America 1982-Chapter 522 - 102: Making a Pact
Reminded by a subtle gesture from his wife, Bill only approached with Rosario and her ex-husband—the former mayor and once absolute ruler of Miami in the ’70s—after realizing Tommy had agreed to their request.
"Tommy, this is David and Rona. Tommy Hawk, Odelia’s husband, founder of Vox television network, Californian," Bill said, holding a glass of wine as he introduced them both.
David Kennedy, fifty-five years old this year, wore gold-rimmed glasses and was talkative, with a hearty laugh that made him seem affable. He was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts but studied law in Miami and decided to stay. He claimed it was because he loved the city, but Tommy speculated it might also be to carve out new territories for the Kennedy Family from Massachusetts, though the man never mentioned any relation to that Kennedy Family.
He had served as Miami’s thirty-first and thirty-third mayor, with the intermission due to his arrest on charges of bribery which led to about five months of suspension. Although the police had evidence, the charges were dropped by a Florida court since he did not confess which senator had asked him to help acquit their son nor reveal which supreme court justice he intended to bribe, allowing him to resume his position as mayor of Miami City.
However, after his mayoral term ended, marked by nationwide scandals broadcasted by his opponents, he chose not to run for re-election, returning to his practice of law. Yet, he didn’t represent any lawsuits. Instead, he could make wishes come true for various non-elected governmental positions in Florida and Miami, provided the price was right.
His success stories included appointing a guy with no college education and firefighting experience as the head of Miami’s fire department.
He also engineered the transformation of his second wife, Rosario, from a real estate broker to a member of the Florida Hospital Cost Control Monitoring Committee, a chair of the Florida Women’s Chamber of Commerce, chair of the United Against Crime Foundation, a council member of Miami City, and finally Miami’s deputy mayor.
Not to mention marrying his young and beautiful sister to a Cuban man who went from being a commissioner of Miami’s government to the mayor.
But for David, his career highlight was the time he served as Mayor of Miami while advising Nixon’s campaign. Nixon even promised him an ambassadorship to Latin American countries for America upon election. Unfortunately, the bribery scandal erupted at the time, denying him the chance to advance further in politics.
As David Kennedy casually mentioned names like former President Nixon and former Florida Governor Bob Graham, Tommy finally understood why this unassuming man was worth the visit by both Bill and Hillary. This man, holding no official position, was actually one of the real power players in Miami. Despite not being a politician, he still had the powerful capacity to make things happen in Miami.
For instance, the former Florida Governor and current U.S. Senator Bob Graham that he just mentioned.
Graham was a favorite of both Bill and Hillary, the ideal Democratic Party candidate for Vice President of America. If Bill were elected President, his most desired candidate for Vice President would be this man, who served eight years as Governor of Florida and achieved true balance in every aspect. He was highly praised by both Republicans and Democrats, boasting an incredible approval rating of 87% in Florida upon leaving office.
The successor Governor, a Republican named Martinez who was eager to make a mark, had an equally astonishing approval rating of 24% as seen by Tommy in the newspapers. Not only did Democrats criticize him, but public outcry also demanded his resignation now and then, and even some Republicans were displeased—all attributed to David Kennedy’s maneuvering from behind the scenes.
Because the new Governor even initiated a transformation in Florida; he fought against drug and public safety crimes and launched a campaign to clear death row inmates by actually carrying out executions of those who should have been long executed but were still detained.
Perhaps he was doing it for Florida, but the political elites of the state felt otherwise. They believed Florida didn’t need his goodwill, which is why his approval rating was so dismal that re-election seemed impossible. They expected the next Governor to be an excellent politician approved by both parties, someone who could balance all aspects.
The absurd death row inmate vacation bill, previously pushed by Rosario to counteract the new Governor’s clean-sweep execution campaign and which resulted in the tragic deaths of the Parkers, actually garnered significant public support for being perceived as very humane since the media hadn’t heavily reported the incident at the time.
As Tommy listened to David amusingly recount these Florida anecdotes, he could only reflect on the calibre of politicians and the senseless public, thinking Florida truly lived up to its reputation.
His ex-wife, affectionately known as Rona, was ten years his junior and a seductive Cuban woman. Tommy even suspected that this Cuban lady might have had an affair with Bill because she had whispered intimately into Bill’s ear several times while he and David conversed.
