Grosse Pointe Farms’ Davis promises
to provide leadership in Michigan House

Charles “Terry” Davis III has a simple answer to anyone who asks why a highly successful businessman, one who held a key role in the Reagan administration, would decide to run for the Michigan Legislature. Isn’t it a step down?

“No one else with leadership experience was running,” Davis said. He served as chief operating officer of the federal General Services Administration under President Ronald Reagan. “This is a seminal year with congressional redistricting coming up, and we have to rebuild the Michigan economy. I think I can exercise a little leadership there.”

Davis, 66, a Farms city councilman, is competing with fellow Farms resident Janice DuMouchelle for the Republican nomination in the 1st District in the Aug. 3 primary, and the right to oppose incumbent Timothy Bledsoe (D-Grosse Pointe City) in the November general election. Davis and his wife, Susan, are the parents of three adult children and grandparents of five.

Davis is a principal of the financial counseling and portfolio management firm Goodrich, Davis, Peabody & Co. He boasts a history of service to Republican presidential administrations and has served on the computer and communications technology committees of the National Academy of Sciences. He has taught economics and finance as an associate professor at Walsh College and was finance manager of Ford Motor Land Development Corp. during a 10-year stint with the auto company. He holds an MBA in finance and economics from the University of Chicago and a BA from Wabash College.

Davis answered some questions from GrossePointeToday.com.

You are running as a Republican. Why is this your party?

As a child, sitting on my grandfather’s knee, I heard about Teddy Roosevelt; in school, I learned about Abraham Lincoln; and in life I’ve learned that excessive taxation kills economic growth and social ills are solved more quickly and personally by private programs, not well-meaning public largesse whose unintended consequences have destroyed our cities. Based on these beliefs, it was natural to identify with the Republican Party. Today, I am a “Ronald Reagan” Republican and, when the party strays from its core beliefs (as it did recently), I have worked to bring it back to its roots.

Sum up the foundation of your beliefs in a sentence or two.

Our founding fathers created a Constitution to govern us, which placed the rights of individuals above the rights of government. These principles of limited government and freedom of the individual are the heart of our country’s uniqueness, its economic strength and our gift to the world. Although we need government for certain functions and to solve certain problems, as we address these, we should try to find solutions that keep government’s influence in our lives and in the economy as small as possible.

What do you bring to this office that no one else can?

Our community is home to many citizens who could contribute seasoned judgment, community leadership, and business and government experience to serve this district – they are not on the ballot. The combination of my personal experience starting and running a business, making a payroll and, for a time, having served in both national and local government is somewhat unusual. This gives me the ability to help accomplish the changes needed to move Michigan forward once again.

Michigan is in pretty rough shape at the moment; what do you see as the biggest part of our salvation?

Every family’s economic security starts with a job. In Michigan, we compete with 49 other states as an economic environment for the jobs in this country. Michigan must be competitive and it is not – that’s why we are losing jobs. We need to reduce business costs in taxes, fees, excessive regulations and untimely government delays in approvals. Businesses need to have confidence that Michigan is an attractive stable alternative for new investment ...  then, the jobs will come!

What charities or causes do you support?

In the past, I have led the Metropolitan Society for Crippled Children, founded the Detroit and Canadian branches of a worldwide charity to help the infirm and needy, and led efforts in the Christmas food drive for the Salvation Army. Presently, I am a member of Rotary.

Name one interesting thing about you that people don’t know.

I was responsible for obtaining and arranging the largest single land donation on Lake Michigan to the Leelanau Conservancy, protecting this exceptional piece of property from development, following in the footsteps of my family who had donated much of a nearby mile-long peninsula as a nature preserve 60 years ago.

What would you do with a wide-open day ahead of you and no specific obligations?

I’d ask my wife, kids, and grandkids what they wanted to do together.

What’s your favorite book, movie or TV show about politics?

The book would be “The Last Hurrah,” which shows how shallow and valueless politics can be; the movie would be “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” showing individual political courage against the special interests (they win); and the TV show would be “The West Wing,” which (before the writers decided to push a political point of view) showed much of what it's really like to work in the West Wing!

You tell people you “cut taxes” on the City Council, yet the total tax and fees collections in your city are higher today than they were 5 and 10 years ago. Can you explain that?

Under my leadership as chairman of the Budget Committee, we reduced the property tax millage rate in 5 of the last 9 years. The millage rate is lower today than when I was first elected to the City Council in 2001. The dollar amount collected in taxes has gone up due to increases in SEV values during that time; the City Council has no control over SEV values of homes. On our council, we are proud of our stewardship of the public’s money and our record of reducing taxes whenever possible.

Regarding fees, we try to set service fees to cover the city’s “out-of-pocket” costs in performing the service, such as house inspections, permit fees, etc. I do not believe any resident should subsidize a benefit received by another resident.

Visit Davis' campaign website.

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