DEVELOPING STORY: After a series of major missteps, a protracted and seemingly personal battle with the popular police and several threats, both public and private, to quit her job, Coral Gables City Manager Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark resigned Monday after almost four years at the helm of the City Beautiful.
Police Chief Ed Hudak wins.
The big question on everyone’s lips is: Does Cathy take Assistant City Manager Frank Fernandez with her?
Probably. You can’t be the city manager and the top sworn police officer in the city, which Fernandez is — the crux of a lot of the city’s problems. Las malas lenguas say that Assistant City Manager Peter Iglesias — who may or may not have resigned previously — will be named interim until a replacement is found.
The resignation comes one day before the next commission meeting and two weeks after the last one, in which Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli basically called Swanson Rivenbark a liar.
The discussion item was Commissioner Mike Mena‘s, who was reporting on the ongoing “talks between the city manager and the police chief,” which is better described as mandatory crisis counseling with commissioners. It’s come up in several commission meetings and was likely to come up again on Tuesday.
But Commissioner Vince Lago told Ladra Monday that he would not let it become a drawn out swan song. “It is time to move forward and concentrate on Coral Gables businesses and its residents,” Lago said. “The separation agreement hasn’t been signed. But we expect to name an interim city manager at tomorrow’s meeting.”
As Ladra writes this on Monday afternoon, the ink is not even dry on Swanson-Rivenbark’s resignation and exit package, which may not be finalized until Monday evening. More details to come as story develops.
Swanson came back to Coral Gables in 2015 after Pat Salerno resigned abruptly, rather than face questioning about lies he told the commission. She immediately started to make changes, hiring her  people from Hollywood, including Fernandez, who she put in charge of public safety.
 
 

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There’s no mention of them in the lawsuit filed Tuesday by Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo against the city and Mayor Francis Suarez in an attempt to stop the strong mayor vote, but the county mayor’s family is involved.
While the emergency complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief was filed in Miami-Dade 11th Circuit Court by Jesus Suarez, an attorney with Genovese Joblove and Battista, an email shot out that very night shows who had to be notified as soon as possible: Tania Cruz, the mayor’s daughter-in-law, and Carlos Gimenez, who could be the mayor’s lobbyist son or the mayor himself — but there’s really no difference as evidenced by last month’s elections interference.
The email was sent just before midnight, two minutes and three seconds after Suarez got notice of the filed documents. It had only one word in it: “FILED” All in caps. Like “DONE” or “MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.” Like he is reporting to his real boss.
Genovese Joblove and Battista has long been affiliated with Gimenez and once employed his other daughter-in-law, Barby Rodriguez.
Cruz, who is married to the mayor’s lobbyist son, was the attorney of record for the Carollo campaign and represented him, alongside Ben Kuehne, during the challenge to his district residency brought on by Alfie Leon. Is she consulting now, too?
And CJ Gimenez, the lobbyist son that this is probably addressed to, has been with Carollo since the campaign and now beyond, helping him get an extension from Papi as head of the county elections department for the wording on the strong mayor ballot question and, now, helping Carollo challenge the measure in court.
The lawsuit — which also names Miami City Clerk Todd Hannon, Miami-Dade Elections Supervisor (by proxy) Christina White and the political action committee Miamians for an Independent and Accountable Mayor’s Initiative as defendants — argues that the “ambiguous and intentionally misleading” ballot language doesn’t clearly tell voters what the mayor’s compensation will be under the strong mayor change (watch this become the crux of an anti campaign) and other changes that take power away from the commission. It also argues that the petitions themselves are invalid because some of the circulators are not registered Miami-Dade voters, as required by county code.
Read related: Carlos Gimenez abuses power in election interference for lobbyist son
Interesting  points that seem to have merit. Ladra is not sure she likes the strong mayor idea, either. I mean, look how great it’s been for the county. And the Suarez version is even more powerful and convoluted (more on that later).
But I’m more interested right now in how deeply involved Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez is in this fight. And why?
First he abuses his power to intervene in the elections process on behalf of his lobbyist son and Carollo, getting the commissioner a one week extension because Carollo thought he could kill the referendum measure with time. Gimenez didn’t get the extension for Suarez, who had previously sought an extension of a few days but was told he couldn’t have one and wanted to have the ballot language approved at a special city commission meeting Aug. 6. No, he did that for Carollo, who still couldn’t deliver even after Gimenez took over the elections department and deemed himself the elections supervisor.
