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What do Crist, Obama and Clinton
have in common? Answer: They will all be Elmo’s
sidekicks at the NCLR. |
In simultaneous celebration of
capitalism and democracy Murmurs gives you the
Campaign Account Rat Race!
As of Tuesday, 5 p.m., the 14 candidates
so far running for four of seven seats on the Miami
Beach City Commission were required to turn in their
latest campaign reports detailing how much money they
had spent on their campaign and, more importantly for
our purposes, how much they had raised in a bid to get
elected to a position that has a base salary of $6,000 a
year. Yes, folks, freedom isn’t free and most of these
14 individuals are well aware of that fact as they smile
at fundraisers and put mortgages on their homes to
raise the money necessary to someday serve their
constituents as card-carrying members of the City
Commission.
So, to give an idea of how our wanna-be public officials
are doing on the campaign fundraising and self-loaning,
we have listed the candidates and the amounts they’ve
raised or invested into their campaign accounts in order
of smallest to largest for dramatic effect:
William C. Smatt,
candidate for mayor: no information (opened campaign
account July 6).
Michael Stern,
candidate for commission Seat 6: $0.
Ivor Rose,
candidate for commission Seat 5: $300 ($100 from himself
and $200 in-kind sign contribution).
Linda Grosz,
candidate for commission Seat 6: $40,375.
Frank Kruszewski,
candidate for commission Seat 6: $41,370 ($21,050 from
himself).
Matti Herrera Bower,
candidate for mayor: $42,806.
Elsa Urquiza,
candidate for commission Seat 6: $65,325.
Deede Weithorn,
candidate for commission Seat 6: $67,523.
Edwin Tobin,
candidate for commission Seat 5: $95,450 ($40,000 from
himself).
Michael Gongora,
incumbent candidate for commission Seat 5: $118,351.28.
Jonah Wolfson,
candidate for commission seat 4: $122,244.50.
Luis Salom,
candidate for commission seat 4: $165,023.10.
Simon Cruz,
candidate for mayor: $284,229.48.
And finally, the candidate with the largest campaign
account, as reported by the candidates themselves — drum
roll please: Raphael Herman, candidate for mayor
who has an account of $1,800,091.04, all of it in loans
from his own personal accounts, according to reports
filed by the real estate broker.
Counting Flowers on
the Wall
Murmurs asks the question: Can you deny the pleas
of a man who goes by the name of Flash? OK, how
about if that man runs a hip art and performance venue
in the corner of downtown Miami? And the help he
needs is to keep that hip little spot from
closing?
“Hello, friends, it’s me, Flash,” Flash wrote in an
e-mail. “I’m writing to you today for some much-needed
help. The Wallflower Gallery has run out of
money and is on the verge of closing. Now I
am asking all those people who care about the Wallflower
Gallery for assistance in this crucial matter.” The
crucial matter: After giving local bands and spoken word
artists a venue to do their stuff for the last 10 years,
the Wallflower, located at 10 NE Third St., “is in
financial crisis, due largely to recent renovations
and operational costs.”
“Being an all-ages venue, our profits are not
made through bar sales, which makes it all the more
important for us to raise money through the support of
our patrons,” Flash wrote. “As you know, we have always
provided quality entertainment at a low cost (or even
free!), so that everyone could appreciation the “Local
Art Experience.”
So Flash would like some of you Wallflower Gallery
patrons (you know who you are) to do something to
keep the Wallflower Gallery Experience going. His
suggestions:
“*Volunteer!! When you look at our calendar, you can see
the wide array of creative programs that we offer. Most
activities are run by myself and a few loyal volunteers
—and as such, I rarely sleep….
“*Come BUY and support your local artists and
musicians!
“*Take advantage of our rental program for your next
private or corporate event. This is a GREAT place to
host a party or function!
“*Call and ask what YOU can do!”
So anyway, if you feel the desire to help someone named
Flash, give the Wallflower Gallery a call at
305-579-0069 or maybe just log on to
www.wallflowergallery.com.
And Flash, that was your free plug from Murmurs. Flash!
Thunder! Always wanted to say that.
Elmo!
From July 21 to 24, Miami Beach Convention Center
will host the 2007 Annual Conference of the National
Council of La Raza. The NCLR claims to be the
largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy
organization in the U.S., according to a press release,
and as such has drawn some very big names to the
convention. Among the speakers will be Senators (and
presidential contenders) Hillary Clinton and
Barack Obama, Florida’s own Gov. Charlie Crist
and Wal-Mart president Lee Scott.
“The Hispanic community is poised to make a major
difference in next year’s election … we look forward to
hearing from presidential candidates from both parties,
as well as other prominent leaders in government and
business,” Janet Murguía, NCLR president and CEO,
stated in the release.
Keeping in line with this mentality, Sesame Street’s
Elmo will kick off the all-important Latin Expo,
which will exhibit more than 300 businesses,
colleges and organizations. The reason for his presence
is unclear, but perhaps it’s because Elmo’s the only
muppet to ever testify in front of Congress (back in
2002 in support of music education).
“No issue will be more important at the 2007 NCLR Annual
Conference than how to strengthen the Latino community’s
voice in our political process,” Murguía said via
release. To this end, the NCLR has secured appearances
by Dora the Explorer, Mario Lopez (aka
Slater from Saved by the Bell) and merengue
singer Elvis Crespo, as represented in a
promotional flier for the event. And, please, NCLR, for
the sake of your organization, next year choose more
significant Latino community leaders to spotlight on
your flier than a cartoon itinerant scout and an
almost-forgotten D-list celebrity.
Got murmurs? E-mail
editorial@miamisunpost.com. Comments?
E-mail
letters@miamisunpost.com.
