The Port Authority tunes out Lindell on the Cuba issue

The Port Authority tunes out Lindell on the Cuba issue
By JOE O'NEILL
Tribune correspondent
Published: September 2, 2009

Once again, when it comes to Cuba, Carl Lindell is odd man out.

Lindell is a savvy businessman and Tampa Port Authority board member who
has been pushing for the Port of Tampa - and, by association, this
region, state and country - to get proactive about normalizing relations
with Cuba. He recently returned from a fact-finding visit (at his own
expense) to Cuba, and he has become outspoken on the issue. Notably,
America's counterproductive, economic embargo that dates to 1962.

His recent suggestion that the seven-member TPA send a delegation to
Cuba to assess trade opportunities was greeted by a groundswell of
indifference and disagreement by the six other members, including Mayor
Pam Iorio.

To date, only 6 percent of (embargo) limited American exports to Cuba
originate in Florida. It could be much more, contends Lindell, and Tampa
could obviously be a major beneficiary. So why not explore the matter
more and, at the very least, make valuable contacts and help
pre-position Tampa for the inevitable, approaching day when Cuba does
open up? As it now stands, Tampa would be at a competitive disadvantage
to cities, such as New Orleans and Corpus Christi, which already have an
established presence in Cuba.

Mayor Iorio, whose in-the-best-interests-of-Tampa instincts are
invariably on the money, is off her game on this one. "As a collective
effort on the part of the board, I don't think it's appropriate to focus
on a particular country," she explained.

As if any other "particular" country were 90 miles away, shared history
and historic trade with Tampa, and was a tragic, atavistic relic of the
Cold War. As if any other "particular" country had a similar wherewithal
to make a difference during a recession. As if any other "particular"
country had humanitarian needs that could be uniquely addressed from
this side of the Florida Straits.

The mayor, who has encouraged members of the business community to check
out Cuba, has made the point before that Cuba is a "federal" issue. As a
result, she has underscored, "It's not appropriate for me to embark on
my own foreign policy."

Of course not. That's hardly a mayor's or a port authority board
member's purview. Whether it's Paris or Pyongyang. Or Havana. No mayor,
especially a prominent Democrat with more political life left, would be
wise to get out in front of the incrementalist Obama administration and
appear to grandstand.

But that's not to say a key local political figure can't be part of a
delegation logically looking for legal business and making the rounds to
help make it happen. That's why business people and politicians from
other cities have already gone.

And continue to go. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson went last week. He
accompanied a New Mexico farm products' trade mission. But nobody
thought he was embarking on his own foreign policy, even though he
wanted to be president of the United States.

Kids as props

No, this won't be another screed on the orchestrated, in-your-face,
shout-down dynamics of health care-reform, town hall meetings. It's
getting harder and harder to separate philosophical libertarians from
militia members and amateur anarchists.

But in addition to firearms, can't these people leave their kids home? A
photo in Sunday's Tampa Tribune showed Citizens Protecting the Republic
(cute), who are opponents of health care reforms, demonstrating in front
of U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor's office in Tampa. A cherubic child, no more
than 5, was waving a flag next to someone with an "Obama bin Lyin'

" sign.

Using those not old enough to understand why they are there as props is
objectionable enough. But using the innocent as unwitting participants
in the politics of demonization is disgusting.

Rays' relo scenarios

The Rays have arguably done their part. Asked to stay competitive with
the obscenely deep-pocketed Red Sox and Yankees, the Rays have more than
kept up. They were in the World Series last year and are in the hunt for
the playoffs again this season.

But it's not enough in a hybrid market such as this one. One without a
strong corporate headquarters presence. One with a spread-out population
and no mass transit. One with too many people with allegiances to
wherever they came from. One with a leisure lifestyle that doesn't
prioritize summer baseball. And one where not enough people live close
enough to substandard Tropicana Field near downtown St. Petersburg.

And now the ABC Coalition, the city's own committee of business leaders,
has served up an assessment that can't be pleasing to City Hall. ABC
said the Rays do, indeed, need a better facility (read: retractable
roof), and it will likely have to be financed largely with public money.
And, by the way, it really needs to be someplace other than downtown St.
Pete.

Even more to the point, ABC concluded that there are three more
logistically viable locations than downtown St. Pete. And two are in
Tampa: West Shore and downtown.

In other words, expect the Rays to move out of their catwalk house long
before their lease is up in 2027. That they will be leaving downtown St.
Petersburg is now a given. The key question is will they be leaving this
market? Somebody's going to have to take one for the team to keep the
Rays in Tampa Bay.

Joe O'Neill can be contacted at www.opinionstogoonline

The Port Authority tunes out Lindell on the Cuba issue (2 September 2009)
http://carrollwood2.tbo.com/content/2009/sep/02/cw-the-port-authority-tunes-out-lindell-on-the-cub/