Someone sent us the latest union appeal opposing the executive mayor referendum, including the “top 5 reasons” to defeat the strong mayor proposal. We beg to differ. We read the union leaders’ arguments against the executive mayor, and we couldn’t find a single reason to oppose the executive mayor referendum. In fact, all we could find was fear-mongering.
1. POINT: Unlike the Manager, the Mayor cannot be fired. COUNTERPOINT: just like county commissioners, the mayor can be fired at election time. “The potential for abuse of power will be enormous.” COUNTERPOINT: The abuse of power by the majority of county commissioners is what this referendum is all about. Forget about “potential”: the abuse today is chronic, un-reformable and does whatever rich special interests want. Since when is coddling the wealthy a union priority?
2. POINT: All labor negotiations will be run by the Mayor. COUNTERPOINT: Right now, labor negotiations are run by 13 bosses of the county manager (that would be, the un-reformable county commission), lead by the de facto chair Natacha Seijas who has made a political career of slapping down citizens to protect the wealthy, monied interests that really control the county commission. Since when is coddling the wealthy a union priority?
3. POINT: All department heads will answer only to the Mayor. COUNTERPOINT: If you are interested in accountability, it is about time we had some. The serial scandals, corruption, and incompetence of the county commission is draining our quality of life. Who put you in unbearable traffic, commuting hours a day to work? Who allowed cancer-causing chemicals into your drinking water aquifer? Incompetent and power-hungry county commissioners. Who allowed wealthy special interests to feed off the backs of taxpayers like union members? Since when is coddling the wealthy a union priority?
4. POINT: The Mayor, not the commission, will make appointments to all boards. COUNTERPOINT: The power of unions doesn’t depend on county commissioners, it depends on union leadership. The same case for appointments to all boards will be made to an executive mayor, not 13 county commissioners whose primary purpose is not the health, safety, and welfare of citizens, but wealthy special interests. Since when is coddling the wealthy a union priority?
5. POINT: The Mayor, not the Commission, will set the County agenda on privatization, health care, work rules, and union issues. COUNTERPOINT: There is absolutely no difference in the union agenda under an executive mayor as opposed to an un-reformable majority of 13 county commissioners who are paid $6,000 a year to mainly do the business of multi-millionaires. Since when is coddling the wealthy a union priority?
Aren’t unions supposed to stand up for ordinary workers and people? Since when is coddling the wealthy a union priority?
3 comments:
I think there is information missing. the union must be getting something that we are not privy to. There is a piece missing in this puzzle. When the county police were beating up protesters (some union members) all the county commissioners were silent. There is something else they are getting, I don't know what it is.
The county commissioners are free wheeling with OUR money. After all, no one is watching out for the good of the people and the budget. We saw that with the airport, port and Cultural Center over-runs.
Maybe the union leaders know that they will get good, sweetheart deals from the commissioners who they have helped in campaigns. There fear might be that the Mayor might scrutinize the contracts more.
Maybe that is the missing piece of your puzzle anonymous.
It looks more like the unions are scared, like everyone else dependent upon the commission, of making the witch of the west(Hialeah) mad - Seijas.
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