September 28, 2005

Keri Mulholland

       Not only did the first debate, Thursday between Freman Hendrix and Kwame Kilpatrick show fireworks but it also illustrated the difference in their characters. Kilpatrick is clearly the better speaker, better communicator and better at handling issues in a public forum. For all of Hendrix experience in city government, being a people person is not one of his strong points. But that will have to change if he expects to become the next mayor and be successful at the job. Coleman Young was the epitome of a people person. All Detroiters still love Young nearly 12 years after his last term in office. In part because Young identified with Detroit, he made the city and the people his home and his family. His love for the people still resonates in this city. He still gets more favorable ratings that both Kwame Kilpatrick and Dennis Archer. Perhaps the poor personal touch from the Archer years highlights the successful personal touch of the Young Administration. Mayor Archer never came across as a caring person who loved the people in the city. He was a serious person who decided to tackle serious issues but he never was able to garnish the people’s love and respect.

       Freman Hendrix has tied himself to Archer. He has been stating publicly how things were done when he and Archer were in office and what has occurred in city government since he and Archer left office. Never being an elected person, he has never held office. But his lack of record is what hurts him the most. As long as Hendrix keeps people focused on Kilpatrick and not on himself he can win in November. That was the reason for the debate. Hendrix needs to continue to make people look at the mayor while not looking at him or Archer. The criticism has been focused on the last three years and not on any years prior to Kilpatrick’s administration. This past Thursday did not change that but created a serious setback to the Hendrix strategy.

       All pundits, commentators or political analysts have stated that Kilpatrick won the debate. The things that Hendrix has stated are already forgotten. Instead, Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, a man who is the poster child of a racist suburb and anti-Detroiter, took the focus off of Kilpatrick and placed it on the widely known rifts that exist between Oakland County and Detroit. Twelve years ago when Dennis Archer was running against Sharon McPhail to succeed Young, Patterson went on the local network news shows and openly endorsed Sharon McPhail. He even promised to hold fundraisers for her in Oakland County. Then superstar news anchor Bill Bonds asked Patterson point blank if his endorsement was a phony and positioned in order to hurt the McPhail candidacy. Patterson lied and said that he thought McPhail should be the next mayor. It was a calculated ploy but it worked. Patterson’s many anti-Detroit statements and his hateful remarks against Young while he was mayor permanently made Patterson unwelcome and unliked by just about all Detroiters. The saying that is old but true, “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”, is slightly altered in politics to become, “my political enemy who is allies with my political friend makes my political friend my political enemy”. Thus L. Brooks Patterson helped to defeat McPhail by pushing votes toward Archer. In the Archer years, some have said that the city of Detroit’s mayor’s office was outsourced to Oakland County. Everything Oakland County wanted, Archer provided. Archer made no moves to push Detroit’s political or economic needs ahead of his quest to support Detroit’s suburbs. As a result, during the 1990’s when the entire country was over run with extra funds, extra money and more jobs than the local populace could handle, Detroit’s unemployment rate never decreased, the budget deficits never ended and no improvements in the city were made. Some point to the development in the Central Business District as progress. Those projects were financed by the city and state using tax based loans, grants and all kinds of tax incentives. None of the projects are making money. Even the cheap deal Archer gave GM on the Renaissance building and the many land GM now owns in Downtown Detroit, hasn’t helped GM on its worsening finances and poor economic performance. Archer had promised jobs but never delivered. Now that legacy is haunting Freman Hendrix.

       Freman Hendrix ended the debate by saying that Detroit is essentially a bad place. He listed all of he city’s shortcomings. Some who listened might ask why Freman would want to live in the city and raise his family here with such remarks. To contrast, Kilpatrick has also indicated things in Detroit that need improvement. The difference between the two candidates is how they say what they are saying. Freman can only point out the negatives and treats them as wounds requiring amputation. Kilpatrick points out problems that he says can be fixed. While both point to the same things, Freman is more negative about the city than Kilpatrick. Freman also does not offer steps but theories on how to fix things. Freman has offered many visions on what he wants to see happen if he becomes mayor. But offering a vision is nothing without a way to get there, the steps in the process. Kilpatrick remarked on Thursday, that they “[Archer and Hendrix] could plan the hell out of everything”, when referring to Hendrix statements of how Archer left a plan for Kilpatrick to follow in regards to Detroit’s budget.

       Kilpatrick has stated that when he took office his mistake was thinking that he could easily change things in government. He said that the city government was so dysfunctional that is was hard to get anything done. During Archer’s terms as mayor, he had promised to cut the bureaucracy in the process of getting city approvals for development, business startups and other items that depended on the city’s permission. It never happened and it was one item that hung over Archer’s even after he left office. Kilpatrick never promised to end the red tape, but he says that the lack of progress made in the Archer years has meant that he is starting at a point 10 years behind where the city should be. Of course that is debatable. But instead of focusing on that or other similar topics, like Freman’s promise back in 1998 to get 60,000 new street lights up and running in 18 months (“Hour Detroit” March, 1998) never happened and people have forgotten the promise made. Poor performing street lights are still an issue and these days the city of Detroit doesn’t have the money Archer had to make any structural improvements. Archer outsourced many city departments out to private enterprise. DTE Energy now runs most of the Department for Public Lighting. No improvements have been made but its costing Detroit tax payers more money to get less service. Perhaps this is an example of why Freman does not want issues discussed and instead relies on attacks against Kilpatrick along with the often looked at personalities of the candidates to be the deciding factor in the mayoral election. But again, Hendrix made two bad moves in his debate with Kilpatrick, the first one on one debate between the two men.

