by Gongwer News Service
September 5, 2008

With questions resolved on Thursday about whether Kwame Kilpatrick would hang on to his Detroit mayoral post, the press and the government will likely focus on key if less juicy issues, such as budgets, trade trips and patching up Detroit, much of which largely evaded top priority while Mr. Kilpatrick’s fate was still undecided.

State leaders, many of whom served with Mr. Kilpatrick in the legislature while he was a representative from 1996-2001, all likely predicted an unhappy end to his predicament, yet many this week were noticeably shaken by the details of the plea agreement that strips Mr. Kilpatrick of his law license, of the ability to run for office for the five years while he is on probation, and of his freedom while he serves 120 days of jail time.

Detroit Rep. Bert Johnson called Mr. Kilpatrick’s removal a loss to Detroit, saying that absent the controversy, the resigned mayor had a “brilliant” career that propelled the city forward.

Detroit Sen. Tupac Hunter agreed that Thursday was a sad day for the city but also expressed relief that Detroit could get on with the business of improvement now that the Kilpatrick distraction is lifted.

While Mr. Johnson disagreed that Detroit’s progress has been stilted by the controversy, Mr. Hunter said this week’s resolution would mean contracts and other deals that were in limbo for months may finally move forward.

Governor Jennifer Granholm also stressed that, although the situation was difficult for everyone, it could become a learning experience and a push to progress in Detroit and at the state level.

The governor said shortly after Mr. Kilpatrick read his resignation that she was glad to be done with the hearing process that began this week and which may have ultimately ended in the governor’s call to remove the Detroit mayor from his post.

She said now that Mr. Kilpatrick has resigned, everyone should focus on building a better Detroit by standing behind Acting Mayor Ken Cockrel Jr. and should also focus on improving the state’s economy.

Part of that focus from her administration will include a trade trip to Japan, the first Ms. Granholm will embark on this year. Her scheduled trip to the Middle East last spring was delayed by emergency surgery.

For legislators, focusing on the economy will mean focusing on energy reform and on getting the last of the budgets in order.

Even after several cancelled energy committee meetings in recent weeks, lawmakers still say that passage of an energy reform package, which would set a renewable portfolio standard, among other important changes, is a top priority for this year.

One other task that legislators have no choice over is to finalize the last budgets: capital outlay and transportation. Delaying the latter much longer, transportation groups said this week, could mean that construction and repair projects will also get put on the back burner.

As for the Kilpatrick saga, Ms. Granholm didn’t walk away this week without imparting a moral.

She said that future generations and political spectators will likely see a lessen in Mr. Kilpatrick’s undoing about the importance of “integrity and honor and duty to the public.”

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