Jacobetti Memorial Plan Begun

With the unexpected and sudden_ though timely_ demise of State Rep. Dominic J. Jacobetti (D- Negaunee) recently, a group of his loyal constituents are planning a fitting memorial to the venerable legislator, known as "the Godfather." Calling themselves "Dominic's Organization to Memorialize the Good Ole Days" (DOM-GOD), they propose to carve a likeness of Jacobetti's face into Big Swede, the cliff overlooking Teal Lake in Negaunee, "a la Mount Rushmore."

The fact that Jacobetti still occupies a seat in the Michigan House of Representatives and continues to breathe some air matters little to them. "Stick a fork in him_ he's done," said a particularly acerbic spokesman.

Now stripped of virtually all of the power accumulated in 38 years in the Legislature and even under investigation, Jacobetti's downfall began with the last November election. Although he defeated his challenger for the lO9th district house seat, Republican Jim Alderson, of Gwinn, by a 5-to-2 margin, Democrats statewide lost outright control of the House, settling for a 55-55 split with Republicans.

Sami the Jerk, political analyst for The...TRUTH (this week, anyway), said, "The election between Jake and Alderson came down to the question, `Do I feel lucky?' Well, we rushed Dirty Harry, and it turned out there was a bullet left in the gun."

The two parties worked out a system whereby Reps. Paul Hillegonds (R- Holland) and Curtis Hertel (D- Detroit) would alternate as house speaker on a monthly basis, with house committees op-erating under chairmen of the opposite party. Under this system, Jacobetti was to have retained his chair of the powerful House Appropriations Committee during months when Hillegonds was speaker.

Hertel, however, stripped him of that duty on Jan. 2O and replaced him with Rep. Richard Young (D- Dearborn Heights) with the advent of the House Fiscal Agency scandal. As part of a three-member board, Jacobetti is charged with mismanagement in the oversight of agency director John Morberg, who has been suspended under charges of unauthorized employee bonuses, questionable legal fees and purchases, possible income tax violations and nepotism.

"Jake brought it all on himself," said Sami. "He all but announced his retirement after wiping the floor with Steve Gust in the `9O election, but when (Governor John) Engler was elected, too, and declared war on him, Jake decided to keep on running just to spite him.

"If he had stayed out last year, he had a chance to avoid all of this and go out a hero. Instead, he's going out in a clown suit."

Since the new session of the legislature opened Jan. 4, Jacobetti has been fre-quently absent from the House, missing Engler's "State of the State" address, and has been spotted only occasionally near the capitol. His office denies rumors that he will be seeking political asylum in Arizona. Regardless of Jacobetti's potential fugitive status, DOM-GOD is going ahead with plans for the Big Swede memorial. "We want to remember him the way he was, not_ not like this," said a young fe-male member who seemed on the verge of tears.