Mayor's Opponents Circulate Misleading Petition

Matt Binkowski completely missed the point of the new recall petitions filed against Mayor Daniels and three council members. I don’t think they are intended as a joke or to confuse the voters. Mr. Cherasaro told the Troy Times his purpose was to point out how ridiculous the claims in the recall petition are, calling them ludicrous. They highlight the bias and errors in Mr. Binkowski’s own petition.

For the record, there were no “opponents of the library” as he stated in the ; everyone I spoke to wanted to keep the library open. Mayor Schilling and the council majority threatened to close it without the millage increase. Roughly half the population of Troy opposed the millage increase to fund the library. There’s a big difference, but Mr. Binkowski either can’t or won’t see it.

Many good people are involved in the Troy mayoral recall; I believe some are misguided and acting on partial information. Some have complete information but are only able to see things from their point of view.

Matt Binkowski should take a hard look in the mirror about the honesty of his petition before circulating it. Below is a letter I wrote to Judge Linda Hallmark and the Election Commission members about the four-part petition which was approved March 15.

Unfortunately, current Michigan election law for recalls requires only clarity in wording, not truthful claims or criminal misconduct in office. The letter highlights some of the bias and false accusations in the recall petition.

Misleading Petition - Regular Elections are a Hallmark of American Democracy

                                                                                    March 9, 2012

Dear Judge Hallmark,

I am unable to attend the hearing on the revised mayoral recall petition and have serious concerns about the first three items in the proposed petition. They are filled with errors and half-truths and should either be eliminated completely or revised substantially to make them more neutral. Quotes are being taken out of context for use against Troy’s mayor by her opponents.

First, item 2 is false. The mayor did not say what is alleged. According to the Troy Patch, “A meeting to plan an anti-bullying event grew uncomfortable after Daniels offered to ‘bring in psychiatrists, who will tell you that the homosexual lifestyle is dangerous.’” She did not declare that “the homosexual lifestyle is dangerous,” as the petition alleges, merely offered to “bring in psychiatrists, who will tell you that the homosexual lifestyle is dangerous.” There is a big difference, and I’m not convinced that the press report is accurate either. The transcripts of the meeting should be examined by a neutral third party before such an important petition goes forward.

I was at the council meeting later that evening and heard one of the activists present her proposal for the anti-bullying event in glowing terms. One of the gay students at the meeting in question took offense at a statement that was made and later retracted her statement publicly in the Troy Patch because she had heard incorrectly something the mayor did not say. Some adults have done no such thing but have only continued their attacks on the mayor.

The petitioners should be required to produce transcripts for any wording used in the petition and include complete quotes in context. Where transcripts are unavailable, the petitioners should be required to submit news articles from all available sources, not just those favorable to their position.

In item 3, “publicly attacking city employees” is a matter of interpretation; the wording should be revised to make it more neutral. She read a five page position paper into the record, which was later defended by Mr. Szerlag, the employee in question, with an eight page paper. Once again, the complete story is not being told.

There is no limit on the amount of time the mayor can speak, so the 20 minute time is irrelevant and should be removed.  Including its length is OK as long as the length of the rebuttal is also included.

If item 1 is included, the mayor’s explanation of her use of the term “whimsical” should also be included. That is a matter of public record and should be included in fairness to the mayor. That way the voters will have complete information before signing the petition.

The use of quotes throughout the first three items gives a negative tone to the whole petition. “Office hours” and “position paper” do not require quotes around them; these quotes should be removed to make the petition more neutral.

Finally, the fourth item is not neutrally worded like the approved petition was. “failing to support a Federal investment in the City of Troy” is an opinion, not a fact. Voting no on a resolution is a fact. The statement “of over $8.4 million” is also misleading because it implies that such a large gift would not be turned down by any reasonable person. The project was scaled down to $6.3M by the final vote in 2012, still an unnecessary expense according to many. The mayor and two council members campaigned against the transit center; it’s natural they would oppose it.

Voters will be asked to sign a recall petition by opponents of the mayor with persuasive arguments including things that are not in the petition. The petition itself should be completely factual and neutral in wording.

My understanding is this petition would also appear on the ballot during the potential recall election. It’s very important that half-truths not be used to nullify regular elections, a hallmark of American democracy. Thank you for your attention to this serious matter.

Sincerely,

Dale Murrish

cc: Oakland County Clerk Bill Bullard, Oakland County Treasurer Andy Meisner