A Media Frenzy

Recently, there has been a media frenzy in response to the nasty tape recording released by County Executive Mark Hackel in an attempt to distract the public from what amounts to a crime.  While it is clear to most that this an attempt to silence and intimidate Warren Mayor James Fouts who cried foul on County Executive Mark Hackel who gave the green light to his “favorite” contractor to illegally dump at least 150,000 yards of road excavation dirt at the Freedom Hill closed landfill without any required permits or approval.  While County Executive Mark Hackel admitted that he did not have any written agreement with the contractor for the illegal dumping, the issue escalated when the Mayor of the 3^rd largest City in Michigan publicly requested that the AG conduct an investigation into what could have resulted in an environmental disaster in Macomb County.  Known for weeding out public corruption, Mayor Fouts insisted that such illegal actions by public officials must have consequences to avoid actions like this in the future.  

No stranger to playing “dirty” politics, the County Executive Mark Hackel “leaked” a morphed and engineered audio file of the Mayor in an attempt to pull the proverbial “wool” over the eyes of his constituency, by encouraging a network of media contacts to quickly go after Mayor Fouts in an attempt to disparage and discourage the citizens of Macomb County from pursuing the complaint raised by the Mayor of Warren regarding the cover-up of the illegal dumping at Freedom Hill and the systemic corruption plaguing Macomb County.

Received anonymously and with no indication of the time, date, or even the location of where this recording took place, County Executive Mark Hackel himself admits that the tape was edited, and is unsure of the number of edits/splices this recording underwent. 

While Mayor Jim Fouts questions not only the validity of this AWFUL tape, but the context of the tape, and who was also speaking and where this speech was recorded, and according to multiple sources, the contents of this tape clearly DO NOT reflect Mayor James Fouts' attitude towards the special needs community, the public outcry was as expected, severe.   

In a statement on his Facebook page, Warren Mayor James Fouts responded to this attempt to silence him by stating: "This recording was not me.  He (County Executive Mark Hackel) will stop at nothing which already includes name calling and intimidation. Expect the worse! When Mark doesn't have the facts Mark attacks."  

According to anonymous sources, County Executive Mark Hackel has the expertise available to him to electronically engineer audio recordings, in a technique commonly known as audio morphing and modulation, to serve his own political agenda in a vicious attempt to discredit his political rivals.  The software, referred to as voice cloning, has been on the market since 2001, and is easily capbale of synthesizing anyone’s voice by using just a few voice samples of anyone “simply talking somewhere out in public, during mobile phone calls, in videos posted on social networking sites,”.  Examples of which are Google’s DeepMind, Adobe’s Project VoCo, and many others.

While it is clear that the fallout from the illegal dumping at Freedom Hill clearly has nothing to do with the diversionary tactic used by County Executive Mark Hackel, the Mayor of Warren is prepared to use this opportunity to advocate and assist the special needs community and by raising awareness regarding the challenges faced by some members of our society every day. 

In addition to donating a sizeable contribution to fund the Awareness Building Campaign initiated by Lt. Governor Bryan Calley, Mayor Fouts publicly commented on his Facebook page that “If anything positive comes out of this, it is that there is more public attention on the issue.”  In a Facebook post, Mayor James Fouts stated that he “want(s) to make things better going forward, and will certainly do (his) part!”

While the county heals, it is important to remember this incident was a great learning opportunity for those of us unware of the challenges faced by certain members of our society.  It is important to remember that these individuals are the everyday heroes and champions that triumph over adversity on a daily basis setting an example for the rest of us.

A letter to Mayor Jim Fouts from Bernice A. King

 

January 9, 2015

The Honorable James Fouts Mayor of Warren, Michigan One City Square

Dear Mayor Fouts:

I am pleased to offer words of praise for you and the work that you have championed in Warren, Michigan, in your capacity as chief executive of that city. Personally, I know that it takes a leader with unwavering courage to embrace noble initiatives that are controversial in the minds of those who do not share your same convictions.  I am sure that your decision to observe Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday, for the first time in Warren, was met with considerable angst   However, you remained undeterred in your commitment in celebrating my father's legacy as a tribute to him and the role he played in fighting, and, ultimately, sacrificing his life for the causes of freedom, justice and equality.

Our theme for this year's King Holiday Observance is "Remember! Celebrate! Act! King's Legacy of Courage for our World."    I have no doubt that you will continue to lead your municipality with this motto as one of your guiding principles.  Your leadership certainly sets an example that politicians and other persons of influence should seek to emulate in the discharge of their duties.

Again, thank you for all of that you have done in Warren to honor my father.

With warmest personal regards,

Bernice A. King Chief Executive Officer

The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Non-Violent Change, Inc.

