Diaz Means Groundhog Day—or Worse—for FL Dems

 

Tampa, Fl

Tampa Bay Beat
By: Jim Bleyer

Manny Diaz & Mike Bloomberg

 By Jim Bleyer

You’ll have to indulge key Republican operatives who are salivating and rubbing their hands in anticipation of a  Florida Democratic Party led by former Miami Mayor Manny Diaz.

The FDP is in ashes following its 2020 debacle under the impotent leadership of Terrie Rizzo.  The Palm Beach politico is expected to either step down gracefully or be shoved out the door after two miserable election cycles for Florida Democrats.

Rizzo has  Mastered the camera not winning elections

An FDP led by Diaz would transform a 2022 turnaround opportunity into a third decade of Democrat torture at the polls. Let’s review the bidding on Rizzo’s tenure before discussing Diaz, a shopworn, out-of-touch elitist.

Under Rizzo’s bungling, incumbent Congresswomen Donna Shalala and Debbie -Mucarsel-Powell lost while Dems failed to pick up two vulnerable Republican seats.  Democrats were also stymied in their bid to flip three Florida Senate seats which would have erased their 23-17 deficit in the upper chamber.  The party lost five seats in the Florida House, completing the thrashing.

In an incredibly destructive move, Rizzo and FDP Executive Director Juan Peñalosa over the summer signed off on the application and acceptance of at least $780,000 in small business loans from the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).  The illegal transaction came to light after the names of the recipients were published.  The FDP returned the money but the damage was irreparable.

Small businnesses that were shut out of the program harbored resentment and the Republican Party of Florida had a field day.  Every Democratic candidate for the Florida Legislature was forced to play defense up to election day as Republucan attack ads, false but effective, accused them of using PPP funds to win an election.

In total, the Rizzo-Peñalosa blunder cost Democratic candidates millions to defend against the charges. The pair came under heavy criticism from Democrat lawmakers.

State Sen. Jason Pizzo, rumored to be preparing a statewide run in 2022, asserted, “Forget the legality for just a second and consider what should have been a huge ethical dilemma.  They are taking financial resources from someone who might have food or housing insecurity in the middle of a pandemic. I don’t know who possibly thought that was a good idea.”

The Rizzo-led Democrats took a shellacking in  2018 as well when they lost four of five statewide races including sitting U. S. Sen. Bill Nelson.  Andrew Gillum lost the governorship by a hair as loyalists of Gwen Graham, his chief primary opponent, permeated the party apparatus.

A continuation of the Rizzo regime would demoralize political activists as well as grass roots Democrats.  The state party has virtually ignored its backbone: people of color.  After the twin 2018-2020 disasters, good luck finding volunteers and donors with Rizzo still at the helm.

Now for Diaz who is selling himself as a rainmaker with national connections. He’s got the endorsement of  Mike Bloomberg, a putative Democrat who is not a Floridian.

Diaz, who served as mayor of Miami from 2001-2009, says he can bolster state Democrat coffers but adds nothing else to his portfolio. No mention as to his involvement in helping candidates in Miami-Dade let alone statewide.  He’s 66 and hobnobs with the one percent—the antithesis of what the FDP needs to inspire young voters and older progressives.

Jorge Perez, the billionaire “condo king,” also resides in Diaz’ orbit. Perez is a friend and former business partner of Donald Trump, who “wrote” the foreword for Pérez’s 2008 book, Powerhouse Principles

The money-driven Perez parted company with 45 over the border wall.  Perez wanted to build condos in Mexico.

Bloomberg proved there is more to winning elections than throwing money around.  He could begin with himself and the Democrat presidential primary. After spending $1 billion, Bloomberg didn’t come within a parsec of defeating Joe Biden.

Then Bloomberg pumped $100 million into Florida to help Biden win the state.  We know the shameful result; we don’t know whom the largesse was funneled to or how it was spent.

These are the personalities that would lead Florida Democrats further into the wilderness, squandering an opportunity to knock off two vulnerable Republican incumbents, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sen. Marco Rubio, in 2022.

The Florida Democratic Party cannot afford Manny Diaz.

 Cross Posted with permission from: Tampa Bay Beat

 This post is contributed by Tampa Bay Beat. The views and opinions expressed in this post are the author's and do not necessarily reflect those of Bay Post Internet or the publisher.

