Another day, another Democratic presidential candidate comes to Flint to talk about water.
In recent weeks, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (NJ), U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (NY) and former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (TX) made campaign stops in the Vehicle City. Monday was Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s turn.
At a north Flint community center, Gov. Inslee talked about the federal government’s role in helping cities like Flint with drinking water issues.
“Flint’s seen it big time but this is not the only community,” says Inslee. “We’ve got billions of dollars of infrastructure work we’re going to have to do all over the United States.”
Tests have shown Flint’s water has improved greatly since the depths of the city’s water crisis four years ago. But many Flint residents don’t trust what the government is telling them.
Inslee says restoring the public’s trust rests with elected leaders.
“The most important thing is for leaders to demonstrate their willingness to confront powerful special interests… that so frequently have put citizens’ health at risk,” Inslee told reporters.
Flint has become a more frequent stop for Democratic presidential hopefuls as a pair of debates in Detroit draws near. 20 Democratic presidential candidates are scheduled to take part in two debates Tuesday and Wednesday at Detroit’s Fox Theatre.
Flint’s water crisis is expected to be mentioned during the debates.
