Continual Dysfunction

Apparently the Miami-Dade DEC isn't happy having just had a chair who had verbal diarrhea getting removed. They're not happy having largely being a dysfunctional organization since around the turn of this millennium. Old habits die hard but apparently old rivalries, orchestrated events by party insider's from the Steering Committee, former candidates and DEC club presidents and the like, never die. In a widely circulated letter that I hear has reached the new DEC chair himself, individuals such as former Congressional Candidate Dave Patlak, Democrats of South Dade Club President Bob Goldstein, State Committeeman and former candidate for the Florida Democratic Party Chair Bret Berlin and a host of others are discussing the authority of Karen Thurman to remove and appoint a new DEC Chair.

The original letter comes from Dave Patlak, a longtime activist who ran for Congress in 2006 and Commissioner in 2004 as well as running for DEC Chair in 2008 to replace Joe Garcia. In it he questions whether the FDP can appoint a non-DEC member as Chairman.

He writes: "If there is not a properly appointed Chair, then a vacancy exists to be filled by an election called by the 1st Vice Chair within 45 days of the vacancy, correct?"

Kristin Wipior the current credentials chair responded to him "Richard has been a new member candidate since July." Chairman Lydecker had been sworn in the previous week.

Patlak continues by stating: " If you determine he is not a properly appointed DEC member, then you as 1st Vice Chair, should assume the duties of the Chair and convene an election for a new Chair"

Liz Collins has since continued this line of reasoning and blamed DEC Chaiman Lydecker for being "exclusive" by saying: "I see that this maley of coruption and exculsiveness will continue. It seems that he has choosen those individules that he will acknowledge as leaders of the PARTY."

Patlak's former position of Vice Chair for Outreach is now held by Henry Crespo who has also actively been attempting at undermining the brand new chair.

It seems as though some are already planning to destabilize a possible foundation for the DEC. The Party has received a large sum of money in just days since Chiszar's removal but it seems that the continued allegiances and rivalries have morphed and that many of the same characters move about while the local party continues to be dysfunctional at best. I wonder how much of this jockeying for positions and attempts to clarify the position of Mr.Lydecker are not at all for party interests but instead for the short sighted personal gain of certain individuals. It seems as though if you'd want to attempt to please the party and to help it, you'd try to end the bickering and cooperate with the FDP's lead.

Instead of some calling for this guy's head, they should see that he's already fund-raising and attempting to get some bearing as to where to move from here on out, and give him a chance. A united DEC it seems to me would be of utmost usefulness. Instead, the same old attempts to rise up in the career ladder and to injure one another rather than developing strategies to defeat the GOP seems to still be the mantra within the DEC. I hear Karen Thurman will be in town around the time of the next DEC meeting and I strongly hope she lays out some of the plans the state has so as to show what the state's strategy for this cycle is. Maybe this will calm some of this new found opposition down and allow for a reasonable time period before judgments about Chairman Lydecker are made.