Fla. Lawmaker (R) Quits Over Racial Slur

[Newsjock]

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2006/11/01/national/a083215S16.DTL

Hialeah, Fla. (AP) -- A lawmaker resigned from the Florida Legislature on Wednesday, bowing to pressure to quit because of messages filled with obscenities and a racial slur that were left on a colleague's voice mail.

State Rep. Ralph Arza had been urged to resign by fellow House Republicans and by Gov. Jeb Bush.

Arza has admitted leaving the messages on fellow Republican Rep. Gus Barreiro's voice mail earlier this month, but said he was drunk.

[judaspriestess]

1. did this asshole apologize to all blacks in Florida

I doubt it.

[thereismore]

2. Bwahaha, the alcohol made me do it defense! Loser. nt

[Sequoia]

3. Just like Mel, blame it on the booze. Typical.

[Warpy]

4. "Demon rum made me do it!" has got to be one of the oldest

lines of bullshit in the book.

Alcohol doesn't cause bigotry, violence, or anything else. What it does is disinhibit people so they act out on what was already there.

So Arza has always been an obscene bigot. Alcohol just made it show on the surface.

[Benhurst]

5. Silly bastard. Such remarks are meant to be

said over port and a fine Cuban cigar after dinner at a country club; not left on answering machines.

[seafan]

6. Miami Herald: Arza, cousin to be charged with tampering, retaliation

Much more coming out of this stinking mess:


Arza, cousin to be charged with tampering, retaliation


CBS-4/MIAMI HERALD FILE
FACING CHARGES: Rep. Ralph Arza, R-Hialeah, right, and his cousin, Paulino Barbon Jr., face charges related to expletive-laden phone messages.



BY MARC CAPUTO AND SUSANNAH NESMITH
November 1, 2006

Prosecutors are expected to charge state Rep. Ralph Arza and his first cousin today with felony counts of tampering with and retaliating against a witness for their expletive-laced phone calls to a Miami Beach lawmaker who found their messages threatening, according to sources close to Arza and the investigation. Both are third-degree felonies.

At press conference this morning, Arza announced his resignation from his state House seat in an attempt to stave off the criminal charges, but he was told the charges would be filed anyway, the sources say.

One reason for the charges coming now: Arza was scheduled to speak in Tallahassee to the House Select Committee to Investigate the Conduct of Representative Ralph Arza.

The committee was established after Rep. Gus Barreiro gave police five recordings of messages left by Arza and his cousin, Paulino Barbon Jr., two weekends ago in which Arza called him a ''bitch'' and used a racial slur. Barreiro had just filed a House Rules complaint against Arza, alleging the Hialeah-area lawmaker had twice used racial slurs to describe Miami-Dade's black school's chief, Rudy Crew.

Shortly after Arza left a second message, Barbon allegedly called and was far more explicit, saying, among other things, that they would ``crack your head open.''

Arza has told some friends that he wants his successor to be School Board member Frank Bolaños, who ran a vicious but failed campaign to unseat Miami Sen. Alex Villalobos this year. Villalobos said Bolaños is unacceptable.

snip

[kurth]

7. Ah, family values and integrity

These thugs need to be in jail.

[grizmaster]

8. Fla. lawmaker quits after racial slur (yup another repub bites the dust)

And yet another republican racist is brought down by his own arrogance


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061101/ap_on_re_us/lawmaker_racist_remark

HIALEAH, Fla. - A state lawmaker under fire for leaving a message filled with obscenities and a racial slur on a colleague's voice mail resigned Wednesday from the Florida Legislature.

State Rep. Ralph Arza had been urged to step down by fellow House Republicans and by Gov.
Jeb Bush.

In a news conference Wednesday, Arza apologized for his actions and said he didn't want to distract from the work of the Republican-led Legislature.

"I do not want to be the story," he said.
Arza had acknowledged leaving the message on fellow Republican Rep. Gus Barreiro's voice mail last month but said he was drunk.

[zbdent]

9. what work? "distract from the work of the Republican-led Legislature"

And that would be ...

help me out here ... what work has the "Republican-led" legislature done?

I'm drawing a blank ...

[grizmaster]

10. it's the state legislature, not Congressional

but point taken.

Or were you actually referring to the FL legislature?

[zbdent]

11. Can apply to any Republican group of "thinkers" ...

[onehandle]

12. The Republican Party. The Party of Racism. nt

[grizmaster]

13. Lincoln must be rolling over in his grave

about what has happened to his party

[rodeodance]

14. his name will be on ballot next week

Arza resigned about an hour before a special House panel was set to begin hearings on whether to expel him.

"It's not really a happy day for anybody, I don't think," said Barreiro, of Miami Beach. "I think he made the right decision, the right decision, not only for himself, but I thought he looked at the bigger picture, which is the institution he represents. I wish him the best."

The Republican Party gets to choose a replacement for Arza in the general election, less than a week away, but Arza's name will still be on the ballot. The situation would be similar to what has happened in former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley (news, bio, voting record)'s district, when the GOP replaced him with Joe Negron.

"Any vote for Arza would be contributed to the new nominee," said state Division of Elections spokeswoman Jenny Nash.

[RaRa]

15. Fla. lawmaker quits after racial slur

HIALEAH, Fla. - A state lawmaker under fire for leaving a message filled with obscenities and a racial slur on a colleague's voice mail resigned Wednesday from the Florida Legislature.
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State Rep. Ralph Arza had been urged to step down by fellow House Republicans and by Gov.
Jeb Bush.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061101/ap_on_re_us/lawmaker_racist_remark


what IS it with these pigs?

[auburngrad82]

16. He had an excuse

He said he's dirty when he's drinking.

[Mabus]

17. Maybe someone should open up a GOP-only rehab center

I know it would get a lot of business. :rofl:

[ProgressiveEconomist]

19. Especially if they had a "Drunk Dialers Anonymous" wing

[greeneyedboy]

18. why am i feeling like we are living in the decline of Rome, only more high-tech?