In what has become an increasingly ugly and partisan race for a non-partisan post, Miami-Dade Commissioner Lynda Bell — the 
only incumbent truly facing a stiff challenge — stepped up the heat in recent days, unveiling a TV ad that has none other than Republican Congressoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen endorsing the former mayor of Homestead and dropping a second mailer that blames her challenger for the Marlins Stadium deal, even though the woman was not an elected.
“Hola. I’m Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. And I ask that you go out and vote for my great friend, Commissioner Lynda Bell,” Ros-Lehtinen says in the Spanish-language ad. “Lynda Bell has always fought for our values, creating jobs, keeping your taxes low and protecting our families.”
Fought for our values and protected our families? Whose families does Ileana mean? Didn’t IRL, a darling of the LGBT community and winner of the SaveDADE Champions of Equality Award, know that her “gran amiga” Lynda Bell was against marriage equality? Meanwhile, SaveDade endorsed challenger Daniella Levine Cava because “District 8 residents deserve a pro-equality commissioner. … aimed at overturning discriminatory measures banning same-sex marriage.”
It’s gotta be a party thing, then. Right? Go GOP!?
It’s also gotta be about a week or two late. The majority of the absentee ballots that were going to be returned, have been returned. Early voting is more than halfway through. Ladra doesn’t know what Bell was waiting for to pull that gun out.
Read related story: Lynda Bell vs Daniella Levine Cava debate becomes heated spar
But it is part of a big push this week that also included a second mailer linking Levine Cava — who sent four mailers of her own — to the very unpopular Marlins Park stadium deal.
“The worst shellacking taxpayers have ever gotten from a baseball stadium,” reads the headline on one side. 
“Miami-Dade taxpayers were ripped off and lied to, and Daniella Levine Cava is to blame,” it says, adding that her organization, Catalyst Miami, supported the super lame deal that leaves the city in debt until kingdom come.
“No to stadium deals. No to Daniella Levine Cava.”
Neither Lynda Bell nor Jose Luis Castillo returned calls from Ladra. They never do. Heck, they barely say anything when I approach them in person and, actually, run away as fast as they can.
Maybe it’s because the Marlins attack is a little disingenuous.
Everybody knows that Catalyst Miami was part of a coalition that worked against the $634 million stadium deal.
Bell has cited a 2008 commission meeting in which the nonprofit’s policy director spoke about how to make the ballpark agreement better. The first Marlins stadium attack came in an earlier flier paid for by a Tampa PAC with ties to the Republican Party of Florida, Castillo and Carlos “CJ” Gimenez, the lobbying son of Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos “Good to Go” Gimenez, who is supporting Bell . That, by the way, is really one of the best reason to vote for Levine Cava — to take out one of the mayor’s pocket commissioners and make them veto proof.
Read related story: Lynda Bell photo implies UTD endorsement she ain’t got
Another reason: Bell seems okay with lying. Because Levine Cava did not speak in favor of the Marlins stadium. Her organization’s policy director spoke against it, offering alternative creative solutions that would improve the deal.
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Lynda Bell pulls out more stadium lies, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen added by Ladra on
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