City, suburban lawmakers came together to aid Detroit

In the often hyper-partisan environment of the Michigan Legislature, it’s not often that you hear Republican praise for a Democratic colleague, or vice versa.However, in the past three weeks, there has been effusive and universal kudos for state Reps. John Walsh, R-Livonia, and Thomas Stallworth, D-Detroit, for their work leading the House Committee on Detroit’s Recovery and Michigan’s Future that was responsible for brokering the monumental deal that will send $195 million from the state to Detroit — a seminal action that could help the city successfully emerge from bankruptcy, while shoring up the retirement savings of city workers and protecting the art at the Detroit Institute of Arts.
The two men were able to assuage fears, bridge the Detroit vs. the rest of the state divide and bring their respective colleagues together in a way that has been truly rare in Lansing these days.
Praise for the two men came from all corners — from Gov. Rick Snyder to Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Republicans and Democrats alike, and even federal mediator U.S. District Judge Gerald Rosen, who said he felt they had all become friends during the delicate negotiations.

The leadership couldn’t have picked two better men, said state Rep. Fred Durhal, D-Detroit, currently the longest-serving member in the House. “John is a very reasonable and approachable individual. And Thomas is a very deep thinker ... who’s calm, cool and collected,” he said. “When you put both of those guys together, you know something good was going to happen.”
Both were exceedingly patient with all the parties that had a vested interest in the package, which combines the money with strict state financial oversight and rules about how much the city can put into retirement accounts and health care going forward.
But while the plaudits for Stallworth and Walsh and their efforts come easily, the job of coming together and pulling off the deal was anything but. When it came time to tackle the thorny issue of providing aid to Detroit, Walsh said he was certain of his desire to jump in, and proclaimed: “It’s simply the right thing to do for the citizens of Detroit and the citizens of Michigan.”
Stallworth was a bit of a harder sell. It’s an election year and Stallworth is in a highly competitive six-person primary for the 5th District Senate seat. And there are some Detroiters who already are suspicious of the state-appointed emergency manager and the grand bargain to help settle the bankruptcy.
“These bills were not an easy lift,” he said. “It’s campaign season and it’s the kind of problem that no one is completely happy with the outcome.”

But he came to the conclusion that he had to get involved after talking to a retiree who lost his health care and was dealing with medical bills that ate up most of his monthly pension check.




http://www.freep.com/article/2014060...oit-bankruptcy

When Black Godfather Kilpatrick gone, when the city goes bankrupt, when Detroit gets a white mayor for the first time in 40 years. The bailout begins. It's not a conspiracy but its act of reputation.