Marco Rubio: Homeless Fearmonger

Marco Rubio ran a nasty campaign email accusing President Barack Obama and Charlie Crist of supporting sex offenders. This swiftboating mudslinging should disqualify Rubio as a serious candidate.

STIMULUS SPENDING WOULD HELP SEXUAL PREDATORS INSTEAD OF CREATING "JOBS, JOBS, JOBS"

Rubio: "As Floridians endure an economic crisis, it is outrageous that stimulus dollars that falsely promised to put them back to work are instead being considered to house sex offenders and predators."

Miami, FL - As Vice President Joe Biden touts the Charlie Crist-backed stimulus bill in Washington today, U.S. Senate candidate and former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio issued the following statement regarding a new report showing federal stimulus dollars are being considered to house sexual predators in Florida:

"Even as Floridians suffer double-digit unemployment, $2.2 billion in new taxes, plummeting home values, rising property taxes and the first population decline since World War II, President Obama, Vice President Biden and Governor Crist audaciously insist the stimulus is working. The numbers don't lie. The stimulus is not stimulating anything except big government and our deficit.
"Today, there is even more evidence that instead of creating jobs, stimulus money is being lavished on just about anything politicians can think of as new spending is considered to house sex offenders and predators in Florida. As Floridians endure an economic crisis, it is outrageous that stimulus dollars that falsely promised to put them back to work are instead being considered to house sex offenders and predators.
"When Governor Crist joined forces with President Obama to help ram this stimulus through Congress, he said it was 'all about jobs, jobs, jobs.' In reality, it has been all about waste, waste, waste, with nothing to show for it."

The email goes on to cite (but not link) to a Miami Herald article. Rubio's email runs the headline "Federal Stimulus Spending Is Being Considered To Help Homeless Sex Offenders And Predators In Florida." The Miami Herald has the less inflammatory headline "Stimulus cash may help move sex offenders from causeway."

Miami-Dade County does not allow sex offenders 2,500 feet near homes, schools and parks where children might be. Homeless people have been evicted from the Julia Tuttle Causeway. Any sex offenders formly living at the Causeway could be unmonitored and closer to children. Authorites had a better idea of the homeless population when they were at the Causeway.

Local government officials are only discussing using stimulus funds to house sex offenders. Rubio's email headline is highly misleading.

``I have reservations about how the money is being used,'' said Miami-Dade Commissioner Pepe Diaz. ``But I can appreciate what Ron (Book) is doing to help us deflate a problem that is like an black eye for all of us.''

Government officials want to get sexual offenders off the streets so they will be easier to monitor. Homeless advocate Ron Book is attempting to housing partly for this purpose. Book is also one of Florida's top lobbyists and pushed to have sex predators 1,750 to 2,500 feet from children. Book's daughter was sexually abused. Book said he isn't trying to change the 1,750 to 2,500 limit.

The Miami-Dade Commission is undecided on Book's proposal. This isn't set policy. Obama and Crist haven't publicly supported Book's plan. Rubio's email says more about his desperation than Crist and Obama.

Here is a July 19, 2009 video of Book talking to the Miami-Dade Commission about homeless people being forced from the Julia Tuttle Causeway. Book discusses the possibility of housing the homeless that were living under the Causeway. I'm sure the vast majority of them weren't sex offenders. I wonder if Rubio has a problem with housing any person that is homeless.