TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Republicans in Tallahassee are ending an investigation into Hope Florida, even as some vow their push for accountability will continue.
Hope Florida is overseen by Gov. Ron DeSantis and first lady Casey DeSantis.
The pause in the republican-led investigation is happening because witnesses did not show up when they were supposed to testify Thursday.
This means the governor and his wife are temporarily relieved of attacks from fellow Republicans and the investigation.
Lawmakers set off a bomb earlier this month when they accused the DeSantis administration of using Hope Florida to siphon money owned to taxpayers from Medicaid settlements. They compared it to a slush fund that the governor’s allies then used to launch political attacks against marijuana legalization and loosening abortion laws.
The Republican leading the charge says it will not go away, even if witnesses don’t cooperate.
“If someone defrauded the state or a charity out of $10 million, they would go to prison. That occurred,” said Rep. Alex Andrade, R-Pensacola.
One of the people who had agreed to testify serves as the attorney for the Orlando Airport Authority. Lawmakers blasted his reasoning of attorney-client privilege as bogus.
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