Another year. Another set of political predictions. First to the national elections.
On January 29th, I plan to vote in the Republican primary for former Senator Fred Thompson. I will not join the chorus of Broward County party elite backing Rudy Giuliani or those voting for Mike Huckabee, in part, because of his appeal to the faith oriented voters. I believe Senator Thompson’s conservative voting record and his specific plans for our country still make him the best choice as I have said for several months. But I believe that Huckabee now has the advantage to win our state.
I hope that Hillary Clinton wins the Democratic primary because I believe she is the best Democratic candidate running. While I disagree with many of her more socialist ideas and tax increase plans, I believe she is more of a realist in what is needed to lead this country than are the other Democratic candidates. And if this is to be the year that the Democrats take back the White House, I would certainly prefer her more than naive Barack Obama or populist John Edwards.
We also have an important vote on January 29th regarding the proposed changes in our property taxes. These changes include new portability for our Save Our Homes savings, increased homestead exemptions, and a new cap on commercial property value increases. Personally, I believe the proposed changes are far too little and too late but I plan to vote for them because I have little faith that our do nothing Governor has the backbone to get the state legislature to pass radical property tax changes or to modernize our sales tax system by eliminating many of sales tax exemptions currently allowed.
In the next few weeks or months there will be a vote at the Broward County Commission regarding the regional mega mall called The Commons which is planned for western Davie. To those Commissioners who read this column, I ask you to evaluate the zero sum impact of the project on the county. In other words, will the project bring a net increase in jobs and revenue to the county without causing a similar loss of jobs and property values at other outlets? I believe this monstrous mall will be a killer for Pembroke Lakes, Broward Mall, Coral Springs Mall, Sawgrass Mills and to most Weston retailers. And with our county in a severe water draught, can we afford to allocate precious water rights to an unnecessary project like The Commons?
For those readers living in Cooper City, you also will be electing several Commissioners and a Mayor. All I can say is that I am thankful that I now live in Davie because the Cooper City Commission has become an embarrassment to its residents from its conduct before and during meetings. Hopefully you have carefully read the articles contributed by each candidate to this publication and will choose those who have solid business management backgrounds which they can offer to your city.
And lastly, I expect that the Chicken Little Environmentalists will continue to try and convince the world that Greenland has always been covered in ice and that Iceland has always been covered in green. My point is that global warming is a cyclical event just as was the coming ice age prediction a few decades ago. But let’s take advantage of this uncertainty to buy more fuel efficient cars and trucks and invest in solar and wind generation technologies so we can lessen our dependence on oil from such places as Venezuela, Iran, and Nigeria.
Let me close by wishing you and yours a healthy and happy New Years!
