As Michiganders go to the polls today to choose their favorite presidential candidate, Gov. Rick Snyder and Attorney General Bill Schuette are going to the State Administrative Board to ask taxpayers to foot the bills for their troubles in Flint to the tune of $2.7 million.
First we have the Attorney General’s request for $1.5 million to pay for Republican donor Todd Flood’s investigation into the Flint water debacle:
Flood, the former City Attorney for Allen Park, has given thousands of dollars to Republican candidates – including Gov. Snyder and Attorney General Schuette – over the years. Now he’s getting his payback, it appears.
Rick Snyder, up to his ears in legal alligators for his mishandling of the poisoning of Flint’s drinking water with the powerful, odorless, tasteless, invisible neurotoxin lead, is also before the Administrative Board with hat in hand:
You can view the documents themselves HERE. Schuette and Snyder’s requests are on pages 25 and 26.
There is a straight line between Gov. Snyder’s policies – including the imposition of Emergency Managers – and the ongoing catastrophe in Flint. The millionaire CEO-in-Chief ought to be footing his own bills instead of reaching into the pockets of Michigan taxpayers.
Michigan Democratic Party Chair Brandon Dillon agrees. Here’s his statement on this insulting request for a taxpayer bailout:
It’s beyond outrageous that Snyder wants to take $1.2 million from Michigan taxpayers to pay for defense attorneys over his involvement in the poisoning of Flint’s water. That money should go toward replacing lead pipes and getting safe drinking water to Flint families, not for Snyder’s defense attorneys.
Instead of conducting a truly independent investigation into the cause of the Flint water crisis, Bill Schuette is funneling $1.5 million in taxpayer dollars to Todd Flood, who has contributed thousands of dollars to Bill Schuette, and thousands more to Rick Snyder – the man he is supposed to be investigating. The people of Flint deserve better.
State Rep. Jim Ananich from Flint was equally blunt:
Paying more for high-priced lawyers than we are for school nurses or fully refunding victims is another kick in the teeth to taxpayers and my community. Our priority should be sending every resource we can to removing pipes and protecting kids, not covering legal fees.
It’s just another day in the corporatocracy of Michigan.
[Snyder caricature by DonkeyHotey from photos by Anne C. Savage for Eclectablog]
