Yesterday morning, I was enjoying a walk along the beach when my phone started buzzing with text notifications from people forwarding an article in Sarasota’s Herald Tribune in which its editorial board endorsed Kevin Van Ostenbridge in the Manatee County Commission District 7 race.
This was surprising for two reasons. First, there did not seem to be any way a rookie journalist could so severely misunderstand the dynamics of this race, let alone the seasoned professionals who typically make up an editorial board. Second, the paper had not issued endorsements in any other Manatee County races, and doing so after early voting had ended and thousands had voted by mail did not make much sense.
The Herald Tribune has not covered Manatee County in earnest for years, and its scattershot coverage cannot even be described as supplemental to what real reporting exists elsewhere. Simply look at its anemic “voter guide,” and you’ll find that Manatee County races are little more than an afterthought compared to the more comprehensive coverage of Sarasota County races, with most consisting of one surface-level article explaining the race in terms that you would expect from intern reporters after spending an hour on Google.
Given the paper’s well-known financial struggles in recent years, I’m not even sure why they bother dipping their toes in Manatee’s water. There was a time when the HT was a credible alternative to the woeful work of the Bradenton Herald, but those days are long gone. Today, both are bottom-rung publications of large conglomerates good for little more than regurgitating police reports, telling you who won high school sporting events, what restaurants have roaches and rodents, new routes at SRQ, and who is coming to the Van Wezel. Honestly, were it not for Wade Tangelo's excellent A&E pieces, I don't think I would have known the HT still exists.
In the endorsement article, the author bends himself into pretzels, attempting to qualify his nonsensical opinion by playing down the endless scandals that Van Ostenbridge has been engaged in and ignoring the fact that he has done absolutely nothing but represent the interests of the developers who bought his seat in 2020. The article glosses over his criminal charges by noting that he "was investigated but not prosecuted" on "allegations of stealing a bougainvillea." That is an interesting way to describe someone who was caught on video stealing private property despite clearly placed no trespassing signage before entering a pre-trial diversion program that landed him on criminal probation while in office.
The article does more mental gymnastics to suggest that Van Ostenbridge has matured in the second half of his term. It dances around the narcissism in his interview responses and ignores the much more severe controversies he has been embroiled in more recently. It says nothing about the clear evidence that he has been abusing his position to direct staff, sometimes insisting that they violate county policies. It does not mention that he led the board’s move to eviscerate our county’s wetland protections or that Kruse fought him tooth and nail on the issue.
The article does not even mention impact fees, let alone the fact that Van Ostenbridge’s plan surrendered around $600 million to developers over the next four years while Kruse fought to make them pay their fair share for the rampant growth they are profiting from. It does not mention steering HR contracts to a political supporter without relevant experience. It does mention that the ethics commission "cleared" him on attempting to use public funds to purchase detailed voter data but does not explain that nearly 20,000 voters nevertheless had very personal information made public as a result.
The article credits Van Ostenbridge for being interested in solving real problems like infrastructure but doesn’t mention that his impact fee giveaway led to numerous infrastructure projects being delayed indefinitely, which Kruse loudly objected to throughout the process. It talks about his desire to tackle real issues like our abysmal traffic gridlock but doesn't explain that he has completely ignored the real issue in the central corridor while focusing on rural roadways where developers want to put even more homes. It ignores his expensive and childish war with the City of Holmes Beach, which manifested after the city’s mayor declined to endorse him in 2020.
The editorial board’s main criticism of Kruse is that, as the only non-developer-owned commissioner on the BOCC, he is isolated and, therefore, less likely to be effective than Van Ostenbridge. The author suggests that if Kruse were not on the BOCC, commissioners would have fewer “distractions.” Well, that last part is true in that if there were only seven developer puppets on the BOCC, they would not have to waste time hurling insults at Kruse each time he tries to give voice to the concerns of the BOCC’s actual constituents—the people of Manatee County.
Perhaps the editorial board is unaware that four of the seven seats on the BOCC are up for grabs in this year’s election or that there is at least one grassroots candidate in each race, giving voters a chance to flip the board if those who are actually paying attention can ignore the onslaught of misinformation via the hundreds of millions of dollars in developer-sponsored PAC ads and apparently the once legitimate news publications that now seem intent on providing them with an assist.
Perhaps they are also unaware that we are about to undertake a complete overhaul of Manatee County's land development code and that if developers own the board during the process, it is game over. Or perhaps they need to sell ads for homes in all of those communities that those developers are building badly enough to sell their souls in the process.
