What has Bing done so far?

[Stosh]

Novine:
Thanks for jumping in to explain things.

Stosh:
Regarding my idea to refinance our collective debt, I should disclose that, once upon a time, I used to work as stock broker - first for Merrill Lynch and then for Prudential Securities - before leaving to take my job that I actually enjoy. Bond deals like this are generally syndicated among a number of investment firms who, in turn, sell the bonds to retail and institutional investors. I've seen deals get put together - even during a recession - for borrowers whose credit rating was worse than Detroit's currently is.

Most municipal bonds that I have seen issued have had a fixed date that is set in stone for their redemption. That being said, the COD is currently offering bonds now. Effective yields higher than their previous issues. I wonder why? You can buy bonds offered previously in the aftermarket as well.
http://michigan.municipalbonds.com/b...ate:2009-06-26

[Crumbled_pavement]

Bing has not been charged with any felony or misdemeanor involving public funds. This makes him the best elected mayor in some time. What more do you want? Fix Detroit's problems???

What mayor besides Kwame has been charged with a crime involving public funds?

[firstandten]

Anyone see Bing's weak-assed comment on the Conyers guilty plea? The woman is now a known felon and he's still playing it safe when he doesn't even have to. It's more sad than anything else. She'll be in prison and he'll still be walking on eggshells. He's like a timid turtle.

The only thing I can come up with is maybe Bing doesn't want to upset John, knowing their could be some fallout at the federal level in term of Detroit getting funds. Otherwise I can't see a reason why he wouldn't be more forceful about Monica's guilty plea.

[Buy American]

Personally, I think John Conyers is as sick of MonCon as we are. Instead of the statement from his office reading "these are trying times".....it should have read "Monica is very trying"....

He will distance himself from her as much as possible, and as Nolan Finley said on Flashpoint, he needs to do it perrmanently!

[Fnemecek]

Most municipal bonds that I have seen issued have had a fixed date that is set in stone for their redemption. That being said, the COD is currently offering bonds now. Effective yields higher than their previous issues. I wonder why? You can buy bonds offered previously in the aftermarket as well.
http://michigan.municipalbonds.com/b...ate:2009-06-26

There are many things to point out so let's get started.

Most bonds, municipal and otherwise, have two key dates that you need to be aware of - a maturity date and a call date. The maturity date is when the bond holder gets his or her money back in full and the borrower stops making interest payments. The call date is a date after which the borrower has the right to buy the debt back at a pre-determined price and bond holder has to sell it at said price. If one looks at the hyperlink above, you'll notice a column labeled "yield to call" and that half of the bonds have a call date. [[The other half have a maturity date of 10 years of less from their issuance so they usually don't have a call date.)

The call date is especially relevant because - if I recall correctly - CoD and DPS have a lot of debt that is currently callable and thus very easy to refinance.

Next, the bonds that were linked to above weren't new issuances. Those are bonds available for purchase in the open market. [[Click the name of each issuance and you'll be taken to a new screen with a lot more data, including the bond's first coupon date - which gives you a pretty good idea of when they were first issued.)

As for your question about why the effective yield has gone up, that's because the price for the underlying bond has gone down in the open market. Investors are still getting the same coupon or interest payment, but they're able to get it at a cheaper price. Hence, the effective yield on the bond has gone up.

[Stosh]

What is Detroit's status now as to their Moody's and S & P ratings? I'm sure that the fact that both rating services have lowered their ratings to "junk bond" status can't make refinancing of anything easy. I can't find their exact rating anywhere.

[Gistok]

The only thing I can come up with is maybe Bing doesn't want to upset John, knowing their could be some fallout at the federal level in term of Detroit getting funds. Otherwise I can't see a reason why he wouldn't be more forceful about Monica's guilty plea.

I have to agree... I'm sure that Bing is fully aware of CCK's vindictiveness by voting against John Dingell [[and for California's Henry Waxman) for control of the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee. Dingell was one of the folks who wanted Kwame gone, and his mother got her revenge on him.

I'm sure that fact has not been lost on Bing, and his actions and comments about MonCon are based in part on John Conyers proximity to the situation.

And as for you impatient folks... Bing was not afforded the luxury of having 2 months as Mayor-elect to build a new administration, as other mayors in the past had. So rather than sounding naiive about the political process, you might want to cut him some slack. He inherited a mess, and he's knee deep in that mess right now. Plus add to that intransigent unions, empty city coffers, and a city council where the majority are nitwits.

Under those circumstances, he'd have to be a miracle worker to get that much done early on. The Cobo deal may not make that many folks in the community happy, but it will make headlines, and something to show for his short time in office. Ditto for if he gets the city out of the dismal lighting business. If folks can get their streetlights back on, then he'll have another accomplishment.

As for additional police officers... that will cost money that the city currently doesn't have.

[Detwa]

But do Detroiters deserve to have a 'fraidy cat' mayor? He's afraid to even voice his opinion because of possibly angering someone else? What kind of leadership is that? Sounds like the same old cronyism. All he has to do is issue a statement asking her to step down for the good of the people. And if John Conyers is going to punish him for even saying that, then JC doesn't belong in office either. If Bing doesn't speak up now, he doesn't deserve a second term in office.

[Gistok]

But do Detroiters deserve to have a 'fraidy cat' mayor? He's afraid to even voice his opinion because of possibly angering someone else? What kind of leadership is that? Sounds like the same old cronyism. All he has to do is issue a statement asking her to step down for the good of the people. And if John Conyers is going to punish him for even saying that, then JC doesn't belong in office either. If Bing doesn't speak up now, he doesn't deserve a second term in office.

I'm sure that Bing's group of advisers [[many of whom are respected folks)... is giving him the best advise available... vengance is likely not good advice.

John Conyers [[for whatever merits or lack thereof) is now a powerful chairman in Washington. No reason for Bing to "cut off the city's collective nose to spite their face".

[Crumbled_pavement]

I'm sure that Bing's group of advisers [[many of whom are respected folks)... is giving him the best advise available... vengance is likely not good advice.

John Conyers [[for whatever merits or lack thereof) is now a powerful chairman in Washington. No reason for Bing to "cut off the city's collective nose to spite their face".

But wouldn't John be shooting himself in the foot if he cut off funds to the district he represents in order to get back at Bing?

[Stosh]

But wouldn't John be shooting himself in the foot if he cut off funds to the district he represents in order to get back at Bing?

John Conyers couldn't stop jack s#!t from coming to Detroit. His sphere of influence is limited to the Judiciary committee. And if he did find a way through his "connections" on Capitol Hill, then there's always the obvious, voting him out of office. Last time I looked, there were more than a few ambitious people around town to challenge him in his district.

Any money that could be concievibly funneled to Detroit would have to be gotten through the normal channels, anyway. I can't come up with any cash that Conyers has gotten directly, besides what he's supposedly gotten for the DMC and the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan.

Bing is right in letting things take it's course. It's not productive to kick Monica when she's down, no matter how much fun it seems to be at the time.

[Gistok]

But wouldn't John be shooting himself in the foot if he cut off funds to the district he represents in order to get back at Bing?

Isn't that in essence what Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick did when she voted against John Dingell... who's always supported the Detroit automakers... against Henry Waxman, who has his own agenda that doesn't look out for Detroit's best interest?

Detroit and SE Michigan are in this financial mess in large part because of the woes of the auto industry and the financing of autos. CCK just help make it worse by voting for someone who's not an ally of the automotive industry.

It's not always simply about appropriating funds....