       Kwame Kilpatrick made two remarks that are resonating with people in the Metro area. In front of the Detroit economic Club, a group made up of mostly suburban business owners, Kilpatrick essential said that more school age children do drugs in the suburbs that do those in Detroit. Of this he is correct, there are more children in the suburbs so there are more of them to do drugs. But the suburban leaders, like Patterson immediately attacked Kilpatrick and called on him to apologize. When Patterson has made similar remarks against Detroit he has never apologized and most of Patterson’s remarks are untrue. Freman said nothing when Kilpatrick made this remark. He stood there and never offered a response. If he wanted to show leadership he should have chided Kilpatrick for the remark. Instead he took it and allowed it to become something that apparently Freman does not disagree. Many Detroiters questioned about the remark also agree with it and have said they do not want Mayor Kilpatrick to apologize. Detroiters are tired of constantly being portrayed as gang members, criminals, poor, uncivilized and other negative demeaning labels by those now wanting Kilpatrick to take back what he said about the suburbs.

       Freman Hendrix wants to introduce character training in the Detroit Public Schools. Kwame countered that the last time there was character training was when slave owners wanted to destroy the souls and spirits of their slaves. This was another missed chance for Hendrix to either take back his statement or offer clarity to explain what he meant. Freman has the image of someone who thinks he is better than the average Detroiter. A person who has stated how much money he has and how he thinks people less fortunate than himself have a hard time making ends meet. Staying away from the lack of job growth in the 90’s Hendrix instead has focused his attention on the mentality of blaming poor folks for their own problems. His supporter, Mildred Gaddis, who has used her radio program to boost the Hendrix name over the past years while attacking Kilpatrick, frequently blames the victim. She frequently blames the youth for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. As though they can predict when something bad may occur. She has also said that the poor are at fault for allowing their continued oppression. As though the poor can vote their way or work their way out of poverty. That has been a republican message since before Reagan and Nixon and it has never worked. Kilpatrick has avoided all discussions regarding rich and poor. He has not made statements about any personal great wealth. There are no reports that he has made investments during his years as mayor as Hendrix did during his years with the city. The contrasting image of the two men has been solidifying since August. With the debates it will become clearer as election time approaches.

       Lastly, Kilpatrick asked in part if any member of the Hendrix family had any run-ins with the law. He never asked if there were any records of arrests although the papers that have endorsed Hendrix over Kilpatrick have attempted to rephrase the question. The statement has been said, by the deputy mayor Anthony Adams that it refers to Hendrix wife, Elaine, who was to allegedly have embezzled funds from her former employer, Blue Cross Blue Shield, when her husband was deputy mayor. No charges were ever made and her departure with the insurer coincided with the rumors release. BCBS does and did business with the city under both Archer and Kilpatrick. No one has offered any proof or tried to substantiate the rumor. But as these things always come up during election time, Hendrix failed to show himself as a strong defender. One role of the mayor is to be a political defender of the city. Archer failed to do that against Republic Governor, John Engler who did what he wanted in the city. Hendrix is repeating those mistakes and shares Archer’s weakness since he has tied himself to Archer’s record. If Hendrix can’t defend his wife he can’t defend the city. His response should have been swift and determined. Hendrix is a self proclaimed military man and should know how to handle himself in a fight. Rather that any physical response Hendrix should have stated that the rumor is untrue, that he believes in strong city-suburban partnerships and that he thinks Kilpatrick is wrong. All that was said was that Freman thinks Kilpatrick is desperate. Back when Coleman Young first ran for the office of mayor, Dennis Archer supported and ran the campaign of a White republican who also wanted to be mayor. Of course Young won, but it revealed the type of man Archer was an image that has never changed throughout Archer’s long career.

       Frank Beckman, the moderator of Thursday’s debate, also hosted a radio program on WJR on Friday morning. He invited both Kilpatrick and Hendrix, or any representative, to talk about the debate. Art Blackwell, a local business man, and current appointed city manager for Highland Park came on to represent the Kilpatrick campaign. He gave well reasoned explanations for both of Kilpatrick’s statements. Beckman was impressed and was left with only one view because the Hendrix campaign refused to respond and refused to even send a representative. It seems that Kilpatrick made a bold strategic move that sent the Hendrix campaign looking for political cover. What could have been a Kilpatrick blunder is instead a win in addition to his performance at the debate. Hendrix, who once gave himself the reputation of a pit bull for his attacks on Archer’s foes after the first win for mayor back in 1993, has not lived up to that reputation. While he gets angry on the campaign trail when someone asks him a question he doesn’t like, he lacks the knowledge or sophistication to dispatch the question while at the same time not coming off as mean or cold. While Hendrix led in the primary, it was a race of four strong candidates three of whom shared the same voter pool, opposed to Hendrix. Now its only two candidates and it seems they are in a virtual tie. It’s a close race and crunch time for both men.