Fury Over Broward Democratic Endorsement List
BY BUDDY NEVINS
Broward Democratic Party apparatchiks are in a tizzy over an ad full of endorsements that they call phony.
The Blue Card hit mail boxes this weekend. Party poobahs fear The Blue Card name will fool voters into believing the candidates are approved by the party.
We’ve been through this before. The cards are the creation of political consultant Dan Lewis a few elections ago. In the past, a separate Red Card went to registered Republicans.
Dan Lewis
Party activists are right. Although Lewis may deny it, the name The Blue Card is designed to deceive. An endorsement list labeled The Blue Card is obviously meant to put the Democratic seal of approval on the candidates listed.
This is especially galling to Demos since some of candidates endorsed by The Blue Card are Republicans.
Lewis was in a good mood when contacted by Browardbeat.com, obviously thrilled with the commotion the card was causing.
Although he is a political consultant who represents some of the candidates endorsed, Lewis said, “Nobody can buy their way onto The Blue Card. I’m paid to do what I do. The Blue Card isn’t part of that and it is not for sale…I get that people see conspiracies. They see a lot of things. You can’t hire me to get on The Blue Card.”
Lewis’ Florida’s Democracy Project committee is credited with distributing The Blue Card. The group was formed Aug. 4, just days or moments before The Blue Card was mailed.
In his filing documents, Lewis writes that the group has no bank account “because we anticipate no monetary transactions, only in-kind contributions.”
So the finances are currently murky.
“We are in compliance with all rules,” Lewis told Browardbeat.com.
He noted that his committee can accept unlimited contributions from a single donor. The includes unlimited in-kind contributions, he said.
For instance, a vendor could donate printing, postage or any other cost associated with The Blue Card.
“I’m into transparency,” Lewis said. “Everything will be disclosed.”
Ethics Complaint Coming?
Despite Lewis’ insistence that The Blue Card was legal, there was talk Sunday of an ethics complaint or a complaint with the Judicial Qualifications Commission against the judicial candidates endorsed on The Blue Card. One text to Browardbeat.com stated, “Does anyone remember Irwin Berkowitz?“
Shortly after winning election in 1986, Berkowitz and Judges Linda Pratt and Brian Kay were charged with distributing misleading campaign literature during the primary. The joint mailings alleged the three candidates were endorsed by the major political parties by containing a sample ballot with a “striking resemblance to the official sample ballot,” according to the Supreme Court.
Pratt and Kay came clean, conceded their mistake and were slapped on the wrist. Berkowitz lied to the JQC and was eventually thrown off the bench and disbarred after investigators found more damaging legal ethics violations.
Judicial candidate Russell Thompson immediately rejected The Blue Card endorsement on Facebook:
“As a judicial candidate, Russell Thompson did not ask, pay or consent to being on this card.”
Lewis said: “None of the judicial candidates endorsed had a conversation with me about The Blue Card. They had no idea it was coming.”
Endorsements Overrated
My take?
Too many folks are getting too worked up over The Blue Card.
Being fought on Facebook and through e-mail, the controversy profoundly underestimates the intelligence of the voters. There is no empirical proof that The Blue Card or any endorsement by party leaders sways votes.
The Blue Card endorses Jim Fondo for Sheriff in the Democratic primary. Do those railing against The Blue Card really believe this endorsement threatens incumbent Sheriff Scott Israel?
The Internet has enabled everybody with a Facebook account or a good list of e-mails to distribute endorsements. Just a few days ago, charter school boss Bob Haag (Charter Schools of Excellence) e-mailed his endorsements to perhaps thousands. Check out the list below, if you want to see what candidates gets the charter school kingpin’s approval.
There are so many endorsement lists out there. Blue Card. Red Card. Purple Card. Bob Haag, John Doe or Moishe Pupik.
Does any one endorsement list make a difference?
Even Lewis concedes the The Blue Card is being overestimated.
