Millionaire businessman Carlos Beruff is weighing whether to join the already crowded and “chippy” GOP field to replace Marco Rubio in Florida. Beruff may try to frame himself as the outsider, but don’t be fooled – he is a longtime Republican insider with a collection of influential political appointments and a long history of trading money for influence:
· Beruff has contributed more than $200,000 to Florida Republican politicians in an attempt to buy influence for his businesses.
· Beruff was the Chair of the Southwest Florida Management District, where he was accused of rigging a building permit on wetlands for a former business partner.
· Beruff was the Chair of Rick Scott’s Commission on Healthcare and Hospital Funding, despite having no experience in medicine.
· Beruff was the Chair of the State College of Florida Board of Trustees, where he pushed to eliminate professor tenure.
· Beruff was the Chair of the Sarasota-Manatee Airport Authority. Stay tuned to see what went wrong there.
Beruff’s troubling record would give his would-be primary opponents plenty of material to hit him with, and also force Governor Rick Scott to make an uncomfortable choice between his own Lieutenant Governor Carlos Lopez-Cantera and Beruff, a longtime friend who he hasrepeatedly praised.
“Carlos Beruff has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars over several years making sure he was a part of Florida’s Republican circle – it’s laughable that he’d try to cast himself as an outsider,” said Lauren Passalacqua, DSCC National Press Secretary. “Beruff’s potential candidacy would just add another out-of-touch candidate who is too extreme for Florida into the bruising primary fight. This is truly Republicans’ nightmare situation.”
