Editorial: GM bankruptcy is Michigan's darkest day

Monday was as dark and humbling a day as Michigan has ever seen.

The General Motors bankruptcy is a hammer blow for a state that was already on its knees. Seven more major automotive plants will close in the state, killing 8,900 factory jobs. That will be followed in a few days by perhaps 3,500 additional layoffs in GM's white collar ranks, most of them coming in Michigan as well.

As the impact ripples through the economy, tax revenues at the local and state levels will plummet. GM was once the engine of Michigan's prosperity. Now it is emblematic of the state's despair.

For the short term, the bankruptcy demands an emergency response from government. Gov. Jennifer Granholm and legislative leaders must begin meeting in nonstop emergency sessions to adjust state spending to deal with declining funds as plants close and workers stop drawing paychecks.

Local communities, including Flint, Pontiac and Livonia, also must scale back their budgets before the plants in their towns close.

Longer term, Michigan's entire focus must be on creating a business climate that makes the state attractive for job creators in a wide range of industries. It can't afford to focus on any one segment in hopes of finding the next Big Three. Its future will depend on making itself irresistible to investors across the spectrum.

That work must begin today.