“I’m upset that these (critics) view the voters as being that easy influenced,” he said. “I am overjoyed that The Blue Card added some excitement into the primary.”
XXXXX
Click on these to enlarge them.
Haag’s endorsements are curious, leaving out candidates in a race. The charter school executive also endorses the School Board incumbents. Hmmmm.
August 7th, 2016 at 2:02 pm
This type of card was handed out at early voting and at the polls in 2014. People were confused as it was a primary. I had a lot of calls about it. If he or whomever wants to put out that type of card then call it the Lewis card so people don’t think it is from a political party which is exactly what it is meant to do.
Le
August 7th, 2016 at 2:21 pm
Also suspect … when was that picture of Dan Lewis taken … during the Milli Vanilli era?
August 7th, 2016 at 3:14 pm
Friends,
This is a disgraceful and intentional intent to deceive voters purely for personal, political gain. Most of the persons mentioend on that deceptive list never consented to be on it. I spoke with a number of them today, which is why I call on each and every one of them to publicly dissassociate with it and condemn such a thing.
Those that delay or refuse, as far as I’m concerned, were part of the deception. Those that refuse have no decency. Those that funded it should be remembered for all time.
Consultants that pull stunts like this deserve to be fired on the spot, campaign in progress or not. This is reprehensible.
For the most part, Broward County has been a clean and decent place. Let’s keep it that way. Let’s improve it, but never let it stoop to this level of filthy deception.
Angelo
August 7th, 2016 at 3:18 pm
Curious that both endorse McCarthy, the judge in a sad, notorious case: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/letters/fl-letter-levin2-0524-20150601-story.html
August 7th, 2016 at 3:19 pm
You ask, “Do those railing against The Blue Card really believe this endorsement threatens incumbent Sheriff Scott Israel?”
Apparently the Sheriff himself is threatened by this, because within hours of our household receiving the Blue Card, we received a robot call from the Sheriff, identifying himself as a “good Democrat” and calling the Blue Card a trick by Republican Operatives.
Funny, I recall when the good Democrat Sheriff was a Republican, and since he made a point of referring to the creator(s) of the Blue Card as “Republican Operatives” it gave the impression that the candidate for Sheriff endorsed by the Blue Card was not a Democrat.
Unfortunately for the Sheriff, at least for this household, we realized that since the Blue Card was geared towards the primary, both Sheriff candidates are Democrats. We also recall the brouhaha over the Blue Card in the past, and we know that the creator of the Blue Card is himself a Democrat. Most, although not all, candidates on the Blue Card are, in fact, Democrats. Those who are not are running in non-partisan races.
August 7th, 2016 at 4:05 pm
This card is a great fake. It looks very official. It has a perforated palm card for you and a friend. Easy to take to the polls. I got one in the mail. This card will make a difference in the judicial races. Voters don’t know who to vote for with regard to judges- so they’ll just take the “blue” card to the ballot booth with them.
Buddy, this actually is a big deal. Sad but true.
August 7th, 2016 at 4:08 pm
Although he is a political consultant who represents some of the candidates endorsed, Lewis said, “Nobody can buy their way onto The Blue Card. I’m paid to do what I do.
Isn’t that a contradiction in and of itself?
August 7th, 2016 at 5:40 pm
The HAAG endorsement is very confusing. It looks like it was sent from Brenda Snipes Supervisor of Elections.
Just like all of the other endorsements. The public should vote based on the individual merits of the candidate-not the newspapers,palm cards nor the other “non-profit” endorsements. The public should do their own research.
August 7th, 2016 at 6:45 pm
@3 Commissioner Castillo outlines the situation correctly but Mr Nevins us right – in the “larger picture” political consultants are pretty useless n their antics as much empty air as opposed to actually helpful to candidates.
Does anybody ACTUALLY.KNOW OF A CASE A POLITICAL CONSULTANT ACTUALLY ELECTED SOMEBODY?
August 7th, 2016 at 7:15 pm
Then again…
If you’re the type to vote by a color (red, blue) or to be swayed by a single card that comes thru the mail, just how much sympathy do you deserve?
