quality of public school education and
mental health services, curb the power
of health maintenance organizations
and lessen the tax burden on middle-
income families.
The lone Republican contender
against Engler, Dr. Gary Artinian,
said he opposes both abortion and
physician-assisted suicide, but like
the other candidates, is opposed to a
school voucher system that would
allow parents to send their children
to private schools — including
Jewish day schools and yeshivot —
with public tax dollars.
Owen framed the voucher issue
this way:
"The people who support vouch-
Above: Larry Owen,
Democratic candidate
for governor.
Right: Candidates for
the state House of
Representatives and
state Senate in the 39th
and 15th districts,
respectively. From left,
state Sen. Willis
Bullard, senatorial can-
didate Barbara Dobb,
state House candidates
Henry Leeds, Debbie
Schlussel and Margaret
Scott, Lois Shulman
(wife of House candi-
date Marc Shulman)
and House candidate
Ron Wolf
Issues included
abortion, taxes,
school vouchers
and health care.
ers are not conservatives. They are
radicals. [School vouchers] will
destroy the one institution that is
the consistent glue of this society."
Schwartz remarked that vouchers
would lead to a "class system in this
country that is horrible to think of.",
The question of taxation elicited a
variety of responses from the guber-
natorial hopefuls. Artinian, a cardiol-
ogist, proposed a property tax freeze
for senior citizens, kindly attributing
the idea to Ross. Owen proposed the
same freeze, only until the death of
the homeowner or the sale of the
house. He also proposed that mid-
dle-income taxpayers receive a
$1,000 tax cut.
With the exception of Artinian,
the candidates endorse curbing the
power of health maintenance organi-
zations to limit people's choice of a
physician. Ross proposed a patient
bill of rights that would allow free
choice of doctors and to allow
patients to sue HMOs if coverage for
a needed procedure is
denied.
In the closing
remarks of the candi-
dates, Schwartz corn-
pared Fieger to Harry
Truman and suggested
that in a "two-man"
race, Fieger would tri-
umph over Owen. Ross's
comment that Fieger "is
no Harry Truman" and
his assertion that the
campaign for governor is
a three-man race elicited
the only hearty applause
from the audience all
evening.
The second part of
the forum, in which
state Senate and House
candidates shared the
stage, featured a few
uncomfortable
moments, most of them
when Lois Shulman
deferred questions to
her absent candidate husband Marc.
The candidates — State Sen.
Willis Bullard and his opponent,
State Rep. Barbara Dobb, and
Republicans Henry Leeds, Margaret
Scott and Ron Wolf, who are run-
ning for a state House seat in the
39th district — also answered pre-
pared questions and written ques-
tions by the audience on the same
issues posed to gubernatorial candi-
dates.
Dobb, a moderate Republican
who decided to run against a long-
time incumbent because state law
bars her from seeking another term
in the House, ripped Bullard for his
alignment with Right to Life forces
that oppose abortion. Holding a flier
from Bullard's campaign that features
a photograph of a baby, Dobbs
lashed out at her fellow Republican's
political ties.
Bullard replied that he twice sup-
ported a proposed ban on partial-
birth abortions.
Scott, Leeds and Wolf are all
social moderates, supporting freedom
of reproductive choice and the need
to support public school education.
Scott, an assistant prosecutor in
Oakland County who is making her
first bid for elective office, noted that
Schlussel and Shulman are both
against abortion.
"Marc Shulman signed away his
campaign to Right to Life," she
announced. "Debbie Schlussel had to
sign away her campaign to Right to
Life in 1990." Schlussel ran for the
same seat against Dobb eight years
ago, losing by one vote.
Lois Shulman initially retreated
from answering a question about her
husband's wavering position on abor-
tion, but finally replied, "Marc is
pro-life and I am pro-choice and
we've been married for 20 years."
All the candidates said they sup-
port better delivery of mental health
services, oppose prayer in school and
oppose school vouchers; Scott assert-
ed that Shulman and Schlussel sup-
port vouchers and tax credits.
Lois Shulman said her husband
supports "giving parents more choic-
es."
The forum was sponsored by The
Jewish News, Jewish Community
Council of Metropolitan Detroit,
National Council of Jewish Women,
Institute of Retired Professionals of
the Jewish Community Center,
Hadassah and Temple Shir Shalom. ❑
7131
1998
Detroit Jewish News 11