By Lindsey Smith, Michigan Public Radio Network
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wkar/local-wkar-915011.mp3
Grand Haven, MI – Republican Congressman Pete Hoekstra is looking to trade 18 years of seniority in Washington for a new job at the state capitol trying to find solutions for Michigan's problems. First, he has to convince Republican voters that he should be their candidate for governor.
AUDIO:
On a hot, muggy July afternoon, you might be forgiven for not knowing the guy handing out sizzling hot dogs and soft drinks is a veteran member of Congress and an expert on foreign policy and intelligence.
"You looking for another hot dog?" Hoesktra asks.
Pete Hoekstra sports a string of green party beads over a Hawaiian shirt with a dozen smiling Toucans. He's been working the outdoor food stand and chatting with customers about their jobs, kids, and thoughts on the state's future.
"I'm running for governor but if you want a Coke I'll go get it for you," Hoesktra insists. "If you want a hot dog I'll go get it for you - hey how are you? I'll pick up your garbage..."
The owners of this corner gas station in Grand Haven suggested the shift at their customer appreciation day as part of Hoekstra's campaign to work 100 different jobs. He's on number 53. He says it's helped him better understand the people in the state he wants to lead.
Tom Glockzin is one impressed by the effort - considering Hoekstra is, after all, a politician.
"Well, look what he's doing right now," Glockzin says. "You know he's not afraid to come out and talk to the people, he's a people person instead of hiding behind a desk."
Hoekstra's primary opponents have called him out for missing congressional votes while he campaigns for governor in Michigan. Hoekstra says the missed roll calls were primarily procedural matters. He says it also shows his values are where they belong.
"The future for Michigan doesn't begin in Washington, it doesn't begin in Lansing, it doesn't begin with the governor," he says. "It begins with creating opportunity for the people of Michigan and then we will be amazed by what they can do. It's the lessons I learned at Herman Miller. You just apply them to the state."
Herman Miller is the office furniture company where Hoekstra was an executive until he staged a surprise upset of a long-time Republican incumbent to win a House seat. Hoekstra rode his bike across the west Michigan lakeshore district to meet people and convince them their congressman had grown out of touch. When he got to Washington, Hoekstra slept on his office couch. Dutch frugality, he says, but it also shows he never intended to make Washington his career. He chaired influential congressional panels, and is currently the ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee. Hoekstra says it's been a phenomenal job, but 18 years is enough. Now, he thinks he has what Lansing needs most.
"Someone who has a vision that says, we're going to get government out of the way and we're going to turn this state back over to the people," Hoekstra explains. "I think that kind of leadership and that kind of vision for the state provides the framework for this state to come back."
That framework includes less regulation and a more business-friendly tax code. He feels government should stop picking winners and losers with tax incentives.
"This state hands out a set of tax breaks, it's the other small businesses in the state that pick up the cost," Hoekstra says.
Like the other Republicans, Hoekstra courts the Tea Party movement. He is a founding member of the new Congressional Tea Party Caucus. He's also been endorsed by the Teamsters, largely for his work to lift federal supervision of the union.
Back at the party in Grand Haven, Hoekstra helps the crew pack up before loading into his 1992 Winnebago campaign van. If he secures his party's nomination next month, he'll continue the 100 jobs campaign with hopes that voters will make Michigan governor his one-hundred and first.