Michigan chooses a new governor next year, and a number of candidates have already stepped into the race. One of them is Democrat William Cobbs. Cobbs is the former global vice president for Xerox, and is a veteran of the United States Navy.
Cobbs says he’s “ready to lead this Michigan revival.” He says the way public policy is being crafted in Michigan isn’t benefiting the state’s residents. He also says Michigan’s struggles in areas like public education have fostered hopelessness among children.
“Young people today don’t have hope. They don’t see a pathway to something else for themselves, so they default to what’s easy,” Cobbs said. “I want to create the opportunity for them to have dreams that they can actually realize.”
Cobbs has never held elected office and made his career as a businessman, though he says business is what he did to support his family and it doesn’t characterize him as a person, or how he would lead were he to be elected governor.
Cobbs discussed his views on issues ranging from what he sees as the state’s responsibility to care for those affected by Flint’s water crisis, to government ethics and transparency.
Among the most important issues he plans to address, he lists education reform, infrastructure, tax reform and environmental policy.
Listen to the entire conversation with William Cobbs above.
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