When Are We Going To Woke Up
Governor Ron DeSantis prides himself on being our protector from “woke corporations.” However, when it comes to how he reacts as governor in steering business to campaign contributors and running for president, different rules apply…especially to Florida pension funds that DeSantis oversees.
As one of the trustees, along with Attorney General Moody and Chief Financial Officer Patronis, DeSantis has consistently steered funds to Wall Street firms that have donated to his political committees. What is really shocking is that the firms chosen are high-risk, high-fee alternatives to safer more conventional investment funds.
The Lever, an online journal, found that the state pension fund would have $10 billion more if the board had invested in a low-cost index fund. One of DeSantis’ decisions, according to the publication, has been to give Aeolus Capital Management Hedge Fund $50 million of the pension fund to invest. The fund over DeSantis’ first term as governor delivered a .7% annual return compared to an average of 15.75% for an S&P 500 index of major stocks. The major figure in this fund is Paul Singer, a large Republican contributor.
Several fund owners are heavy contributors to Republicans, especially the governor. Is this pay to play or does DeSantis just like taking chances with the retirements of Florida’s civil servants? The governor, who has been playing up his working man roots on the campaign trail, is sure being cavalier about the futures of the state’s workers.
The Washington Post uncovered that the governor gave $92 million in covid relief funds for Mori Hosseini’s new I-95 interchange near Daytona Beach. Mr. Hosseini is a DeSantis friend and contributor. The interchange will be for his development project called Woodhaven. I don’t know whether this is a good project or not…though it is controversial.
Hosseini contributed at least $361,000 to political groups that benefited DeSantis’ re-election for governor. He also donated a $27,500 golf simulator for the governor’s mansion. DeSantis has used Hosseini’s private plane for numerous trips.
Ron DeSantis ran on the platform to drain the Tallahassee swamp. If anything, he has enlarged the wetlands around the Florida capital. He tells us he wants to bring his standards to Washington. That isn’t a promising sign.
The most interesting thing was his veto to accept two federal block grants totaling $29 million in May that required no state match. Because of the vetoes, Florida was automatically withdrawn from a program that would have given Floridians $346 million through a rebate program that also did not require state matching funds. The initial $29 million grant was for the state to establish parameters for distributing the funds.
The Florida Department of Energy had plans for consumer type programs including rebates to Florida homeowners and residents for smart thermostats and energy efficient appliances. Now the $346 million will go elsewhere for distribution. It appears that Florida is the only state that refused to take the money.
While DeSantis gave no reason for his vetoes of the original grant, politicos suspect it is to say on the presidential campaign trail that he refused Biden money for “woke” energy projects. Why would I want to vote for a guy that would rather make a campaign speech than put money in the pockets of his constituents?
I am no fan of Donald Trump, but he and I grew up in the same part of the country and in the commercial real estate business. I think he would agree with me and call DeSantis a dope for turning down free money with no strings. If anything, Trump would turn it around and say Biden is the chump for having such a plan and then take credit for giving Floridians a tax break.
