Cushingberry to Detroit News: "Go to Hell"

**andyguard** · January-07-14, 02:23 PM

The Detroit News wrote an editorial bashing the election of Brenda Jones and George Cushingberry to leadership positions on the council. I started scrolling through the comments and found Mr. Cushingberry himself weighing in:

Councilman George Cushingberry Jr. Detroit City Council District #2
"Dear Detroit News, Go to hell. Go straight to hell. Do not pass go and don't even think about collecting $200. Jones and Cush will lead the Push for an even Greater Detroit. #WeLoveDetroit"

I was going to put this on the Brenda Jones page, but I thought it deserves its own thread.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...N01/301070003/

**andyguard** · January-07-14, 02:24 PM

Sorry for the funky formatting on the quote. It's been a while since I've posted on here.

**bailey** · January-07-14, 02:26 PM

Was that a botched attempt to post anonymously or did he mean to refer to himself in the 3rd person like that?

Also...are we sure this isn't a fake? From further down....

Councilman George Cushingberry Jr. Detroit City Council District #2
In order to be a great city, we must think and act like a great city. This means protecting our employees from financial abuse and, upgrading city services. Regional and City Wide transportation through the expansion of the People Mover is one thing we will act on very soon. Mayor Duggan and the Council are on the same page when it comes to our city. Green Jobs are a must have for our citizens and this will happen very soon.

Expanding the People Mover?

**Schoolcraft** · January-07-14, 02:33 PM

I'm embarrassed to say that this person is my council representative. It sucks... How it happened I don't know, basically every person I talked to in district 2 HATES this guy.

**dmike76** · January-07-14, 02:51 PM

Classy! Next thing you know, he'll be calling up Monica Conyers and they'll go out and get into a barfight.

**dtowncitylover** · January-07-14, 03:54 PM

Well his comments are certainly tactless. But the article, while I do agree with the subject matter, comes off as arrogant.

"We are especially disappointed in Leland, from whom we expected more. We endorsed the former state representative in both the primary and general elections because we thought he would join forces with the more reasonable council members. Leland will have much to prove."

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz2pkRNkuwb

This really came off as if the News was some sort of mob boss whose lacky disappointed him. Leland has only his constituents to answer to, not the News. Also the first line, in my opinion, could also be read as "Leland is a white guy, so we thought he was gonna vote our way and he didn't! White people need to stick together!"

**corktownyuppie** · January-07-14, 04:04 PM

Originally Posted by dtowncitylover

This really came off as if the News was some sort of mob boss whose lacky disappointed him. Leland has only his constituents to answer to, not the News. Also the first line, in my opinion, could also be read as "Leland is a white guy, so we thought he was gonna vote our way and he didn't! White people need to stick together!"

I'm not sure where you are getting the mob boss/employee dynamic from. Of course Leland doesn't have to answer to the Detroit News. But the Detroit News endorsed him with certain expectations. Now that those expectations aren't being met, it's totally fair game for pulling their support.

I agree that the DetNews overreacted with their language. I argue that Cushingberry only added fuel to the fire.

If I ran for City Council and -- even unknowingly -- got the endorsement of the Michigan Citizen, they would be totally within their right to say that I've disappointed them and that they don't endorse what I'm doing.

This is totally within the bounds of how journalists act as a check and balance on our government officials.

Now I'm curious about the racial dynamic you introduce..."Leland is a White guy...so we thought he was going to vote *our* way."

What is "our" way? The "white" way? Is there a "white" way? If anything, I don't see this as black vs. white. Not at all. This is about business culture and management vs. historic militant labor movements.

And you've got whites and blacks on both sides of that divide for sure.

My position is that we've hit the high water mark for what militant labor can bring us. It's time to move on.

**dtowncitylover** · January-07-14, 04:18 PM

Originally Posted by corktownyuppie

What is "our" way? The "white" way? Is there a "white" way? If anything, I don't see this as black vs. white. Not at all. This is about business culture and management vs. historic militant labor movements.

Of course there isn't per se, but why did they single out Leland? How come they didn't mention their disappointment specifically of the others who voted for Jones? I can't find a list of endorsements from the News, but I would be, and am individually, disappointed even if I didn't endorse all of them.

**MikeyinBrooklyn** · January-07-14, 05:50 PM

To be honest, I know very little about him or Jones, so I will reserve judgment on them for now. The little comments and bickering that politicians do I don't really care about either way, until it affects governance. But I kind of like the idea of telling of the press. It just kinda warms my heart a little.