 

Have a Happy and Safe Thanksgiving

Thank you so very much for the time you spend reading this Blog

Doc Webb

 

Heading Out for Thanksgiving?

 

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving.........

Doc

The $15 Minimum Wage In Florida - Will It Be The Job Killer, They All Say It is?

FLORIDA WEST COAST  

Opinion by:  
E. Eugene Webb PhD         

There are probably a lot of people in Florida, who think the battle for the minimum wage increasing to $15.00 an hour has been resolved by the recent election victory.

Amendment 2 increases the State's current $8.56 minimum wage to $10 next September after that the minimum wage goes up $1 each year until it reaches $15.00 an hour in September of 2026. After that the minimum wage then increases with annual inflation using the same formula that it does now.

Sounds simple doesn't it?

The battle to increase the minimum wage is just beginning.

While it would appear that the amendment is pretty clear, the final implementation of the increases to the current minimum wage will be established by the Florida Legislature.

Think of the nightmare the recent marijuana legalization amendment created, the circus that ensued in the Florida legislature, and the resulting patchwork quilt of nightmare regulations and rules starting the legalization of marijuana.

The marijuana amendment implementation will probably look like child's play compared to what the Republican legislature will likely do regarding raising the minimum wage.

The first shots are already being fired. Check out this editorial By Tampa Bay Times Editorial Board How Florida wound up with a $15 minimum wage | Editorial.

During the election, there was a great hue and cry from small businesspeople regarding how this would impact their business, their hiring, their current employees and the prices, they charge the public. Well, doubtless if you gradually must pay your employees more, you have to get that money from somewhere and the only place is your customer base.

The Tampa Bay Times Editorial points out how the amendment was passed by a select number of counties strongly supporting it. The Times editorial begins the argument against the minimum wage increase with an assumption that there should be a geographic variance in the application of the minimum wage.  

You're going to hear a lot of these arguments that jump right to the $15 mark for the minimum wage. In fact, if you go back up and look at the first paragraph or so of this post you will notice that the implementation of the minimum wage occurs over an extended period of time.

If you want to get just a hint of who is likely to oppose the implementation of the $15 minimum wage in Florida, check out Florida Small business Published by Florida Trend Trade Associations for Florida Business.

The people who worked so hard and invested so much to get this amendment passed such as the likes of John Morgan of Morgan and Morgan, need to be ready to step up and fight for the appropriate implementation of the amendment in the Legislature.

There will be a lot of campaign money flowing into the coffers of state legislators as the implementation of this amendment begins to unfold,  a lot of threats to support and a lot of threats to withhold support.

You will probably see an enormous amount of advertising regarding the minimum wage issue. As people in both small business and large business attempt to lay the groundwork, for making the implementation of this very appropriate amendment as difficult as possible.

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.

See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

Disclosures:

Please comment below.

 

 

Local Officials - All Politics is Local

FLORIDA WEST COAST  

Opinion by:  
E. Eugene Webb PhD         

There is an old saying in politics, that the government that affects you the most is your local government. Most notably your City and County government.

Now that the election is over, cities and counties along the Florida West Coast are swearing in their new Commission and Council members.

Most of these County and City commissions/councils will meet within the next few weeks to begin conducting the jurisdictions’ business. Committee assignments will be made and, in many cases, Commission chairmanship elections will be held.

It's a good idea to follow these very important first sessions of City councils and County commissions. It is in these moments that the structure for the various councils and commissions will be established, and the power structure will begin to take shape.

For example, take a look at these two articles:

By Timothy Fanning Sarasota Herald-Tribune Sarasota County Commissioners criticize single-member districts.

By Timothy Fanning Sarasota Herald-Tribune Redistricting in Sarasota County helped preserve GOP control.

Some think that City and County government it's a pleasant thing where everybody gets along, and politics are more of an afterthought than a fore thought. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Some of the nastiest and most ruthless politics that go on goes on at the local level.

This is going to be an especially interesting year, as county and local governments are taxed budget wise due to the COVID-19 virus, and the very difficult decisions that the new surge in the virus is going to present to these new councils and commissions.