August 7th, 2016 at 10:18 pm
This is just another ploy to dupe low information voters. Unfortunately, that group can outnumber those with at least a little bit of information and low ball candidates are elected.
August 8th, 2016 at 6:55 am
Dan,
Go back to covering the scandals at Broward Health that was a more worthy cause. This makes you look desperate and untrustworthy.
August 8th, 2016 at 9:02 am
For the record:
“The Blue Card” by design and purpose is to advance democratic progressive candidates, and has been distributed in each of the last 3 election cycles including five (5) elections, including this one. It is neither illegal, nor “fake” as the Sheriff Israel political machine would suggest.
(I find it particularly disingenuous for Scott Israel to be yelling “Rape” because he is not on the card this time – especially when “The Blue Card” was credited for his narrow win over Lamberti in 2012.)
It is understandable the Israel campaign and proxies now don’t like the 2016 Blue Card; Scott Israel’s name is not on it. Jim Fondo, his Democratic challenger who, unlike Israel is a lifelong Democrat, is on it due to Fondo’s long standing Democratic party affiliations and his progressive perspective on policing.
The Blue Card is a rejection of the politicization of the Sheriff’s office. Pure & Simple. By the way, why does the Sheriff’s campaign and PAC need over one half of a million dollars – and what do the donors get for their money?
A shout- out to Angelo #3 – as part of Sheriff’s Israel political team, you should know that none of the candidates or issues knew or were consulted before inclusion on the card. That’s the law! Moreover, when posting for the Sheriff’s campaign, should you really use your “Commissioner” title.
With respect to judicial candidates, “The Blue Card” was created to oppose the “non-partisan” myth and the insidious polarization and politicization of judicial appointments through a massively flawed judicial nominating process which heavily favors “insiders” and a Right Wing agenda.
In almost every instance, the best way for a judicial candidate to be excluded from consideration on “The Blue Card” is to be appointed by Governor Scott or Bush. This cycle, however, there are many great judicial candidates and so the selection favored non-State Attorney, and racially diverse candidates consistent with a progressive perspective.
Favoring appointed incumbents just because they might be doing an acceptable job now is like ignoring the fact that a good driver stole the car they are driving. The ends do not justify the means. Process matters and we should care about it.
Finally, as to the Democratic establishment being all in a tither over “The Blue Card”, I would remind them that for years many tried to have the party take positions in the Primary and particularly on partisan races. The party declined – the result has been paradoxically, in a progressive county, we are served by increasingly right wing non-partisan election choices.
A special shout-out to Ken Evans, the whining Broward democratic committeeman who is by every measure a lightweight whose opinion matters to virtually no one.
Voters should take the time to learn about all the candidates, look beyond the “spin” & hysteria and elect progressive candidates. . If they don’t have either the time nor inclination – they can use “The Blue Card” with confidence.
Dan Lewis
August 8th, 2016 at 10:55 am
In 2012, NEARLY TWO MILLION blue cards endorsing Scott Israel were printed.
The very same cards that folks from the Israel campaign were handing out…
***
A year or two ago, Mitch Ceasar invited me to sit down at a monthly Democratic Club meeting, to discuss how blogs can be used to influence local politics.
Great ideas, learn from the master. Maybe teach those old farts a thing or two about the series of tubes.
That idea was shot down by Ken (still uses AOL) Evans.
August 8th, 2016 at 11:02 am
Voters and activists should make a concerted effort to never vote or donate money to candidates which employ Dan Lewis and his unethical behavior, especially judicial candidates who should be above reproach. The following are a list of candidates Lewis has consulted for and large payments made to his company JNAC during this election cycle. Don’t give them your vote or money unless they denounce this deception.
