Aaronson: No apology to Tea Party crowd at commission meeting
by George Bennett | June 16th, 2009
About 50 members of the anti-tax Tea Party movement showed up for this morning’s Palm Beach County Commission meeting after taking umbrage at dismissive remarks by Commissioner Burt Aaronson at a meeting last month.
Aaronson
After a big crowd filled a plaza outside the county government center for an evening rally on April 15, Aaronson noted during a weekday commission meeting in May that Tea Party activists “participated in the tea party, but they couldn’t get here today.”
Aaronson was silent when one activist said she felt Aaronson’s remarks were out of line.
Suzanne Squire stepped up to the podium during public comment on a usually noncontroversial agenda item about water utilities and said she felt Aaronson’s previous comments were “kind of like kicking your boss in the butt,” since he’s an elected official.
“I’m shaking in my shoes right now,” she said. “Mr Aaronson, I believe that you owe me and my friends a public apology for what has happened.”
Aaronson was silent. Commission Chairman Jeff Koons quickly intervened.
“If you felt that you were threatened, I want to extend my apologies from everyone on this board,” Koons said.
“Thank you,” said Squire. “I do believe it should come from the source, but I don’t see it coming.”
The Tea Party movement originally formed to protest massive federal spending and deficits, but some in the crowd this morning said they’re fed up with local government taxing and spending as well.
“I’m just sick and tired of the politicians not listening to the people,” said Jeanne Barnett of The Acreage, who sat in the back of the chambers with a large sign featuring several declarations and ending with “We…Are Voters….Your Boss.”
Everett Wilkinson, a 30-year-old financial adviser, organized today’s turnout and said he was pleased with the attendance.
“It’s a work day. Our people are working, so if we get, I don’t know, 50 people, that’s more than most organizations can pull out on a weekday,” Wilkinson said. “We’re just trying to get our voices heard that we’re watching them.”
Some in the crowd had “Give Me Liberty, Don’t Give Me Debt” signs and others had “Taxed Enough Already” signs or T-shirts.
Tags: Burt Aaronson, Tea Party
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June 16th, 2009 at 11:20 am
They don’t call him Arrogant-son for nothing.
He and Frankel should be the Poster Couple for everything that is wrong with abusive, tone deaf, narcissistic and paranoid bad government we have here in Palm Beach County.
Arrogantson is a Dinasaur with Muckus and Franeeel from the UBER_CORRUPT era that we just don’t want around anyomre.
He does not even have the human decency to apply to a citizen that took time off to address this jack……
He’s like Mcarty just from the gated community club further west….if we get lucky, he willl end up in the pokey too.
June 16th, 2009 at 3:29 pm
What a surprise, Big Burt was smug????? Non responsive to average Joe? Too absorbed with his own agenda? Come on give Big Burt some love! What a self centered power monger hateful man. Go watch one of your film industry croonies movies and resign from screwing us any further.
June 16th, 2009 at 3:43 pm
NO MORE TAX!!! Cut the budget. The people that vote for you are running on less money. Do the same or go!!! Get it or get out, all of you!
June 16th, 2009 at 4:03 pm
People who pay some of the lowest taxes in the country are still whining about paying taxes!! Unbelievable!
June 16th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
Investigate,investigate>>investigate all of them.ALL THE COMMISH.
Leave no stone unturned.
Wring em out and start all over again,there’s more corruption to find.
State Attorney>>>your inept,incompetent and should also be investifgated,by the FBI.
June 16th, 2009 at 4:28 pm
Burt is a moron.just like all the Commishes in PBC.I guess he is afraid that he won’t get his bonus if we don’t raise any taxes.Screw you Burt.We don’t care if you do apologize.If the people had any sense in his district they would vote him out.But I guess not.
June 16th, 2009 at 4:32 pm
HURRICANE SCAM ALERT!!!
Here’s how it works. You suffer damage to your property. Your insurance company refuses to pay the full amount that it will take to repair your property. Someone recommends a Public Adjuster Claim Service to you. The salesman (who works on commission) states that his company is the best in the business, guarantees that he will get you the additional money that you need to fully repair the damage and will do all of this quickly. All of this is offered for a fee of 20% of the additional money you get when the claim is settled. Out of financial and emotional desperation, you sign their contract. You are now officially scammed.
Be advised that a Public Adjuster Claim Service is nothing more than a licensed insurance salesman. He has no more influence over your insurance company than you do.
Before you sign a Public Adjuster Claim Service contract (they are all from the same “boilerplate”), know that this contract can NEVER be cancelled (after the three-day right to rescind has passed), does not have a termination or expiration date, does not specify what will be specifically provided or delivered, lives on until the claim is settled, cannot be terminated for failure to deliver (breach of contract) and the Public Adjuster Claim Service is legally entitled to receive his fee (because of the contract wording) even if he has nothing to do with the settlement. In fact, he doesn’t have to do a thing to collect his full fee!
