Ken Keechl

Ken Keechl Back for Another Bite at Broward Commission

What a difference a year or two makes.In November 2010, during a wave of Republican support, Broward County Mayor Ken Keechl was swept out of office despite a long and blistering attack on his opponent, Chip LaMarca, whom he outspent by nearly half a million dollars.People wondered why. Was it the d ... More >>

Gay Marriage: Ken Keechl Says He'll Tie the Knot in New York; Rick Scott -- Not So Much

ithacalibrary.com"That can't come here." -- Rick Scott​New York's passage of gay marriage equality Friday night has had quite different reactions nationwide -- including a couple down here in the Sunshine State.Former Broward Mayor Ken Keechl announced on Facebook that he's getting married to his ... More >>

Here's a Rare Headline: A Broward Politician Makes a Good, Ethical Call and Cancels the Mayor's Gala

Feel free to drop a donation in the bucket.​It's not often that the Pulp mentions Broward politics with a reference to an ethical decision. It's even rarer when mentioning the county mayor's office, which has seemed like a magnet for corruption the past couple of terms. Add Sue Gunzburger's name t ... More >>

School Board Pay Comes Under Attack

Wild Art: A recent photo of disgraced Broward County Commissioner Ilene Lieberman, who continues to represent the county on state and national boards after being implicated as a player in the Chait scandal. This comes from a just-released video from the Florida Association of Counties aimed at prote ... More >>

What About the Third Broward Queen?

Ritter, Lieberman, and Keechl during the power days.​I know that we have been accused of queening it up too much, you, me, and [Ilene] Lieberman, the three queens on the County Commission. But I can't really think of anybody I would rather queen it up with than you. -- Stacy Ritter to Ken ... More >>

The Dirty Dozen: 2010's Most Despicable People

Republican Commissioner Putting Criminals Back on the Streets!

Chip LaMarca is the only Republican on the Broward County Board of Commissioners, so you might think he would be the last one to spearhead a move to literally unleash known violent criminals back on our neighborhoods. But LaMarca was behind the undoing of the doggy death pe ... More >>

Is Stephanie Kraft Working Off Time?

It's a question that keeps popping up: Is Stephanie Kraft cooperating with law enforcement? I've never seen anyone so disgraced try to retain such a high profile. She's running around town, claims she's going to beat the nails-hard case against her, and is trying to maintain a presence in scho ... More >>

What's Going On

-- Tamarac Mayor Beth Talabisco, a figure in the ongoing State Attorney's Office corruption investigation, was released from Broward General Hospital on Sunday after undergoing surgery for a serious medical condition. The Pulp wishes her a speedy recovery to good health. What impact&n ... More >>

Report: Ritter Used Campaign Cash To Pay For Russ's Lobbyist Phone

Up a creek​Well, we already had thousands in lavish dinners reimbursed to her lobbyist husband and an unexplained $1600 check to AT&T. Now we know that the Florida Election Commission found that more than $6,000 in phone bill charged to Ritter's 2008 campaign were ... More >>

A Ken Keechl Comeback Attempt? Also: The Infamous Otter Attack

Before the fall: Keechl with Gloria Stein.​After weeks of silence, ousted Broward County Mayor Ken Keechl has finally given an interview. To the Miami Herald? No. The Sun-Sentinel? No.   The Daily Pulp? Hell no. He gave it to the tiny gay Wilton Manors publication Florida Age ... More >>

UPDATED: Leyritz Acquitted of DUI Manslaughter

Associated Press No more tears for Leyritz.​UPDATED: Judge Marc Gold just issued a directed verdict in the former baseball star's favor on the DUI manslaughter charge, a reliable courthouse source tells me. But Leyritz may still be convicted of a second mansla ... More >>

A Mayor Named Sue

They just voted Sue Gunzburger the new Broward mayor to replace Ken Keechl. Hey, it was her turn. Commissioner Kristin Jacobs made a very lame motion for Gunzburger, saying that "when each jewel is allowed to shine, the whole crown shines." Yuck. Out with the old, in with the ... More >>

Mayor Ken Keechl's Parting Gift

​ Someone constructed a mock memorial wall for outgoing Mayor Ken Keechl that included, yes, a bag of poop. You can see it in the photo, it's the "suitable parting gift. The wall, located not far from his "campaign headquarters" in Wilton Manors, was removed yesterday but we have it here pr ... More >>

Keechl, Adcock Have "Campaign Headquarters" On Market

Has outgoing Broward Mayor Ken Keechl tacitly admitted that he defrauded his own election campaign out of thousands of dollars? Mayor Keechl's campaign conference room It sure looks like Keechl and his partner Ted Adcock paid themselves $700 a month extra for rent from the mayor's campaign f ... More >>

