Coral Gables Democrats choose officers, hear from Luis Garcia

The Coral Gables Area Democratic Club elected a slate of officers unopposed at their meeting last week. Returning as president is Connie Washburn. Vice president will be Shannon O’Sullivan, secretary is Roz Marks, and treasurer is Sandi Strickland.

The monthly meeting voted to make a donation to the re-election campaign of State Rep. Luis Garcia, who expressed gratitude to the club for the help given by its members in his winning campaign for the State House of Representatives last year.

There was widespread agreement that all our candidates should be like him – but it’s hard nowadays to find a fresh face who came from Cuba as a teenager in 1960, worked hard all the time, became a firefighter and then fire chief in Miami Beach, and then won two terms on the Miami Beach city commission.

Garcia said he had beaten the freshman curse by getting several bills passed in his first session in Tallahassee, and by winning appropriations for his District 107. He said he would argue strongly against any cut in public safety services if the legislature cuts property taxes.

On those lines, see Sunday’s Miami Herald’s story on some purported drastic cuts for firefighters. Here’s the link.