Lee County, named for the Confederate general Robert E. Lee, has two distinguishing characteristics tying together the economy and the environment: the Fort Myers/Cape Coral area was among the hardest hit in the nation by the housing crash -- with recovery far from sight-- and environmental pollution pouring out of the Caloosahatchee River shows no sign of abating.
The persistence of these penalties to jobs and quality of life in Lee County would seem an ideal climate to incubate leadership. In fact, the reverse just occurred. In a recent Republican primary, an incumbent pro-environment, moderate Republican county commissioner, Ray Judah, was excised from office under extraordinary circumstances. The same forces that created both the dependency on crappy subdivisions and water pollution wrecking water-front real estate raised hundreds of thousands of dollars through an independent expenditure committee for the single purpose of taking out the one local elected official who emerged from an understanding and incorporation of these issues.
The election in which Judah was defeated was lightly reported. What is remarkable; the take-down by party elites of a Republican environmentalist – I can think of none as willing to speak out as Judah in the handful of counties around Florida’s Everglades.
Judah, in a recent conversation, said he had no inkling of trouble before the August primary ambush. He had served for twenty four years and, before that, in the county as a land use planner. His opponent had raised $90K compared to his $50K. Still, based on experience through many cycles he believed voters knew him and that among his policy positions his constituents embraced his defense of clean water and the rule of environmental laws; especially his willingness to speak out against the principal industry responsible for polluting the Caloosahatchee River; Big Sugar. Notably, his opponent refused to debate him.
Then, the shit storm. On television during the last week of the Olympic Games, and shortly before the Republican primary, a political action committee called Florida First unleashed a barrage of attack ads. Over a seven to ten day period, Judah estimates that Florida First spent $750,000 spewing an unrelenting stream of messages attacking his integrity and credibility. The television spots at $2500 each, during prime time, were complimented by radio ads, robo calls and super-sized mailers to likely voter in the closed GOP primary.
The PAC attacked Judah for being too liberal, for serving in office too long, alleging that he increased the cost of prescription drugs, and on and on.
According to Judah, lobbyists associated with the Florida Chamber of Commerce and development interests decided to test the “anything goes” atmosphere of campaign fundraising and see how it would work at the local level. Although his opponent avows no knowledge, the campaign was clearly coordinated as a high tech, electoral lynching. Judah believes a number of Republican state legislators called on the tobacco and gaming industries to fund the Florida First campaign in Lee County. Although these industries had no particular quarrel against a county commissioner, they complied because both industries have important efforts to loosen regulations before the state legislature.
The chief instigator was Big Sugar; the industry that dominates Florida and national politics at every point its corporate welfare privileges are at stake. Judah had developed over time as the most knowledgeable and persistent critic of Big Sugar’s domination of water management in South Florida, using the Caloosahatchee River that spanned Lee County as its outfall for massive pollution, contributing to horrendous algae blooms along the southwest Florida coast and the decimation of real estate values because nearby waters had become unfishable and unswimmable.
Bare knuckle politics at the local level, aimed by Republicans to enforce ideological purity and backed by PAC money that dwarfs what candidates can raise themselves, represent an ominous development. Judah says, “Mother Teresa wouldn’t have been able to defend herself against all the allegations thrown my way.” He adds, without a trace of bitterness, that “far right extremists” are using the same campaign tools distorting national politics to infiltrate at the local level.
The Judah loss to a newcomer attracted little notice because it is a county commission race in a region wracked by the housing crash, but it embodies the most chilling effect of the campaign finance disaster unleashed by the US Supreme Court through Citzens United and it was directed, predictably, against a long-serving Republican in local government whose outspoken support for pro-environmental policies against billionaire polluters made him a glaring target.
In a twenty four year career, Judah both proved the exception to the rule – a pro-environment Republican—and the rule itself: that the GOP has been overrun by anti-science and radical extremist views that support the profit motive of industrial and agricultural polluters.
Thinking Republicans have a choice in November: by not voting, Republicans can send a message that it is time for a different kind of purging in the Grand Old Party; one that sends radical extremists back to the fringe from whence cometh their help.
