PrintJune 26, 2009
Monica Conyers pleads guilty (updated)
Few "public servants" have been as arrogant and prideful without merit as Monica Conyers, member of the Detroit City Council. Today she has finally reaped a bit of what she sowed by pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery in a case that, appropriately enough, deals with sludge hauling.
The Detroit city charter requires any member of the council to resign immediately upon conviction of a felony. No resignation letter has yet been proffered. The only reaction comes from her husband's office who sent out the following statement which was not - but should be - accompanied by a laugh-track:
"This has been a trying time for the Conyers family. With hope and prayer, they will make it through this as a family. Public officials must expect to be held to the highest ethical and legal standards. With this in mind, Mr. Conyers wants to work towards helping his family and the city recover from this serious matter."
Conyers is but the latest Detroit politician to be taken down by arrogance and the seemingly never ending quest for personal enrichment at the financial and cosmetic expense of the dying city. The flushing of Conyers and Kwame Kilpatrick is a welcome change in Detroit politics, as is the recent election of Dave Bing as mayor. Bing, a former Detroit Piston and enormously successful private businessman, has no interest in bilking the public nor accepting bribes. He has plenty of money, all earned on his own accord and because of his abilities on the court and in the boardroom and steel plants.
There is much work to be done to make Detroit merely functional once again. Eliminating Conyers from the political scene is a small step in the right direction and hopefully constitutes a trend away from arrogance and criminality that has been "The Detroit Way" for far too long.
Update: Meanwhile, Monica's husband John Conyers kills the Congressional probe of ACORN that he promised.
Update: Meanwhile, Monica's husband John Conyers kills the Congressional probe of ACORN that he promised.
