Florida State Rep. Alex Andrade is making explosive allegations against Attorney General James Uthmeier’s office that could rock the state capitol. In an exclusive interview airing Friday morning, Andrade claims the AG’s office may have committed criminal violations of Florida’s Public Records Act by giving a Politico reporter exclusive access to 600 pages of documents while denying those same records to Andrade himself.
- The twist that makes this story even more outrageous? The Attorney General’s office literally writes the book on public records compliance – the Government in the Sunshine Manual that all Florida officials are supposed to follow.
But here’s what makes it personal: Andrade, as a House committee chair, had officially requested these exact documents related to Hope Florida and Centene’s Medicaid settlement in April. Instead of receiving them through proper channels, he learned about their existence from a Politico reporter and did not receive any records until hours after Politico published the story.
- “We’re supposed to be taking advice from James Uthmeier about complying with the Public Records Act when he is obviously very comfortable in criminally violating that act,” said Andrade.
The full interview reveals:
- How the AG’s Public Information Officer hand-delivered documents to one reporter
- Why this could constitute criminal behavior punishable by removal from office
- What these records reveal about the Hope Florida Foundation and the settlement
- The suspicious September meeting at the Governor’s office
This story has everything: alleged corruption, hypocrisy at the highest levels, and potential criminal behavior by the very office meant to enforce government transparency.