For all intents and purposes, Gov. Ron DeSantis has spent months positioning himself for a presidential campaign. Watching the Florida Republican travel the nation, hire staff, and line up allies, his national ambitions weren’t exactly a secret.
With this in mind, it stands to reason that the governor and his political operation also tried to raise as much money as possible in order to help fuel his GOP candidacy. But what if the fundraising efforts went beyond just DeSantis and his political operation? NBC News reported:
Officials who work for Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration — not his campaign — have been sending text messages to Florida lobbyists soliciting political contributions for DeSantis’ presidential bid, a breach of traditional norms that has raised ethical and legal questions and left many here in the state capital shocked. … [The practice was] jaw-dropping for those who have long been involved in Florida politics.
NBC News’ report explained that the network reviewed text messages from four DeSantis administration officials, including those directly in the governor’s office and with leadership positions in state agencies, who requested contributions.
The New York Times published a related report a day later, noting that when DeSantis administration officials solicited donations from lobbyists, they blurred the line “between his taxpayer-funded office and his political campaign.”
It’s a tough dynamic to defend. In Florida, the governor has not yet signed the state’s budget. It’s against this backdrop that powerful officials in DeSantis’ administration — whose salaries are paid by taxpayers, and who have responsibilities to serve the public, not a campaign — are asking lobbyists to make campaign contributions to their ambitious boss.
One longtime Florida lobbyist told NBC News, “The bottom line is that the administration appears to be keeping tabs on who is giving, and are doing it using state staff. You are in a…
Read the full article here