Mitch Ceasar – Clerk of Courts candidate paid JNAC $11,322.78 on July 26 for Printing & Postage, $30,554.73 on July 23 for Mailer, $14,310.00 on July 15 for Consulting and advertising (even though there was another “consulting fee of $2,500 that same day), as well as $17,990.60 for Postage on June 10 and $15,767.50 for Printing and Mailing on June 6, additional consulting fees were paid to JNAC throughout the Campaign.
James Fondo – Broward Sheriff candidate It doesn’t look like Lewis was able to squeeze much blood out of this stone. I would assume he probably has a PAC. He overpaid JNAC $5,000 for website development IMO, and $5,000 for Targeted Email Select, Rental & Hygiene???, as well as $6,855 in Consulting fees over 3 separate payments.
Rhoda Sokoloff – County Court Judge, Grp. 3 Paid JNAC $45,331.83 on July 25 for Mailers as well as other consulting fees.
Kim Theresa Molica – County Court Judge, Grp. 14 Paid JNAC $45,331.83 on July 26 for Postage and Brochure as well as other consulting fees.
Doreen Turner Inkeles – Circuit Judge, Circuit 17, Group 24 Paid JNAC 44,162.75 on July 14 for mailer–graphic design, printing, postage, 5,150.00 on July 5 for hand-out card and media services, 3,206.50 on June 7 handout card as well as smaller consulting fees earlier in the campaign.
Any others I am missing here?
It seems very suspicious that large sums were distributed to Lewis from these campaigns on or around July 26. AND why would these fees for mailers and printers not be paid directly to the service providers? Would it be to mask distributions or consulting fees? Does Lewis own a printing press?
Former Democratic Chairman Mitch Ceasar is far and away Lewis’ best client this year, and Ceasar refuses to denounce these underhanded tactics which harm Democrats. I guess he really is leaving the Broward Democratic Party after all.
FROM BUDDY:
JNAC’s address is Lewis’ home.
I believe “Broward Democratic Precinct Committeeperson’s” logic of not voting for or supporting any of the candidates on Lewis’ card is shortsighted. To vote for somebody or against somebody because of their political consultant is not civic minded. What should be considered is whether they will make a good office holder.
Yes, these candidates paid Lewis. That is not proof — although I admit it looks suspicious — that these candidates knew they were going to be included in the card, that they knew the card would be disguised as a Democratic ad or that Lewis ever talked to them about this matter. Election forms only indicate his firm was paid. They don’t say in detail what material he was paid to create.
If you are going to exclude political consultants because they are shady, you would have a short list to draw from. There are few political consultants of any note in Broward who have not used totally misleading material. Writing about their “dirty tricks” kept food on my table for decades!
I have long argued that qualified candidates need to watch these “consultants” like a hawk. In the end, it will be the candidate’s reputation that suffers and not the consultant, who joyfully will go on to the next campaign and the next paycheck.
I note with absolutely no surprise that many of those complaining on Facebook and here have vested interests in campaigns. Many of these self-important Democratic activists collect a paycheck from the campaigns, at times under the table. So what they are really upset about is that Lewis out smarted them.
I would bet that the Blue Card and the Red Card are coming again in 2018, folks.
August 8th, 2016 at 11:28 am
All about nothing.
An individual – a PAC in this instance – chooses to send out a recommendation mailer. The mailer looks official but does not claim to be – which is normal for direct mail efforts
I will ditto the comments from @#10 Chaz. If somebody relies on either of these mailers to make a decision, do they deserve sympathy if they vote for a candidate they normally would not have?
Also funny about all the uproar about this “blue” card when party machines have relied on similar “palm cards” in the past so their low information voters just pull, push, or circle a set of candidates without research.
That all said, I do take offense to @# 13 Dan Lewis labeling a number of quality candidates “right wing” just because they were originally appointed by Republican Governors. Then again, I suppose he is paid as a “consultant” to slur the opposition.
For whatever it matters, I communicated with several attorney friends of mine before choosing the various judicial candidates on my mail-in ballot. I did not rely on mailers, phone blasts, or even the sometimes out of bounds comments about certain candidates on this blog.