The persistence of these penalties to jobs and quality of life in Lee County would seem an ideal climate to incubate leadership. In fact, the reverse just occurred. In a recent Republican primary, an incumbent pro-environment, moderate Republican county commissioner, Ray Judah, was excised from office under extraordinary circumstances. The same forces that created both the dependency on crappy subdivisions and water pollution wrecking water-front real estate raised hundreds of thousands of dollars through an independent expenditure committee for the single purpose of taking out the one local elected official who emerged from an understanding and incorporation of these issues.
The election in which Judah was defeated was lightly reported. What is remarkable; the take-down by party elites of a Republican environmentalist – I can think of none as willing to speak out as Judah in the handful of counties around Florida’s Everglades.
Judah, in a recent conversation, said he had no inkling of trouble before the August primary ambush. He had served for twenty four years and, before that, in the county as a land use planner. His opponent had raised $90K compared to his $50K. Still, based on experience through many cycles he believed voters knew him and that among his policy positions his constituents embraced his defense of clean water and the rule of environmental laws; especially his willingness to speak out against the principal industry responsible for polluting the Caloosahatchee River; Big Sugar. Notably, his opponent refused to debate him.
Then, the shit storm. On television during the last week of the Olympic Games, and shortly before the Republican primary, a political action committee called Florida First unleashed a barrage of attack ads. Over a seven to ten day period, Judah estimates that Florida First spent $750,000 spewing an unrelenting stream of messages attacking his integrity and credibility. The television spots at $2500 each, during prime time, were complimented by radio ads, robo calls and super-sized mailers to likely voter in the closed GOP primary.
The PAC attacked Judah for being too liberal, for serving in office too long, alleging that he increased the cost of prescription drugs, and on and on.
According to Judah, lobbyists associated with the Florida Chamber of Commerce and development interests decided to test the “anything goes” atmosphere of campaign fundraising and see how it would work at the local level. Although his opponent avows no knowledge, the campaign was clearly coordinated as a high tech, electoral lynching. Judah believes a number of Republican state legislators called on the tobacco and gaming industries to fund the Florida First campaign in Lee County. Although these industries had no particular quarrel against a county commissioner, they complied because both industries have important efforts to loosen regulations before the state legislature.
The chief instigator was Big Sugar; the industry that dominates Florida and national politics at every point its corporate welfare privileges are at stake. Judah had developed over time as the most knowledgeable and persistent critic of Big Sugar’s domination of water management in South Florida, using the Caloosahatchee River that spanned Lee County as its outfall for massive pollution, contributing to horrendous algae blooms along the southwest Florida coast and the decimation of real estate values because nearby waters had become unfishable and unswimmable.
Bare knuckle politics at the local level, aimed by Republicans to enforce ideological purity and backed by PAC money that dwarfs what candidates can raise themselves, represent an ominous development. Judah says, “Mother Teresa wouldn’t have been able to defend herself against all the allegations thrown my way.” He adds, without a trace of bitterness, that “far right extremists” are using the same campaign tools distorting national politics to infiltrate at the local level.
The Judah loss to a newcomer attracted little notice because it is a county commission race in a region wracked by the housing crash, but it embodies the most chilling effect of the campaign finance disaster unleashed by the US Supreme Court through Citzens United and it was directed, predictably, against a long-serving Republican in local government whose outspoken support for pro-environmental policies against billionaire polluters made him a glaring target.
In a twenty four year career, Judah both proved the exception to the rule – a pro-environment Republican—and the rule itself: that the GOP has been overrun by anti-science and radical extremist views that support the profit motive of industrial and agricultural polluters.
Thinking Republicans have a choice in November: by not voting, Republicans can send a message that it is time for a different kind of purging in the Grand Old Party; one that sends radical extremists back to the fringe from whence cometh their help.
3 comments:
Wow!!! Your post summarizes why I'm sitting this one out. Thank you.
This is one of the most important stories in Florida. A prediction of what is to come. This is the test tube for our future. Judah is case 1- ground zero - in Florida on how campaigns will be done.
What a sad story. Ray Judah was a great public servant. I'm sad to see him gone, but extremely disturbed at how they attacked him.
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