AMARILLO, TEXAS -- Tempers flared Tuesday at Amarillo's City Hall, as Mayor Debra McCartt and City Commissioners decided to finally speak up and defend themselves.
They say, after months of being skewered by public comment, they had had enough.
"Why do you all continue week after week to come up here and criticize us, throw rocks and stones at us when we cannot defend ourselves?" A statement from Debra McCartt during the meeting.
Mayor McCartt says she had finally reached her limit of sitting back and listening to false accusations.
"Their accusations that have been made for many many weeks that are absolutely not true, I don't know, I felt like it was time for us to be able to speak out. It's probably not as professional to do that, but I knew that this was the day."
But the Mayor wasn't the only one who had hit that point.
"I guarendamntee you I try to serve all of the city of Amarillo and I would like to flip this question around, what have you done recently? All you naysayers, what have you done for this community recently?" Said Jim Simms, City Commissioner Place Four during the meeting.
"Ultimately I think it has become a little bit personal, so we made a decision today to finally respond to some of those charges of an undercurrent of inappropriate operations and the fact that our city is operating in a very efficient manner," said Brian Eades, City Commissioner Place Two.
McCartt says the fact she and two of the commissioners aren't running for re-election gave them a little wiggle room to respond.
"I know that the three of us are leaving and I think it does probably give us a little more freedom to say how we really feel and how much we care about this community. And not just sit back and listen to the negative comments that are being made every single week, for months they've been happening."
But if she were running again, would she have handled the comments differently?
"I feel like if I were to continue to go on I'd be able to stand up to it again, however, now that I am leaving I feel like it's important that our voices are heard as well and we are people, we love serving this community, we are a commission that was elected by the people and we're here to serve."
McCartt also said she felt good about speaking out and she also felt good that all the commissioners wanted to tell their side, and why they think it's important to be elected officials.
