During the Pence visit of Feb. 28th to Sarasota, there was collateral damage. Some of us were in that traffic halted by His Nibs coming to grift Vern's supporters, on the very day he, Pence, was assigned the task of overseeing the nation's response to the Corona Virus:
The people who were unable to make their appointments on a Friday evening in season; the people who never got to work, or were unable to get home from work; the people who failed to get to their paid-for seats in theaters and concert halls; the people who needed healthcare workers who could not get to them -- these costs are incalculable. The callous contempt for the public raining down from the Trump/Pence Nightmare is beyond computation
From Gabriel Hament to the City of Sarasota:
Madam Mayor, Madam Vice Mayor, Commissioners and Mr. Barwin:
Thank you, Mr. Barwin, for directing the Sarasota Police Department (SPD) to complete the calculation of the cost associated with Vice President Pence's security detail on Friday, February 28th. As reported by the Herald Tribune and Tampa Bay Times, the objective of the Vice President's visit was to raise funds to support the campaigns of Republican candidates to the US House of Representatives. Dollars raised during the Vice President's evening visit to the Longboat Key home of Congressman Vern Buchanan were for the benefit of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). A dinner ticket came at $25,000/person.
What else came at a cost of $25,000 was the security detail bill that City of Sarasota taxpayers must now absorb.
According to the SPD's calculation, City of Sarasota taxpayers have now been hit with a $25,670 security detail bill, to be specific.
From a fiduciary standpoint, I believe a reasonable effort should be undertaken to recover these costs and make taxpayers whole.
It is clear that the Vice President's visit served no public purpose, only a private one.
Given the severe hardship facing the City and the City's small businesses over the coming weeks and months, returning these dollars to the City's coffers--dollars that were removed for private benefit--makes a great deal of sense to me.
The City is now designing a small business support fund which I believe will be discussed at next week's Commission meeting.
Twenty-five thousand dollars is not an inconsequential sum; five $5,000 grants could go a long way in supporting the City's struggling business owners.
We must keep in mind that this security detail bill could have been far less or avoided altogether.
In a proactive manner, Mr. Barwin attempted to contact the office of Congressman Buchanan to request that the Vice President consider an alternate route, time (as roads were shut down at rush hour on a Friday) or mode of transportation.
I recommend that the Commission and Administration open lines of communication with both the NRCC and Mr. Buchanan and request the NRCC reimburse the City of Sarasota.
Mr. Buchanan's spokesperson and an NRCC representative, Meredith O'Rourke, are copied.
Respectfully,
Gabriel Hament