**Novine** · January-07-14, 06:12 PM

It's Cushingberry. He was commenting on articles about the election back in the fall. He comments as if he's on Twitter and maybe he's tweeting there too.

**antongast** · January-07-14, 06:23 PM

I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that this isn't the first time Nolan Finley has been told to go to hell, nor will it be the last. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Finley spent the first several years of his life under the impression that Nolan-go-to-hell was his full first name.

**sirrealone** · January-08-14, 09:01 AM

No elected official should be behaving like this. Period.

People complain that Detroit doesn't get the respect it deserves, but when things like this are what people see, tell me how this is supposed to command respect. Remember, respect is earned, not given. If I were a constituent of Councilman Cushingberry, I would contact him and let him know that this type of perception is out of line. Whether you support him or not is irrelevant in my eyes, it's the handling of the situation that is a failure.

**Zacha341** · January-08-14, 09:37 AM

You did great! You provided a summary of some of the article and provided links. Thanks.

Originally Posted by andyguard

Sorry for the funky formatting on the quote. It's been a while since I've posted on here.

**acer_ventura** · January-08-14, 11:27 AM

Though the editorial fr the News may have been hard on people's feelings- it is still an opinion/editorial piece that was properly titled and located in said paper. It was never presented as a hard news story. In a way, Cushingberry's response really kind of helps the News make their point.

The opinion piece has created more dialogue because of its raw response to a council election that may be taking the next backward step for the D. Last I heard, thats exactly what op/ed pieces are supposed to do...

In a healthy society, I expect a very vigorous debate between the 'supposed' guardians of the written word and their elected officials. To find racism within the DNews op/ed is quite a stretch.

**downtownguy** · January-08-14, 01:43 PM

I view this as two wrongs making nothing right. Cushingberry's response is hardly professional and portends a lack of leadership ability. On the other hand, the News seems to be taking a relatively minor event and stirring the pot in much the same way certain council members have done in the past. I can understand Cushingberry's anger, but not his public outburst.

The fact is, the Detroit News is a rag. Whether or not it is overt racism, I do see this editorial as pandering to the Detroit haters out there. This is nothing new at the News.

And, to set the record straight, this is an Editorial, not an op-ed and not a column written by Nolan Finley. IMHO, Finley is a blowhard and is closely aligned with the opinions expressed by the Detroit News editorial board. An op-ed, however, is generally written by someone identified by name, and not affiliated a newspaper's editorial board.

**swingline** · January-08-14, 10:01 PM

The train wreck potential of Mr. Cushingberry's tenure on City Council is quite high. He is very skilled at the backslapping element of politics but clueless regarding actual governing. Indeed, he is clueless about this stuff on a breathtaking scale. Hence, we get the brilliant declaration of a need to expand the People Mover. Mr. Cushingberry's actual grasp of transit issues in SE Michigan does not exceed a 5th grader's.

Mr. Cushingberry is the male equivalent of former councilwoman Barbara Rose Collins but with a proclivity for a hand in the cookie jar style of handling financial affairs. [[His shenanigans several years ago as an appointed conservator and guardian ad litem in Wayne County Probate Court are legendary.) If Kevyn Orr allocates office budget funds to city council members, Mr. Cushingberry will become the highest paid employee in the city.

It's very likely that Mr. Cushingberry's combination of incompetence, abrasiveness and arrogance will produce embarassment for the city in the near future. Exactly how is uncertain, but it will happen.

**SWMAP** · January-09-14, 07:06 PM

Cushingberry pulled over yesterday, WXYZ reporting, on suspicion DWI. A DPD supervisor was called to the scene and let him go. Now internal Affairs investigation opened. Unknown which cop being investigated: the scout car or the supervisor.
Not bad! Two weeks in office.

**Dan Wesson** · January-09-14, 07:40 PM

That Detroit news editorial....

A Scientific Wild Ass Guess?

**swingline** · January-09-14, 09:44 PM

Originally Posted by swingline

It's very likely that Mr. Cushingberry's combination of incompetence, abrasiveness and arrogance will produce embarassment for the city in the near future. Exactly how is uncertain, but it will happen.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...text|FRONTPAGE

I wish there was a Las Vegas line on this. Could've made some money.

Let's all hope Mr Cushingberry is one of those highly functioning alcoholics.