On the most recent episode of The Dallas Express Podcast, host Sarah Zubiate-Bennett sat down with her husband Monty Bennett, CEO of Ashford Inc. and publisher of The Dallas Express, to discuss the resignation of Dallas City Manager T.C. Broadnax and the potential for legalized gambling in the Lone Star State.
The two opened the episode discussing Broadnax’s resignation — which will become effective June 3 — and the effect his departure might have on the Dallas City Council’s spending habits.
Bennett claimed that Broadnax was a “terrible city manager,” adding that the question moving forward will be whether the Dallas City Council hires “some terrible city manager from another city or will they find someone that has better experience in actually running something efficiently?”
“It could be another city manager that’s very good or even someone from the business world to run it a lot better and a lot more efficiently,” he said.
“And it’s a shame that it’s taken this long for him to leave us. He’s been here since, I believe, 2016, and the City has dropped in performance in every area that The Dallas Express measures,” he added.
Bennett further explained that many people were affected by Broadnax’s tenure, noting that it affected both residents and members of the Dallas City Council.
“What’s a real shame about it is not just the citizens of the city and the suffering they’ve gone through — with the increase in crime, the dirty streets, the rampant homelessness — but also the city council people themselves. They have taken big political hits for this,” he said. “Hits that might affect the rest of their careers.”
“Whether it’s [to] continue to be on the city council, or if they have other aspirations, or in business, or whatever they may do, because they have let this gentleman stay far too long … it has hurt them politically,” Bennett said.
Zubiate-Bennett moved the conversation to the potential for legalized gambling in Texas.
“There’s people that are really pushing sports betting, and betting at race tracks, and these kinds of things. And then typical casino gambling. And some people are pushing both. Some are pushing one over the other, thinking that only one will pass versus the other,” he explained.
Bennett said he could “see it coming at some point” but added that he was personally against legalization.
“I could only support gambling if I felt like it would come in in such a way that it would help the surrounding communities, help alleviate homelessness, not just throwing a bunch of money to the same old solutions that don’t work,” he said.
Before implementing legalized gambling in Dallas, Bennett said he would prefer the City focus on fixing the issues downtown, noting that “everything emanates from downtown, and we have too many problems.”
“So, in order for gambling to come through, I think that the proponents need to get other people onboard, such as myself and yourself, to show us that this is going to really help our community and that there’s safeguards in place to really help our community and not let the worst parts of gambling lift its ugly head,” he added.
The full interview is available on The Dallas Express website or on YouTube.
Viewers are encouraged to like, share, and tag at least two friends to register for a free giveaway courtesy of Zubiate-Bennett, who is putting up a free IV therapy drip from Hello Hydration, among other prizes.
