Having endured the usual attacks, I took a while to read up on the story. Here's my summary:
1) Find an Emergency Manager, or find a failing institution
2) Identify a reasonable decision that turned out badly.
3) Attack relentlessly and equate the outcome with the actor's motivation.
Does anyone really believe that Snyder was intentionally poisoning Flint residents? Woke up one day and decided to kill. Realized that the EM law was a fine tool for murdering Flint residents. And secretly instructed that they use river water.
Or perhaps Snyder, being brave, decides that its worth helping Flint out because he cares. Even though he knows that making changes to corrupt, inefficient, and resistant to change bureaucracies can be like stirring up a hornets nest. Nonetheless, he appoints an EM because Flint is about to die. The EM sees that Flint is overpaying money to Detroit's bloated, 400% overstaffed, cronyist Water Board -- and sees a chance to actually save $10m per year -- and also employ more local residents to create their own water infrastructure. They make a mistake. Yes, a horrible mistake.
Then the chorus erupts. Because you are Republican and conservative and willing to actually engage in helping cities you are a threat. Snyder must go because he's disrupting the perfect world that is Flint. If only a Democrat were in place to protect our way of life that's going oh so well.
Life was just about perfect in Flint before EM. Before Snyder. Oh the horror he has brought.
The best, most reasonable articles are
in the Atlantic.