Monroe County Commissioner election Q&A: Hoover
While Mark Brant tries to get the seat back, Republicans Dale Biniecki, Dwayne Dobbs, and Democrat Danielle Hoover are throwing their hats into the race. The Monroe News spoke with each of them about what they would bring to the board of commissioners if they were elected.
The Monroe News sent questions to each candidate. Answers have been edited for length and clarity.
These are Hoover's answers:
What previous experience has best prepared you for this role?
I am writing as myself only. I am not representing Washtenaw County, the MI Board of Social Work, or any other person, group, or organization that I am affiliated with. All views here are my own. City of Milan, Monroe Co. resident, 13+ years. Washtenaw Co. CMH (county gov't), 12+ years. MI Board of Social Work member, 5 years, vice chair, since 2023. NASW MI member. Monroe Co. NAACP member. MI Democratic Party member. AFSCME 3052 member/steward, delegate to Huron Valley Area Labor Federation, also recording secretary there. Both kids go to Milan Area Schools K-present. Gold Star Family Member. Also, this is my fourth time running for this.
What motivated you to run for county commissioner?
As the late, great, rest in power Congressman John Lewis said, 'Speak up, speak out, get in the way. Get in good trouble, necessary trouble, and help redeem the soul of America.' I'm here to do what Congressman Lewis said. I was assigned this mountain to show someone it can be moved, and I need to be in this elected capacity to do that.
What do you see as the county's top three priorities over the next four years?
Mental health, unions, veterans. I have been a licensed social worker since 2011, so mental health is something I'm very passionate about. I have been a dues paying AFSCME member since 2013; first in local 2733 as a supports coordinator, then moved to local 3052 when I became a supervisor in 2022. Veterans always have a special place in my heart because one of my brothers was one. My brother Spc. Levi Hoover was killed in action in Iraq April 7, 2007. After that, it kind of became, be all the things you love most about the person who is gone. That's why veterans are special to me, and I would be so honored to do work in this area in an elected capacity.
What's your stance on zoning reform and affordable housing development?
Per endhomelessness.org/, 'the number of hours the average minimum-wage worker in the U.S must work (2.4 full time jobs) to afford a one-bedroom rental home at the fair market rent,' is 95. That's not right. Housing costs are not congruent with what minimum-wage workers currently earn. Affordable housing should be accessible and available to those who need it.
How will you keep residents informed about decisions that affect them?
As a social worker, a large part of my job is to engage with people. I'd be able to carry those skills forward to talk with anybody, anytime, anywhere, at a mutually convenient time. For example, if elected, I'd like to go on ride alongs with public utilities such as trash removal services. Not just in District 2, I'd like to try that across the county.
What steps will you take to avoid conflicts of interest in office?
As a licensed social worker, I am required to adhere to the NASW Code of Ethics and other applicable laws and policies. I also serve as the vice chair of the MI Board of Social Work. Having a code of ethics that I am required to follow is something that separates me from other candidates, currently and most recently.
More: Just one issue on Aug. 5 ballot in Monroe County
Why should residents vote for you?
I am appropriately qualified, I have relevant, applicable experience working in government and a state board, and am committed to appropriately filling that seat. District 2 could use some clean up, and I'm ready. You know what they say about Hoovers, they really clean up.
— Contact reporter Connor Veenstra at CVeenstra@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Monroe County Board of Commissioners candidate Danielle Hoover
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Exclusive-Trump administration to formally axe Elon Musk's 'five things' email
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration plans as soon as Tuesday to formally axe a program launched by billionaire former Trump adviser Elon Musk requiring federal employees to summarize their five workplace achievements from the prior week, two people familiar with the matter said. The Office of Personnel Management, the federal human resources agency that implemented Musk's push to slash the federal workforce, plans to announce the end of the "five things" email to HR representatives across the federal government later on Tuesday, the two people said, declining to be named because the matter was not public. While many federal agencies had already phased out compliance with the weekly email, the move, not previously reported, signals the Trump administration is turning the page on one of Musk's most unpopular initiatives following a dramatic row between the two men in early June. The White House and OPM did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Musk, who spent over a quarter of a billion dollars to help Trump win November's presidential election, led the Department of Government Efficiency's efforts to slash the budget and cut the federal workforce until his departure in May to refocus on his tech empire. Musk initially received a warm White House sendoff from Trump, but then incurred the president's wrath by describing Trump's tax cut and spending bill as an abomination. Trump pulled the nomination of Musk ally and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA and later threatened to cancel billions of dollars worth of federal contracts with Musk's companies after the blowup between the two men. The "five things" email, launched by Musk in February to boost accountability, sparked tensions with department chiefs who were blindsided by the weekend email mandating the move. It also fueled confusion among government workers who received mixed messages about whether and how to comply. Reuters reported in March that the White House installed two Trump loyalists at OPM to ensure better policy coordination between the White House and the agency. Scott Kupor, a venture capitalist who took the helm at OPM in July, foreshadowed the end of the initiative last month, describing processing of the weekly response emails as "very manual" and "not efficient." It is "something that we should look at and see, like, are we getting the value out of it that at least the people who put it in place thought they were," he said.
