An email obtained by The Detroit News revealed this week that the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) may have played a larger and earlier role in the grant funding provided to executive committee member Fay Beydoun, a major Democratic Party donor who is currently under criminal investigation for allegedly misusing the funds. As part of the weekly series, MichMash, WDET’s Cheyna Roth and Gongwer News Service’s Zach Gorchow talk with Detroit News reporters Craig Mauger and Beth LeBlanc to break down their latest coverage of the case.
In this episode:
- How did the $20 million grant for Beydoun’s nonprofit get approved?
- What role did MEDC play in getting the funding approved?
- How much did the governor’s office know?
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office opened an investigation into the $20 million grant awarded to Beydoun’s nonprofit business accelerator last April, after reporting by The Detroit News highlighted how the funding was being misused.
The $20 million grant — which has since been canceled — had been earmarked in the state Legislature’s 2022 budget for the nonprofit Global Link International, which was incorporated just 10 days before the spending bill’s passage…