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Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, giving his 20th State of the County address Wednesday night, devotes 11 paragraphs to the pounding he invited by bashing Detroit in a New Yorker interview last month.
The outspoken politician had promised not to sidestep the controversy, telling Crain's last Friday: "I'll explain how it all happened, but I'm not going to spend an inordinate amount of time on it. You can't ignore it."
Indeed he doesn't, alluding to it briefly up front with a quip at his Centerpoint Marriott presentation to invited guests and media in Pontiac, according to a text provided to Deadline Detroit.
"Let me start this evening with one observation: After the month I just experienced, all I can say is 'Thank God for George Cushingberry.' "
The colorful Detroit councilman and veteran suburban leader took turns in the local spotlight last month as each made headline-worthy statements, though only Cushingberry had a brush with police Jan. 7.
In his case, Patterson made news with an interview in the national magazine's Jan. 20 issue that was headlined "Drop Dead, Detroit!" He says stopping for gas in Detroit is "just a call for a carjacking” and restates a past crack about turning "Detroit into an Indian reservation."
"I was sandbagged, pure and simple," says Patterson, who accuses a journalist of "fabricating a sensational and titillating story that she knew would attract the interest of her editors at the New Yorker."
"This Dilettante"
Addressing Wednesday night's friendly crowd on his turf, he derides the interviewer -- respected journalist Paige Williams -- as "this dilettante" and insists: "I'm an Oakland County booster, not a Detroit basher." (The full text of this portion is below.)
In the speech, Patterson voices regret about granting the interview, saying: "My instincts as an experienced politician let me down."
As he tells it, Williams "pulled the old bait-and-switch, selling me on one idea of writing a positive story about Oakland County’s success in creating jobs and stimulating new economic development and attracting capital investment, but instead fabricating a sensational and titillating story that she knew would attract the interest of her editors at the New Yorker and give her the national recognition that she so obviously craves."
Patterson continues in that vein, repeating a claim made after publication that Williams "drudged up old, stale and worn-out statements from decades ago and presented them as they if they were fresh quotes."
In truth, he's the one who dusted off the hot-button Indian reservation metaphor for reuse, as is clear from Williams' article:
When I asked him how Detroit might fix its financial problems, he said, "I made a prediction a long time ago, and it's come to pass. I said, 'What we're going to do is turn Detroit into an Indian reservation, where we herd all the Indians into the city, build a fence around it, an then throw in the blankets and corn.' "
Three weeks later, Patterson casts himself as a victim, saying in his State of the County text:
"To say that I was furious about the intentional false representations of my comments would be a gross understatement. I was sandbagged, pure and simple. But for a guy who’s been in the public arena for as long as I have, that’s a pretty hard thing to admit. I have nobody to blame but myself."
Patterson chooses his words carefully, saying "false representation" instead of "falsehood," and not accusing Williams of any misstatements or errors.
Policy Initiatives
In other portions, the sixth-term county executive sketches these initiatives, as described in a news release:
- Connected car technology: He wants Oakland to be the first with road sensors that work with new generations of data-transmitting vehicles to "dramatically reduce auto accidents as well as assisting emergency responders."
- IT employer recruiting: He vows "to attract more IT companies to the region."
- Homeless Healthcare Collaboration: The county "has brought together more than four dozen healthcare and service agencies to identify the barriers and gaps in delivering adequate healthcare to those experiencing homelessness. The primary goal is to reduce the number of hospital admissions and return visits to emergency rooms."
In an uncustomary display of regional unity, guests attending included the county executive's counterparts from Wayne and Macomb, Bob Ficano and Mark Hackel, and Deputy Mayor Ike McKinnon of Detroit. (Mayor Mike Duggan "could not join us tonight because he was previously scheduled to attend a town hall meeting," Patterson says in his 25-page text.)
A less harmonious spirit closes the annual address, as Patterson returns to feisty form with a shot at "our Democrat friends in Congress."
"One liberal congressman was on a talk show bemoaning the state of our republic," begins an anecdote that appears to come from a widely reposted comment this month by Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona. "He gushed his liberal wish list saying: 'I would like to live in a place where everybody has guaranteed employment, free comprehensive healthcare, free education, free food, free housing, free clothing, free utilities, and only law enforcement had guns.”
"And you know, congressman, believe it or not, such a place does exist. it’s called prison."
►FULL REMARKS about New Yorker interview
This excerpt is from an advance text of L. Brooks Patterson's State of the County address, provided by his communications director:
I would be remiss if I did not interject a personal comment on the much discussed New Yorker magazine article.
Last September a reporter from that magazine contacted my office about doing a “comparison piece” on how Oakland County continued to prosper as a AAA county during the recent recession while Wayne County and Detroit have struggled, for that matter, Detroit actually slipping into bankruptcy. I jumped at this opportunity because I really thought it would be a great opportunity to showcase Oakland County to a national audience.
Red flags should have popped up given the reputation of the New Yorker, but I was focused on a rare chance to sell Oakland County nationally. The reporter and I got together and she pulled the old bait-and-switch, selling me on one idea of writing a positive story about Oakland County’s success in creating jobs and stimulating new economic development and attracting capital investment, but instead fabricated a sensational and titillating story that she knew would attract the interest of her editors at the New Yorker and give her the national recognition that she so obviously craves.
In hindsight, which is always 20/20, my instincts as an experienced politician let me down. I clearly was blinded by the specter of Oakland County reaching a nationwide audience of potential skilled workers and business owners.
During this reporter’s four days here she interviewed me and members of my team about our many innovative programs – Automation Alley, Emerging Sectors, Medical Main Street, and so on. I arranged a tour of the county for her, highlighting some of the best of what Oakland County has to offer in terms of culture, entertainment, dining experiences, unique downtowns, and shopping. Most of the information with which she was provided never made it into the finished article. It ended up on the infamous “cutting room” floor, no doubt where it was destined in the first place.
When the article was published in January, the story was more about me than Oakland County.
Her fascination with “gotcha” journalism drudged up old, stale, and worn out statements from decades ago and presented them as they if they were fresh quotes. To say that I was furious about the intentional false representations of my comments would be a gross understatement. I was sandbagged, pure and simple. But for a guy who’s been in the public arena for as long as I have, that’s a pretty hard thing to admit. I have nobody to blame but myself.
Let me state unequivocally for the record: That I have nothing but the greatest respect and highest regard for the new Mayor of Detroit Mike Duggan. I wish him and his management team, and the citizens of Detroit, all the success in the world in restoring the city to a position of financial prosperity. I am rooting for a Detroit comeback. Oakland County and Detroit will always have some contentious issues with which to deal. Sometimes we will respectfully agree to disagree. That is the nature of the political process, and more often than not, it works. That is how things get done.
I regret ever giving this dilettante an interview because it sets back my efforts to heal more than 30 years of strife between city and suburb – some real, some imagined. But I’m prepared to start anew because there is a wide range of important issues that Mike Duggan and I will need to address in moving this region forward.
To those who know me, explanation for the content of that malicious article is unnecessary. To those who have preconceived notions about me, no explanation will suffice. But let me be absolutely clear: I’m an Oakland County booster, not a Detroit basher.
And that IS a statement on which I can be quoted.
