Midwest governors to candidates: Protect the Great Lakes

MILWAUKEE -- Governors of the eight Great Lakes states, including Illinois, called on the 2008 presidential candidates to make protecting the lakes a priority, saying that it was key to winning the battleground states.

Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle sent a letter on behalf of the Council of Great Lakes Governors to presidential candidates Thursday, asking for their plans to save the lakes threatened by low water levels and increasing pollution.

"The next president must share our vision of protecting the Great Lakes," said Doyle, chair of the council. "We need federal partners who share our vision."

He said the Great Lakes haven't figured prominently in the campaign yet, but he expects that to change.

"It's too bad Iowa isn't a Great Lakes state, because if it were, we'd have all kinds of positions," Doyle said. Iowa, with its early caucuses, is still a focus for many candidates.

Other members of the council include: Ohio, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Indiana and Illinois.

The region boasts 35 million people in states that have often helped decide past elections. That's not likely to change next year, Doyle said at a news conference.

"They figure to play a pivotal role in the 2008 presidential race," he said.

Doyle said the governors in the group will work with candidates in their parties to make sure they address the issue.

He did not mention any candidates by name. But Doyle noted that several come from Great Lakes states. Republican Rudy Giuliani was mayor of New York, while Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama represent New York and Illinois in the Senate.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has been one of the few candidates to raise the issue. While campaigning in water-parched Nevada recently, the Democrat called for a national water policy.

"Wisconsin is awash in water," he said.

Many in the region took that as a sign he'd try to divert water from the lakes.

Doyle also called on the state and others to ratify a compact that would prevent such diversions.

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Council of Great Lakes Governors: http://www.cglg.org