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Council member and Rivera clash over meeting requests and communication

5:52:42

ยท

3 min

Council Member Brooks-Powers and Raul Rivera engage in a heated exchange about past meeting requests and communication issues. The council member defends her willingness to meet with Rivera and other drivers, while Rivera accuses her of changing protocols and being unresponsive.

  • Brooks-Powers insists she has been willing to meet but requires Rivera to follow proper protocols
  • Rivera claims he has attempted to schedule meetings but faces obstacles
  • The exchange becomes increasingly tense, with Rivera ultimately calling for the council member's resignation
  • Brooks-Powers ends the interaction by calling for the next panel
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:52:42
That's what I'm saying.
5:52:43
I know who you are but you come in here and you say that you represent a group that I have not seen.
5:52:49
Right.
5:52:50
You tell me that I do not meet Excuse me.
5:52:52
You tell me that I do not meet with drivers when I have had several meetings with active drivers in my district office.
5:53:01
You also accused me of not being willing to meet with you and my staff has spoke to you countless times and asked you to fill out the same required documentation as everybody else, yet you failed to submit it but continue but continue to attack me and say I do not meet with you and that is not true.
Raul Rivera
5:53:21
No.
5:53:21
We know that you met with us.
5:53:23
You gave us a twenty minute Zoom meeting in 2020
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:53:26
I'm not even talking about that.
5:53:27
Was willing to meet with you in person.
Raul Rivera
5:53:29
You're not doing it.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:53:30
Because you are not submitting the request.
5:53:32
You're not you have not submitted the request form.
Raul Rivera
5:53:36
Sent you, like, four emails.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:53:37
You have not my staff
UNKNOWN
5:53:39
What request form?
5:53:40
Raul.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:53:42
Have you received an email from
Raul Rivera
5:53:43
my scheduler
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:53:44
with a list of questions?
5:53:46
Yes.
5:53:46
But I Have you responded to those questions to my schedule?
Raul Rivera
5:53:48
I did.
5:53:49
Yes.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:53:49
I did.
5:53:49
No.
5:53:49
You did
Raul Rivera
5:53:50
not.
5:53:50
Which well, she's not responding.
5:53:51
Which question?
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:53:52
She sent you an email of questions which you yourself on social media said that it's not fair that I send those questions even though everybody who meets with me answers the same thing.
5:54:03
Who am I meeting with?
5:54:05
You are coming with other people to meet and we have to make sure we have the sufficient office space to make sure people can sit there.
5:54:12
You continue to do propaganda and make accusations
Raul Rivera
5:54:17
against say that about me.
5:54:18
I do not do
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:54:18
propaganda.
5:54:19
Gonna say that
Raul Rivera
5:54:19
because you
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:54:20
say it about me and it's untrue.
5:54:22
What I'm saying is I'm saying it on the record publicly.
5:54:26
I have been willing to meet with you in person.
5:54:29
When you see me on the street and you run up on me every time, I have stopped I have stopped to speak to you.
5:54:35
Okay?
5:54:35
So I'm not scared to speak to you, but you cannot continue to do this.
Raul Rivera
5:54:39
Nobody Let me finish.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:54:42
I am willing to meet with you, but you must follow the proper steps and protocol and then we will have that meeting.
Raul Rivera
5:54:49
Yeah.
5:54:49
But you're changing it up.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:54:50
I have not changed
Gale A. Brewer
5:54:51
it up.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:54:51
I have one line of email that every single person that requests to meet with me gets the same email.
Raul Rivera
5:54:57
Hold on.
5:54:58
Hold on.
5:54:58
That's false because when we had the first meeting, you didn't request that.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:55:02
When we had the first meeting, I was a new council member.
Raul Rivera
5:55:05
You was a council member?
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:55:06
I was a new council member.
Raul Rivera
5:55:07
Regardless.
5:55:08
We are
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:55:08
four years later.
5:55:09
For the last two and a half, three years, we've been using the same What's
Raul Rivera
5:55:13
the big deal?
5:55:14
You know who I am.
5:55:14
I can bring five drivers.
5:55:15
Raul, can bring 50 drivers.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:55:18
Just answered.
5:55:19
But I appreciate you coming and advocating and I thank you for your And again, if you would like to meet with me, I would like you to respond to that email.
Raul Rivera
5:55:29
No.
5:55:30
We we already tried.
5:55:31
You what what we want is for you to resign.
5:55:34
That's what we want.
5:55:35
We want you to leave.
5:55:36
That's what we want.
5:55:37
And when you win reelection, you're gonna win reelection because nobody's running against you.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:55:44
Thank you,
Raul Rivera
5:55:45
Four years.
5:55:45
You've been a council member four years.
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:55:47
Thank you Raul.
Raul Rivera
5:55:48
How come it took so long?
5:55:49
You know about
Selvena N. Brooks-Powers
5:55:50
We'll be calling the next panel.
5:55:51
Thank you.
5:55:53
Sergeants, we can have them removed.
5:55:54
Thank you.
5:55:55
The next panel will be Sally Burns, Darnell Steele McCrory, Jackson Chabot, and Ben Furness, and William Medina.
5:56:30
William, I'm not sure which one is William.
5:56:31
Sorry.
5:56:32
But you can come off mute and start.
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