Stephen Cody is the citizen-lawyer who took the case against Mayor Eugene Flinn, trying to oust him from the ballot. He claimed he wasn't doing this on behalf of another candidate. I checked his facebook page and only one candidate in this race was there: Annette Taddeo identified as one of his friends. Granted he has collected 720 friends, and that usually means that you just about let anyone on your page. He is a registered Democrat but also giving to the National Republican Congressional Committee in 2003. He might be helping a Candidate from either party even though this is a non-partisan race. Don't fool yourselves, the 2 Political Parties are VERY involved in this District 8 race. Channel 4's reportor Sutta asked why he was doing this? Cody said:
"...this is nothing that which is personal toward Gene. I'm doing it because frankly it's the right thing to do." I ask: Why? He doesn't have a history of doing the 'right thing' in my view. Reliable sources say he is being paid for doing this.
The last two 'right things' he did I think were actually wrong things for voters and he was paid plenty! He was Vile Natacha Seijas's lawyer, trying to get citizen petition signatures thrown out on a technicality because they weren't written in cursive. Mayor Michael Pizzi, representing the people who gathered the signatures to recall Natacha from office, won the case against Cody and the County. Cody was also one of the lawyers arguing against the Strong Mayor referendum, trying to stop it from going on the ballot, something about it covered too many issues. Again, the citizens voted overwhelmingly to put the Strong Mayor proposal on the ballot and the Judge over-ruled Cody. Stephen Cody appears to be the lawyer of choice -- when voters are facing being disenfranchised -- against the voters. He is not on the VOTERS side in any of these issues so how is that the 'Right Thing'? He got $108,192 in legal fees from PAC's around the time of County Commissioner's Natacha Seijas recall and the Strong Mayor vote. He was the registering agent for the PAC's working against both of these voter initiated actions as well. Additionally, on 7/16/2004 Vile Natacha Seijas paid Cody $5,000 for legal services out of her OWN 2004 campaign account. They have a long history. He used as his address during the Vile Natacha Recall - 800 Douglas Road. Suite 850, which is Lobbyist Miguel DeGrandy's address (the vile one's pick to louse up the Charter Review Committee) and Cody's picture is still posted on DeGrandy's website. This is in the Mas Tec Building BTW.
Stephen Cody has quite a history and I would very much like to know who is paying him. If he doesn't work for his pal Natacha Seijas for free, he most likely wouldn't be doing this one out of the goodness of his heart. However: Let us be clear, I do NOT know who is responsible for this, it could be any campaign except Flinn's.
Below is the original, manipulative, email sent to the candidates by a bogus person that started this whole ball of wax to scuttle a fair election (hit read more):
(hit on image to enlarge it)
26 comments:
Whichever candidate or politician Cody works for is a chickensh*t for hiding behind the lawyer and for not challenging Mayor Flinn in the open on this issue. Cody isn't even a semi-respectable hired gun in this fight - he is a political vandal who does great damage to our electoral system.
Brilliantly reported!
Typical political dirty trick to attack a front runner during an election. This attack is from one of the other candidates who are trying to benefit from a last minute headline grabbing assault.
Cody is the chickensh*t. He is no friend to any citizen who values good government. The term is a cancer. I bet he is making his mother proud, not.
I want Flinn to answer as to how well he knows Cody. Does Cody have any kids who attend or did he attend Palmer Trinity School? There has got to be more to the story.
Excellent profile. They couldn't find anyone better than Cody? I wonder who is financing him. We will never find out but you can bet somehow-some way Seijas has her fingers in this election.
Cody's daughter goes to public school.
Cindy Lerner is also a friend of Steve Cody on Facebook. Hasn't she endorsed Gene Flinn? None of this stuff means a thing. It's all about the campaign?
Just saw Gene Flinn's campaign finance report on line. He sure seems to have a lot of Rosen money--the same guys that want to move the UDB and hired Al Lorenzo to whip Lynda Bell in Homestead.
Went to early voting today. Flinn and Piedra camp were the only visible campaigns working the area.
$1,000 isn't a lot of money in a campaign. When it gets up past $2,000 - $5,000 from one entity-- those are the donations you want to watch.
This is exactly what the Miami Herald misses in their reports. Thank you.
De Grandy worked the entire year for the Republican legislature trying to kill off the Fair Districts amendment. Cody is just one of his minor league operatives.
How did Flinn's money go up almost $40,000 since the last report? I saw amendments from February. Who is the treasurer of that campaign?
Again, another anti-Taddeo hit piece. The attempt to insinuate that there may be some connection between Taddeo and Cody because they are "friends" on Facebook is dishonest and gobbledygook.
it's has been the talk around town that Al Lorenzo is working on the Flinn campaign but this is the first time i have ever seen him work for free, since he hasn't shown up on his report. But now we see Rosen on the report. That may explain who's paying him for Flinn.
The alias that this guy created to send that email to candidates is interesting. If Cody sent it, and he was acting in a legal capacity - was that OK? Perhaps he wrote it and someone can trace the footprints. Maybe one of candidates who had nothing to do with this will simply step up and fight that battle on behalf of the voters. I would love to see Cody tripped up by a "technicality"in payment for trying to disenfranchise voters.
