The political wounds we thought had healed may have reopened in Tallahassee.
Gov. Ron DeSantis used an entire hour at his Wednesday press conference to lash out at the members of the House of Representatives and its leadership.
Watch NBC6 free wherever you are
WATCH HEREAnd the bickering doesn’t seem to have an end in sight.
“Something is rotting over there,” DeSantis said in a press conference, where he blasted the House for defunding the Florida Highway Patrol.
Get local news you need to know to start your day with NBC 6's News Headlines newsletter.
SIGN UP
DeSantis claims a House proposal would eliminate 84 active State Trooper positions, something the union called “troubling.”
“The Governor's remarks echo the growing frustration felt by Florida Troopers and other state law enforcement professionals who risk their lives daily with diminishing support and resources,” said Spencer Ross, president of the Florida Highway Patrol, FOP 198.
An underfunded FHP has been an issue for years, including the six years DeSantis has occupied the governor’s mansion.
Local
But the governor used his bully pulpit and the FHP issue to lambast the State House.
“They are the least productive Florida House of Representatives that we have had in the modern history of the Florida Republican party,” DeSantis said. “It’s really a pathetic agenda.”
The governor’s latest attack on the House is a clear sign of an ongoing civil war within the GOP, including the controversy over the Hope Florida Foundation, an organization founded by Casey DeSantis, the governor’s wife.
On Tuesday, the president of Hope Florida Foundation, Joshua Hay, was questioned by the members of the Health Care Budget Subcommittee.
“In recent weeks, the public reporting has made evident that mistakes were made,” Hay said.
Alex Andrade, State Representative from Pensacola, is accusing the non-profit of receiving a $10 million donation from the state's largest Medicaid managed-care provider, Centene Corporation.
“Do you believe that donating the money to the Republican Party of Florida, donating it to Gov. DeSantis’ Florida Freedom Fund PAC, or paying for legal services and advertising are proper uses of those funds out of the Hope Florida Foundation’s account?” Andrade asked during the hearing.
Centene was fined by the state millions of dollars for Medicaid overbilling.
And Andrade said $10 million of settlement funds were sent to the first lady’s welfare-assistance program – the Hope Florida Foundation – to fight against the amendment that would have legalized marijuana.
“The whole thing that the house leadership is doing is a manufactured fraud. This is a hoax,” DeSantis said of the accusations against his wife’s non-profit.
The infighting between the governor and the legislature first became public in January when the House and Senate defied the governor by wrapping up a special legislative session DeSantis had called and started their own, sending a message of their autonomy.
At that point, legislative leaders from both chambers called the governor’s special session premature.
“It's fascinating to watch the legislature actually challenge the governor, something we haven't seen in six years,” said Alex Penelas, NBC6 political analyst, who added politics is at play in this ongoing bickering.
Penelas pointed to the ongoing political loyalty war as now some state republican legislators are publicly supporting the president’s candidate for governor – Byron Donalds -- not Casey DeSantis, who is rumored as a possible candidate to replace her husband.
On Wednesday, House Speaker Danny Perez told reporters in Tallahassee the governor has been having “temper tantrums” and that he is lying about several issues.
Perez added the House will not be bullied.
