New gubernatorial candidate tours the U.P.

A new gubernatorial candidate is throwing his hat into the race and making his way through the U.P. to gather support.

Mark Schauer currently resides in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing the 7th district in Southern Michigan. His track record in Congress indicates a strong showing for the auto industry and a focus on the middle class and education; a platform Schauer hopes to replicate throughout Michigan.

“We’re going in the wrong direction. I’ve always felt, from my background running programs like Head Start, that the first thing we need to do is make sure we have a strong system of public education. We need to recommit to public education and make sure every school, whether it’s in a rural or a city or wherever, is an excellent school and that we restore cuts to universities,” noted Schauer, who currently lives in Battle Creek.

Schauer’s wife is a Negaunee native. He had a chance to meet with some of the people in her hometown and talk about some of the issues they have with the policies put in place by the current administration.

“One of the things I’m hearing here and I hear everywhere I go is this pension tax. These are retirees that are living on a fixed income. They earned this pension. It was promised to them and now they’re paying a state income tax on it. It’s really hurting people and again it’s hurting our economy by taking money out of people’s pockets,” Schauer added.

Schauer continues his gubernatorial trip throughout the weekend with stops in Iron Mountain and Houghton.