MIAMI – Those who follow Miami politics are talking about a Thursday wild showdown at City Hall. A Miami man took a city commissioner to task during a meeting, and the cameras were rolling.
This is one of those "Only in Miami" moments when the writer of The Crespogram Report, a blog about South Florida politics, took his turn at the Miami commission podium to call out a commissioner who he accused of playing union politics. His rant is making the rounds of social media.
Al Crespo served his time prison, and he says he has nothing to hide, so he has been writing about local officials and media for decades, and he has a strong following. He says he knows his rights and often watches the meetings from home. When he saw Commissioner Joe Carollo's questioning of a city worker with an old criminal record he jumped and rushed into the commission chambers.
"I'm a man who has robbed banks, and I'm a man who has come before this commission in the past, and I'm a man who has been attacked for his past," Crespo said. "You and I have known each other a long time, Joe, and you've never had any question about my robbing banks when you wanted to talk to me or ask my opinion."
Crespo wasn't happy with the way Carollo was deviating from the issue at hand to question Jose Espinoza, a city risk management worker who was challenging commissioners on a union matter. Carollo was raising Espinoza's DUI conviction in Ohio, which he did not note on his employment application. Crespo called that shameful.
"I almost wish I would not have ran because the corruption I have found since I ran is sickening," Carollo said. "I'm tired of shaking hands with people where normally I wouldn't be within 100 miles of them, and I have to go wash my hand from the slime after I do that because they are so corrupt."
Carollo didn't attack Crespo. He said Crespo was a great investigator, and defended his questioning of Espinosa as appropriate and necessary.
"If any employee lies in an employment application, that is something that's very pertinent," Carollo said.