UPDATED: The Three Queens of Broward

In a tearful farewell yesterday for outgoing Broward Mayor Ken Keechl, Stacy Ritter spoke of how she, Keechl, and fellow Commissioner Ilene Lieberman were the "three queens" of the Broward County Commission.  Before the mayor's fall, Ritter, Lieberman, and Keechl basked ... More >>

Sunrise Looks Brighter After Electoral Overhaul

My apologies for the commenting problems; they seem to be continuing this morning. I have no idea why some of the comments have gone through while most don't. The tech folks at NT headquarters worked on it yesterday, and we'll see if they can finally get it working when they get up this morning ... More >>

Ritter Has Date in Tallahassee Over Election Allegations

I hate to say it, but James Stokes -- the new School Board attorney who quit this morning before he even started -- probably made a good decision. Who would want to jump into the dysfunctional soup that is the Broward County School Board? It's a little surprising that he decided it "didn't feel rig ... More >>

Election Mantra: Que Sera Sera

​-- Ken Keechl, the outgoing Broward mayor, is getting some love on Facebook. Hey, it was good while it lasted. -- Speaking of former elected officials, Stephanie Kraft continues to lurk. She was spotted at the election victory party in Coral Springs for several politicians including A ... More >>

Why the Mayor Lost the Election

Is it true? Did Broward Mayor Ken Keechl's bitter loss on Election Day have nothing at all to do with his performance while in office or the effectiveness of his own campaign? ​Did voters fail to notice his broken promises on the courthouse and working full-time as a commissioner? ... More >>

Ken Keechl Campaign Manager: We Tried To Make LaMarca "Unacceptable"

In lieu of the silence from losing candidate Broward Mayor Ken Keechl, I spoke with his campaign manager, Eric Johnson, today. Johnson of course had made a little news recently with his negative "Convicted Criminal" mailers on Chip LaMarca, who prevailed in the race despite being outs ... More >>

Election Day Notes

Let's start this thing off with a couple of blog votes. On Amendments 5 and 6, it's pretty easy: If you like gerrymandering, vote against them. As for me, it's a yes vote on these two. On the judicial race between John Fry and John Howes for County Court Judge in District 1, I've made a decision. T ... More >>

UPDATED: Did Judge Lazarus Violate Judicial Canons?

The recent ridiculous "Convicted Criminal" mailers targeting Broward County Commission candidate Chip LaMarca is indeed tied directly to Broward Mayor Ken Keechl's campaign. Another egregious Keechl mailer​Turns out that the address of the "Broward Good Government Commi ... More >>

Wilton Manors Island City News Newsletter Supports Columnist/Mayor While Bashing His Opponent

Gary Resnick's got Steve Kelley's endorsement.​Joe Angelo, the Wilton Manors mayoral candidate, has had a tough month.Tomorrow, his campaign against popular Mayor Gary Resnick draws to a close. He has been outspent, and he has been outmaneuvered in the media.If he loses in a landslide tomorrow, on ... More >>

November Surprise: Keechl Camp Hits Gutter

Broward Mayor Ken Keechl appears to be getting desperate. He's certainly getting dirty. A new low Keechl camp's last-ditch negative ad campaign goes to a new low. Of course he won't take credit for it since it comes from one of those late-date 527 slush committees funded by a ... More >>

Alex Sink and Rick Scott: The Lost Debate

People are trying to make a big deal that Alex Sink's campaign relayed a forbidden message to her with a cell phone during the CNN debate. Cal Deal Who will replace this guy? ​But people seem to be missing the really scary part: Rick Scott thought the message was ... More >>

Broward Historical Commisson Got New Home, Now Loses All its Funding

broward.orgThe commission's new old digs.​When Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler jogged through Sailboat Bend with his entourage last Monday, he made a point to stop at the newly renovated offices of the Broward County Historical Commission. But a couple weeks before, the Broward County Commission ... More >>

Who's Afraid of Helen Ferre?

I don't know how effective this ad will be for Amendment 4, but I agree with the sentiment. I remember once referring to Wayne Huizenga as a "civic vampire" (nothing personal). Glad they found a place for Nosferatu. If you haven't seen it, the New York Times did a must-read article on Amendmen ... More >>

A High Schooler's Guide to Broward County Commission Politics

Photo: C. StilesKristin Jacobs had a score to settle with Sue Gunzburger.​I know that sometimes the politics behind Broward County Commission decisions can seem complex, but trust me: Anyone who has been to high school can understand the social dynamics at work on the county's legislative body.The ... More >>

Will Chris Chiari, Chip LaMarca Split the Vote Against Ken Keechl?

