GOP candidate for governor, Bill McCullom, is quoted in the Miami Herald inviting the public and whistleblowers to come forward with hard evidence of public corruption. "McCollum said he hoped people would give their names and provide examples and evidence of wrongdoing, like documents." Gee, where can I sign up? That's about as useful and productive, Mr. Attorney General, as unfreezing a frozen orange with a blowtorch. What you have in Florida, Mr. McCullom, is a political culture that thrives in the ethical grey zone with such little respect for honesty, that criminal behavior flourishes at the edges. Don't you find it strange, Mr. McCullom, that the GOP is all about "just say no" and zero tolerance for illegal drugs, but when it comes to the crack cocaine of political corruption, anything goes in Florida?
Let me put it simply: don't sit there waiting for corruption to come to you. You go out and find it. Have a look at the archive section of Eyeonmiami under "corruption" and "ethics". Start with local zoning decisions: follow the money. I don't mean disrespect, Mr. Attorney General, but start with your good friend, indicted former House Speaker Ray Sansom and the state budget and appropriations, the development lobby in Tallahassee, or GOP campaign cash dispensers already indicted: Alan Mendelsohn and Scott Rothstein. You want to know about public corruption? Don't ask us, Joe Q. Public, for names and documents. Put it on the table to the guys you've already locked up: give up the political crack dealers for reduced sentences. Threaten them with hard time-- not at Camp Salad Bar with Endive and Arugula -- prison time with violent offenders. Find out why the Herb Zebuth, former top wetlands regulator for the State of Florida, was pulled off the job for objecting to siting the Scripps Institute in the Everglades: put that person in jail. Oh, I forgot: R. Allen Stanford with the photos of the Bush brothers in his Miami office. Ask Mr. Stanford how he got his exclusive license through Florida state banking regulators to do business offshore, if you want to find public corruption. Disclose how Lehman Brothers was able to sell billions of dollars of toxic junk into the Florida State Administration Funds, or, how much money well drillers gave political candidates to support aquifer storage and recovery as the rotten centerpiece of Everglades restoration. How about the influence of Big Sugar lobbyists in blocking state water quality standards to stop phosphorous pollution, or, rock miners in Palm Beach and Miami-Dade, or, cement manufacturers ruining North Florida rivers and streams.
Fund law enforcement and light a fire under complacent state attorneys-- also short-staffed and underfunded but also politically attuned and unwilling to engage in "fishing expeditions" that antagonize big campaign donors-- see if you can put any of that federal stimulus money to work, rooting out the thieves who are stealing US tax dollars.
Lastly, I really really hope you are not our next Governor, Mr. McCullom, because anyone in your position of authority who has to come to the public to get hot tips on public corruption -- with so much corruption around us-- is part of the problem, not the solution.
8 comments:
GE your right about GOP politicians being corrupt its your blind eye when it comes to Dems that substracts credence from your post.
Yes the GOP controls the FLA legisllature but they're lawmakers aren't the only partisans skating the rules and screwing the people.
NOT once did you mention Rothstien's ties to Sink. Or any of the transgressions of Democrat elected officials.
Try a little balance it will give you more credibility and not lead folks to view you as some partisan hack.
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
City of Miami ~ City Attorney
Julio O. Bru
Ms. Bru:
Please read the above article, located on www.eyeonmiami.blogspot.com, on political corruption and Bill McCullom's quote where he is quoted in the Miami Herald inviting the public and whistleblowers to come forward with hard evidence of public corruption. Interesting article.
What is the status of my request for public information on the FY-2010 budget where the City Commission voted, per law, to place $5,000,000.00 into a reserve fund, but behind closed doors out of the sight of the public, the finance guru's of the City of Miami choose to place only $4,200,000.00. I have asked your office ad nauseum to provide this public whistleblower that information. To date you have chosen to ignore that request.
Per Mr. McCullom's request please provide me with hard evidence.
Again thank you.
Brent Cutler
Unfortunately dozens of whistleblowers have been furnishing information for years to the authorities and nothing has happened. I know personally at least 5 people who have gone to the State Attorney's office here in Miami with "red flags" and supporting documentation only to be told "bring us hard evidence of public corruption". Well the whistle blowers don't have subpoena powers to see where the money went and a staff to research what happened. But when the City gives grants for tasks that are 10-20 times the market price, something is really wrong.
We get the Democracy we deserve.
Dear Cato, I wasn't writing to Alex Sink. I was writing to Bill McCollum. If you want to read my opinion on the Democratic candidate, type in "Sink" in the search engine and see what's there.
Last poster, no one gives a damn on how to spell Mc M's name. He is a loser, probably will be our Governor but a loser just the same. Don't read our blog if you think we are dimwits. We sure don't need you here.
"Dear Cato, I wasn't writing to Alex Sink. I was writing to Bill McCollum."
GE< I know that but what caught my attention is that you just mention GOP shennanigans no donkey ones, Isn't BM (god forbid I miss spell it) the (incompetent) AG of ALL Floridians.
And since both these clowns AS and BM are leading contender to be our next Gubner I thought her romp with Rothstien deserved at least a (dishonarable) mention here.
Otherwise everyone else in your post deserves to be there (and in prison).
As for whistleblowing it depends who's blowing and who their blowing, connected friends of the AGs and DAs always get a pass (see Miami Dade Commissioners).
EXCELLENT BLOGGING !!! thank you. I'm afraid if I lived in Miami I would just give up... makes me proud of your courage. Tampa is very foul. VERY VERY VERY BAD. And it's not even cool like Miami. Just an armpit ....
I'll be back to read. Good post !!
Tampa used to be a very cool place. Pam Iorio, a purported democrat became mayor and then again and formerly was SOE and well, it's been downhill FAST.
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