Gary Peters (Michigan politician)

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Gary Peters (born December 1, 1958[1] ) is a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. He is a former Democratic member of the Michigan State Senate from the 14th Senate District. In 2007 he resigned as Michigan Lottery Commissioner in order to face U.S. Representative Joe Knollenberg in Michigan's 9th congressional district. He is also a political science professor at Central Michigan University.

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[edit] Biography

Peters was born and raised in Oakland County. He is married to Colleen Ochoa and has three children: Gary, Jr., Madeleine and Alana. They reside in Bloomfield Township.[2]

[edit] Education

He graduated from Alma College in 1980 and received a master of business administration degree from the University of Detroit in 1984. Peters also holds a degree from the Wayne State University Law School.

[edit] Military service

Gary served as a Lieutenant Commander and a Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist in the United States Navy Reserve.

His reserve duty included time in the Persian Gulf supporting Operation Southern Watch, and he served overseas during increased military activity following the September 11, 2001 attacks.

During his service he received numerous awards and citations, including the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal and the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal.

[edit] Professional

Peters has taught finance at Wayne State and strategic management and business policy courses at Oakland University.

He has also served as a senior policy and financial analyst for the Michigan Department of Treasury and was a financial manager at Merrill Lynch. He also has served on arbitration panels for the National Association of Securities Dealers and the New York Stock Exchange.

Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm appointed Peters as the Michigan Lottery commissioner on April 9, 2003. As lottery commissioner, Peters helped to implement new games and more efficient methods of delivering products. In Michigan, the lottery is designed to provide financial support to K-12 public education.

In 2007, Peters became the third Robert and Marjorie Griffin Endowed Chairman in American Government at Central Michigan University.

[edit] Political career

[edit] Michigan Senate

In November 1994, Peters was elected to the state senate to represent the Oakland County-based 14th District. He was re-elected in 1998 and served until 2002, when he retired due to term limits. The district is one of the most diverse state Senate districts -- containing nearly every racial, ethnic and religious group in Michigan. It also includes areas of great wealth and great poverty.

He served as the vice chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and was a member of the Education, Judiciary and Families Committee and the Mental Health and Human Services Committee.[3]

Peters was chosen by his Democratic colleagues to chair his party's caucus. He was also a member of the Michigan Lew Revision Commission and served on the Michigan Sentencing Commission.[3]

As a legislator, Peters was able to lead many successful legislative battles. He led an effort to ban directional slant oil drilling in the Great Lakes. Both the Michigan State House of Representatives and the Senate passed a bill sponsored by Peters which banned any new wells under the state waters of the Great Lakes except in case of a state energy emergency. The bill passed into law without the signature of Governor John Engler.[4] Peters also was known for his support of law enforcement initiatives. After he spoke with law officers about the extreme degree of danger an office can encounter when facing a criminal equipped with body armor, Peters helped usher through a bill that led to the criminalization of the possession of body armor by convicted felons. Peters also wrote a bill that was the initial establishment of penalties for false threats of chemical and biological weapons, which became law before the September 11, 2001 attacks.[3]

[edit] 2002 election

In his final year as a member of the Michigan Senate, Peters was both a candidate for governor and later Attorney General. As the Democratic nominee for attorney general, he lost to Republican Mike Cox. The margin in the race was close, with Peters coming within 5,200 votes -- less than a 0.17 percent margin.[5][6] Peters decided not to contest the election results despite reported irregularities. Several mistakes were reportedly found during analysis, including a precinct in Dearborn which recorded Peters with 96 votes when he actually had 396. The race was the closest statewide contest in Michigan since the 1950 governor's race.[7]

[edit] 2008 election

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On August 7, 2007, Peters ended months of speculation by formally announcing he would run against Joe Knollenberg for his congressional seat. Knollenberg is in his eighth term after winning re-election in 2006.

