Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention, Mayor of Detroit Mike Duggan made a joke at Donald Trump’s expense over the four times Trump’s businesses have filed for bankruptcy.
“Detroit is 18 months out of bankruptcy, something Donald Trump knows a little bit about,” Duggan said. “But unlike Trump, Detroit is only going to do bankruptcy once.”
Duggan went on to describe Detroit’s comeback, claiming “People are moving back to our city in huge numbers.” But Census Bureau figures show Detroit continues to lose population year after year. Duggan also claimed that jobs were returning to Detroit, which did have an increase in total employment of 35,000 jobs from May 2015 to May 2016. As of May, the city’s unemployment rate was only 0.2 percent higher than the national average.
Duggan said Detroit must have an economy that works for everyone, as should the nation. But the Republican convention had no ideas on how to create that, he claimed. “You heard insults and fear mongering, you heard angry irrational rhetoric, parroting of slogans stitched on hats.”
According to Duggan, Hillary Clinton knows how to create such an economy. “When she looks at Detroit and every other city in America, she sees the opportunity to create an economy in which everyone benefits. That’s the strong, steady leadership America needs.”
Jason Russell is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
