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THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
Parker extends to Harper Woods and Grosse Pointe and I really do not want to represent that area,” Parker said. “I want to represent the city of Detroit 100 percent, and I think the city needs experienced leadership as we go through this crisis.” Given the investigation that Wayne County is facing, Parker admits that it is black eye on the overall county government, including the commission. “Some people may see it negatively but I want to serve the city of Detroit. I don’t want to serve a suburban community,” Parker said. “My experience in the last 22 years on the commission I believe will aid the city as we move toward recovery.” On Detroit’s consent agreement that allows for the appointment of a ninemember Financial Advisory Board, Parker said, “I have not seen all the details but I think there
From page A-1 are some good things in there. I think the consent agreement was the better of the two evils. But I think the important thing is as we move with the agreement that we go back to independent cities with home rule.” He took parting shots at Ficano saying he has “lost his ability to lead and for the good of the county he should step down. But I don’t think he is going to step down.” He said there wasn’t enough support on the commission for a vote of no confidence on Ficano. “If it was presented and did not pass it would send the wrong message,” Parker said. When asked how could he be critical of Ficano after supporting Mullen for the airport job, Parker insisted the Airport Authority was misled. “The bottom line is that we selected someone
who misrepresented the facts,” Parker said. “After we began to uncover her background and poor leadership, that is when we took action and did what we did.” Bankole Thompson is the editor of the Michigan Chronicle and the author of a six-part series on the Obama presidency, including “Obama and Black Loyalty,” published last year. His latest book is ”Obama and Christian Loyalty” with an epilogue written by Bob Weiner, former White House spokesman. His upcoming books in 2012 are “Obama and Jewish Loyalty” and ”Obama and Business Loyalty.” Listen to him every Thursday morning on WDET 101.9 FM Detroit and every Sunday, 9 to 10 p.m., on “The Obama Watch” program on WLIB 1190 AMNew York. E-mail bthomspon@michronicle.com.
A tough fight, but Obama should win Michigan By Rev. Bertram Marks
auto industry was anything other than a stroke of genius.
You don’t have to be a key political strategist or cable news television pundit to understand that the economy will be the single most important issue in the upcoming battle for the presidency of the United States. As a result of the economy being such a high priority topic, Michigan will be a key battleground state in the 2012 presidential election. Nowhere have the effects of “the great recession” been more evident than in the former manufacturing hub of the world. Conversely, nowhere are the signs of recovery more evident than in Michigan. Republicans have targeted Michigan because of candidate Mitt Romney’s historic ties to the state. They are hoping that Mitt Romney can use these ties to tap into the frustrations of the legions of individuals who have been out of work for years. Republicans will be quick to point out that these people have not only been out of work for an extended period, but also that they have little prospect of landing gainful employment. Many of these displaced workers have lost their homes, savings and much of their dignity. The downsizing of the manufacturing sector in Michigan left them with little training and no place to take their skills. The Republicans will ask them to vote for Romney as an alternative to what they are labeling the failed policies of the Obama administration. Republicans will also target the Reagan Democrats, a group that is predominately working class, non-minority and has voted the Democratic ticket in most elections. They will be asked to reconsider whether the Obama administration is capable of leading the U.S. out of her current fiscal disaster. This will not be a tough sell for a voting block known for voting against their own interests. The health care reform opinion polling from this group is demonstrative of this fact. Republicans will claim that
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The Obama campaign would be wise not to attempt to address this message to the Reagan Democrats. This would likely be a waste of time. Rather, the Obama campaign should tap into the emerging voting block that is neither all Republican or all Democratic.