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Marjorie Taylor Greene asks Trump to commute George Santos' prison sentence
Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene wants President Donald Trump to commute the prison sentence of her disgraced former colleague George Santos, who's been locked up less than two weeks. Santos was sentenced to 87 months in prison for committing wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in April. He checked into New Jersey's Federal Correctional Fairton, located about 140 miles from Manhattan, on July 25. In her petition to the Office of the U.S. Pardon Attorney, Greene asks for Trump to consider setting the former representative from Queens free sooner than later. 'As a Member of Congress, I worked with Mr. Santos on many issues and can attest to his willingness and dedication to serve the people of New York who elected him to office,' Greene wrote. She conceded that Santos should be punished for his crimes, but believes his 7-year sentence is too severe. 'While his crimes warrant punishment, many of my colleagues who I've serve with have committed far worse offenses than Mr. Santos yet have faced zero criminal charges,' she claimed without offering examples. After lying about nearly all of his academic and professional qualifications to get elected to Congress in 2022, Santos was charged with crimes including a scheme to steal financial information from campaign contributors, then repeatedly charging those accounts without permission. He was expelled from the House of Representatives in December 2023. Greene wrote in her letter that commuting Santos' sentence would be an acknowledgement by the President that Santos had committed crimes, while also allowing him the opportunity to serve his community as a free man. Greene didn't specify when she believes Santos should be released. She concluded her request by using a term often used by the President in social media posts. 'Thank you for your attention to this matter,' Greene wrote. Santos complained in the days leading to his imprisonment that his pardon requests were not getting the President's attention. Trump has used his clemency power to excuse more than 1,500 criminals convicted on the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and has not ruled out pardoning high-profile sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell, but he hasn't showed an interest in working with Santos. Santos surrendered to prison authorities after bidding a dramatic adieu to supporters. 'Well, darlings… The curtain falls, the spotlight dims, and the rhinestones are packed,' he wrote on X before going to prison.
Fox News
13 minutes ago
- Fox News
Hunter Biden says he's started new job with California nonprofit
Hunter Biden revealed he started a new job working with a nonprofit homeless prevention and tenants' rights group in southern Los Angeles. The former president's son made the announcement during an interview with "Channel 5" podcaster Andrew Callaghan, which was posted to YouTube on Tuesday. "I just think there is such an opportunity to be of service right now – and not in, you know, some kind of melodramatic way – but I just, a lot of people that are, you know, getting the s--- beat out of them out there, right here in LA. And there is enormous opportunity for just normal people to do kind of heroic things," Biden said. "I'm working with a group now called BASTA, the homeless prevention, and I just started actually as director of development for BASTA, which is the leading homeless prevention and tenants' rights group in southern Los Angeles," Biden added. Biden told Callaghan that the organization protects people "from eviction, and we are the only group – at least in southern California – that represents undocumented and so we don't take any federal money." "It's not just El Salvadorean immigrants, it's Ukrainian immigrants that came here under duress from what is going on in Ukraine and find it really hard to find work because of the fear of employers. that they are going to disrupt their business because of ICE raids and things like that," the president's son also said. "Then they lose their income, and almost all of these people are families and children. And if you can keep someone in their apartment or their home you obviously also [are] keeping somebody off the street and homelessness. And what you find is that when a child becomes homeless, the road back to any chance of normalcy just becomes exponentially harder and harder." BASTA, on its website, said it was founded in 2005 and has now become the "most comprehensive tenant rights organization in Southern California." "We have more than 15 attorneys and 10 staff across four full-service offices, serving virtually every need of the tenant community (legal or otherwise)," the nonprofit said. "BASTA pioneered the strategy of bringing all eviction defense cases to jury trial, which is a right under California's constitution. Rather than having cases decided by a single judge, cases are decided by members of the community — including many tenants. The strategy works. BASTA has won more jury trials in eviction cases than all of the other organizations in Southern California combined," the organization added. Fox News Digital has reached out to BASTA for comment.