And now the Gimenez family is behind, er, um, consulted on a lawsuit against the ballot measure.
What lengths will Gimenez go to on this issue? Isn’t it too bad he’s not as passionate about rail?
A Getty miage captures a much happier and friendlier Francis Suarez and Carlos Gimenez on Marlins opening day.
Is this just an opportunity to muddy Suarez on behalf of Carollo and his son’s career, or is there something more personal at stake? Las malas lenguas say Gimenez has long thought about running for Miami mayor after he is termed out at the county in 2020. Is this the tailgate party? But then, wouldn’t he want the strong mayor measure to pass.
Some political observers believe it’s going to pass anyway, given Miami’s sewn-up vote, and that this presents Gimenez with an opportunity to muddy Suarez while allowing for the strong mayor vote to pass and then using the younger mayor’s inexperience against him in 2021.
It could happen. God help us. At least it is one explanation behind the Gimenez clan involvement in this lawsuit. Have another?

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Let’s say that the mayor of a big city calls one of his employees on a Sunday morning at home. This employee, who years ago he promoted to chief of her department, is in charge of municipal elections and, lo and behold, she changes her mind about a previously hard and fast deadline on an upcoming ballot. The mayor admits to a local paper that he intervened in this matter for his son, a lobbyist who works on behalf of someone with an interest in the ballot.
Sounds like Nicaragua, don’t it? Almost anywhere else, this would draw some drumbeats and possibly an investigation into what is obviously, at the very least, an abuse of power.
But this happened in Miami-Dade, where Mayor Carlos Gimenez admitted to the Miami Herald only a few weeks ago that he used his elected office to get his lobbyist son a week-long extension on the Miami referendum for a strong mayor — and everyone just shrugs their shoulders and moves along like there’s nothing to see here.
How is this not being investigated? Have we become so numb to these abuses of power that such an extension of the friends and family plan is no big deal?
For those of you who are just hearing about this like Ladra was a few days ago: Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, who wants to be a strong mayor (more on that later), was having a hard time getting the ballot language good enough for the commission to agree on it. The deadline for the language to be at the Miami-Dade Elections Department was Tuesday, Aug. 7. Suarez called White and asked for a few more days. She told him it could not be done.
A few days later, on a Sunday, Aug. 5, White gets a phone call from Gimenez who asks her the same thing. Now, the answer is different. Now the answer is, sure, why not? Heck, she could wait even a week more. But nobody tells Suarez, who called a special meeting for Monday, Aug. 6, during which the city manager calls White and, voila, gets a week extension, seemingly on the spot. That Emilio Gonzalez has magical convincing powers, right?
Wrong. Everyone finds out the later that day or the next day is that the week-long extension had already been granted — a day earlier and to another mayor, Gimenez. Mayor Giveaway told the Herald point blank that when he told his son about the extension, the suddenly hot lobbyist CJ Gimenez, Commissioner Joe Carollo, who CJ grew close to during the Miami commission seat campaign last year (photo, left), was sitting next to him. It sounds like Mayor Gimenez knew he was talking to both of them. Maybe on speaker. CJ always puts dad on speaker.
“I told them it wasn’t a hard date,” Gimenez is quoted as saying in the Herald. “That if requested, the supervisor of elections would probably be amenable to moving it back a week.”
Read related: We get Joe Carollo in Miami — and all the drama, interest that comes with
Can’t you just hear the Don Corleone accent? I told them that if requested, the supervisor of elections would probably be amenable to moving it back a week.
So, basically, Gimenez got the extension and Carollo played dumb at the meeting about it for some reason. Maybe Crazy Joe knows that Crooked Carlos shouldn’t have done that.
Reached Wednesday, White said she couldn’t recall if Gimenez had called her that Sunday in the morning or the evening and said it wasn’t that uncommon. “He’s my boss,” she said. “We do talk as needed.”
When Ladra asked her how often her boss calls her on weekends, White couldn’t even give a ballpark figure.
“Is it once a month?” No answer to that. “Twice a month?”
“When I’m in election season, as needed, if something comes up, there’s never been an issue in calling him or vice versa,” she said. Well, except for when he was running for office, she said. “We really did not communicate very often then. He really respected the fact that he was the candidate,” White volunteered. But what did they talk about those few times? How do we know what “very often” means?
This is especially important because Gimenez actually told the Herald he himself was the supervisor of elections.