Bertram Marks the Obama administration has failed to revive the economy, seeks burdensome policies and regulation and as a result, made bad economic circumstances even worse. The Republican party will rely heavily on socalled “Super PAC” dollars to help them communicate this message, throughout the nation but especially in Michigan. The Democrats have a heavyhanded response to the appeal Republicans will make to out of work Michiganders. The Obama administration can point out that but for their policy of rescue of the auto industry, the recovery taking place in Michigan would be impossible. The Obama campaign can and should point out that the auto industry has experienced record profits, paid back most of the auto loans, and returned vast amounts of workers back to the assembly line. President Obama has to position himself as a jobs creator and nowhere is that more evident than in Michigan. Team Obama can point out that in Michigan their tax policy works. Due to investment tax incentives provided by the Obama administration, Detroit based DTE Energy has become the largest corporate investor into the Michigan economy. The investment made by DTE Energy and other companies created thousands of jobs. The resurgence of downtown Detroit with nearly ten thousand jobs being relocated to the heart of the city through employers such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, Quicken Loans and Chrysler makes it hard to argue that the Obama administration’s decision to bail out the
It is a common sense voting block that understands the relationship b e t w e e n g o v e r n m e n t policy, proper training and access to jobs. This group of voters is younger, more adaptive to change and seeks to understand issues, not personalities when choosing a presidential candidate. We saw this group support President Obama in overwhelming fashion in the last presidential election. We also saw this group abandon the president’s party during the midterm elections of 2010. In order to regain them, the Obama campaign will have to remind voters that Mitt Romney spent a great deal of his career slashing jobs. They will also need to remind voters of his opulent wealth and detachment from middle America. As goes Michigan, so will go the next presidential election. We are beginining to see signs of economic recovery. However, Republicans will surely argue that this is a “jobless recovery.” In Michigan, the Obama adminstration must point out how the public policy and tax decisions it made are beneficial to Michigan, not harmful. They will need to show that jobs are growing, albeit at a slower pace than anyone expected. The key is to stay on message with the notion that the nation is recovering. The Obama campaign can and should use the Michigan story as an example of how his economic recovery plan has made Michiganders better off than they were prior to his taking office.
HIRAM JACKSON (left), Michigan Chronicle interim publisher; Mark L. Reuss, president, GM North America; Vivian Pickard, director of Corporate Affairs, GM, president, GM Foundation; Francis Page, publisher, Houston Style magazine; Eric Peterson, vice president, GM Corporate Diversity; and Cloves Campbell, chairman, National Newspaper Publishers Association, publisher, the Arizona Informant.
NAACP
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a nonviolent revolution and change the legal system in our country.” The outpouring of support from business, including major corporations, confirmed that the allies in the fright for freedom come from all sectors of the population. Mark Reuss, president of General Motors North America, called the event “overwhelming” and said GM will continue to support people and communities through secure jobs and equal eco-
Panel
nomic opportunities. “The diversity of our workforce is the core of who we are,” Reuss said. “Moving forward, we are not recruiting from the same pools.” President Barack Obama addressed the dinner guests via a recorded message, labeling the Detroit Branch NAACP a “beacon” for freedom and justice. “The climb is steep, but Detroit can lead the way,” the president said.
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powered panel that included George Jackson, president and CEO of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp; Harvey Hollins, director of the Detroitbased Michigan Office of Urban and Metropolitan Initiatives; and Tim Terrentine, vice president of Southwest Michigan First, an economic development agency in Kalamazoo. While talks on how to improve all Michigan cities were addressed, the spotlight for urban reinvention was on the Detroit and the essential regional collaboration between city, county and state. If Michigan’s future is riding on the back of its cities, said panel members, then Detroit is carrying much of the load. “We have to deal with fiscal realities,” Jackson said regarding Detroit’s finances and the recent controversial consent agreement. “It’s not an unattested model but I think it’s a decision that should have been made years ago.” Panelists were in agreement that that no city can thrive without the others. Part of the solution is focusing efforts on the positives that is, not what is missing, but what is there to work with. “We do our best to squash the negative,” Terrentine said. “We know that together our fates rise and fall. “We in Kalamazoo want Detroit’s success. We’re cheering for Detroit.” The hour-long discussion proved that the exact next steps in terms of urban economic redevelopment have been tricky to pin down, but one thing remains clear — we have to work together. “Regional strategy is difficult,” Hollins said, “But it’s a case of collaborate or possibly die. For example, there’s no need
