Detroit Officials Blame State Government for Many of Their Woes

It wasn't us!

Michigan has wrested control of Detroit's financial affairs from the city's elected officials, but state leaders insist there will be no bailout for the city or its retirees.

"We don't want to reward mismanagement," says a question-and-answer document about Detroit's recent bankruptcy filing that was posted on Republican Gov. Rick Snyder's website.  "Keep in mind that we didn't create this crisis.  Sixty years of decline created this crisis."

That assertion rings false for many Detroiters, who say the state's 1999 repeal of a residency law for city employees, a steep decline in state aid, and other decisions made in Lansing helped drag down their city.