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The City of Miami is once again in full Big Tent Circus mode.
When ringmaster Commissioner Joe Carollo reached new lows discussing the bulge in Chief Art Acevedo’s pants we were somehow not entirely surprised. When Carollo’s sidekick, Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, joked about wanting to “Defund the Police” we realized this circus was not short on clowns. But what has not been mentioned by critics and observers alike is the total disappearance and abdication of duties by Commissioner Ken Russell.
Russell is supposed to be the sane rational voice on the Miami City Commission. Russell is the only elected commissioner not accused of corruption in Chief Acevedo’s eight-page memo, making him the ideal non-aggrieved party to help sort out this mess. So what did our fearless former YoYo champ do? He hid.
Police Chief Acevedo dropped an eight-page bombshell of accusations just days before the “Special” commission meeting that Carollo had scheduled. Everyone with a pulse knew this meeting would turn into a free-wheeling Festivus-style airing of grievances. Moreover, most of us were hoping that someone in a position of power would intervene and at a minimum show the world that everyone and everything associated with the Magic City is not a total circus. That responsibility unfortunately fell squarely on the shoulders of Commissioner Russell. Russell actually is the chair of the city commission, although you would be forgiven for not realizing this.
If you watched the City of Miami marathon meeting or the wall-to-wall news coverage that followed, you may have wondered…isn’t there a commissioner missing from the dais? Yep, that empty chair belongs to Ken Russell, the chair. You may have assumed Ken was elsewhere in Florida glad handing for his longshot U.S. Senate campaign. You would be wrong. Chairman Russell was at home in Coconut Grove watching the chaos unfold. He literally did not show up for work, which is just a short drive from his house.
Russell could have been the voice of reason. He could have added a rational counter balance to Carollo and Diaz de la Portilla, lessening the public embarrassment that has befallen all of Miami. After being shamed, Russell did attend the spillover second “special” meeting on Friday. Ken’s behavior on Friday confirmed something we had long suspected, he does not actually want to be a Miami city commissioner.
First elected in 2015, Russell announced he was running for congress less than two years on the job. He later abandoned the congressional race to avoid a disappointing finish on election day.
Then, less than a year and a half into his second term on the commission, Ken announced a long shot bid for United States Senate. It’s obvious that Ken Russell only viewed his powerful position on the commission as a means to seek higher office. Even worse for our community is that when we needed Ken Russell’s voice and leadership most, he hid out at home.