for Highland Park to have its own fire station when it’s surrounded by three Detroit fire stations.” One of the hardest silos to topple is one build around race dynamics. “Race is a divider,” Hollins said. “More than any place I’ve been, racedivides the Detroit area.Racial tension is severely stunting regionalprogress. Getting light rail across town across Eight Mile, that’s an issue of race. There are so many silos here.” One of the recent victory in toppling silos came in Kalamazoo. “We will have one building authority for three different counties and several different townships, one common application for companies that need to build and grow business,” he said. Terrentine credits selfless leadership to the progress made in his city. If cities are to are going to succeed, he believes and others confirm, there have to be leaders willing to forego the spotlight to get work done. Terrentine also suggested that bringing younger leadership to the table is crucial. “We have leadership talking about what will be happening in tenyears and no one in the room is under 50,” he said. “We need to get someone who can help forecast the future that they will be engaging in.” One new model that was mentioned came from Grand Rapids. The Grand Rapids Start Garden, announced on Thursday, is a new venture capital fund that will invest $5,000 in two startup ideas every week, then continues to invest more if the ideas gain momentum. The fund is backed by a private fund — a $15 million commitment from
the DeVos family. The issue of urban revitalization and its place in the future of the state is a crucial, yet complex one. But the takeaway was positive and encouraging. “We have to use creative finances to get projects done. What tools we use, how we blend public and private, this is how we get young, educated folks moving into the city,” Terrentine pointed out. In terms of collaboration, some argue that these mergers are already in Place; they just need to be communicated better. “We’re already merged,” Terrentne said, noting how commuters depend on cities and vice versa. “The patterns of humanity link us.” Pancakes & Politiics is one of the year’s most anticipated economic Forums. The next session will be at Birmingham’s Townsend Hotel on May 18 for the annual gathering of the “Big Four” regional leaders: Detroit Mayor Dave Bing, Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano and Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel. They will discuss the challenges and opportunities facing Southeast Michigan. The series will conclude with a return to the DAC on June 15. Pancakes & Politics is presented in association with Buick, ComcastBusiness Class, Strategic Staffing Solutions and Real Times Media. Additional event sponsors include Medallion sponsors HAP and Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP and corporate contributors including Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, PNC, Quicken Loans and UHY LLP.
Detroit up for grabs, integrity for sale By Rev. Tellis Chapman What in the world ever happened to Detroit? Where did the city that put America on wheels go so fiscally wrong? What is there that accounts for the mood shift from “Dancing in the Street” and “I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day” spirit of migrating southerners who found Detroit as a haven for employment and prosperity to a “watch your back,” Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On?” kind of query? We know the answer — it’s a moral matter. This lay at the core of the decline and destruction of every kingdom, every dominion, and every person of power and policy-making position. They simply couldn’t handle the capacity for evil. Pitiful, petty, petulant, and polluted city governance that simply could not and cannot overcome
the capacity for evil. Those that quietly open up their meetings with prayers and pledges and sometimes passages of Scripture, only to do shady, under the table, cutt h r o a t , screw- everybody-else, look-outfor-my-own political career.
Tellis Chapman
O u r moral fabric is gone! There is a need for something to help us get back to the fear of God, especially when living in a city with leadership that: criticizes sprawl, but votes against residency; has school boards that talk education, but can’t increase student achievement;
overcrowds classrooms; closes school buildings; and chases off the best of teachers; and can’t find a decent school superintendent, and yet call it reform. Where is the integrity in providing a governor-appointed emergency financial manager over a school district, but leaves poor students with no books to take home to study? Where is the character in elected officials that talk the best of politics for the city, but has the worst roads, the most dangerous streets, the highest taxes, the deepest deficits, the poorest service, the slowest emergency response, and the most red-lined auto insurance rates? Where is the dignity of our public servants in city, and county government, for that matter, whose fiscal competence is forever controversial and questionable?
It is with disenchantment and disgrace that too many faith-based bodies and leaders are endorsing and supporting of the agenda and covert actions of unscrupulous, unreliable and infectious politicians; national, state and local. And while there are obvious reasons as to why the “bought and bossed” are either reclusive or mutually consenting with consent agreements and program managers that further disenfranchises and threaten the democracy of the very people they preach to, it proves over and over again how tainted our witness becomes when attempting to preach about a Savior that sacrificed His all for the sake of right and righteousness, and then make cohorts with public officials that contribute to further marring and scarring of our city’s image. Our moral fabric is gone!
All of us praying, tax-paying, voting, suffering, stressed-out citizens of Detroit, and faithbased leaders alike, should unite and challenge and charge the powers that be to do the right thing! Not a good thing, not the best thing, but the right thing. You are recipients of a great heritage. You are the sons and daughters of heroes and heroines who fought too hard and sacrificed too much and put you in too critical a position for you to indulge “sellout privileges.” Treat Detroiters right! This is 21st. century civil rights struggle! In the ’50s and ’60s, we fought to get the right to exercise patriotic privilege. Today, we have to fight, protest, march, sit-in, and occupy, to keep that right. I voice the sentiment of hundreds of thousands of Detroiters who are fed up with the madness.