Flickr: Chris Chiari CampaignChiari says that voters know enough about Keechl to know they don't like him.​Tuesday's election returns proved that there's strong anti-incumbent sentiment toward the Broward County Commission, especially as regards the leader of the scandal-plagued dais, Mayor Ken Ke ... More >>

Chip LaMarca on His Chances to Beat Ken Keechl: "I Feel Pretty Damned Good"

Photo: electchip.comChip LaMarca​As the Republican challenger to Broward Mayor Ken Keechl, Chip LaMarca was interested to see how Keechl would perform against Beverly Kennedy, a Democrat who had far less money, experience, and name recognition than LaMarca can bring to the race."I feel pretty damn ... More >>

Campaign Consultants a Luxury Only Incumbents Can Afford; Can They Score a Win for Ken Keechl?

Keechl​At a time when cynicism toward Broward politics is at an all-time high, incumbents on the Broward County Commission have turned to high-priced political consultants to ensure they don't get toppled by a challenger.Today's news of Commissioner Ilene Lieberman allegedly directing developers t ... More >>

The Ken Keechl Guide to Making Your Campaign Dollars Count

The endorsement for Keechl was page-one material for the Harbor News.​When you make a donation to the campaign of Broward County Mayor Ken Keechl, you know that money will be well-spent. And I'm not just talking about the $3,100 per month that goes from the campaign account straight into the pocke ... More >>

Honey, I Rigged the Vote (Part II): With Wasserman-Rubin Charged, Time to Revisit the Juice's Corrupt Couples Watch-List

​Way back in October, this blog used the Tom Ridge terrorist threat chart to rank Broward County's power couples according to the threat they posed to the integrity of local government. The duo of Richard Rubin and Commissioner Diana Wasserman-Rubin posed an "elevated" risk of committing corruptio ... More >>

Scott Rothstein's Work as Mafia Rat May Help Him in Ponzi Case

Morning Juice: Hollywood May Learn From Sins of Past; Keechl Pays It Backward

​The local headlines this Monday morning:Hollywood's charter review committee has drafted a list of ethics reforms that would try to prevent incidents like the one that got former commissioner Keith Wasserstrom thrown in jail. But those reforms still need the support of the city seven commissioner ... More >>

Crooked Courthouse

The Broward Commission will build a courthouse, even if voters don't want it and there's no good way to pay for it.

Dubious Port Tank Deal A Bernie Friedman Special?

A county selection committee today chose a Brazillian firm called Cepemar Environmental Services to take over the tank field at Port Everglades. It's a big deal -- and already reeks of undue influence by a key lobbyist.      The firm, represented by lobbyist Bernie Friedma ... More >>

Broward Commissioners on Ethics Bill: WhatEVER

In a conversation that seems to have been recorded at the cafeteria lunch table where the in crowd sits, Broward Mayor Stacy Ritter and Commissioner Ken Keechl decided that fellow Commissioner John Rodstrom is not in-crowd material. That's because Rodstrom's pushing a bill that would bar commissione ... More >>

Broward's Royalty Talk About Feds, Gifts

    You must listen to this (courtesy of Scott Wyman). It's simply not getting enough views (75 after two days? Who says Broward County is apathetic about local politics?). And while listening remember that both Stacy Ritter and Ken Keechl are both at least tangentially subjects ... More >>

Some Mutual Benefits Boys Pose In Colombia

For those of you following the Mutual Benefits story, here's a photograph to bring some visuals to the table. It was taken in Bogota, Colombia, in 2001, as Mutual Benefits was trying to round up South American investors in what feds say was a billion dollar Ponzi scheme. The ra ... More >>

Mutual Benefits used dirty money to pay its legal defense

Did Drug Money Fund Renovation of Mayor's Home?

The answer: Maybe, maybe not. But it's a fair question. Mutual Benefits, the fraud-filled firm that employed Broward County Mayor Stacy Ritter's husband and paid $117,000 to renovate her Parkland home, was just a moderately successful (and moderately dirty) firm in 2001. Then it made its ... More >>

Mutual Benefits may have collapsed, but the fallout for South Florida politicians is still coming.

Vice Mayor Keechl Mum About Fraud Case, Former Partner's Arrest

I've always thought of Broward Commission newcomer Ken Keechl, who now holds the position of Vice Mayor, as a benign force. Sure, he's subject to the wiles and temptations of Broward's ruling class like anyone else, and he's fallen prey at times to special interests. But he's sort of a goo ... More >>

Family Ties

Broward Commission, lobbyists ooze coziness

One-Arm Job

And now, on tape, from the capital of Mardi Gras Gaming, it's Sunday Morning Live!

Engle's Angle

Get Used To This Comb-Over

Golf Meets Politics

Jim Scott's Little Investment Is a Hot Topic in His District