449 Auburn Ave. NE  •  Atlanta, Georgia  30312   •  Phone:  404.526.8900      •  Fax: 404-526-8901

www.thekingcenter.org

A Statement regarding the recent public attacks from a disgruntled former consultant against Mayor Jim Fouts

Over the past few weeks, a series of fake recordings have been floating around the media channels, alleging that someone, purportedly Warren Mayor Jim Fouts, said some terrible things.  And while dirty tricks and diversions are nothing new, these vicious attacks have gone too  far.  A common denominator in the release of these fake audio recordings, and naturally, the most vocal in its corroboration, is Joe DiSano, the former disgruntled political consultant.

Well known in political circles for orchestrating and implementing questionable political tactics such as phony and misleading mailers, fraudulent and slanderous automated phone messages, and spreading malicious rumors on social media, Joe’s misadventures have on occasions landed him in hot water.   In fact, one such incident of dirty political tricks resulted in a record setting monetary judgment issued against Joe DiSano.

Joe’s obsession with the Mayor of Warren began when the Mayor didn't agree to employ DiSano with the City of Warren. 

Extremely upset over the Mayor’s decision to not hire him, Joe DiSano threatened the Mayor in front of numerous credible witnesses, that included an elected official and an appointed official, and has held a longstanding grudge ever since.  This grudge, eventually grew into an obsession with the Mayor, and his social media presence.  This obsession manifested itself in numerous ways, including stalking and trolling the Mayor’s Facebook and Twitter pages, and creating multiple fake accounts to harass and slander the Mayor of the 3^rd largest City in Michigan. 

Playing dirty political tricks and being involved in numerous scandals over his tumultuous career as a political consultant, Joe DiSano has delivered on his promise to stalk, harass, and slander Mayor Fouts, in an attempt to distract the Administration from continuing to implement the Mayor’s multiple development initiatives that have greatly improved the quality of life for the residents of Warren. 

Joe DiSano has made a career of creating dirty political stunts, making false statements about multiple elected officials, initiating robocall campaigns and many other political tricks, and was in fact quoted in multiple publications as stating that “voters don't look at fact-checking websites or research the claims made.” online, insinuating that sensationalism, not facts, drive votes.   One such incident resulted in a record setting monetary judgment against Joe DiSano for such dirty political tricks.

Joe Disano, along with his wife, were temporally employed by the Hillary Clinton campaign.  Mayor Fouts, a vocal supporter of the former democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, was attacked by Joe and his wife at the Democratic Debate when the Mayor cheered in support of Bernie Sanders.  Following this incident, Joe’s wife proceeded to further verbally assault  the Mayor in the spin room, and then published an extremely offensive post on a personal blog.  

Joe Disano had also been employed by Rizzo Waste Management Services.  As many Warren and Macomb Residents recall, this company had been the center of a scandal in Macomb County.   Rizzo Environmental Services, requested that the City of Warren outsource its sanitation department, to which the Mayor did not agree.  Moreover, Rizzo Waste Management Services had asked for a $10 / Per Ton increase in recycling with a Guarantee of at least 30,000 tons at one time.  The cost to the taxpayers of Warren would have been hefty, an additional $880,000.   Mayor Fouts refused these services, and as a result , Rizzo Services no longer works for the city of Warren. 

In short, it is evident that Joe DiSano, driven by greed and revenge, has no credibility.

www.jamesfouts.com

James “Jim” R. Fouts is an American Elected Official and the incumbent Mayor of the City of Warren, the third largest city in Michigan.

Before being elected Mayor of Warren, Jim Fouts served multiple terms on the city council, where he worked tirelessly to resolve many issues concerning Warren residents.  His dedication and commitment to spearhead multiple efforts to improve the basic services and quality of life for Warren Residents quickly developed his reputation as the “Warren Neighborhood Councilman”.

James R. Fouts was elected Mayor of Warren in November 2007 defeating the challenger, City Clerk Richard Sulaka, receiving 62% of the votes. The Mayor’s continued service to the City was again rewarded by the residents of Warren during the 2011 re-election campaign, in which Jim Fouts defeated the challenger by a historic margin, receiving 81%  of the votes cast.  This was to be a short term record, as again in November 2015, Mayor Jim Fouts was honored once more for his many achievements and contributions to the City of Warren by winning re-election to his third four-year term by a margin of 84.7 percent to 15.3 percent.   Mayor Jim Fouts is the first Mayor in the History of the city of Warren to receive more than 80% of the votes and has “widespread support across the city” of Warren.

While in office, The Mayor’s accomplishments are many and include a myriad of reforms and initiatives that have greatly improved the quality of life in Warren.    His cost saving initiatives saved the city significant expenditures by consolidating and streamlining multiple city departments.  Those initiatives not only streamlined the city’s Budget and fiscal Policy but also improved the efficiency of city operations and were honored with an Award given to the Mayor.

