The Mackinac Center is pleased to announce another exciting speaker in its Visiting Dignitary Lecture Series. Please join us on Friday, May 18, as we host at our downtown Midland headquarters Michigan Speaker of the House Rick Johnson.

Speaker Johnson will be discussing "The Case for Keeping Taxes Low." As a farmer and businessman, he knows how high taxes can stifle economic growth. Now, with forecasters warning of declining state revenues due to the economic slowdown, many are arguing that recently enacted tax cuts be delayed. Not so, according to Speaker Johnson, who believes that "the economy will rebound sooner and with greater vigor if we let the income tax cuts take full effect, and continue phasing out the Single Business Tax."

Speaker Johnson was first elected to the state House of Representatives in 1998 by the residents of Michigan's 102nd legislative district, which includes Missaukee, Osceola, Wexford, and Roscommon counties. He is a lifelong resident of Osceola County, where he owns and maintains his family's nursery and tree farm. As chair of the House Republican Campaign Committee during the 2000 election, he successfully led his caucus to a second-consecutive majority in the Michigan House for the first time in more than 30 years.

The speech will begin at 3:00 p.m. sharp, in the Morey Conference Room at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, followed by a half-hour reception at 4 p.m. This event is open to the public, and we encourage you to bring a friend and introduce him or her to the Mackinac Center. Please note that seating is limited and we request that you RSVP by calling 989-631-0900 by noon on Wednesday, May 16, if you plan to attend this lecture.