Tagged: l. brooks patterson

Not exactly.

Right after Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, R, made the "Adolf" comment about Michigan House Speaker Jase Bolger, he was challenged.

"Isn't that a little over the top?" asked "Off the Record" host Tim Skubick.

"Yeah, I want it to be!" replied L. Brooks Patterson.

Patterson was upset about how Bolger has handled the discussion around proposed changes Michigan's no-fault auto insurance law.

You can watch the exchange here:

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, the longtime bad boy of Michigan Republican politics, stirred things up again last Friday. Not for the first time, and probably not for the last.

If you don’t already know this, Patterson went on "Off the Record," the public affairs TV show, and referred to the Speaker of the House as “Adolf” Bolger.

There wasn’t any doubt who he meant. Brooks has never been subtle. In fact, he pulled out a pocket comb and held it up to his face in an imitation of a Hitler mustache.

That sparked a tremendous outcry. Before the day was over, the state Anti-Defamation League was denouncing Brooks Patterson for what they called trivializing the Holocaust by comparing his fellow Republican, Jase Bolger, to Adolf Hitler.

One of Michigan’s most well-known Republicans has some harsh words for the state House GOP leader.

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson appeared today on the Michigan Public Television show “Off the Record.”  Patterson said state House Speaker Jase Bolger has abused his power, and compared him to the leader of Nazi Germany.

A proposed reform to Michigan’s no-fault auto insurance is circulating in the Legislature.

Among other things, it would cap benefits for people who suffer severe injuries in auto accidents at $1 million.

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson has come out as a strong opponent to this legislation.

Patterson is still recovering from a serious auto accident he had last summer, and his driver, James Cram of Owosso, was paralyzed from the neck down.

In this interview with Jennifer White, Patterson talks about his opposition to the proposed legislation and his recovery.

You can listen to the full interview above.

Patterson wanted to be clear that he and his driver were working at the time of their accident.

Their medical bills are covered by worker's compensation, so Patterson says his opposition to changes to Michigan's no-fault insurance laws are not for his own benefit.

"Did the accident make me more aware and more sensitized to the plight of people who suffer from catastrophic injuries? Absolutely," he said.

Oakland County is helping neighboring Macomb County get back online after a fire last week.

That suspected electrical fire seriously damaged Macomb’s IT department—shutting down phones and computer networks.

So Oakland County is offering Macomb staff, equipment and space to start re-building.

“Oakland County has opened up its data center to host Macomb County’s equipment and personnel on a temporary basis in order to get Macomb County back online,” says a press release from Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson’s office.

Last week, Governor Snyder announced plans to introduce legislation that, if passed, would essentially mean that insurance companies and the state would no longer provide virtually unlimited benefits to those injured in catastrophic car accidents.

Currently, victims whose health care costs exceed half a million dollars have their care covered by the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association. The governor would cap those benefits at a million dollars. The next day, his proposal was attacked by an opponent who called it, “an embarrassment to the Republican party.”

“The governor misses the big picture,” he added. What is most interesting about this is that the man attacking the governor‘s idea is not a liberal Democrat or a leader of a victim‘s rights group, but one of the state‘s most prominent conservative Republicans, L. Brooks Patterson, the longtime czar of Oakland County.

Brooks knows what he is talking about. Last August, he and his driver were T-boned in a car accident that very nearly took their lives. Patterson was in a coma for days, suffered multiple broken bones and was in the hospital for nearly two months.

I had dinner last night with two social workers whom I’ve known for a long time, who take a keen interest in what’s happening to people in our state. They follow politics, but not in the kind of minute detail political junkies do. They are not huge fans of Governor Snyder, especially since his administration has done things like cut off cash welfare payments permanently to families that include more than 30,000 children.

But they were baffled about one thing. They were surprised and pleased that Michigan Republicans supported extending insurance coverage to include autistic children.

“Why did that happen?” one asked me.  Well, I said, not to be cynical, but there are those who think it might be related to the fact that Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley has a daugher with autism. Yes, your perspective tends to change when things get close to home. 

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson struck a lot of triumphant notes during a sometimes-emotional state of the county speech Thursday night.

Patterson has been at the helm in Oakland County for decades.