Not so petty

The Detroit Free Press has recently obtained records of how soon-to-be-former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick spent his office's petty cash and the amounts spent weren't so petty.

Kwame offices violated the rules for petty cash by "spending at least $144,000 over three years for things like expensive catered meals for regular cabinet meetings, concert and football tickets and a tuxedo rental for the mayor's cousin."

These revelations are on top of the mayor's frequently flagrant use of his city-issued credit card where he spent more than $210,000 in three years.

All told that's at least $350,000 that Mayor Kilpatrick's office spent on, among other things, meals, bathing suits, Lions tickets, porcelain figurines, health club memberships and Rolling Stones tickets. Not to mention the expensive lease on the $57,000 SUV to chauffeur his family and the $122,000 office upgrade including $1,600 for plants.

It was a nice run, wasn't it Kwame? Four years of livin' it up on Detroit's dime. Too bad it won't last another four.