Furthermore, not to be overlooked is the upcoming release of the 2020 census data which starts a whole series of time clocks ticking on things like redistricting at the State, County and City levels. These are some of the fiercest political battles that are fought in state and local politics.

One of the best places to follow state and local politics is the Blog site FloridaPolitics. You can click on this link, and it'll take you right to their homepage, there is also a link on the left side of this Blog.

It used to be that your local newspaper, whether you live in Fort Myers, Sarasota, Saint Petersburg, Tampa or Pasco County was your best source for local political news. These days none of the remaining local newspapers have the resources to cover in depth every City Council and County Commission along Florida’s West Coast.

So if you're really into all this and would like to see some pretty interesting television, you might want to check out when and at what time your local City Council or County Commission broadcasts their Council or Commission meetings.

Almost all do, and while a lot of it is somewhat boring every now and then, it turns into some really interesting television.

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.

See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

Disclosures:

Please comment below.

 

 

Getting Ready for The Slow Drift to Socialism

 
FLORIDA WEST COAST  

Opinion by:  
E. Eugene Webb PhD

Soon the Biden administration will take over and we will begin to see the transformation from the Trump economy driven society to the Biden everything free for everybody society he promised in his campaign.

Although it's going to be difficult to rapidly move the country from a highly capitalistic view to a socialistic view with The Senate in the hands of the Republicans, the slow drift left will begin almost immediately.

Biden’s plans to reenter the Paris Climate Accord, the Iran Nuclear Deal and other liberal global geopolitical positions are going to add significant costs to the federal budget. Between the COVID19 budget impacts and the Trump tax cuts, Biden will inherit the largest national debt of any president ever elected.

So, it occurred to me it is probably time to begin to create a plan for the slow drift toward socialism and higher taxes.

For the baby boomers, most of us are just too old to really worry about it. In fact, we are already part of the government provides everything group. Between Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security we are all pretty much on the government payroll.

However if you're a successful Gen X, Gen Y, Gen Zer or millennial or any part of that group here are some things and some adjustments you may want to consider in regard to your lifestyle as we move from capitalism to socialism.

1. It will be a good idea to gradually adjust your life positions to not so overtly reflect your success and capitalistic instincts.

For example, if you drive any of these cars Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, or any of the other high-end brands you may want to consider over the next few months selling that vehicle and buying yourself a used Hyundai or Subaru. It will make you look more like one of those left wingers instead of an outright capitalist.

2. If you were thinking about buying a home downtown in the high rent district or if you already have one of those high rise condos surrounded by massive retail, dining, high end retail and all that kind of stuff you may want to think a little bit about buying a home out in the suburbs. One of those row houses where the normal people live.

3. If you're part of that liberal generation that considers children not a particular blessing and maybe you've decided to have just one in order to make yourself not look too weird, you may want to consider adding a couple of kids to your family brood so you look more like the traditional middle income or lower middle income family. It will also help sop up some of your discretionary income

4. You may want to power down your wardrobe just a bit. If you have been moderately successful as a financial advisor or a used car salesman you may want to shuck the $500 shoes, the $700.00 suit, the $90.00 dress shirts and $125 running pants.

Try shopping at Target and Walmart a little more. It will help you fit in with the needy crowd.

5. Politically it's cool to be a liberal. You know the old chicken in every pot routine and if you don't have a pot the government will provide you with one to put your free chicken in.

Remember that socialism is essentially a redistribution of wealth from those who worked hard to get it to those who have been waiting around for somebody to give it to them.

If you have it (wealth) they are coming for you.

So, if you have acquired some degree of financial success you may want to park some of that financial success in some not so obvious places. Low income housing comes to mind.

The Biden administration is going to be an interesting experiment in economics and politics.

There is already an abiding question about who's going to be running the show with Biden as president. Will it be Biden himself; will it be a coalition of his left wing highly liberal supporters; will it be the hawkish left wing, or will it be the conservative wing of the Democratic Party?

Oh yes, there is one - a conservative wing of the Democratic Party. They're all hiding over there in the corner waiting for the smoke to clear and see just how far this drift to the left is going to go.

So, for now, watch where you go, what you wear, who you support politically and remember at times like these, grey is a good color. 

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.

See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

Disclosures:

Please comment below.