It must have been a rough week for the Florida Senate. One of their own misbehaved so badly and in such a public way that the guardians of the institution were forced to expel him. To be more accurate, the guardians were ready to do so, but they shamed a former US Marine into submission instead. This must be what happens when term limits force the upper chamber to admit too many members from the unwashed, lower House chamber.
What was this behavior that stood out as so bad, so disruptive, so heinous that Senators themselves felt they knew better than the people of District 40 to determine the fate of their duly elected colleague? What law did this man violate, what crime did this man commit, what sin did he visit upon another human being? Bad actors are not new to elected office in Florida – or anywhere else – this crime must have been exceptional. Spoiler alert: Senator Frank Artilles called people names. While they may have been horrible, nasty, despicable and disgusting names, really – that’s what he did, he called people names, and that’s all that he did. But mind you, these were not just people; they were Senators.