Let me make a few observations as I had to toss some comments. Stephen Cody is an excellent lawyer. I have seen him at 3 trials now. Do not underestimate his expertise. Speculating about him when you weren't there is unfair.
Second, I have been writing about Rosen and Latterner for years. $1,000 is not troublesome as a contribution in my view. You have to look at a report as a whole. I have looked at them all. They all have a few donations I don't like to see but by in large, they aren't bad. Look at Pepe Diaz's report if you want to see a bad one -- he now has over $300,000 against Pernas's $600. Someone asked how Flinn increases his fundraising: An endorsement by the Miami Herald and Eyeonmiami in this district is pretty meaningful.
A facebook friendship when someone has almost 1,000 friends is not meaningful BUT I mentioned it because people should start using more discretion when choosing friends. It is worth mentioning.
I hope we aren't getting back into that mudslinging mode. I appreciate you all want your candidate to win. But to suggest that Flinn would start this mud-slinging against himself or pay Cody to bring a suit against himself, seems absurd especially if you were in the courtroom to see Cody skillfully at work. He was not trying to throw the trial.
Lastly, get your friends out to vote at this point. I am a researcher. I report on my research as best I can. If you don't like reading my blog, the Miami Herald is readily available and I recommend you all read it.
G.o.D, doesn't this make you weary?
Flinn got slammed hard by a certain TV station - I didn't realize that we have National Enquirer TV right here in Miami ... That was enough to make me turn TV off until after the elections.
I am so sick of negative publicity from local level up to congress. What happened to the issues? Now the stupid campaign tactics are the issues.
Well here's a news flash, people, campaign tactics do not put food on MY table, maybe they do in your house. But one thing is certain about dirty campaign tactics, they tire me and make me wonder where democracy has gone into hiding.
Vote for the most solid candidate, one that can do something in this warped county. I personally want one who knows where the light switches are from the first moment they take office.
And consider that if you have candidates with mean nasty campaign staff, that is the kind of customer service you are going to get from that candidate if they win.
By the way, this campaign is redefining what public service means... not in a good way.
I am weary and disappointed.
Is it me or do people get even stupider and crazier around election time? And for the most part they are pretty stupid and crazy to begin with. Maybe that's why we get the electoral results that we do. Call it the Cato Theory
On a lighter note since I was banished to Natasha's Metahne Infested Realm by G.O.D. I have been feeling my skin getting a harder , my eyes beadier and my hands have begun to resemble claws. Then I read todays herald at it all begins to fall into place.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/21/1786382/snow-crabs-found-clustered-around.html
To "I voted and turned out the crud"
I could not agree with you more! If you only knew the gross amounts of negative mailers I have received in the past week alone - its enough to make a bonfire, literally! NOT ONE of them discussed What they're going to do once elected - NOT ONE of them!
The truth of the matter is that issues no longer decide elections - money does. BIG MONEY!
I just voted yesterday and I made it a point of voting for the man/woman with the least amount of money and the least amount of endorsements.
I voted for the underdog in each of the races! I'm tired of the Bullshit!
Cato I was just Robbed of my IPhone but you always cheer me up-- stillmy número uno
Hey, go take it to the US Supreme Court: don't like money in politics? It's representative democracy dumbos.
Special Interests Much, last Anon?
What we have now is not "Representative Democracy" BUT Manipulated Democracy.
Manipulated by BIG MONEY with even BIGGER AGENDAS by CORPORATE INTERESTS and BIG UNIONS. They don't give a SH** about anything except getting THEIR WAY EVERY * SINGLE * TIME and DAMM the consequences! And we end up paying for THEIR benefits! ie, A Stadium We Don't Need and Labor Contracts WE CAN'T AFFORD!
The Economy is in the tank, people are OUT OF WORK. Some are even going hungry, literally - No problem, use our taxes to subsidize a Multi-Billion dollar Stadium no one will EVER visit, except maybe during its inaugural year. And don't forget about the portable roof the Dolphin Stadium "needs" so that the mistreses and trophy wives of corporate A*Holes don't get wet during a future Super Bowl - Seriously!
County budget's in the tank, no problem - The Mayor's closest advisors get a 50% raise but the rest of us have to face tax increases so that we can pay the bloated Union contracts which apparently are written in Blood - Regardless of the current status of the economy!
You want to know how I voted, here it is:
U.S. Senate - have to wait for November so I can vote for Crist.
U.S. Congress - Paul Crespo
State Senate - Julio Robaina
County Commission 8 - Lynda Bell
I not only voted for these folks, I dragged my family to vote for them, I pestered my neighbors and co-workers and decided to take some of them to vote early during lunch-time!
We need people who have a backbone and have the cojones to just say ENOUGH!
Sorry, Genius, about my tone, but that last anon really got under my skin. I mean what kind of people do THEY think we are anyway?!
Last Anon: Paul Crespo???? The conservative radio host?? That wouldn't have been my choice.
I was originally going to vote for Crespo, but was COMPLETELY TURNED OFF with his multi-negative mailers against Rivera.
Bottom line, I didn't vote for either.
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