By Bankole Thompson
CHRONICLE SENIOR EDITOR

Gary Brown, the man whose battle with political leaders inside Detroit
government led to the downfall of former mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, is the latest
member of the Detroit City Council to announce he is not seeking re-election to the legislative body.

Brown is leaving at a precarious time in city government when many Detroiters questioned the competence and effectiveness of the Detroit City Council as the check and balance of local government.

Brown now joins members Charles Pugh, Kwame Kenyatta, Kenneth
Cockrel Jr., and JoAnn Watson who will not be returning to council.

That opens wide the field of candidates for council at a time when districting has made the race more competitive. Some council members are facing stiff challenges from other known candidates who are also running in districts for council.

But Brown's departure also signals the changes coming to city hall after Detroit Mayor Dave Bing announced Tuesday he won't seek re-election, which also sets the stage for an electoral showdown this summer.

Despite what the outcome of the races for council and mayor might be, it still won't change the reality of Detroit's financial crisis now being managed by
Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr.

This week Orr released a financial report that found the city insolvent and
unable to borrow cash.

"We are in the first steps of a very long journey. I believe the Chinese say a trip of a thousand miles starts with the first step. I think that's what it is,"
Orr said in an interview with the Michigan Chronicle before the report's
release.

"This just means that the numbers are going to be bigger than have previously been discussed. It means that the challenges and negotiations with the interested parties are probably going to be a little bit more intense because there's more at stake. There's more money on the table. There is more attention."

Orr said the city's revenue projections are precarious because historically when the city is budgeted and takes on a debt to try to make a balanced budget, it always deferred payments with some obligations that are due.

"We've done some borrowing to make some shortfalls. When I say it's worse than expected, if the city were to try to run and meet its debt obligations on a going forward basis, based on what it takes in revenue fees and other incomes and balance that against what its obligations are paid in the ordinary cause, that would be very challenging," Orr said.

Orr also named Cincinnati police chief James Craig as Detroit's newest top cop, another development that marks the power shifts at city hall.

Craig, who is excited about his new assignment, is already saying he would focus on crime, the top issue for most Detroiters.

His Detroit assignment comes on the heels of brand new ambulance trucks and police cars donated to the city by members of corporate Detroit.

But even as the Detroit Police Department ushers in its new leader, it still faces many other issues that include the morale of officers and the ever present Justice Department Decree.

By Bankole Thompson

CHRONICLE SENIOR EDITOR

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing told the media today at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History that while he is bowing out of the race for mayor, he is forming an exploratory committee to run for Wayne County Executive.

Bing's announcement of his intention to look into the possibility of a run for Wayne County Executive against incumbent Robert Ficano, whose office has faced federal scrutiny netting convictions in public corruption, comes as a surprise.

Some were expecting that Bing was heading to retirement after finishing his term in office this year.

But political consultant Eric Foster said it is a shrewd political move for Bing to eye the top post in Wayne County, even though the electoral difficulty the mayor would have faced running for re-election in Detroit now, will be magnified in a race for Wayne County executive.

"Detroit is only 38-40 percent of the primary turnout for the Wayne County Executive race next year," Foster said. "Maybe what he is hoping for is that suburbanites will feel empathy for him and that the suburban vote in the other 42 communities in Wayne County will have empathy for him and the struggles he had to face dealing with Detroit."

However, Foster said the strikes of a grander bargain between Bing, Gov. Rick Snyder, Treasurer Andy Dillon and mayoral candidate Mike Duggan "with respect for Duggan to become mayor of Detroit and Bing becomes Wayne County Executive so the two work hand in hand is a move that is a logical play."

Even though Foster maintained that he doesn't have any information regarding

any political deals in the corridors of power concerning Bing's fate, looking at the move that Bing made today by indicating his wish to seek the Wayne County Executive job is a smart one that is out of a political playbook.

"I think it is logical given that Bing and Duggan have had a comfortable working relationship over the years," Foster said.

He said if Bing has the support of the Duggan/Ed McNamara political machine, which is also connected to the Dingell machine (Congressman John Dingell) which is very popular in the Downriver area, "Bob Ficano cannot win another term in office."

Adolph Mongo, another political consultant, in an interview with the Michigan Chronicle Tuesday afternoon described Bing's announcement of an exploratory committee for Wayne County Executive in a very different way.

"I hope it is an April Fools joke, because if you are looking at what is going on in Detroit and the county, the county might end up being in receivership or financial management," Mongo said. "I just don't think at this point he can put a strong team together. But having said that, you can never say never."

