It’s interesting to see what battles the Democratic minority on the Oakland County Board of Commissioners will choose to fight this new term. Hopefully, they will pick causes that they have a better chance of winning then a recent example involving an appointment to the Road Commission of Oakland County Board. Former Milford Village Councilman Ron Fowkes was named to the three-member board by a straight party vote of 15-10, with the Republicans holding the majority. The other two road commissioners are Eric Wilson and Greg Jamian. Wilson and Jamian are former Republican Oakland County commissioners.
The Democrats on the county commission objected to the Fowkes appointment, saying it continued the “good old boy” cronyism that has been followed for years. Tim Greimel, D-Auburn Hills, Democratic Caucus chairman, said the position did not necessarily have to go to a Democrat but the selection process should be based on merit and qualifications rather than political affiliations.
In theory, he’s right. The appointments to the Road Commission Board should be much more impartial because that governing body has some weighty responsibilities that often require difficult decisions involving public safety. But the process has been political for years and with a 15-10 Republican majority on the county commission, there really isn’t much chance of changing the system at this time.
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This will probably put me on the Republican's "naughty list," but I think that the Democrats have some valid concerns. Of course, I also believe that the Road Commission should be abolished and its director appointed by the County Executive.
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