An Evening with the Mackinac Center, featuring Gov. Mitch Daniels as keynote speaker and Gov. Rick Snyder as our honored guest, hosted upwards of 600 freedom lovers on Monday, Nov. 14, 2011.

Mitch Daniels has an impressive legacy both in the private and public arenas. When he was elected governor in 2004, Daniels inherited a state government that was hundreds of millions of dollars in debt. Daniels not only balanced the budget, he also championed and signed the biggest tax relief measure in state history. According to the Washington Times, “Indiana’s public-sector payroll is the smallest per capita in the nation.” In 2008, Governing magazine named him “Public Official of the Year.”

With WJR radio's very own Frank Beckmann as emcee for the evening, the audience enjoyed the often humorous remarks of the speakers and applauded as Mackinac Center President Emeritus Lawrence W. Reed was honored for his contributions to the freedom movement and as home-based day care owners Sherry Loar, Paulette Silverson and Michelle Berry were honored for their courage in standing up against overwhelming odds to fight for the liberty of day care providers across the state.