Mayor takes offense at Menino's 'blow up' Detroit comment

DETROIT (AP) -- Detroit Mayor Dave Bing accused his Boston counterpart of insensitivity Tuesday after Thomas Menino told a magazine that if he ever visited the Motor City, he'd "blow up the place and start all over."

In a New York Times Magazine article that first appeared online last week, Menino said Detroit is a place he'd like to visit, then added the rest when asked what he'd do there.

"It is extremely regrettable that Boston Mayor Thomas Menino used such an unfortunate choice of words to describe what he would do if he came to Detroit," said Bing, who is not running for re-election after one term as mayor. "I would think the mayor of a city that recently experienced a deadly bombing attack would be more sensitive and not use the phrase 'blow up."'

A spokeswoman for the Boston mayor said Menino "feels strongly about cities," cares about Detroit's problems and "would like to help in any way he can."

"The mayor is sorry that people have taken offense," Dot Joyce told The Associated Press in a phone interview. "It was never his intention."

She said that Menino's proposal to "blow up the place" meant to overhaul the broken systems that have helped bring down Detroit.

Three people were killed and more than 260 injured in April when pressure cookers packed with explosives, nails, ball bearings and metal shards detonated near the finish line of the popular Boston Marathon.

One of the suspects was killed three days later in a gun battle with police. His brother was captured and has pleaded not guilty to using a weapon of mass destruction charges.

Via: Lowell Sun

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Motor City Mayor Gives Obama Mixed Reviews

 Still Has Not Visited the City as President

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing gave Barack Obama mixed reviews as president in his first term when asked about it during taping of “Michigan Matters.” “I don’t give grades, but it’s been mixed,” said Bing, 68, a Democrat who runs a city with an 80 percent African American population on the weekly CBS 62 show. He added Obama came in amid high expectations but some issues now dogging him and his effort to win re-election against Michigan native son and GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney aren’t all of his doing.

“He inherited a mess, just as I did,” Bing said of Obama. “The areas he has been good at are in healthcare, autos and education,” Bing said. When pressed on how Obama has treated his city, Bing said: “Certain departments have been helpful like HUD and Transportation and Labor.”

Of Vice President Joe Biden who was in Detroit on Wednesday and talked to Bing during his campaign visit, he said, “Joe was a few years ahead of me (at Syracuse University where they both attended college). I didn’t know him then. But over several years we have connected and built a good relationship.”

Bing, who played basketball at Syracuse and with the Detroit Pistons, is an NBA All-Star and was voted one of the 50 greatest players of all time. Obama made mention of Bing’s career during a 2009 campaign visit to suburban Warren where the mayor was among those sitting in the audience. “My game’s a little like Dave Bing’s, except I don’t have the jump shot or the speed or the ball handling skills or the endurance. I also don’t have the Afro — don’t think I forgot that Dave. I remember!” Obama said at the time. Since taking keys to the White House, Obama has visited Michigan 11 times.

Via: CBS Detroit

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