“I’m the supervisor of elections. I delegate that power to Christina White,” Gimenez is quoted as saying.
Did he, for instance, call White the weekend in the summer of 2016 that he needed to submit another check to qualify after his first check was invalidated because it was dated 2015. Remember that second check that was submitted at 10:20 p.m., way after the elections office is supposedly closed for the day, and the questions surrounding whether or not he may have abused his power to get the office open? Or was he simply the elections supervisor then, too?
Read related: Carlos Gimenez submits late night campaign check (10:20 p.m.)
Did Gimenez call White to tell her to forget about the check that a candidate for school board had cancelled after his son convinced the man to drop out of the race against his sister-in-law? Remember that Richard Tapia never officially withdrew from the race after having lunch or whatever with CJ (photo left) who encouraged him to drop out so his aunt, School Board Member Maria Teresa Rojas, would have an easier ride in? Was Mayor Gimenez the elections supervisor then, too? Or does the county just forgive anybody and everybody who cancels their checks?
There have been several opportunities for Mayor Gimenez to interfere with and, indeed, manipulate the electoral process — and we still don’t know how often he calls the elections supervisor on the weekends.
“So, twice a month?”
“There is no figure,” White said, exasperated at very legitimate questions that really need to be asked after she is subpoenaed and under oath..
She did say she did not feel uncomfortable by his call or what she deemed as his “inquiry,” because she insists her boss did not ask her to extend the deadline. Gimenez simply asked, White said, if it could be done if it needed to be done — lke it was a hypothetical situation? — and she said why, yes, it could.
Did she happen to mention to Gimenez that Mayor Suarez had, indeed, asked for such an extension just a couple days earlier and that she denied it? “I did not tell him,” White told Ladra. Hmmmm. Don’t you think that would naturally come up in that Sunday conversation? I mean, if it wasn’t uncomfortable.
Read related: Beware of Carlos Gimenez Jr. at Gables School Board forum
The deadline exists, by the way, because of all the work that goes into putting together the general election ballot, starting the day after the primary. There are dozens of questions on the ballot with more than 20 questions in one city alone this year (North Bay Village) and each of those has to be translated to Spanish and Haitian Kreole, then have those translations “negotiated,” because they are never spot on the first time, then have them all approved before the ballot is laid out.
“He just wanted to know if I was asked for an extension would I have a problem with that,” White {photo left) told Ladra. “It’s not that big a deal for me to give a city an extra week, for one city for one question. Especially since I saw the meeting and they were struggling with finding the ballot language.”
But there are three problems with her story: One is that Suarez, too, had asked for an extension for just one city for just one question and she had said nananina to that.
“My recollection of that conversation is he asked ‘Is the deadline firm?’ and I said, ‘Yes, it is,’” White said.
Then why wasn’t it firm that Sunday in her conversation with Gimenez?
The second is that the meeting took place on Monday — and she had already told Mayor Gimenez she would extend the deadline a day earlier. Sp watching them struggle with the language had, literally, nothing to do with it.
And the third is that Gimenez himself told the Herald about a conversation that seemingly went differently. After all, he is the supervisor of elections delegating the power to White.
“To me, it’s important to get things right,” Gimenez told the Miami Herald. “Adding another week to get things on the ballot, I don’t see a problem with that. I would do it for anyone else who asked. That is the democratic process.”
White needs to be put under oath when questioned by ethics investigators and/or prosecutors. Yes, Ladra went there. This is by far the clearest evidence of abuse of power by a man whose friends and family plan apparently knows no bounds. It’s not as if they need someone to make a complaint, but if they do, I will.
Where are the authorities?

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Sorry Ladra has had to take a week to recover from the primaries and, yes, I am talking mostly about congressional district 27, where I was part of the campaign. My candidate came in third and, even though she was always the underdog and most expected her to do worse, it still hurts a bit.
But not as much as the dread of November, where I have to choose between Republican Fidel fawner Maria Elvira Salazar and former UM queen bitch Donna Shalala.
I just threw up a little bit in my mouth.
The rest of the primary was oh so blah — Andrew Gillum‘s upset win being the only real bright light — that there was just no urgency to report or analyze the results or local impact or winners and losers. Even though former Miami Beach mayor Phillip Levine sure lost — even in hometown Miami-Dade — but I’ll get to gloat another day.
