Young, Bright, Clean-Cut and Thinking About Taking on Bill Caul in the 99th

Among the 27 folks attending last night's Granholm Gathering was a young man who is considering running for office for the first time. He is two years older than John Engler was when he first ran for the state legislature in Isabella County and twice as photogenic.

At 23 years of age, Eric Welsby, will pursue a graduate degree after he graduates from CMU in May. But he has no plans to go anywhere other than CMU. When he stood up to declare his intentions last night, his soft-spoken remarks accompanied by a charming smile was a reminder that the Democratic Party has a bright future.

It will be interesting to see if Eric takes the plunge and even more interesting to see an old white-haired unhandsome listless Republican up on the same platform with an energetic, creative clean-cut young Democrat. The Republicans may have gerrymandered the district, but something very interesting could happen in the 99th legislative district in 2006. Stay tuned.