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Heated War Of Words Escalates Between Doral’s Mayor & City Manager

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DORAL (CBSMiami) —  It was around midnight Wednesday night, after the television news cameras disappeared from Doral City Hall and the words between two men were still being said.  “Let’s be respectful,” one commissioner begged of the Mayor Luigi Boria.  He fired back, “I’m being respectful.  I don’t think you have the right to ‘ir-respect’ me.”

The city manager, veteran politician Joe Carollo, interjected “I haven’t disrespected you, sir.” Mayor Boria quickly cut him off. “You have the right to respond to questions.  That’s it.  You don’t have other rights.” “And I’m going to, sir.” Carollo squeezed in while Boria took a breath.

Boria quickly shut him down again though yelling “If you go out of rules!” and then slamming down the gavel.  At which point the rules were tossed out the window as Carollo started in, “I’m going to, I’m not here to be defamed by anyone, for you, for anybody.”

The war of words appears to be escalating between two men who appeared to be getting along just weeks ago just fine.  Boria attacked the manager over every minute detail including a trip to Las Vegas, in June, on city business.  The trip, signed off by the mayor, was to attract the Miss Universe contest to Doral.  “I didn’t approve that!” Boria yelled.  Yet, Carollo had the upper hand as he held up papers showing he did.  Boria once again changed the subject saying: “You screaming at me.  I’m sorry Mr. Manager you are out of order.”  Carollo was helpless, shrugging and said, “this is unreal.”

The drama between the two began about two weeks ago.  That is when a former business partner of the mayor, Juan Carlos Tovar, said he was assaulted by the city manager, dragged through a set of doors to the executive offices at Doral City Hall.  He filed a police report, which was read aloud at commission, Wednesday.  “I tried not going in, but forcefully he pushed me all the way in the hallway,” a translator read.

After the incident, Mayor Boria immediately started a campaign to fire the manager, claiming a history of incidents.  As he framed it, the assault was the last straw.  Two things, though; surveillance cameras showed Boria’s former partner actually walked right through the door, not pushed or pulled.  Also, Doral’s police chief witnessed the whole thing.  Wednesday, Juan Carlos Tovar went to jail for falsifying a police report.

His friend, the mayor, continued.  Boria leaned in toward the manager looking him right in the eye.  “I’m telling you I’m going to spend every penny to demonstrate you hurt my integrity.  You are not going to hurt it,” Boria pledged.  In a calm tone, Carollo shot back “Mr. Mayor please don’t threaten me with your money please.”

The whole drama played out while the rest of the city council attempted to restore control, to little avail.  Councilwoman Christi Fraga explained to CBS4 Thursday, “it’s difficult because you want to do a good job and it seems like there is a lot of petty fights going on.  And it’s just not good for any of us.”  Councilwoman Fraga said she isn’t taking sides, but believes the Mayor needs to realize how he looks. “If he is going to lead this community he needs to try and relax and understand that everything has a consequence,” Fraga said.

At the end of the meeting, the mayor said he was planning to keep the manager from speaking at a commission meeting set for next Tuesday.  “I don’t agree with that,” Boria said.  “And I ‘don’t going’ to give the right to anybody.  Unless you take that right from me,” he said with a snicker.


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