There’s a growing list of people who think Miami Mayor Francis Suarez ought to resign his position in light of the exposé published this week by The Miami Herald, with details about just how much he blurs the lines between his private, for-profit life and his, ahem, “public service.”
Former Miami Police chiefs Jorge Colina and Art Acevedo — who wrote a scathing memo about corruption that is supposedly being investigated by the Broward State Attorney’s office — have joined the chorus. But the first one to publicly call for his resignation was newly-elected Commissioner Damian Pardo, who ran on a platform of rooting out corruption.
“It’s the only way confidence in elected officials and in our city government will be restored,” Pardo told the Herald in an exclusive interview. “It’s unclear which interests are being served — outside, moneyed interests versus residents’ interests.”
A statement he posted on social media went further.
“As a newly elected commissioner and lifelong resident of the City of Miami, I understand this event’s profound impact on our residents’ trust I their elected officials and the city’s ability to govern,” his statement reads. “the allegations against mayor Suarez continue to raise serious questions about the culture of corruption that has gone unchecked in Miami’s City Hall for too long.
Read related: Miami Bull is exactly what absentee Mayor Francis Suarez has been selling
“To maintain the integrity of our local government and restore public trust, I urge Mayor Suarez and other city officials found aiding and abetting in unethical practices to resign immediately. The residents of our city deserve leaders who prioritize the community’s well being above all else.”
On Tuesday, the mayor sent out his own statement in response, calling Pardo’s reaction and the Herald articles “comical.” He also took the opportunity to throw some vague shade at the District 2 commissioner, who was elected in November and is obviously a threat.
“We would encourage Commissioner Pardo to pay close attention to the city charter and state law which he reportedly violated before even begin sworn in,” the official statement from the mayor’s office reads. “It would be unfortunate for the residents of District 2 to have their newly elected Commissioner already under investigation for possible ethical and legal violations representing them.”
Read related: Damian Pardo beats odds, incumbent Miami Commissioner Sabina Covo
Encourage. Unfortunate. Hate to say the word mafia — look what it did to poor Acevedo — but it sure sounds a little gangland.
At least Pardo’s statement speaks constructively about developing legislation that would put “the necessary guardrails” in place — such as campaign reform and better buffering between the city job and outside work — to avoid this from happening again. He wants to convene a new charter review committee to look at those things.
The mayor’s statement also says that “the city’s success during the mayor’s tenure speaks for itself.” Look at who’s being comical. Does anybody know wtf he’s talking about?
Is it about the mitigation of the ever increasing housing prices and affordability issues facing most of his constituents? No?
Is it about the $63.5 million judgement against Commissioner Joe Carollo for repeatedly violating the first amendment rights of two Little Havana businessmen by weaponizing city departments to shut down their business interests? No? Is it the arrest and subsequent suspension of former Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla on bribery and other public corruption charges after he gave away a city park? No? Could it be the lawsuit against the city for the shakedown that Diaz de la Portilla allegedly committed? Not that either? Oh, is it the million that was spent, with no competitive bidding, on the dog and cat sculptures in Maurice Ferre Park?
Read related: Miami’s redrawn maps could save Joe Carollo’s house from lawsuit grasp
Wait. Was it the redistricting process that divided Coconut Grove into three districts and benefitted both the named commissioners, putting Carollo’s house in District 3 and taking the home lived in by Commissioner Miguel Angel Gabela — who ran against ADLP — out of District 1? No, not that, huh?
Oh, was it the Miami bitcoin thing that is now pretty much worthless? No?
Maybe it’s because they brought the orange back to the downtown for New Year’s Eve.
Growing calls for Francis Suarez to resign lead to nasty mayoral message added by Ladra on
View all posts by Ladra →
Francis Suarez and his novice promotion staffers were incredibly rude to newly elected Damian Pardo. Francis and his novice staffers are sure quick TO BURN BRIDGES. Idiots.
[…] Read related: Growing calls for Francis Suarez to resign lead to nasty mayoral message […]
Folks. The investigation now deepens. They are now looking into the Vince Lago, Carlos Lago, the Llorente brothers, Art Noriega, Marc Sarnoff, Scott Simpson, Alejandra Argudin, Larry Springs, Finance Department, Code Enforcement, Building Department, the City Attorney’s Office (i.e. Vicky Mendez, George Wysong, Kevin Jones), Miami Parking Authority, and Miami Police Department.
They have all been doing the bidding of corrupt politicians. No one is innocent in this. All City employees are part of the criminal enterprise. All city employees have sold their asses for their big fat pensions.
They are going to make employees talk as they are going as the State is passing legislation to take away all City and the Miami Parking Authority pensions.
Alberto, I would think it really weird if I came to this page and saw an article about Biden or Menendez. This page is for Miami politics. There are other pages for national.
Carrillo, they would need to lose 3 on the Commission to lose quorum. The Mayor does not sit on the Commission (he can as presiding officer, but no one has since the change in form of government). I do hope your right about arrests that are coming.