National Democratsand local pundits consider Peters to be a strong candidate. Knollenberg is considered vulnerable, as he faced a tough challenge in 2006 from a poorly-funded and little-known opponent and radio personality Nancy Skinner

Knollenberg's opponents in 2002 and 2004 performed significantly below the Democratic base in the 9th District. In the 2002 state attorney general race, Peters performed at or above the Democratic base in 72 percent of the 9th District precincts. In his 1998 state Senate campaign, he performed at or above base in 99 percent of the precincts.[8]

In 2008, Knollenberg will be targeted for defeat by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

[edit] Central Michigan University controversy

Peters was hired in April 2007 as the Griffin endowed chairman in American government at Central Michigan University, a position that requires him to teach one, three-hour class a week and organize one public policy-related forum a semester through the 2009-2010 academic year. He is receiving a salary of $65,000 for his work as a professor. [9] [10] [11]

His hiring has been criticized by some students along with the campus chapter of Young Americans for Freedom and by CMU alumnus and Michigan House of Representatives Minority Leader Craig DeRoche, a Republican who served as speaker until January 2007, because they feel Peters will "sacrifice the education of students" by running for Congress instead of concentrating on teaching students. [12] [13] DeRoche's criticism has been echoed by other Republicans including state Representatives Jack Hoogendyk, Kevin Green and Rick Jones. [14] [15] [16] There have also been questions about conflicts of interest, as he will be expected to answer questions relating to Knollenberg and Republicans in his class on Michigan politics. [17] [18] [19]

The controversy continued when school administrators banned students from videotaping Peters on campus, which resulted in a threat of legal action by the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, who declared the ban unconstitutional. [20] [21] [22] [23] CMU also took action against a student who passed out handbills critical of Peters, threatening him with expulsion. [24] [25] [26] [27]

CMU said it met with Peters before the fall 2007 semester on how his congressional campaign his impact the professorship. There are also published reports indicating the school would hold additional meetings to reevaluate Peters over the holiday break before classes resume in January 2008. [28] [29]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Biographical sketch. Michigan Manual, 1999-2000 166. Retrieved on 2007-10-14.
  2. ^ The Michigan State Bar Journal. Gary Peters: A legal education put to many uses. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
  3. ^ a b c Biographies of Commission Members and Staff. Michigan Law Revision Commission Thirty-first Annual Report, 1996. West Publishing Company. Retrieved on 2007-10-14.
  4. ^ Oakland Press. Local News Septermber 1, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
  5. ^ New York Times. National Briefing Michigan: Candidate Won't Seek Recount. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
  6. ^ 2002 Attorney General Election Results. U.S. Election Atlas. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
  7. ^ The State News. Peters won't request for election recount. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
  8. ^ Swing State Project. 9th District. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
  9. ^ Peters to earn hefty salary
  10. ^ Longtime Democratic politician to teach students
  11. ^ Gary Peters appointment
  12. ^ Local Saginaw Area News - The Saginaw News - MLive.com
  13. ^ State's top legislators come for Griffin Forum - News
  14. ^ Politicians question Peters' commitment - News
  15. ^ Economic forum fills Park Library - News
  16. ^ Core Principles: Dennis Lennox must be on to something
  17. ^ Midland Daily News - Peters, under fire at CMU, seeking House seat
  18. ^ Gary Peters fiasco | The Valley Vanguard
  19. ^ FOXNews.com - Student Attempts to Force Congressional Candidate Out of Teaching Job - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News
  20. ^ American Civil Liberties Union : University’s Absolute Ban on Videotaping Without Permission is Unconstitutional, Says ACLU of Michigan
  21. ^ The Morning Sun
  22. ^ Midland Daily News - ACLU calls for end to video ban
  23. ^ Traverse City Record-Eagle - Michigan in Brief: 11/28/2007
  24. ^ Lansing State Journal: From City Hall to campuses, free speech creates tension
  25. ^ Expulsion possible for anti-Peters student - The Saginaw News - MLive.com
  26. ^ CMU student could face expulsion in quest to remove endowed professor- mlive.com
  27. ^ Lennox could face expulsion - News
  28. ^ Midland Daily News - Confident Peters to talk with CMU deans about job, candidacy
  29. ^ CMU leaders raised questions about Peters

[edit] External links