Mackinac Island Debate

5 of the people hoping to become Michigan’s next governor are trading verbal barbs on Mackinac Island tonight.

The annual Mackinac Policy Conference is hosting a debate.

On the Republican side, state Attorney General Mike Cox has agreed to take part.

So have Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land, state Senator Tom George and Congressman Pete Hoekstra.

Hoekstra visited Marquette and Escanaba yesterday, and you heard from him on the UGN Late News.

State Representative Alma Wheeler Smith is the only Democratic candidate in the debate.

The Mackinac Conference is a fundraiser for the Detroit Area Chamber of Commerce.

It’s not open to the public.

Lieutenant Governor John Cherry is running for the top job next year.

He’s even attending the conference.

But he won’t be in the debate, saying it should be a public event.