Gov. Jennifer Granholm was featured recently in “Time,” responding to 10 reader inquiries on subjects ranging from whether Detroit will rebound (“Absolutely!”) to what’s on her iPod (Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen.)
But the most interesting response came to the question about her plans when her term expires next year. She spoke of her leadership during a sustained crisis and lessons learned.
“The biggest lesson is that you have to play offense,” she said. “You can't just hunker down. You have to continue to lead and push forward despite all the challenges, and you have to have a skin as thick as a rhinoceros's.”
Ironically, that’s been the biggest slam against her in recent weeks; that she did not play offense as the budget was taking shape in the Legislature in September and failed to speak up publicly about what she insisted in a budget. More recently, she has taken to the bully pulpit and has vetoed some school funding while flexing her muscle.
But some critics have maintained that if she had flexed her muscle earlier, a budget crisis might have been averted.