If you want to read an endorsement article on this race that actually considers all of those matters, you can find it here. Pass it along to friends, and make sure you remind every Republican voter you know to get to the polls tomorrow. A lot of people and platforms may be in the bag for developers, but as Richey's Chocolates on Manatee Ave.'s sign read this weekend, nothing scares a bad politician more than an informed voter.
Dennis "Mitch" Maley is an editor and columnist for The Bradenton Times and the host of our weekly podcast. With over two decades of experience as a journalist, he has covered Manatee County government since 2010. He is a graduate of Shippensburg University and later served as a Captain in the U.S. Army. Click here for his bio. He is also the author of three novels and a short story collection, which can be found here.
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jimandlope
Yes, saw this endorsement in today’s paper. Could not believe they did so especially in that they are Sarasota directed and as you said not very involved in Manatee County’s politics. The timing is also suspect in that tomorrow is the day? Jim Tierney
Monday, August 19 Report this
rjckeuka4
Did Beoruff and Neal buy the H-T too?? I need to re-consider my subscription!
Monday, August 19 Report this
sandy
Makes me sick that the HT endorsed KVO. In the article they even said he had a reputation for discord, disorder, divisiveness and outrage. Why would anyone in their right mind want a commissioner with this reputation? We need a commissioner who will work with others without going on a rant and rave like KVO did during the wetland debacle. They also said he was one of the cockiest politicians you are likely to meet. How much did they get paid for the endorsement? Hate to say this, I might just move back to where I came from as this county is not the "paradise" my late husband and I moved to 30 years ago.
Monday, August 19 Report this
Dave
One of your better pieces.
Monday, August 19 Report this
Debann
I wonder how much one gets paid for writing a fluff piece about one of the WORST SITTING COMMISSIONERS EVER...CAN'T WAIT TO VOTE FOR GEORGE KRUSE TOMORROW...I dropped that paper years ago...it's only good for kitty litter and dead fish.
Monday, August 19 Report this
sandy
KVO joked in the Observer that his grandmother said Bradenton was becoming a concrete jungle when they four-laned Manatee Ave. She must be turning over in her grave to see what has happened since her grandson has been a commissioner. A lot of our advisory boards have all but disappeared cos he won't vote for anyone who is not "like minded" and that included people who had been on the boards and wanted to continue. He is a megalomaniac.
Monday, August 19 Report this
Clindgren58
Unbelievable! We canceled our subscription & let Mr Rochester & Mr Brown know they are completely out of touch with Manatee County!
Monday, August 19 Report this
ner125
I smell Pedicini….
Monday, August 19 Report this
misty
Either the HT succumbed to the financial threats of the cabal or they are more out of touch with Manatee than Kim Kardashian is at a thrift store.
Monday, August 19 Report this
timrocklein
"....regurgitating police reports, telling you who won high school sporting events, what restaurants have roaches and rodents, new routes at SRQ, and who is coming to the Van Wezel." Well put, Mitch. But what about their multi-page "coverage" regarding where to find the cheapest hearing aids, and furniture on sale? I'm asking for a friend.....
Monday, August 19 Report this
kmskepton
Cancelled my subscription immediately. Thank you, Mitch et al, for continuing to keep us abreast of real news in Manatee County!
Tuesday, August 20 Report this
Ray
I want to know how they got our cell phone number? Is this from the KVO data search?
Tuesday, August 20 Report this
Dianna
It is sad that HT has let down our community by endorsing KVO. Apparently, developer donations are worth more than the community that they serve. After I started watching BOCC meetings in 2016, I sadly discovered that our local print paper was not always accurately covering meetings nor were they covering the most important topics discussed at the meetings. Neither were the local news channels. This was when we discovered TBT, who has ALWAYS accurately discussed the issues in our county, provided proof, and commentary on the issues. We love podcasts, especially when you discuss all the things that you can’t necessarily fit into the articles. We value TBT and we appreciate and applaud your efforts!
Tuesday, August 20 Report this
mp1616
Something is rotten in the state of the Herald-Tribune. In fact, it's the only Manatee race that they felt compelled to endorse? How about the SOE race featuring an incompetent election denier vs. a competent 20+ year deputy SOE? I think that would warrant an endorsement, no? Would be interesting to investigate who is on this editorial board.
Tuesday, August 20 Report this
charliekennedy
fortunately, no one give a rat's butt what the SHT (shlt) "editorial board" thinks. And as Mitch mentioned, probably 60% of votes were already cast before election day. That paper has fallen so far, so quickly. Sub cancelled here too.
Tuesday, August 20 Report this
joni.corcoran
I have cancelled my subscription!
Friday, August 23 Report this