Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi outlined her agenda for the 2015 legislative session on Wednesday while saying Gov. Rick Scott did nothing wrong with his removal of Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) head Gerald Bailey before pointing the finger at his staff.
Bondi addressed the media at the Florida Legislative Planning Session held by the Associated Press at the Capitol in Tallahassee on Wednesday. Saying she had “grave concerns” with the way Bailey was removed, Bondi said she had no knowledge of the incident before he was dismissed. The attorney general said she did expect some changes as Scott started his second term.
“We all knew there would be changes made in the upcoming months,” Bondi insisted.
Calling him a “personal friend,” Bondi said she would not have backed removing Bailey.
“I would never have agreed to fire Gerry Bailey,” Bondi said. “I assumed he would be retiring soon.”
While she did not name names of staffers she thought were responsible for Bailey’s ouster, Bondi said she did not think Scott was behind his sudden dismissal.
“I did not think the governor knew,” Bondi said. “I think the staff knew it. Someone knew it,”
Bondi noted the Cabinet would meet next week and tackle the issue. She called for more transparency, saying that Pat Gleason from her staff and Barbara Peterson from the First Amendment Foundation should look at the matter.
Bondi adamantly said she has not talked with Scott about the matter. But the governor’s press office noted on Wednesday that Scott’s team had talked to Cabinet staff.
“Did Cabinet staff violate the state’s open meeting laws by having private discussions about Commissioner Bailey?” Scott’s press office included as one of its FAQs on Wednesday. “No. It has been a longstanding convention for governor’s staff to provide information to Cabinet staff. This was the same process the Cabinet staff followed in respect to Gerald Bailey.”
Looking at the upcoming legislative session, Bondi said she would continue her efforts against human trafficking.
“It is alive, it is thriving,” Bondi said about human trafficking. “It is a plague affecting our entire country.”
Bondi called for more safe houses and protecting of the victims of human trafficking, noting that she joined California Attorney General Kamala Harris and three other attorneys general in a trip to Mexico witnessing safe houses.
Last week, Florida Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, R-Fort Myers, and Rep Ross Spano, R-Dover, teamed up to introduce a bill allowing continuing monitoring of pill mills. Right now the state’s monitoring efforts are scheduled to sunset later this year. Bondi called this bill her “biggest legislative priority of 2015.”
Bondi also said she would ramp up her efforts against synthetic drug abuse while continuing her fight against Medicaid fraud and for consumer protection, including for active military personnel and small businesses. She also said she would lead new efforts against bullying.”
Asked about the continued legal fight over same-sex marriage, Bondi said she was glad the U.S. Supreme Court was taking up the issue.
“We want the Supreme Court to take it, they have taken it,” Bondi said. “We will have uniformity across the country.”
Bondi defended her support for the amendment added to the state Constitution by Florida voters in 2008 recognizing only traditional marriage in the Sunshine State.
“It is my job to defend the Constitution whether or not I agree with it,” Bondi said. “I am upholding the Constitution of the state of Florida … that’s my job.”
Addressed by mistake as “Governor” instead of “General” by a member of the media, Bondi said she had no interest in that office or the U.S. Senate.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
