Snyder ad on Detroit financial crisis is mostly true
LANSING – As the Michigan governor’s campaign nears its conclusion, incumbent Gov. Rick Snyder released an ad titled “Recovery” Thursday that touts his role in addressing Detroit’s financial crisis.
The ad is mostly true, but goes too far in places.
Claim: “Fifty years of neglect, that’s what caused Detroit’s decline.”
Reality: A little simplistic, but essentially true.
Detroit’s financial crisis wasn’t just the product of passivity, as the line from the ad suggests. There was too much spending, excess borrowing, mismanagement and corruption, and state cuts to revenue sharing, among other factors.
But the nut of the problem was a repeated failure to act, as detailed in the award-winning Free Press project, “How Detroit Went Broke.” It reported:
“When all the numbers are crunched, one fact is crystal clear: Yes, a disaster was looming for Detroit. But there were ample opportunities when decisive action by city leaders might have fended off bankruptcy.”
Claim: “We couldn’t just keep kicking the can down the road any longer.”
Reality: True, for the reasons stated above.
Claim: “We put politics aside, worked together, rebuilt a strong foundation ...”
Reality: Partly false. “Worked together” is stretching it with respect to some aspects of the Detroit financial rescue, though it is apt in other respects.
Gov. Rick Snyder’s emergency manager law — utilization of which was a required precursor to Chapter 9 bankruptcy — was rejected by Michigan voters in 2012, only to be quickly replaced by a very similar law rushed through the Republican-controlled Legislature and signed by Snyder a short time later. The GOP attached an appropriation to the new law to make it referendum-proof.
One can argue whether Detroit’s financial crisis could have been addressed in a timely manner without such heavy-handed tactics, but those tactics can’t accurately be called “working together.”
On the other hand, state-appointed Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr’s relationship with the Detroit City Council can only be described as better than expected.
But the greatest example of working together was the grand bargain designed to minimize the impact of the Detroit bankruptcy on city pensioners while protecting the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts. Snyder can rightly claim credit for securing a $195-million commitment to the settlement from a GOP-controlled Legislature that was loathe to approve a “bailout” for Detroit.
Claim: “Now Detroit is on the road to recovery.”
Reality: Likely true, but premature.
Though approval of the city’s bankruptcy settlement plan appears likely, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes has demonstrated through some of his earlier rulings why neither Snyder nor anyone else should try to prejudge his actions.
Even if the plan is approved, and Detroit is able to quickly exit from bankruptcy, a financial expert selected by Rhodes has testified the city will have little financial wiggle room moving forward.
Truthfulness rating: 3 out of 4
Paul Egan is a reporter for the Detroit Free Press