Controversial Troy Mayor Janice Daniels: Recall is a relief, but it's the media's fault

By Eric D. Lawrence/Detroit Free Press

Troy Mayor Janice Daniels said being recalled from office is a burden removed.

The day after Troy voters removed the controversial mayor from office, Daniels expressed relief at the outcome. The recall passed Tuesday, 52%-48%.

“I’m going to have a great burden lifted off of my shoulders because I won’t be faced with this relentless, merciless, vicious, unwarranted attacks on my person that would have probably gone on for the next three years had I won the election, so it’s probably for the best,” Daniels said in brief comments late Wednesday afternoon.

Daniels, a tea party favorite, was elected to office last year and has been embroiled in a string of controversies regarding her comments about gay people, her opposition to accepting federal funds for a transit center and her public dressing-down of the former city manager.

During an interview with Charlie Langton on Wednesday morning on WXYT-AM (1270), the 59-year-old Daniels primarily blamed the news media for her recall. When asked whether she had any regrets, Daniels said she regrets the lack of a balanced news media.

“Every time I talked to the media, they twisted my words,” she said.

Those supporting her recall cited other reasons for her ouster.

Matt Binkowski, a 40-year-old patent attorney who helped start the recall effort, pointed to the negative publicity that Daniels’ comments about gay people had generated and her verbal attacks against city employees.

“We’re extremely pleased that Mayor Daniels has been recalled, and now the embarrassment and ridicule that… she brought to the community has finally ended,” he said.

Pastor Robert Cornwall of Central Woodward Christian Church in Troy said Daniels was not a good representative for the community and that her positions on issues did not reflect his own as a Christian.

“I felt that she was so off base that we couldn’t survive very well for four years with her as mayor,” he said.

But Daniels did have support following the election, including on the Support Troy Mayor Janice Daniels Facebook page.

“Even though the recall was successful, your values were truly a reflection of your love for our great city and her citizens. Thank you, Mayor Daniels. We need your continued involvement — and we know you will be available for the call for future service to our city and her bright future!” one posting read.

Troy officials now must turn to the matter of replacing Daniels.

Mayor Pro Tem Maureen McGinnis said she could be sworn in as acting mayor as early as today if the Oakland County Board of Canvassers certifies the recall results.

McGinnis will hold the post only until a meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday, when City Councilman Dane Slater, the next person in line to become mayor pro tem, fills the acting mayor slot. The council then has 30 days to select a new mayor to serve until next November. The mayor is a part-time position that pays $175 per month.

McGinnis, 34, a family law attorney in Troy, said the City Council will try to shift the focus back to city business, including preparing for the arrival of incoming City Manager Brian Kischnick on Nov. 19.

“I’m hoping that the six of us will be able to come together and make decisions that are in the best interest of the city, and to be honest with you, I think we’ll be able to do that,” she said. “It has been so contentious up until this point, I know that I, for one, am ready to move on.”

Corporate money wasn't enough to save Scott

By David Holtz/Progress Michigan

When voters in Genesee County’s 51st state House District fired Paul Scott Tuesday for cutting education funding and other political crimes they defeated a huge right-wing money machine intent on grinding down public schools.  Into the maw of the education shredder was fed more than $100,000 in support of Scott —maybe lots more when the final tally comes in.  

Conservative education diva Michelle Rhee and the thoroughly rejected DeVos clan rightly saw Scott as their champion in the Legislature and spared no expense in their failed effort to save him from voters’ wrath.  Eclectablog detailed their big bucks handiwork on Election Day.

I wanted to dig a little more into the recall money story, particularly the role the 1% played.  Since Scott’s defeat Tuesday, Republican talking points indicate that the election was bought by teachers, or “special interests” in their message frame.  The corporate media hasn’t been much better, at least in the run-up to the election.  The Free Press mentioned Scott being supported by the Michigan Chamber of Commerce.  But the chamber has to get the campaign cash from somewhere. So who were the corporations behind the chamber’s spending on behalf of Scott?  Again, Eclectablog has details on many of them, but one in particular received less notice and stands out: Meijer.  

Meijer inc. pumped $25,000 into a Michigan Chamber of Commerce political action committee and another $25,000 into a front group for the DeVos clan’s right-wing education privatization crusade, the Great Lakes Education Project.   Both the chamber and GLEP PACs then spent money in support of Scott. Meijer isn’t alone among corporate interests whose money found their way into the Scott recall election, but they are the biggest corporate financial backers I’ve discovered by far. 

Other corporate money linked to the recall election in support of Scott include:  Jackson National Life Insurance ($10,000), Two Men & A Truck ($5,000), Amway Global ($5,000), Honigman, Miller, Schwartz & Cohn law firm ($2,500), First National Bank in Kalamazoo ($1,000), Kar’s Nuts ($1,000),  Granger Construction Company ($1,000) and West Shore Bank ($1,000).  All gave to the chamber’s political action committee. Moreover, the Realtors PAC ($10,250), Blue Cross Blue Shield ($2,500), Michigan Beer and Wine wholesalers ($2,750) and AT&T ($1,000) all gave money directly to Scott’s campaign.   

All told, more than $150,000 from corporations, corporate PACs, CEOs or their families ended up funding, directly or indirectly, the failed campaign to save Scott.  And, of course, the CEO in Chief—Gov. Rick Snyder—put his political capital and political cash on the line.  Besides campaigning for Scott, the One Tough Nerd PAC gave the Scott campaign $2,124. 

So why would the 1% spend so heavily to keep one politician from being fired by voters?   I think it’s about greed and fear.   These CEOs got a $1.8 billion tax cut from the likes of Paul Scott.   The fear:  recalling Scott could mean that corporate greed is no longer good with voters--especially if it means their kids end up with schools that suck because of budget cuts.

Rep. Paul Scott concedes to recall

by NBC25 Newsroom

GRAND BLANC -- Rep. Paul Scott conceded to a recall Tuesday night before results had completely been reported.

NBC25

Rep. Scott told NBC25 on Tuesday night, “We’re taking on a monster. The defenders of the status quo aren’t going to go away easily.  We almost took them down tonight, but that fight will continue tomorrow.”

The Associated Press reports Rep. Scott lost by 232 votes, and that while a recount has not been ruled out, the Grand Blanc representative is accepting the loss.

We spoke with Scott on Wednesday, and he still seems determined to make a difference in Michigan.

"I was definitely a leader in the legislature on a lot of these issues. I'm very outspoken about the need to reign in government," said Scott, who has not ruled out running for the same position next year.

The Citizens Against Government Overreach, a group that helped spearhead the recall efforts, says Rep. Scott needed to be ousted because of his support of the education cuts and pension taxes. 

Rep. Scott will remain in office until election results are certified.  The AP reports those results should be totaled by the end of this week.

Are you surprised that Rep. Paul Scott conceded in this recall? Vote on our poll below and leave us your comments.