August 8th, 2016 at 11:41 am
Dan Lewis wrote: his deceptive card “advance democratic progressive candidates.” Like REPUBLICAN Kim Molica and others you slipped onto the card in an effort to trick Democrats in non-partisan races. The same Kim Molica who has used you as a paid campaign consultant.
As for your claims nobody can buy their way onto the card. let’s look at the record. State and local campaign finance records show the following candidates have paid thousands of dollars to Dan Lewis’s JNAC consulting firm: Mitch Ceasar, Kim Molica, Doreen Inkeles, Rhoda Sokoloff and Kathleen McCarthy. Then — in an incredible million-to-one coincidence — these five people all end of on his card. It also makes you wonder if there were any cash payments by others to get onto the card, because someone had to pay for the printing and postage, and Lewis didn’t do it out of the goodness of his heart. He’s a paid campaign consultant who makes a profit from campaigns.
Just follow the money. Lewis is a phony and a liar, and his card is a dirty trick. Mark my words: state elections commission and SAO criminal investigations will come from this one.
August 8th, 2016 at 11:52 am
JNAC Communications & Mmgt has been paid $19,140.84 by the James Fondo for Broward Sheriff campaign, according to the latest financial reports.
JNAC Communications & Management Services, LLC lists LEWIS, DANIEL as the MGR on its 2016 Annual Report to the Florida Department of State Division of Corporations.
August 8th, 2016 at 12:41 pm
And now, the agenda is plain to see. Finding legal loopholes in a clear attempt to deceive voters for the benefit of one of his desperate, losing clients. I don’t need to call it disgraceful again. Public opinion on that question has already been solidly formed.
Angelo
August 8th, 2016 at 1:02 pm
Decades of rivalry between Dan Lewis and Judy Stern over? Did the campaign of Jim Fondo and the need to destroy Scott Israel bring these former foes together.
Next time you are on Facebook, search Barbra Stern
https://www.facebook.com/barbra.stern?fref=ts
Our “neutral” Florida Elections Commissioner, Babs “Lil Judy” Stern reposts a recent anti Scott Israel story by Bob Norman. The list of those she tagged are very telling, Jim Fondo, Al Lamberti, Judge Al Milian, Louie Granteed, Neal Dejesus, Jeff Dillard, Chip LaMarca, Chuck Lanza, Jeff Marano to name a few.
Looks like she only missed Dan Lewis.
Stern was also on the Election Commission when they decided to give Dan Lewis a slap on the wrist on a complaint about on his 2014 “Blue Card”.
P.S. Babs, no need to remove the post, there are screencaps.
August 8th, 2016 at 1:16 pm
For two prior election cycles, Dan Lewis, like Michael Jordan, looks Kendra Evans in the eye and says I am going 4 steps towards the basket, go to my left and dunk over you. Dan then does exactly what he said he would do in the manner in which he said he would do it.
Kendra Evans stomps his feet, pouts and his bald head get all red. Then what?
Kendra goes home to have David tuck him into bed with a cold glass of milk and cookies.
Dan will do this again in 18
August 8th, 2016 at 3:43 pm
Dems are sheep. They’ll vote blindly for anyone on the palm cards, especially in “certain” precincts.
August 8th, 2016 at 4:52 pm
Dan, can you name the candidates you endorsed on the card who AREN’T paying you to work for them?
August 8th, 2016 at 6:24 pm
A sitting Commissioner should not make threatening comments towards the Candidates.
This is a lynch mob mentality and absolutely unprofessional.
August 8th, 2016 at 7:10 pm
“A special shout-out to Ken Evans, the whining Broward democratic committeeman who is by every measure a lightweight whose opinion matters to virtually no one.” – Dan Lewis, in an above comment
LOL. Oh, Danny boy. Don’t ever change.
I don’t know much about Ken Evans, but what I do know is that you saying that someone’s opinion “matters to virtually no one” is a serious case of throwing rocks from a glass house. Do you honestly consider yourself some sort of opinion leader? Honestly? When you look in the mirror, do you see a big player with power and pull? Because I hate to break it to you: you’re far from it.