Mongo said he doesn't see how "anybody can jump from a fire to a frying pan that might be hotter than the fire."

If Bing decides to take on Ficano, his campaign team would be crucial.

"I would want to know who would run his campaign, and I'm talking about a real campaign. In the last two or three yeas the mayor has not had a political machine," Mongo said. "If he had one he would have run for re-election. The support he had in Detroit has been eroded."

He said unless Ficano "is getting tied into that pay-to-play bribery at the county, Ficano is not politically dead. I don't think Bing can beat Ficano."

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On Thursday, May 16, for the first time since Detroit Mayor Dave Bing announced a potential bid for the office of Wayne County executive, he and the sitting County Executive Robert Ficano will share a stage at Forum III of the Michigan Chronicle's Pancakes and Politics.  The event will take place on Thursday, May 16, 7:30 am at the Townsend Hotel in downtown Birmingham, Michigan.  Yesterday, Bing announced that he would not seek re-election for mayor. 

Bing continued the announcement, shocking the audience with news that he was putting together a committee to explor his options, including running for Wayne County executive, the position held by the embattled Ficano. 

Does Bing consider Ficano to be an easy target?  Ficano has been under fire ever since he acknowledged having paid $200,000 severance to former Chief Development Officer Turkia Mullin when she quit her county job to become CEO of Metro Airport. 

Bing's announcement made history.  It was the first time in recent memory that a sitting mayor announced that he would seek higher political office. That is if someone construes the county executive position as being higher than that of the mayor of the city of Detroit.  After all, as one of the Big Four, the city of Detroit mayor's office is treated as though it is on the same level as the county executive's, unlike any other mayor in the metropolitan area. 

During his announcement Bing cited a litany of accomplishments that were successfully tackled during his administration.  Among them was the demolition of vacant buildings, opening of recreation centers, a new crime facility, guns off the streets, major arrests and drug busts and new and repaired street lights.  He vowed to continue serving the citizens of Detroit. 

"I want to continue to work for the advancmeent of the city and this region," Bing said.  Responding to Bing's announcement, Ficano said in a statement, "Mayor Bing has worked as hard as anyone to help stablize the city during some very tough times. The filing deadline is still a year out and that's a lot of time before real decisions need to be made.  Personally my focus is on the business of running Wayne County government and that's where it needs to be between now and next May."  Parsed like a true politician. 

Now in its eighth season, The Michigan Chronicle's Pancakes and Politics Speaker's Forum is the premier gathering for discussing the business and economic issues affecting the metro Detroit region.  The series brings together leading newsmakers in the business and government sectors to address topics most relevant to those invested in the state's success.  For more information, or to attend this week's Pancakes and Politics, call The Michigan Chronicle at 313-963-5522.

Amidst speculations that there is a movement underway to draft Detroit Mayor Dave Bing to enter an already crowded field for mayor, Bing himself will tell Detroiters Tuesday afternoon what he plans to do.

Mayor Bing will appear at the Charles Wright Museum of African American History at noon to announce whether he will officially become a mayoral candidate and join former Detroit Medical Center CEO Mike Duggan, Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon and others in seeking the city’s top post.

John Roach, spokesman for Duggan’s campaign said Monday night that whether Bing enters the race or not won’t affect the speed of their campaign.

“Mike Duggan knows what his platform is and he knows what his approach with voters has been,” Roach said. “He has been meeting voters face to face and whoever enters the race doesn’t affect how he approaches anything going forward.”

Political consultant Eric Foster said he still thinks Bing won’t run.

“If he does he cannot win. He hasn’t built a voter based beyond his last election that’s sustainable to allow him to be in the top two for the primary,” Foster said. “Additionally the optics of the failure of the city that happened under his watch like the appointment of an emergency manager, the consent agreement and the growing abandonment of neighborhoods is not a strong narrative to launch a campaign.”

However Foster said one advantage a Bing candidacy might create is that it will force the media to spotlight all of the remaining candidates and not just the perceived two front-runners Duggan and Napoleon.

“It forces the rest of the media to open up the examination and attention to all of the mainstream candidates and not just Benny Napoleon and Mike Duggan which is helpful to the other mainstream candidates like Fred Durhal and Lisa Howze.”

Eddie McDonald, campaign manager for Napoleon said their campaign is driven to get votes and not about who gets in the race.

“We are staying focus and going after many voters as possible,” McDonald said.