This takes all power away from the local elected officials, but Harris is still willing to listen to all the voices in city government because they are all now his voice.It's frightening, but true. Colbert then played audio quoting Harris, who said:
So, the fact of the matter is, the city manager is now gone. I am the city manager. I replace the finance director. So I am the finance director and the city manager. I am the mayor and the commission and I don't need them."Them" refers to the democratically elected public officials who Harris replaced with his massive ego. Not only have residents of Benton Harbor been deprived of representation, publicly owned land is also being turned over to wealthy interests for their own luxury golf course.
Watch the Colbert video here.