The conflicts are there, no doubt. Hid BS about nondisclosure is ridiculous. Bar rules allow you to disclose your clients, attorney client privilege comes into play as to actual discussions between the two and strategy.
So let’s see, he is a partner in a law firm, a COO at a financial firm and has 16 (that we known of) consulting clients. Add his mayoral “duties” and run for President how does he have the time to do any of it? My guess is that if you ask him for work product, he would have nothing to show.
It does not take a rocket scientist to know the only reason he has any of these jobs is because of his public office. And he does it with impunity.
Did Manny Diaz do it? No, he had his position and did not have other clients. Did Regalado do it? No, he worked as Mayor full-time.
And it’s not only Olga. You have cousins Steve Suarez and Andrew Suarez. His campaign team including Jesse Manzano and Brian Goldmiere (wondering what Jewish donors think of him having a cosy relationship with Saudi Arabia). He pops even tool the job at Greenspoon that he left to join Quinn.
And his misuse of the Sargent at Arms detail is costing taxpayers millions. In all his time there has NEVER been a credible threat to him. He doesn’t need an entourage, he wants one to make himself look way more important than he is.
I am hearing about FBI, SEC, SAO, FDLE, State Ethics and County Ethics investigations of the Mayor. Carillo, I know you are an excellent private eye. Which is he going down for?
Mayor Suarez, what exactly are the reported violations of the city charter and state law that you allege Commissioner Pardo committed, in your official statement?
Or is it possible there were no violations, and your statement is an attempt at deflecting attention away from your highly questionable actions?
Francis must resign. He is a grifter.
Yes, he should go and he should take his BFF Lago with him.
Thankfully, the Herald is reporting on the rampant corruption of Mayor Suarez. I hope that they will continue to investigate his legal work – specifically, whether he has taken on and advised clients who have business relationships with the City. I also hope they’ll investigate how Mayor Suarez and his sister, Olga Suarez Vieira, have both worked at (and currently work at) the same law firms for years as part of a package deal. I want to know whether and how his family have benefitted from this corruption. He always claims that he doesn’t provide legal advice to people who have business with the City. But does he just pass the work onto his sister, who works at the same firm? Wouldn’t that be unethical as well?
What has to happen is that the City will loose quorum when the next two are charged and arrested. And folks, it is coming.
HEY! leave the Orange out of this… Rumor on the street is that the DNA (James Torres) was able to get several stakeholders to get the Orange Back for New Years
Just saying
If “Sheik” Suarez were to wear a Saudi headdress, keffiyeh, he definitely could pass as middle eastern. If, according to the ‘Sheiks’,” office, Pardo committed an ethics violation, isn’t it his (Sheik’s”) duty to formally report the infraction or is ethically correct just to make public accusations’?
Alberto Santos WTF does the Senator from New Jersey and POTUS have to do with Miami governance? Perhaps the capos of the Miami Cuban Republican Mafia (Crazy Joe, ADLP, Postalita Suarez, our absentee state’s attorney) should stop commiting felonies and whoring themselves to developers and Middle East autocracies? You can also throw in the useless Levine Cava (Democrat) who just got back from her Japan “business trip” (taxpayer funded vacation)
From cartoon presidential candidate back to merely a cartoon.
Did his campaign ever distribute the promised gift cards to anyone stupid enough to donate to his campaign?
¿ If Public Records are Investigated by Broward County SAO all this Corrupt Politicians will Fill #OURJAILS , CORRUPTION Has NOT BEN IMVESTIGATED since 2012 When The NWO Started W/ The help of LOBBYIST “$$” Saturated the Miami Dade County ?
Without question, Francis Suarez has lost the Trust of his residents!
Bravo to Colina, Acevedo & Pardo for speaking out!
Not ready for prime time would be a nice way to put it or perhaps too ambitious for his own good. Same decease runs next door at Coral Gables Mayor!!
Funny how Ladra and others scream when there is the possibility of corruption near an elected Republican official, and then remain silent when elected Democrat officials ( Sen. Menendez, President Biden ) have been proven to use their office to get money. Lots of money.
If Ladra were to give similar coverage of the corruption with Democrat officials, then she would be credible when writing about Republican officials.
City of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez and/or his idiot PR people draft and post an incredibly rude press release against a newly elected commissioner and the 5-6 hard working journalists at the Miami Herald. Another stupid response from Suarez and the taxpayer paid staff at City Hall. Is there no respect for taxpayers and residents at City Hall?
If 20% of what is in the plethora of Herald stories is true Francis Suarez must resign. Francis Suarez and his grifting family are accused of worse aiding and abetting corrupt real estate developers and other criminals. Worse, Suarez works for the corrupt and murderous country of Saudi Arabia. Time for Francis Suarez to return to the private sector, or prison.
2 down 1 to go ?????