Top '08 Issues in Michigan, Key Battleground State

The economically beleaguered U.S. auto industry, felled by high gas prices, dwindling demands for SUVs and trucks, and the faltering economy, is the primary underlying source of Michigan voters' greatest concerns in 2008, which include:

• Extraordinarily high unemployment, which rose to 8.5% in June 2008
• Lack of health care coverage for unemployed and underemployed workers
• Lack of job training programs for unemployed and underemployed workers
• Soaring home foreclosures that places Michigan among the top ten foreclosure rates of all states
• Failing small and medium-sized businesses dependent on the auto industry

On August 1, Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm "unveiled a $300 million investment fund intended to diversify the state's economy by committing money to startup companies, some troubled businesses and some that will help bolster Michigan's manufacturing base," per the Detroit News.

This new Invest Michigan! program is targeted to attracting businesses in the health care, homeland security, high tech and alternative energy industries.

Such good efforts, though, are long-term plans, not short-term fixes for the economic woes of Michigan voters.

As Michigan voters go to the polls on November 4, 2008, they will vote for the presidential candidate they believe offers the most realistic plan to effectively jump-start their state's economy, and to aid lower-income and middle-class workers in their economic woes.