In a March 25 column, Editorial Page Editor Nancy Kaffer took aim at me with a familiar blend of sarcasm and skepticism. (“Perry Johnson keeps spending big, without learning much,” Detroit Free Press.)
It seems outsider businesspeople who hope to enter public service are sometimes mocked, as if we are somehow inferior to career politicians feeding off the taxpayers.
Michigan voters deserve more than dismissiveness — they deserve bold solutions to solving Michigan’s massive problems.
Let’s start with what Ms. Kaffer gets wrong.
She mocks my background as a “quality guru.” For decades, I have helped companies — including automakers — improve efficiency, eliminate waste and meet the highest standards, through statistical process control, quality standards and audits.
That’s exactly the kind of experience that Michigan government desperately needs. Fraud and waste are plaguing states across the Midwest ― including Michigan ― and we owe it to our taxpayers to uncover it with my MEGA audit.
She criticizes me for investing my own money into my campaigns. I call that independence. I don’t owe anyone anything. I have not yet accepted donations from anyone, and certainly will never be beholden to lobbyists or establishment insiders. I’m accountable only to the people of Michigan.
On the income tax, let’s be clear: Michigan families are overtaxed and people are leaving our state for Florida, Texas and Tennessee.
Yes, my plan to eliminate the state income tax is bold. It is about letting people keep more of what they earn — real money that can go toward groceries, gas, housing, and savings. Yes, it requires serious reform. Yes, we are going to audit the government and make insiders very uncomfortable.
Ms. Kaffer suggests this is unrealistic. I suggest what’s unrealistic is continuing the status quo and expecting different results. We must not accept failure. We must not accept billions of dollars in unemployment fraud, millions wasted on a failed secretary of state website and we must investigate to learn whether the fraud that happened in Minnesota is happening here.
We must demand zero-based budgeting, cut discretionary spending by 2%, and celebrate the economic growth that would come from people flocking here when the income tax is finally eliminated.
Ms. Kaffer also points to my 2022 campaign challenges. Let me be clear: I was a victim of petition fraud. My campaign staff testified against the individuals responsible, and they have since been convicted and sentenced.
(Editor’s note: In 2022, Johnson and four other Republican gubernatorial candidates were disqualified from the ballot after men hired by all five campaigns to circulate their nominating petitions didn’t obtain the legally required number of legitimate signatures.)
When I see a problem, I fix it. That is what I do, and that is what I have done for tens of thousands of companies.
That’s why my 2026 campaign is implementing a first-in-the-nation verification system to ensure the highest quality signatures.
I’m running for governor to bring quality, efficiency, and accountability to state government — to eliminate the income tax, reform property taxes, and restore trust in Lansing.
The political establishment uses ridicule to avoid the necessary discussion on audits, over-taxation and population loss.
But the people of Michigan know better. They tried and failed with career politicians and their small ideas. Now we know it is time for bold solutions that only an outsider businessman can deliver.
Perry Johnson
The writer is a Republican gubernatorial candidate
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Perry Johnson: I’m the only candidate who’ll audit everything | Letter
Reporting by Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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