Under Mayor Fouts’ many initiatives, the city implemented a number of programs that connect the community with government and make government more accessible. Among them, a weekly program called Fouts Forum, where the Mayor interviews community and business leaders.

Through a coordinated approach spearheaded by the Mayor, such blight sweeps and police sweeps, some of which were personally supervised by the Mayor, have produced a steady decrease in both property crimes and violent crimes.

Mayor Jim R. Fout’s effort to attract high-tech industry, along with automotive manufacturers and suppliers has created a sprawling downtown area which has houses a mix of start-up businesses, incubators, and accelerators alongside established industry giants and a multitude of public amenities.  The Mayor’s efforts have brought companies such as General Motors, who have invested $1 billion in a new GM Technical Center, the development of the Chrysler Manufacturing Complex, also known as Dodge City, which has become a major producer of the popular Ram and Dakota models and many other research and manufacturing operations.  These initiatives have also produced new developments, new shopping centers, and supermarkets such as Meijer and Menards.

The Mayor’s revitalization and clean up initiatives have greatly increased the quality of life for the residents of Warren. His continued efforts in revitalizing the Warren community with his aggressive city “clean-up”  have addressing nuisance and abatement for businesses and residential dwellings and garnered the attention of the national media impressed with such efforts.  His unique approaches to solving issues, have resulted in a first of its kind, public-private partnership that has set a comprehensive road important plan in motion.

The Mayor also garnered national attention with his first of its kind ethics ordinance and a “Buy American” campaign.

Prior to his election to Public Office, Jim Fouts dedicated himself to public service by teaching, among other subjects, political science and government, and psychology to students attending the Warren Consolidated Schools District.

Some of the personal sacrifices made by Mayor Jim Fouts include giving up his city issued car, gas mileage and pension and does not take vacations.  Mayor Fouts has an open door policy in the office but will often take calls from Warren residents during off hours as well as on the weekends.

One of Mayor Jim Fouts’ personal heroes is the Former President Harry. S. Truman, a man greatly admired by the Mayor for his honesty and work ethic.  You will often find on the mayors desk Harry Truman’s motto, “The Buck Stops Here”.

Warren Mayor Jim Fouts holds Town Hall on Prescription Drug and Opioid Abuse

Warren Mayor Jim Fouts will be the featured speaker at a town hall meeting on prescription drug and opioid abuse.  The Town Hall on Prescription Drug and Opioid Abuse will be held at Warren City Hall first floor conference room and will on commence at 7 p.m.


Mayor Jim Fouts has been at the forefront of the fight against prescription drug and opioid abuse both in the City of Warren and Statewide, as well as at the forefront of many other issues of concern to the residents of Warren.

“This is a growing problem in the Metro area,” said Mayor Jim Fouts, citing 249 overdoses in Macomb County in 2014, compared to 234 in 2013, a 7% spike in overdoses.
Mayor James Fouts said that nearly half of young people who use heroin surveyed in three studies reported abusing prescription opioids before starting to use heroin.  “Some take up heroin because it is cheaper and easier than obtaining drugs,” said Mayor Jim Fouts in statement.
An additional speaker will be 37^th District Court Judge Matthew Sabaugh, who heads Macomb County’s 37th District treatment court.


The Town Hall on Prescription Drug and Opioid Abuse is sponsored by Greater Macomb Project “The Voice of Recovery”, Care of Southeastern Michigan, Partnership For Success, Warren-Center Line Prevention Coalition, Macomb County Office of Substance Abuse.

Warren Mayor Jim Fouts Initiates Elderly Task Force

Warren Mayor Jim Fouts Initiates Elderly Task Force With Center Line, Roseville, Sterling Heights, and the Macomb County Sheriff’s Department



At the direction of the Mayor of the City of Warren, Jim R. Fouts, the Warren Police Commissioner Jere Green and the Warren Police Department, a program has been offered surrounding police agencies that proposes a cooperative law enforcement effort among agencies.  This task force will work to aggressively identify, arrest, and prosecute those responsible for these terrible crimes against the senior Warren residents. This will include highly trained officers from Warren, Center Line, Roseville, Sterling Heights, and the Macomb County Sheriff’s Department. There has been a significant spike in senior crimes in the metro area including the City of Warren and other cities.  These predators approach homes of elderly residents and try to con them into paying for home repair services or pose as utility company employees to take care of services related to utility issues. Many seniors have been taken for huge sums of money including a 93 year old woman who was bilked out of $7000.
The Task Force has already produced results.  A man wanted in connection with a series of a violent robberies targeting senior citizens in Warren and Center Line has been arraigned on multiple charges.   In another instance, the newly formed task force which targets crimes against senior citizens assisted in the  arrest of two people accused of scamming an elderly Clinton Township man.