In my case, after I signed his contract, it was filed away waiting for someone to settle the claim. It is guaranteed money to the Public Adjuster Claim Service.
The Public Adjuster Claim Service that I contracted with did nothing for seven months – not even call me. I fired them – I thought. I hired an attorney who settled the case/claim 15 months later. Because of the Public Adjuster Claim Service contract, I was still obligated to pay his $19,000 fee.
If this sounds like sour grapes, call the State of Florida Consumer Protection Agency (877-693-5236) and ask them to verify my statements and the reputation of the Public Adjuster Claim Service. The only way to stop this cheating scam is to change the law. Better yet, don’t sign a Public Adjuster Claim Service contract.
Hire an attorney if you need to and don’t let them charge you more than a 20% fee. And a reputable contractor will provide a free quote to repair your damage that can be given to your attorney to forward to your insurance company.
BEWARE. DON’T HIRE A PUBLIC ADJUSTER CLAIM SERVICE. You will be scammed like me.
June 16th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
Florida_kes has it right. When you look at property taxes, sales tax and income tax combined, Floridians have one of the lowest tax burdens in the United States. That’s why our schools are underfunded and our services are stretched thin. Not only are Florida taxes low, but taxes in the U.S. are the lowest of ANY industrialized nation.
These knee-jerk, anti-tax people give me the creeps. It’s one thing to campaign against a specific program or unneeded expense. Spending too much on roads? Great, tell the electeds which you’d like to see delayed. Sheriff’s budget too big? Ok, maybe we should cut back on road patrols. But to paint taxes with a broad brush so negatively when we all enjoy many of the services, roads and benefits they pay for strikes me as disingenuous and hypocritical.
All I know is I’d rather pay a slightly higher tax rate and have good parks, low crime, better services, cultural institutions, top-flight education and the kinds of amenities that attract good businesses, good jobs and good people.
Having said that, Burt is kind of a jerk. Not a Mary McCarty-level jerk, but a jerk nontheless.
June 16th, 2009 at 4:36 pm
Unless you’re from the tribe of Abraham or associated with the film festival, Aaronson cares not for you. He wants to benefit himself (remember the free weeklong cruise for Aaronson and his wife arranged by Film Festival chair Yvonne Boice) through the film festival and not get caught in the process. Al Zucaro will now be joining Aaronson’s inner circle by marrying into the family. As reported by the post, Zucaro is marrying Yvonne Boice. She’s his meal ticket. Look for Zucaro to be doing Aaronson’s dirty work.
June 16th, 2009 at 5:02 pm
Taxes in PB County are high.
My cousin lives in VA on a 300 acre farm in VERY HIGH PRICED AREA and takes are less thatn 1K per year.
But at any tax rate, to give it to the proven criminals running and still running palm beach county…is too much.
June 17th, 2009 at 7:09 am
How arrogant are our county commissioners? They now get to decide if Mr. and Mrs. Taxpayer (their bosses) are insulted by their words/actions. If Big Burt says he didn’t insult anyone, then he didn’t. Doesn’t matter if the person at the receiving end of the comments is insulted. Simply amazing!!!
June 17th, 2009 at 8:52 am
Dear Spoiled:
1) The Tea Party is not against education and things like police protection. Why is it that is always where the budget needs to be cut?? It is what the want the government and the media want you to believe. The Tea Party is concerned with wasteful spending, fiscal responsibility, and reduction of general corruption by playing an active role being a grassroots ‘watchdog’ made up of every day Americans. Why is government’s budget increasing when many families are struggling to make ends meet? Many people out of work. The level of waste at every level is not even comprehensible.
2) The second issue with our government is the arrogance. ‘We the People’ have the right to have our voices heard. Our elected officials act like we work for them instead of the other way around. ‘We the People’ may not agree with each other all the time, but EVERY American deserves the respect to be heard by our PUBLIC officers with respect.
June 18th, 2009 at 6:34 am
High taxes do not guarantee uality anything…look at California for your example.
June 18th, 2009 at 6:35 am
High taxes do not guarantee quality anything…look at California for your example.
Typo sorry
June 21st, 2009 at 10:26 pm
Seems no one gets it in government – just STOP IT – stop spending!!!! In fairness, the commissioners of Palm Beach County do not know how to stop spending because that is what they do – their job is to make decisions on how money is spent and where. Seemingly for years. consequently we are broke, they never even considered their spending and the taxes you incurred because of their actions. Now even though our state has NO money and has taken stimulus money – really fiat money – they go right on spending and saying yes to EVERY group that came before them with their hand out. It was like people (beggars) coming before the power brokers with their hands out and meager MILLIONS were doled out taking the county into more debt.
Absolutely astonishing that not one, not one commissioner, made a statement I would expect an honorable person of this committee to make. It is time this committee stop spending and start cutting back on projects that are not absolutely necessary because, truthfully, we are broke. This is what the people want and we owe them to be fiscally responsible and work to secure a balanced budget. I move that we work to that end from now on. Just an idea, just saying!!