Kilpatrick Faces Professional, Personal Attacks
By Tracy L. Scott, BET.com STaff Writer
Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is under fire for proposing to balance the budget by laying off almost 700 city employees, just days before he leased a $25,000 Lincoln Navigator that the city signed for.
“There were some screw-ups on communications. I’ll take the lumps on that. I’m upset that we handled it the way we handled it,” Kilpatrick said during a news conference at which he admitted to obtaining the vehicle for his wife. He initially denied using city funds to lease the SUV, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Three years ago, critics charged that the 34-year-old Kilpatrick held wild parties in the mayor’s mansion at taxpayers’ expense, complete with strippers, prostitutes and plenty liquor. Kilpatrick and many close to the mayor called the claims a racist attempt to discredit him. As the charged roiled – rising to the level of urban legend – a state attorney launched a major probe into the allegations. The investigation found no wrongdoing on behalf of Kilpatrick and his staff.
“When you’re a young African American man with an earring, it’s hard for people to believe you’re a good husband and father,” Kilpatrick told The Associated Press.
Detroit political consultant Sam Riddle told the Free Press, “The mayor has reached the tipping point where the public now assumes the worst about him.”
Although Kilpatrick won supporters by tackling the city’s projected $230 million deficit for next year, others point to swirling reports of his partying on the public dime as well as his proposed layoffs, scheduled to take place in March, as reasons why he should not be re-elected in November.
In addition to the layoffs, Kilpatrick plans to eliminate 200 vacant positions, sell city-owned vehicles, decrease employee benefits and ask workers to take a 10-percent pay cut.
“We can no longer delay the tough decisions,” Kilpatrick told Detroit’s citizens Wednesday.
Kilpatrick’s call for sacrifice among Detroit’s citizens was well-received until the press publicized the purchase of the Navigator.
“I thought he was doing OK, but if he continues stuff like this, if he doesn’t put the city first, he doesn’t deserve to be in office,” Charles McGuire, a 22-year-old Detroit resident, told the Free Press.
Is Kilpatrick giving Black politicians a bad name or is his a case of racial stereotyping? Click "Discuss Now" to share your thoughts.
Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is under fire for proposing to balance the budget by laying off almost 700 city employees, just days before he leased a $25,000 Lincoln Navigator that the city signed for.
“There were some screw-ups on communications. I’ll take the lumps on that. I’m upset that we handled it the way we handled it,” Kilpatrick said during a news conference at which he admitted to obtaining the vehicle for his wife. He initially denied using city funds to lease the SUV, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Three years ago, critics charged that the 34-year-old Kilpatrick held wild parties in the mayor’s mansion at taxpayers’ expense, complete with strippers, prostitutes and plenty liquor. Kilpatrick and many close to the mayor called the claims a racist attempt to discredit him. As the charged roiled – rising to the level of urban legend – a state attorney launched a major probe into the allegations. The investigation found no wrongdoing on behalf of Kilpatrick and his staff.
“When you’re a young African American man with an earring, it’s hard for people to believe you’re a good husband and father,” Kilpatrick told The Associated Press.
Detroit political consultant Sam Riddle told the Free Press, “The mayor has reached the tipping point where the public now assumes the worst about him.”
Although Kilpatrick won supporters by tackling the city’s projected $230 million deficit for next year, others point to swirling reports of his partying on the public dime as well as his proposed layoffs, scheduled to take place in March, as reasons why he should not be re-elected in November.
In addition to the layoffs, Kilpatrick plans to eliminate 200 vacant positions, sell city-owned vehicles, decrease employee benefits and ask workers to take a 10-percent pay cut.
“We can no longer delay the tough decisions,” Kilpatrick told Detroit’s citizens Wednesday.
Kilpatrick’s call for sacrifice among Detroit’s citizens was well-received until the press publicized the purchase of the Navigator.
“I thought he was doing OK, but if he continues stuff like this, if he doesn’t put the city first, he doesn’t deserve to be in office,” Charles McGuire, a 22-year-old Detroit resident, told the Free Press.
Is Kilpatrick giving Black politicians a bad name or is his a case of racial stereotyping? Click "Discuss Now" to share your thoughts.
posted by blackconsciousmen at 5:37 PM
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