Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly and Gov. Ron DeSantis diverge on most aspects of the aftermath of the Hope Florida Foundation scandal that saw $10 million from a Medicaid settlement used to defeat a marijuana legalization constitutional amendment.
But in a rare moment of bipartisan accord during campaign season, Jolly says that attempts to “smear” First Lady Casey DeSantis in the wake of a leaked grand jury report closing the case for lack of a definitive ringleader are misguided.
In comments to reporters on Friday, Jolly said he didn’t “think the First Lady had anything to do with this.”
“I think she was used,” Jolly added, saying that Casey DeSantis provided a convenient distraction from a “sinister plan” in which the $10 million was “laundered … through the First Lady’s charity into two additional entities to use the money for the Governor’s purpose.”
To recap: The money was routed to the Hope Florida Foundation as part of a $67 million deal with Centene to resolve a dispute between the insurance giant and Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration. After the $10 million came from Centene to the Hope Florida Foundation, two nonprofits (Secure Florida’s Future and Save Our Society from Drugs) requested $5 million each from the Hope Florida Foundation. Those groups gave $8.5 million to the “Keep Florida Clean” political action committee. The remaining money was retained in the two groups.
“Keep Florida Clean” was chaired by James Uthmeier, the current appointed Attorney General who was the Governor’s Chief of Staff at the time the money was passed through from one account to the next. He’s defended what critics see as the diversion of funds from Medicaid as a “totally perfect” and “100% legal” deal.
Jolly argues that everyone involved in the arrangement benefited, even if no one took the fall for decision making.
“The cover-up resulted in promotions for the people who did it,” he said, noting that Uthmeier got former AG Ashley Moody‘s job after she was appointed to the Senate, and Moody’s then-deputy John Guard got a judgeship.
Prior to that, Guard’s nomination last year for a U.S. District Court judgeship by President Donald Trump was stalled, with an administration source claiming it wanted to avoid a “nasty confirmation fight.”
Guard also was rebuffed in his bid to join the Florida Supreme Court, which he called the “best legal job” since judges are “kind of responsible for helping with the legitimacy of our core system and maintaining the rule of law” during an interview with the Supreme Court’s Judicial Nominating Commission.
Jolly claimed the promotions ensured “none of them could be called before the grand jury or cooperate.”
While Jolly wants to reopen the investigation, DeSantis and Uthmeier are more focused on the leak of the grand jury report. DeSantis has said there will be consequences for the leaker, and Uthmeier has suggested media questions on the subject of the report are tantamount to criminal solicitation.
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