Let’s talk about this blue card situation first. You do realize, Dan, that the vast majority of voters take political mail directly from the mailbox to the garbage can, right? The same is true of literature handed out on Election Day. Your entire exercise isn’t going to sway the election at all, and won’t it gain your guy Fondo a single vote on his way to a laughable landslide defeat on election day. But you surely know that, or you wouldn’t have been quoted in the article telling the blog what you were actually aiming for, “I am overjoyed that The Blue Card added some excitement into the primary.”
That quote seems to sum you up in a way. The only happiness you seem to get is from making people think about you. Because that’s all you’ll ever get from people. No one – and I mean NO ONE – loves you or even likes you. So the only emotion you can try to provoke is hate. The thing is: no one even thinks about you enough to hate you! You are annoying and forgettable, like a mosquito zipping around your head that you swat away and think about no more until it returns.
Congratulations, you are getting some attention on a local political blog. When you were a Miramar city commissioner in the 90s, is this where you saw yourself going? What about when you were the “boss” of Miramar or a candidate for mayor of Fort Lauderdale, did you see yourself here in the year 2016? I bet not. Because of your obvious ego issues, you probably saw yourself in a position right now to run for Governor or Senator or – gasp – maybe even the White House! Dan Lewis 2016. Has a nice ring to it.
You would’ve failed, but at least that would have gotten you remembered. Unfortunately for you and your enormous ego, that ship has sailed. When your last hurrah is printing a bunch of voting recommendations and talking in a blog interview about how overjoyed you are to be causing a stir in this little corner of the world, you have to sit back and examine how truly pathetic you really are.
I’m not saying this with any dog in the fight, though I am clearly not going to vote for a bonehead like Jim Fondo. I’m just saying this because I hate seeing people who try their best to be a pain in everyone else’s ass just to get their fifteen seconds of fame on a blog, and then talk about themselves like they’re Donald F’in Trump.
Dan, get real and live out your days praying that you’re never busted breaking any campaign laws because Lord knows you couldn’t afford the legal bills.
FROM BUDDY:
Dan Lewis can ably defend himself. I would say on the last point, Dan Lewis never seemed like a guy who”couldn’t afford the legal bills” for any matter. He has filed litigation on many matters.
August 8th, 2016 at 9:32 pm
LETS BE CLEAR
1. COMMISSIONER Angelo Castllo has EVERY RIGHT and use his Public Office Title, and in fact it would be lacking in tone for him to omit it.
2. Nothing in COMMISSIONER Angelo Castillo’s comments WOULD LEAD A RATIONALE PERSON TO BELIEVE HIS PURELY COMMUNITY OBSERVANCES ARE CONNECTED TO ANY POSITION HE HAS WITH THE COUNTY SHERIFF’s OFFICE.
3. It wasnt COMMISSIONER Angelo Castillo or County Sheriff Scott Israel or STATE COMMITTEEMAN Ken Evans WHO WAS CAUGHT.LYING HE MAILED OUT A MILLION PCS but in fact only printed 20% of the figure AT BEST.
August 8th, 2016 at 10:01 pm
Dan:
Call it what you want but you are a scammer trying to pull the wool over people’s eyes. While I appreciate the skill at which you execute your scams, that doesn’t make it right. May all of your candidates lose and you disappear from our fair county.
Jack
August 9th, 2016 at 7:11 am
Buddy, Politico this morning reports Trump is coming to Broward tomorrow. They said he is looking for a Broward venue. Maybe Young at Art Museum? Judge Nina DiPietro’s husband David is a big Trump supporter and Chair of Young at Art Museum.
August 9th, 2016 at 7:22 am
Anyone else hear about a Trump hosting a Redneck Revolution Party in Davie and centrally located to 595?
