At the opening of tonight’s Democratic debate in the Michigan city, both Clinton and Sanders demanded that Michigan Governor Rick Synder resign over the crisis, and later said that culpable officials at the EPA and elsewhere should lose their jobs—and perhaps even go to jail.
The alarm for Snyder’s resignation has been sounded by everyone from Matt Damon and Michael Moore. Sanders has been part of that chorus for a while now, but tonight was Hillary Clinton’s most forceful statement so far. Sanders’s rapid response director tweeted:
glad secretary clinton has joined bernie in the call for gov. snyder to resign.
— mike casca (@cascamike) March 7, 2016
Snyder, meanwhile, blamed the crisis on government bureaucracy.
This was never about money. This was a failure of government at all levels that could be described as a massive error of bureaucracy.
— Governor Rick Snyder (@onetoughnerd) March 7, 2016
I'm taking responsibility as our value system says we should. My track record is getting things done, and I want to get this done. #FlintFWD
— Governor Rick Snyder (@onetoughnerd) March 7, 2016