a topic that each candidate has campaigned around.

Snyder is more forcefully countering what he calls "the big lie" in his re-election bid — charges that he cut $1 billion in education funding in 2011.

[Snyder talks FEMA and the November election].

His opponent, Democrat Mark Schauer, isn't shying away from the claim even though it's largely based on an outdated legislative fiscal analysis.

Schauer told WWJ listeners that if he's elected as governor, education funding will be one of his top priorities.

[Schauer interview about 1 minute into interview]

"I was in Congress to make sure that when our economy was in crisis - when our auto companies were just about out of business, and by the way I helped rescue the auto industry and saved thousands of jobs, we provided funding to Michigan, to make sure the schools would not have to eliminate teachers and eliminate basic vocational programs that teach our kids," said Schauer.

Whom voters believe — either about the $1 billion figure or, more broadly, the question of whether K-12 schools are adequately funded — could help determine the election. Both sides are airing TV ads featuring retired or current teachers with opposing stances, and the funding debate has overshadowed the candidates' other education policy differences on charter schools, cyber schools and Michigan's embattled K-12 turnaround district.

By giving Schauer the benefit of the doubt and looking just at the bill Snyder signed as a snapshot, the education cut was $701 million — still below the $1.1 billion-plus figure used in Democratic ads. According to a Senate Fiscal Agency document, there were $930 million in "ongoing" cuts to K-12 before $455 million in "one-time" spending was added in.

With the $1 billion number in question, Schauer's campaign argues that Snyder also "cut" available money from a fund that traditionally would have gone to K-12 districts and signed a business tax cut that deprived the fund of revenue. Snyder has transferred some general fund revenue to K-12 schools in the last four years as well.

While state K-12 spending is up under Snyder, it largely has helped to meet growing unfunded retirement liabilities from the 2008-09 market collapse and a 2010 early retirement incentive for school employees. Snyder also pumped new money into a state program to help low-income families afford preschool.

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