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Michigan’s three leading Republican candidates for governor traded jabs at one another during Wednesday night’s heated primary debate, hurling accusations at opponents battling for an edge less than a month before the primary election.
Criticism was directed at Rep. John James (R-Mich.), who has emerged as a frontrunner in the race after securing President Trump’s endorsement last month.
Former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox and businessman Perry Johnson sought to undercut James’ reputation throughout the debate in a series of sharp exchanges and interruptions.
During one heated back-and-forth, Cox used his rebuttal time to accuse James, whose father started a successful supply chain management company, of benefitting from nepotism and later telling the congressman, “You can talk some rap, but that’s total nonsense.”
Cox also brought up how James had failed to capitalize on Trump’s endorsement power in the past, pointing to his failed Senate bids in 2018 and 2020.
“Perhaps it’s because the last two times he had the president’s endorsement, he squandered it and lost,” Cox said, adding that Michigan Republicans need to nominate “a winner.”
James forcefully pushed back against his opponents, defending his record and business ventures. He turned his attention to Cox’s electoral history.
“The last election that he ran statewide, he came in a distant third place,” he said, pointing to Cox’s previous bid in the 2010 gubernatorial race, where he lost the Republican primary to former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder. “So frankly, we need to own up to reality,” adding that Cox “is a fighter” but “not a winner.”
Michigan Republicans will choose their party’s nominee in the Aug. 4 primary, as candidates look to replace term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D).
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