In today's Miami Herald, you'll find an article by Miami City Hall beat reporter Charles Rabin that blathers on about Mayor Tomás Regalado's allegedly unflappable resiliency. Rabin, late to the game by a week, notes Regalado is facing a recall threat from the police and fire unions as the city faces a budget hole for the third consecutive year and the mayor is coming under fire for doling out golden parachutes to departing Miami executives.
"I feel like Bill Clinton," Regalado informs Rabin. "Some people really hated him, and some people loved him."
Can you believe that? A Cuban-American politician who in 2000 helped incite his constituents to stop the federal government from reuniting Cuban rafter boy Elián González with his father is now comparing himself to the U.S. president responsible for making sure the kid was returned to his dad.
Rabin's piece reads like a PR job concocted in the mayor's office as a response to Tim Elfrink's recent cover story chronicling the ten reasons Regalado should be recalled. Rabin doesn't even mention the New Times story, which was a catalyst for the unions' decision to recall Regalado. We've come to expect that from Chuckie. He's got a serious problem with crediting anybody who outscoops him. But we digress.
Regalado has been making the rounds at other media outlets to defend his performance. Over the weekend, he was a guest on Helen Ferre's WPBT show Issues to answer questions about the recall and the New Times story. During the taping, he insisted Elfrink's article was inaccurate. "He didn't do his homework," Regalado told Ferre. "Shame on the New Times."
You can view the interview below:
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