Michigan's Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson joined "Forbes Newsroom" to discuss the article of impeachment brought against her a Michigan Representative.
00:00And secretary, before I let you go, I just want to ask you two questions about recent news about your campaign.
00:07Michigan's attorney general found that you violated the state's campaign finance law over holding a press conference announcing your campaign from the lobby of a state government building.
00:17What's your reaction to that?
00:18Well, I'm glad that matter has been resolved, but essentially I was I was dropping off my candidate paperwork as a candidate, which we have to do in that building.
00:26And I was happy to answer questions from the press as I did it.
00:29So we respect her new interpretation of the law in that regard and grateful that it's been resolved.
00:34And now I'm continuing to move on and focus on building a strong statewide campaign that will be poised to win next November.
00:41And earlier this week, a Republican in the state, Michigan Representative Jim DeSanna, introduced articles of impeachment against you.
00:48You were accused of, quote, corrupt conduct, constitutional violations and a repeated abuse of power.
00:53What's your reaction to the news?
00:55I'm focused on delivering results to the people of Michigan not engaging in political games that are designed to gain headlines and attention for folks who otherwise should be going to work every day to live, work and thrive in our state.
01:12So I'm going to be focused on working with folks across the aisle to respect the rule of law, follow the Constitution and protect the voices and votes of every resident of the state.
01:20And I hope lawmakers will get to work doing the same.
01:23And, Secretary, I know you said at the beginning of this conversation there's a long road ahead.
01:27It's a year long away from the election.
01:29I mean, what specifically are you doing next in this race?
01:33Well, I'm a marathoner and I've run over 35 marathons throughout my running career.
01:38And so every step of the way, we're working to build a strong foundation, not just to win this campaign, but to govern well as well.
01:44Also, to make sure we're delivering results, developing a plan to make our schools the top 10 in the nation, to work with business leaders, small, large, medium and everyone in between to build a plan so that people in Michigan can thrive.
01:59We're keeping our talent here in our state, and we're making Michigan the best place to be a kid and raise a kid and call home.
02:05So I'm traveling the state and have continued to do that throughout this campaign, talking to people, hearing about how they need affordable housing, how they need to be able to afford child care, and how they shouldn't have to choose between paying their electricity bill and buying groceries.
02:19Those are the problems that the people of Michigan really need their government leaders to solve for them.
02:24And as governor, that's what I'll be dedicated to doing.
02:26Secretary Jocelyn Benson, thank you so much for joining me.
