FLORIDA OFFICIAL HITS ILLEGAL OPERATIONS OF EX-TRUMP LAWYER

Florida’s Democratic agriculture commissioner, whose office polices charities, alleged over the weekend that a group run by one of former President Donald Trump’s most prominent election conspiracy adherents is illegally seeking donations in the state, Terry Spencer reported for the Associated Press (AP).

Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried said her office has filed an administrative complaint against attorney Sidney Powell’s Defending the Republic group demanding that it obey state law or cease Florida operations.

The group receives donations to support her discredited allegations that Trump actually won the November election over President Joe Biden. A voting machine company that has sued Powell for defamation alleges that she siphons off money from the charity to pay for her own legal defense.

“When asking people in Florida for donations and you don’t follow the law and if you misrepresent and deceive what you are doing, we will hold you accountable, no matter who you are,” said Fried, Florida’s only statewide elected Democrat.

She is seeking her party’s nomination to challenge Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, a close Trump ally, in next year’s election.

The two have spent the last several months openly showing their disdain for each other, with Fried calling DeSantis an authoritarian whose far-right agenda is sowing seeds for a 2024 presidential run. He calls her a do-nothing who spends her time on social media seeking campaign donors in California and New York.

Fried and Rick Kimsey, her director of consumer services, said Defending the Republic has not registered with their agency as required by state law or filed financial disclosures that show how revenue is spent, even though its website told donors it had done both. The group could be fined $15,000 and receive a cease and desist order if it fails to comply within three weeks.

Fried and Kimsey said when their office contacted Defending the Republic after receiving a complaint about the website, its officials claimed it must be run by another similarly named group. But Fried and Kimsey said the investigation showed the domain name is owned by Powell. She is best known for saying in November that a lawsuit she filed would unleash a Kraken, a mythical sea creature, which would destroy Biden’s claim on the White House. It went nowhere.

WEEKLY FEATURE : PAL READY TO SOAR WITH PANDEMIC