Investigate who is bankrolling candidates for Sarasota city and county commission
Investigate campaign contributions
I commend the Herald-Tribune for its article April 28, “Developers have the inside track,” which confirms what many have suspected for many years regarding the significant influence developers have on city and county officials.
One area where the newspaper could make a further impact is to shed light on the campaign finances of Sarasota City Commission and Sarasota County Commission candidates. Commissioners make crucial decisions on rezoning issues, where development often clashes with the wishes of residents and the preservation of natural resources.
Voters need to know who contributes to the candidates in order to understand to whom the candidates may be beholden. For instance, is a candidate backed by grassroots residents or bankrolled by developers?
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Candidates are legally bound to disclose their funding sources and detailed records are available. But knowing where to find them and understanding donors’ businesses and affiliations takes time and expertise.
This is where the Herald-Tribune can step in. By using its investigative expertise, it can determine campaign contributions, identify them and publish its findings. Voters will be empowered with valuable insights about the candidates and whether or not developer power brokers fund their campaigns.
Nick Trippodo, Sarasota
Developers profit from unfair advantage
Your lead article April 28 was very revealing (“Developers have the inside track”). It is obvious even to the casual observer that developers assert an undue and unfair advantage over other citizens when it comes to development decisions in Sarasota County.
I had to laugh at developer Pat Neal’s rationalization: “… what’s really happening is Article 5 of the Constitution: Private land will not be taken for public use without just compensation.”
He’s referring to eminent domain law where, for example, the government takes part of your property to build or expand a roadway. (Actually Fifth Amendment, not Article 5.) No one is taking Neal’s private property for public use.
What’s really happening is that developers, through their undue influence over our planners and commissioners, are getting large-scale developments approved that don’t appear to be in the best interest of citizens or in line with county land-use policies.
Ronald Young, Sarasota
Venice election proposal ‘self-dealing’
The Venice City Council has proposed changing our local election process, eliminating off-year elections and putting all voting on a presidential or state-level cycle. They claim this is to save money and increase voter turnout.
At the same time, they’re seeking to use this process to extend the terms of existing council members on the same ballot initiative.
This is transparently self-dealing. If they want to change the election dates with citizen approval, put that up to a stand-alone vote, yay or nay.
No elected official, be they local, state or national, should personally benefit from electoral changes they make while in office.
Joan Roscoe, Venice
In America, law is king, not president
I am deeply disturbed by the recent proceedings in the U.S. Supreme Court.
The assertion, by a lawyer representing former President Donald Trump, that a president could order the assassination of a political opponent with impunity, and the subsequent considerations by some justices of this idea, is a chilling reminder of the fragility of our democracy.
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We are not ruled by a king. In America, the law is king. Let us ensure that this principle remains inviolable and that no one is above the law.
Arnie Moskowitz, Sarasota