Grayson on “Textgate” Findings: Jacobs, Commissioners Cravenly Sold-Out to Corporate Interests

Congressman Alan Grayson (Florida’s 9th District) reacted Wednesday to State Attorney Jeff Aston’s findings that Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs and several commissioners broke the law when they deleted text messages exchanged with lobbyists, during a hearing on Orange County’s earned sick leave voter initiative.

Grayson issued the following statement:

“This report confirms that commissioners violated Florida’s public records law by deleting text messages exchanged with corporate lobbyists during a hearing on the earned sick leave initiative, when those lobbyists and the head of the local Republican Party sought to block and defeat that initiative. I applaud the State Attorney for giving a precise and accurate answer to the legal question of whether Mayor Jacobs and the Commissioners violated the law when they deleted those texts, and I applaud his willingness to punish them for their transgressions.

“There are, however, larger issues at stake. Tens of thousands of local citizens joined together to establish by petition a right to earned sick leave, for the benefit of their health, their families, and Central Florida’s economy. In response, Mayor Jacobs and County Commissioners secretly schemed and collaborated with the Republican Party and corporate lobbyists to thwart the will of the voters. They chose to elevate selfish corporate interests over the public interest. And then they got caught, red-handed.

“The Mayor and these Commissioners defied our democratic process. That is unacceptable. These Commissioners work for us, and it’s time for them to act like it. No one can serve two masters. If they want to serve selfish corporate interests, then they should be lobbyists, not elected officials. And after the next election, that’s what they should expect to be. The citizens of Orange County will not forget their craven sellout, nor will we stop fighting for earned sick leave.

“If one of my five children were to go to school sick, he or she promptly would be sent home for the day. But when an adult employee in Orange County is sick, he or she is forced to go to work and remain at work all day, worsening the condition and risking the spread of disease. What is the sense of that? Why do we permit greed to trump common sense and decency? And why didn’t these elected officials see it that way?”