Candidate Profile: Toinu Reeves, MI Senate; Detroit

DETROIT — Democrat Toinu Reeves is running for election to the Michigan State Senate to represent District 3, which includes Detroit's east side and Warren. He will face Stephanie Chang in the Democratic primary on Aug. 2.

Name

Toinu Reeves

Campaign website

https://toinu4statesenate.org

City or town of residence

Detroit

Office sought

Michigan State Senate

District, if applicable

3

Party affiliation

Democrat

Education

University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) - PhD candidate in Economics; University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) - Masters in Economics; Wayne State University (Detroit) - graduate Mathematics (non-degree); Dartmouth College (Hanover, NH) - AB in Philosophy and Economics (double-major); Detroit Country Day School (Beverly Hills) - Diploma

Occupation

Univ Michigan (4 years) - PhD Research Economist
Laescient.org (one year) - Founder, Managing Director
Socivisus.org (under one year) - Founder, Managing Director

Family

My father is Liberian, and my mother is Mississippi-born. I grew up on the Eastside of Detroit. I am blessed with both my parents, and we have a very large family of aunts, uncles, and cousins on both sides of the family.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

none

Age

46

Previous public office, appointive or elective

no

Why are you seeking this office?

My background and professional experience, which is as diverse as the district, uniquely allows me to connect with constituency and create the policies that will best serve the community.

I am the son of an immigrant, born, raised, and still living on the Eastside of Detroit educated in the public school system and understand the needs of these communities. In addition to attending University Liggett, I earned scholarships to Detroit Country Day in Oakland County and Dartmouth College. Professionally, I worked as an IT consultant at PriceWaterhouse and founded two startups. I understand the challenges the business community faces. As a third generation union factory worker, I have worked back to back double shifts to pay for my education and know the experience of the working class members in our district.

As a research economist, we are social scientists, who examine all socioeconomic impacts, and policy makers, who design programs like Obamacare, in addition to physicians for the economy, who create policies to control inflation and grow the economy. This unique skill set will allow me to design programs to strengthen the Michigan economy and resolve socioeconomic problems the State faces.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

My background is as diverse as the communities in the district. I have lived my whole life as a member of these communities, and I understand the varied challenges that individuals living in inner-city Detroit, the blue collar working class, and the business class faces. My skill set as a PhD research economist, IT consultant, and startup founder, moreover, empowers me with the capability to create programs that address the needs of the constituency.

If you are challenging an incumbent, in what way has the current officeholder failed the community?

The Eastside of Detroit, which comprises roughly half of the district, has been significantly neglected and faces economic depression although significant development happens in Downtown and midtown Detroit. The education system in Michigan ranks just above that of Mississippi, which is the poorest State in the union. State law must guarantee full benefits and competitive salaries for first responders, who risk their lives to keep our communities safe.

At the same time, I am running on the platform of a Smart Government Upgrade. We don't wait for products to fail before replacing them. We upgrade our products and services with products with better performance. I will work to cut Wasteful Ineffectual Government Spending (WIGS) by introducing private sector best practices – agile management, data analytics, etc – to make government more productive with less resources. I will work to create revenue-generating government programs that solve, not simply manages, social problems.

Do you think the federal government can or should do more to curb inflation, which has led to an increase in prices for food, gas and other goods?

Absolutely! There is evidence that supply shortages have contributed to inflation. High interest rates will worsen inflation. Rather than providing blanket tax cuts, the government should cut sales taxes for producers (or a similar measure) that reduces the cost of production per unit. This would encourage an increase in production. Additionally, the microchip shortage is just one example of the need to strengthen the global supply chain. Specifically, the US needs to take steps to integrate and control production of supplies that are critical to US manufacturing.

Do you support changing the state’s constitution to ensure that women have to right to get an abortion?

Yes, I feel that a woman has a private right to seek an abortion, particularly in the case rape, incest, or health risks. Prohibition (gambling, alcohol, cannabis, etc) has never worked in American culture and has only led to dangerous criminal activity and ineffectual law enforcement policies. Abortion pre-Roe v Wade was no exception and imposing and an abortion ban would be no different, creating an acute public health risk.

The State, moreover, is not fiscally equipped and lacks the infrastructure to address the increase in unwanted pregnancies. With more than half a million abortions per year (CDC) over the 21 years to adulthood we could easily have millions of children in foster care or living homeless. Not only is it cruel to bring a life into the world and force her to fend for herself, but the societal costs – increases in crime, behavioral issues (violence) in school, etc -- would be nontrivial.
Alternatively, the cost of providing healthcare, education, housing, food, clothing, transportation, etc for these children would require increases in government revenue that the State does not presently have. Prohibiting abortion, practically speaking, would be disastrous.

Do you support the Raise the Wage ballot initiative, which would increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2027 and provide cost-of-living increases in later years?

Yes

Would you support an election initiative to require another audit of the 2020 presidential election, to transfer authority over the audit from the Secretary of State to a newly created auditing panel, and to change how elections are reviewed in the future?

No, I would not support an election initiative to require another audit of the 2020 presidential election. I would consider audit authority to be transferred to a body of citizens that was balanced among Republican, Democrats, and other parties, but my support would depend on the structure and function of that body.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

Tax Reform

The sales tax in Michigan has changed three times in the last 90 years which makes it likely the most inefficient source of revenue in the State. With literally hundreds of different local economies, a one size fits all sales tax necessitates that the sales tax rates of some economies will be too low and others too high. Large markets like downtown Detroit or downtown Birmingham, which could very well tolerate a 10% sales tax, would require less revenue from the State if they could collect more revenue from sales taxes. Local economies like Macomb County, moreover, would benefit from a lower sales tax rate, relative to the larger local economies, which would attract consumers.

Sales tax reform will help shift the tax incidence from income and property taxes paid by residents and businesses to the 100 million tourists who visit Michigan every year and consume municipal services. Unlike tourists, residents could avoid high sales tax areas by shopping in residential districts, again strengthening those economies. Additionally, local governments,who are better at apprehending the conditions of their local economies, are best equipped to set sales tax rates in response to changes in market conditions. Local governments can lower sales tax rates to ease the burden of inflation in the present scenario.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As a research economist, we are pure social scientists, who explore socioeconomic impacts such as if race is correlated with income levels, incarceration rates, etc. We are policy makers who shape policy at all levels of government and across all social and economic areas and design government programs like Obamacare. Finally, we are physicians for the economy, who identify steps to combat inflation and unemployment while promoting economic growth. The economics department at U of M, of which I am a part, comprises the top research economists in the world and its tax policy institute, which works in conjunction with its counterpart at Michigan State, is the best in the State of Michigan and among the top in the US.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

Shut up and listen. Even if you know something, pretend you don't, and just listen. You might learn something small but pivotal to enhance your understanding.

This advice has helped me to develop depth to not only my understanding but my analytics.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

Theoretical research especially in mathematics trains us in exploring and solving problems that might or might not have a solution. We learn to patiently work the problem and work with colleagues who have different approaches but an equal dedication to solving the problem and to never give up working the problem. I hope to bring these practices to the government sector.