Sometimes, change is necessary.

Four years ago, we as a country chose change over the status quo. We made a decision to move away from a career politician in Hillary Clinton to a businessman, whom many of us had seen on television. The country felt like he was a better choice in nurturing the recovery of our great nation from the economic crisis of 2008.

Today, voters have a chance to do so again. You can vote for the current U.S. Senator, Gary Peters, or his Republican opponent, John James.

James, as he states on his web site, is a “soldier, job-creator and patriot.” The Daily Mining Gazette likes that combination and feels like he might be the voice needed in Washington D.C. to fight for the needs of the Copper Country in the coming years.

Even within Michigan, the Copper Country is 495 miles away from Lansing. Sometimes, it feels like our leaders in the state capital have little understanding of what life is like here, where we love our Friday Night Lights (football), where we relish the opportunity to hunt deer in our backyards, and where we are stronger together than we ever are apart.

There is probably no better example of our working together than during the recovery from the Father’s Day flood of 2018. That is also certainly a far cry from the way politics seem to work in Washington D.C. right now, where neither side seems ready to work with the other.

“From the boardroom to the battlefield, John has proven that he will work with anyone and everyone in order to complete the mission,” James’ website states. That sounds exactly like what the Copper Country wants in our leadership.

The Detroit News heartily agrees.

“Michigan would gain increased influence and better representation for its people in the U.S. Senate by electing John James,” the editorial board said in a statement. “It would also send to the Senate a natural leader who could well become one of the chamber’s most powerful members.”

James spent eight years protecting our country, participating in multiple tours of duty as a helicopter pilot in Operation Iraqi Freedom before being honorably discharged.

After leaving the military, James stepped into the business world, working his way up to president of James Group International and CEO of Renaissance Global Logistics. Renaissance Global was awarded a Paycheck Protection Program loan from the CARES Act. He is, as the News puts it, “a businessman who understands the impact COVID-19 has had on the nation’s industrial base, and what it will take to recover.”

Michigan Chamber CEO and President Rich Studley described James in a statement of endorsement recently.

“James is an entrepreneur who is passionate about our state and country, and he will be a dynamic, energetic and effective leader in the U.S. Senate,” said Studley.

James also advocates for continued tax and regulatory reform, which should help businesses throughout the state, and especially in the Copper Country, during the recovery from the pandemic lockdown Gov. Gretchen Whitmer imposed on the state throughout much of 2020.

We all know someone who has struggled during the lockdown. We all know a business owner who has contemplated closing their shop for good.

Maybe it is time for a change. James would be a step in that direction.