Last week, a request was made by five members of the MDP's Executive Committee to have this weekend's convention run by a neutral party not involved in the state party chairman's race. Lon Johnson agreed to this almost immediately. Yesterday, Chad Selweski of the Macomb Daily reported that Brewer had also agreed. That is not the case. The following letter was sent to the people who'd made the request. This morning, the Brewer folks verified its accuracy.
I am responding to your e-mail received at 6 pm February 14, 2013.
I appreciate your concern with ensuring that we have a fair State Convention. I’m sure fairness was at the forefront of your mind when we adopted the rules and procedures on December 1, 2012 that govern the Convention, a meeting you presumably attended.
These rules and procedures, adopted unanimously by the Michigan Democratic State Central Committee, guarantee fairness to all. Moreover I’m confident the Chair and the members of the Executive Committee --- including yourselves --- selected by the MDSCC will serve capably in this role.
As you know, our party has never insisted that any party officer, Chair, Vice Chair or elected official resign from their post or step aside from their duties when a candidate has filed against them. At the time these rules were adopted, it was known I would be a candidate for MDP Chair. The rules were designed to ensure fairness then, and I’m confident they will work in the way you intended them on Feb. 23.
Moreover, as you know, any action of the rules and credentials committee, an advisory body, must be approved by the total delegate body of the state convention. No rules or resolutions or procedures or the chair of the convention can be imposed on that delegate body. That body is the sole determinant of the rules and procedures.
So I’m confident that we collectively as officers of the Party will deliver a fair recommendation to the Convention and if there are disagreements there is a process for working these out.
Sincerely,
Mark Brewer
P.S. As you know these rules were adopted because we do not have any of the new Congressional Districts until the date of the Convention.
Submitted without comment.
