Kids in the county [commission]
County commissioner Al Higginbotham is kicking off his re-election campaign with a feel-good outreach effort to citizens well below voting age. Politicians have always kissed up to babies because it’s an easy way of getting votes from their parents without having to discuss controversial issues.
According to the commissioner’s press release:
Commissioner Al Higginbotham hosts a new program, Kids in the County, which will offer behind-the-scenes tours once a month to groups of kids in Hillsborough County. Included in the tour will be a mock election in the Supervisor of Election’s office, a visit to Traffic Services to see how traffic at major intersections in the County is monitored, and an experience at the County’s television station, HTV22, among other departments. The tour will end with a brown bag lunch in Chillura Square, where the kids can talk to Commissioner about being an elected official and other services the government provides.
Community activist George Niemann jokes that if Higginbotham wants to show the kids how our county government really works, he “should give the kids a behind-the-scenes tour of the Tampa Bay Builders Association headquarters on the 2nd floor of County Center.”
Of course it’s the county commissioners, not the builders, whose offices are on the 2nd floor of County Center, but it’s easy to get them mixed up since the commissioners do practically everything the TBBA tells them to. TBBA wields enormous political power in this county, so from their perspective our commissioners are very obedient “Kids in the County.”
U-CAN chairperson Terry Flott blasted Higginbotham with this point at the first of his town hall meetings on June 14 in Plant City. Terry opened her remarks with “Ladies and gentlemen, TBBA runs this County.” As she continued to whack the commission, George tells me Higginbotham “acted like he’s waiting for the Hartline bus, rustling his papers and guzzling water.”
You can give commissioner Higginbotham a piece of your mind at any of the remaining meetings:
- June 18, 6:30 p.m., Brandon Community Center, 510 E. Sadie St.
- July 9, 6:30 p.m., Balm Civic Center, 14747 Balm Wimauma Road.
- July 10, 6:30 p.m., Valrico Recreation Center, 707 S. Miller Road.
- July 17, 6:30 p.m., Bloomingdale Regional Library, 1906 Bloomingdale Ave.
- For information on the meetings, call (813) 272-5740.
Ask Higginbotham to quit following the other Little Rascals — our commissioners acting like kids in a candy store — and start standing up for his adult constituents.