August 9th, 2016 at 10:03 am
This town has had enough of the Trump loving DiPietro. Blue card, schmooo card, it says dump DiPietro, what more is there to know…
Our roadways and medians are covered with DiPieto signs. Those signs not on private property, are nothing more than trash on the side of the road. Good Broward Dems should sccop them up (not signs on private property) and dump them at Young at Art or wherever Trump is speaking tomorrow.
It is time to send a message that this town is fed up with these Republicans.
August 9th, 2016 at 1:13 pm
Blue Card, Red Card, Palm Card, it’s all the same junk mail cluttering up my mailbox. I know I’m not the only one sick of it. Amd all these signs cluttering our roadways look terrible. Does any informed voter actually take these mailers serious? I know I don’t. It looks like a lot of candidates spend a lot of money on direct mail, aka junk mail. I doubt the expense is justified.
Nice suck-up job by the commish for his boss at BSO. Sheriff Israel should be counting his lucky stars that his opposition is not too strong. Based on what’s transpired at BSO the last 3 years, any truly formidable candidate would be our next sheriff. Is what Lewis is doing anymore deceitful and more of a scam than those red light cameras that the commish swears make us all so much safer? In spite of tons of evidence to the contrary and a plethora of lawsuits. So Dan Lewis pushes his agenda and Angelo Castillo pushes Sheriff Israel’s and American Traffic Solution’s agenda.
We all have our agendas.
August 9th, 2016 at 2:44 pm
Rhoda Sokoloff is so desperate that it’s disgusting! Dan Lewis is trying to scam people. All of his candidates should reject this card or it proves they are in on it.
August 9th, 2016 at 4:31 pm
congrats dan at least you got them talking, and folks lets hear some real crap about rosanna danna and her opponent canova, must be something there, how in the world can this canova be father left than rosssssannnnnna???????
August 9th, 2016 at 7:20 pm
When Trump wins all you loser criminals better watch out.
FROM BUDDY:
Comments like these are telling. What do you believe? That is Trump is going to lock up everybody who disagrees with him? That’s democracy for you!
August 10th, 2016 at 12:45 am
#14, Feel free to add Ken Evans to the ‘old fart group’.
August 11th, 2016 at 11:13 am
This is a sleazy, despicable act by a ‘less than honorable’ individual, who actually thinks this is cool!
He’s says he’s’overjoyed’ by his intentional, unethical bid to influence and deceive local voters who are not in ‘our loop’and may not know any better.
This is an individual who thinks he is clever, all knowing and all powerful. However, WE all know he’s just a legend in his own mind.
He has tainted every judicial candidate on his card. Any who do not strongly and publicly denounce this are complicit.
Shhhh, listen, I don’t hear a whole lot of denouncing going on out there, do you?
The damage has been done.
Move over ROBERT STONE, Broward has its own self-anointed Democratic ‘dirty trickster’.
FROM BUDDY:
The Blue Card was done at least twice before. Why didn’t those complaining see it coming? Why didn’t they distribute their own Blue Card?
August 11th, 2016 at 12:17 pm
I thought judges weren’t allowed to attend political events. If this is the case, why were David and Nina Di Pietro hanging out with the Donald Trump security detail in the green room? Are you allowed to attend in private but just can’t show your face in public? I don’t know.
FROM BUDDY:
If this was true, it is interesting. Indeed, judges are not supposed to attend political events.
August 11th, 2016 at 12:52 pm
>> He has tainted every judicial candidate on his card. Any who do not strongly and publicly denounce this are complicit.
That’s perhaps the silliest fucking thing I’ve heard on BB for a very long time … usually such quality statements originate from the Shitty Activist.
You realize of course, that outside of political junkies, very few folks in the real world will know about this inside baseball.
August 11th, 2016 at 12:53 pm
Robert Stone?
Have another, why don’t you.