To be fair, on election night I was also watching two House races in real time: District 115, where I live and where Republican nominee Vance Aloupis rode his attack ads and establishment money to a short-lived victory — Jeffrey Solomon is poised to take this seat blue in November — and District 103, where Cindy Polo beat the plantidate and is well on her way to becoming a state rep. Former Miami Lakes Councilman Frank “Fat Chance” Mingo just got a new nickname.
Read related: Possible plantidate forces Democrat primary in House 103 for the GOP
True, there was that empty gut feeling after every county commission incumbent — even former Sen. Javier Souto, who is really going to embarrass himself now — won re-election. The problem is that nobody is getting serious about putting up real candidates and then giving them the support they need to win.
Ladra was surprised as anyone that Analeen “Annie” Martinez, the commissioner’s daughter, was unable to win the Republican primary, even though she was better financed than anyone by far — and than Juan Fernandez-Barquin by at least $100,000 not counting any PACs — and, one would think, have the more experienced campaign team. But Martinez came in 23 points behind Fernandez-Barquin, who got 44% of the vote.
There were some happy results, including David Perez for the Democratic nominee in the Senate race against Manny Diaz Jr. (more on that later), Jason Pizzo and Dotie Joseph over incumbents Daphne Campbell and Roy Hardemon, respectively, and former Miami Beach Commissioner Michael Grieco over the other two duds in that race. Grieco (photographed right) becomes the defacto state rep because that district is just bluer than the sky and will go Dem in Novem. I like Mike. I hope he is basking in this, which is a double whammy for Levine.
Now we move on to the general, which has to live up to all the 2018 election hype all by itself because he primary fizzled. Which races become important to Ladra now?
Read related: Michael Grieco best choice in House 113 race
Well, the governor’s race. I am Team Andrew and want to start looking into that election and those issues. Because almost anyone is better than Ron De Santis anyway. And, while I have to watch FL27 as a reluctant voter, I am more interested now in FL26 as a blogger and political junkie. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell has a real chance to take this seat away from incumbent Republican Carlos Curbelo, if she does it right. Part of that will be to expose him for the sniveling, lying opportunist that he is. Call me, Debbie.
We are also looking forward to the contest between Sen. Annette Taddeo and Republican superwoman Marili Cancio. Ladra sure hopes Annette is not taking her for granted. People tend to like Marili. Lots of people. Purple people, too. Even I like Marili.
Read related: GOP’s Marili Cancio vs Dem Sen. Annette Taddeo in ‘year of the woman’
But at the state level, Ladra is, as promised months ago, a single issue voter. Parkland is still fresh in my mind. Maybe it’s because my daughter was at a very similar high school in South Florida that day. Maybe its from the way I saw young people get woke. Maybe it was from watching Republican after Republican deny legitimate and worthy amendments and turn what could have been a national model for gun reform into a way to put guns in schools.
The real test of the impact the school shooting will have on elections is not in the primary, after all. It is in November. And it will be difficult for many of us to support any Republican this year because of their behavior after Parkland.
But it will be fun to watch them try.

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I know its late. I know Ladra has been quiet lately. We have been distracted with other work and getting her puppy bien instalada at college. Forgive me.
This midterm election is much more important than we’ve treated it and for that, Ladra is sorry.
But better late than never.
So without any further excuses, and in time for election day, here are Ladra’s endorsements for the Aug. 28, 2018 primary.
For Governor: Andrew Gillum on the Dem side and Ron DeSantis on the GOP side simply because I can’t wait to see Gillum kick his ass.
The Republican Senate primary is easy: Roque “Rocky” de la Fuente wins this nod simply because he is not Rick Scott. Case closed.
And the only real cabinet position we have a dog in the race in is the Commissioner of Agriculture bid, where Ladra likes Homestead Mayor Jeff Porter. I may not like everybody around him, but I still think Porter, photographed right, is a good guy,
In the congressional races, everyone knows Ladra is #TeamKristen all the way. Kristen Rosen Gonzalez will be an excellent congresswoman and represent us the best because she knows us the best.
On the GOP side, there is nobody really worthy of a nod. I am not convinced that Maria Elvira Salazar wasn’t flirting with Fidel Castro in that interview, which can’t be forgiven, and she doesn’t know what she’s doing anyway. This feels more like a desperate attempt to stay relevant now that her job security is jello than it does a call to public service. And former Commissioner Bruno Barreiro doesn’t deserve it, the way he basically threw his campaign in the trash for his wife’s weak bid for his county seat. If I were a GOP voter, I would go with Angie Chirino, because I am a fan of her dad’s and amiga de la luna.
