State Sen. Jack Brandenburg, the always outspoken Republican from Harrison Township, gave me his take on the flap over Democratic County Executive Mark Hackel lending a hand to Republican Gov. Rick Snyder’s upcoming fundraiser.
Brandenburg said Macomb County — and much of the state Capitol — is divided into two sets of Democrats — officials who seek common ground, and “those people.”
Those Democrats who complain that Hackel is turning his back on the Democratic Party by helping Snyder, such as county Commissioner Fred Miller, are left-wingers who “hate Republicans” and want to dog Hackel every step of the way. Brandenburg is obviously referring to the group previously known as the Bonior Boys. “Those types of Democrats,” the senator said, cannot be trusted.
In contrast, Brandenburg said the most reasonable Democrats are Hackel, county Treasurer Ted Wahby, and John Hertel, general manager of the SMART bus system and former chair of the county board. Those are Democrats who are accessible, trustworthy and willing to work in a gentlemanly, bipartisan manner.
Then he suddenly added this: “I want to say that I don’t fear Mark Hackel, and I don’t really fear anyone in this state. I … am not saying any of this to prop up Mark Hackel or score points with him.”
Why did he feel the need to offer that clarification?
His response: “This business is so assumptive that it’s pathetic.”
That last statement, about people assuming motivations that are false, is a gem. It also applies to my business and how people read newspapers these days.