August 11th, 2016 at 2:21 pm
dam right buddy, Donald the great is going to take all you left leaning commie symps out, dinner at lago mar than the boardwalk. u have to pay your bill first, no more free lunches who cares about the blue card when we have much bigger fish to figure out
August 11th, 2016 at 3:50 pm
I may not agree with all Mr. Lewis picks but I agree and give him kudos for standing up against Judge Nina Di Pietro
Here is another example of her and her Trump loving husband playing games in the legal system.
Check out the Clerk’s website for County Court Case Number: COCE 16-012091 Division 49 (Judge Nina DiPietro)
This is a civil action filed on June 9, by David DiPietro’s firm on behalf of their client Skyfix against Mark Solomon.
Why is this interesting? Despite the fact that the case was filed two months ago, Judge Nina has not recused herself from her husbands case. In fairness, Judge Nina is not expected to know every case in her Division. Certainly, her husband David should have given her a heads up to recuse or moved himself to have her taken off the case?
2 months after the filing of the lawsuit, there is no Order of Recusal from Judge Nina
August 11th, 2016 at 4:04 pm
Buddy how come you don’t mention Lewis’ previous violations of State ethics rules for putting out these endorsement cards?
You note that Lewis has demonstrated a pattern of disseminating this disinformation. He has been fined by the Florida Elections Commission several times, yet you don’t think that should preclude a judicial candidate from hiring him as a consultant? You seem to continually go out of your way to make excuses for Lewis, yet you lambast politicos and others for some of the most petty things on this blog. I don’t get it, or maybe I do.
FROM BUDDY:
I don’t condone any one breaking campaign laws.
I do applaude Lewis for using his own name and own address for the committee which distributed The Blue Card. Most politicians and consultants hide behind lawyers, clerks and post office boxes.
Judicial candidates can hire who they want. They could easily look on the Internet and see who has been in trouble with the Elections Commission.
Lewis is far from alone in having run afoul of the Elections Commission. There is one female consultant who handles judicial campaigns who has repeatedly been accused of violating election laws and who has paid fines. There is at least two handling judicial campaigns who have been convicted of crimes in the past. These are just three I can think of off the top of my head.
Again, there are few political consultants in Broward who don’t use sleazy tactics. There are many who have violated the law. It is up to candidates to check them out. However, too many candidates don’t care. They just want to win.
August 11th, 2016 at 4:20 pm
@38 & 39
Why don’t you file a jqc and bar complaint?
August 11th, 2016 at 4:49 pm
Not only did I hear that the Di Pietros et al, were at the trump event but also at a later event hosted by Alan West. Hopefully someone snapped a pic. I doubt the JQC will investigate, she still has 2 pending complaints collecting dust. It’s par for the course for those 2. She couldn’t win a race for dog catcher unless she was appointed to it.
August 11th, 2016 at 9:25 pm
@44 It is ALLEN West not Alan West.
He moved to Texas after his loss in Florida and runs something called the Guardian Fund that used to ask me for money every other day.
August 12th, 2016 at 10:55 am
David Di Pietro spoke on behalf of his wife at a meeting of North Fort Lauderdale HOA’S last night. Did anyone else hear he was whispering to individual voters in the room not to vote for anyone on the Blue Card because it was put together by someone who was tied corruption at Broward Health that David had exposed during his time as Chairman? Anyone else hear this?
August 16th, 2016 at 3:26 pm
So according to the Florida division of elections finance report the in kind donation to Florida’s Democracy Project came directly from its treasurer Dan Lewis’ company JNAC which received monies from his campaign clients. If this is not illegal it should be. This is not an in kind donation but a very thinly veiled pass through.
Dirty, Dirty, Dan.
August 17th, 2016 at 6:10 pm
@ Broward Democratic Precinct Committeeperson – you’re missing the current State Attorney, Mike Satz, who paid Dan Lewis’ company Strategic Technologies and Research $15,000 although his campaign manager is Alain Gene. The State Attorney hires a campaign strategist who has been disiplined for election law violations?
FROM BUDDY:
Dan Lewis is not Satz’s campaign manager. Alain Jean holds that title.