But I have choices in the other congressional races as well:
District 26: Debbie Mucarsel-Powell for the Dems, now that she’s in the right place.
District 24: Federica Wilson deserves it. She’s been honest. She didn’t back down from Trump during that phone call debacle. And she represents her constituency, which is what this is all about. Besides, who the heck is that other guy?
State races offer some easy choices, too:
Senate District 36: It’s firefighter David Perez all the way. He has the best chance of beating good for nothing puppet boy Manny Diaz, Jr., in the general.
Senate District 38: Jason Pizzo is new and Ladra doesn’t know much about him. But incumbent Daphne Campbell is quite possibly the worst example of a sitting elected we have. So anybody but her.
House District 103: Cindy Polo, photographed right, is the only real Democrat here. Rick Tapia is a plant. Please show him we won’t be fooled by those kind of shenanigans anymore.
House District 105: Ross Hancock is, indeed, a perennial candidate. But he knows what he’s talking about and what he’s doing and he is the best choice this year, even if that is not his original district. Who is the other guy? Who knows? Not me.
House District 108: Dotie Joseph is a young Haitian lawyer and we need more Haitians and more women in Tallahassee. That and she is running against an incumbent named Hardemon. Case closed.
House District 109: Cedric McMinn because James Bush III has already had his chance and Cedric deserves his.
House District 113: Former Commissioner Michael Grieco is Ladra’s choice and the choice of most voters because, like I said before, nobody likes Deede Weithorn and nobody knows Kubs Lalchandani.
House District 115: Ladra is going to vote for Jefferey Solomon, photographed left, in this race. But I urge my Republican friends to vote for Jose Fernandez, because Vince Aloupis has run a very negative campaign. Not that it matters. Solomon will win in November, too.
House District 116: Republican Danny Perez just won this in a special election earlier this year. Let’s give him a chance.
House District 119: Ladra likes Bibi Potestad in this one, mostly because she doesn’t want to see the daughter of a county commissioner win the race, but also because former State Rep. Juan Zapata likes her (she worked with him at both the state and the county).
In the county commission races, Ladra just wants to see upset. The only incumbent who gets my nod is Jean Monestime and that is only because the other choice is Dorrin Rolle.
Yes that does mean that I want Maryin Vargas over Rebeca Sosa. I like our tia comsionada just fine, but it’s time, okay. The perks at the airport, all the kumbaya talk while she stood complicit to the raiding of our half penny. It’s time she leave gracefully.
And I know I am going to attract the wrath of every Democrat that reads this poll but I would vote Daniella Levine Cava out. She is not what she says she is. She has not delivered on anything. We need to start holding our electeds accountable. Just because she talks nice doesn’t mean she is nice and all she’s done for the Pets’ Trust, which had to reconfirm their ridiculous support of her, is take photo opps with the mayor at pet adoption events. Ludicrous. She just wants to be mayor one day — she thinks she can be — so she doesn’t rock the boat while she says all the right “progressive” crap. Talk about all talk and no action. My problem is that I am not so sure Gus Barreiro, who campaigned for a different seat in a different part of town, lives in the district. It doesn’t matter anyway because Levine Cava will win. She just won’t do it with my support.
Ladra hopes that Jose Garrido gets some benefit from being the first on the ballot in the District 10 race against Javier Souto, who should have retired years ago but is being forced to hold on for Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Chairman Esteban Bovo and the others who this puppet is always good for. Garrido worked in Souto’s office and knows where the bones are buried. We need him to throw the doors and windows open over there.
And, last but not least, let’s show electeds that we mean business by denying Jose “Pepe” Diaz his last term. There are two other guys in that race that you can vote for, but my nod goes to either Rafael Pineyro or Patricio Moreno, whoever is Xavier Suarez‘s boy.
Ladra doesn’t know enough about the school board or judicial races to give endorsements. So go with your gut. It’s always good to empower minorities. Women, black and Hispanic candidates get my attention when I know nothing else about anybody in the race. Sorry not sorry. You can have your own criteria.
The most important thing is that you go out and vote. They don’t expect long lines at most of the polling places and it will take about 10 minutes to fill out all the bubbles. But it is the only way we have of letting these people who control so much of our lives know that we are on to them and we are watching them and we will fire them when we have to.

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