Martinez Continues Footloose and Fancy Free with Brownsville's Money

The Mayor Who Would
Be King

We made a serious mistake electing Tony Martinez as mayor.  He seems to confirm that on a daily basis.   His push for re-enforcement of the ban on broadcasting public comments in the City Commission meetings show his total disdain for what citizens think and feel.  His purposeless, week-long  "Senior Trip" to Barranqulla, Colombia shows he doesn't respect our hard-earned tax dollars.

And the bleeding continues. . . . . Mean Mister Brownsville received a tip that King Tony took it upon himself to hire an Austin consulting firm, B.C., Inc. (I should have a more complete name shortly) to facilitate UTB's location in the downtown area.  While preparing their report the firm's staff flitted between Austin and Brownsville, lived sort of "high on the hog" with regard to food and beverage expenses, finally submitting a nice $28,000 bill to the City of Brownsville for services rendered.

This may be the same bill that legendary blogger Bobby Wightman-Cervantes of the BROWNSVILLE VOICE referenced earlier in the week while describing the turmoil inside city government caused by Martinez lavish, wasteful, unapproved expenses:

"Sometimes I need two credible sources to tell me something before I will print the story. Apparently, Tony Martinez's plant to replace Melissa Zamora has agreed to vote to fire Charlie Cabler and Pete Gonzales. Apparently both of these men stand in the way of Tony Martinez's agenda of contract rigging and doing as he pleases. For the second time I have been told that Marc Sossi is on board with Tony Martinez. It may be time for a majority to call Marc Sossi into executive session and fire him over approving Tony Martinez approving all of these contracts or binding the city to contracts under $35,000. It is my understanding that Marc Sossi has told Charlie Cabler and Pete Gonzales that they must pay all commitments by Tony Martinez which are under $35,000. It is time the majority of this city commission take down Marc Sossie and Tony Martinez."

In a subsequent article Wightman-Cervantes mentions the $28,000 bill:

"Tony Martinez is currently being challenged over another $28,000 bill. He is convinced he can continue to spend as much of the city's money as he pleases without accountability so long as the sum of each individual bill is under $35,000. Until a city commissioner is willing to put it on the agenda for accountability - nothing will change."

There is nothing wrong with being an elitist, living in your own personal vacuum and calling in consultants to get an opinion.  The arrogant disrespect surfaces when this is done outside the framework of a City Commission.  If Charlie Cabler and Pete Gonzalez stood up to autocratic ways they should be commended, not fired.  Tony Martinez is the one who needs to lose his job.

To paraphrase John Lennon:

"You live with straights who tell you, you was king

Jump when your momma(Juliet) tell you anything

How do you sleep?

How do you sleep at night?"