For about two years, Uber has been operating its alleged “ride sharing” service illegally throughout Miami-Dade, picking passengers up and taking business from taxis a
nd causing a ruckus at County Hall.
And now that there is going to be a serious consideration of rules they might have to adhere to, the company has launched a full blown media blitz attacking the one commissioner who wants them to have the same regulations as taxi cabs.
Online and radio ads against Commission Chairman Jean Monestime, who has sponsored one of two ordinances up for consideration Wednesday (more on that next). They say that he is trying to take away “safe, reliable transportation options” and extra-income jobs in Miami-Dade.
And they are really, really misleading.
Listen up, Miami-Dade!
Jobs, transportation, and the future of our community are on the line in an important vote on Wednesday.
Miami-Dade County Commission Chairman Jean Monestime is taking us backwards with his legislative proposal against ride-sharing companies like Uber.
Commissioner Monestime is putting at risk flexible income opportunities that give so many of our friends, family, and neighbors the chance to earn extra income and support their loved ones by providing this valuable service.
If this bill passes, our community would no longer have access to safe, affordable, and reliable rides through the Uber app in Miami-Dade.
We must band together to send a clear message to Chairman Monestime to drop his attack on our jobs and access to transportation.
Monestime doesn’t want to risk losing income opportunities. He is the father of the county’s prosperity initiative and has long talked about income gap issues. All he wants is for the outlaw company to have some basic safeguards.
Another ad praises Commissioner Audrey Edmonson, who is apparently an Uber fan. Haven’t yet seen one calling Commissioner Esteban Bovo a hero, but it’s gotta be coming, because he has sponsored the other ordinance, which is a little more liberal (more on that next).
But will this Tallahassee style attack backfire on our county commissioners, who normally rally around each other when they get pushed up against the wall? Will they push back?
This has Brian Ballard written all over it. Ballard is Uber’s state lobbyist and this ad blitz is very much in the line of the Tallahassee-born attacks that tell us to hurry and call up our legislators now and tell them not to do this or to vote for that. Miami lobbyists buy you Miami Dolphins tickets and hire your family members. This is a Tallahassee-like campaign the likes I’ve never seen before, locally. And I’m not sure it’s gonna work.
And it shouldn’t work. Because it’s bullying. Monestime is not doing anything wrong. He is advocating for a very minimum amount of safety regulations because he wants to protect us, not because he wants to limit jobs or traveling options.
And because it’s setting a dangerous precedent.
If this works, if bullying the commission to get what you want is successful, what’s next? Can you imagine Odebrech running ads against commissioners that are going to vote against their bid for the next airport project? Or Jeff Berkowitz slamming those who might vote against another public subsidy for one of his private highrise developments?
This is the good corporate citizen that Mayor Carlos Gimenez wants in place, to close the gaps in his failed public transit system? Because that’s what he said at the Kendall Federation of Homeowners Associations meeting last week — that private companies like Uber and Lyft will be part of a larger transit formula for Miami-Dade.
Already, Uber has proven they are a bunch of outlaws who don’t care about the rules. Now, they are also bullies who are spending good money on a smear campaign against an elected commissioner, the board chairman, who has valid questions and concerns.
They should take that money they are spending on attack ads and pay the millions in fines they owe us instead.
As regulation looms, Uber goes mafioso with ad campaign added by Ladra on
View all posts by Ladra →
