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The Real Economy

Michiganders on the economy and the election

Jeremy Hobson Feb 22, 2012

Jeremy Hobson: Well here in Michigan, voters are getting to know a lot about the Republican presidential candidates. In one short commercial break here last night, I saw a Romney ad, a Santorum ad, a Romney super PAC ad.

How are Michiganders feeling about the economy and the election? Well, we ventured out into the streets of Ann Arbor to ask them.

Hobson: Let me just get your name.

Monica Lovell: Monica Lovell.

Hobson: And what do you do here?

Lovell: I’m a shift supervisor at a Bagel shop.

Hobson: So, how do you feel about the economy right now?

Lovell: I think the economy’s been crap for a long time, I just think that people are really starting to pay attention.

Hobson: Are you following the election?

Lovell: I am.

Hobson: And what are you thinking at this point?

Lovell: I think that the Republican party is in a world of mess right now. They don’t have a good candidate, and my vote’s going to Obama. You know, he wasn’t given a great chance to begin with.

*******

Hobson: Can I get your name?

Vincent Patsy: Vincent Patsy.

Hobson: What do you do here in Ann Arbor?

Patsy: I work at 7-11.

Hobson: And how long have you worked there?

Patsy: Six months.

Hobson: What were you doing before that?

Patsy: I was unemployed. I moved back in with my parents after graduating from the university.

Hobson: How are you feeling about the economy now? You’ve been employed for the last six months…

Patsy: Oh, it’s going to get much worse when the government debt bubble explodes.

Hobson: So what are you thinking about this election?

Patsy: I’m a Ron Paul supporter.

Hobson: What do you think he’ll be able to do?

Patsy: End the foreign wars. That’s where a lot of our budget’s going right now — about $1 trillion overseas are spent on foreign wars. All the other candidates have basically the same foreign policy. But the thing is, they’re not going to attract Ron Paul supporters, they just aren’t. They don’t get it.

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