It’s not that it’s an attack against Congressman Charlie Crist that has people riled up. We expect that. Heck, we like it. It’s more like the tacit endorsement of guardianship programs that often target and abuse the elderly that is rubbing people the wrong way.
And it’s a blatant dis to our querida Britney Spears.
The Republican Party of Florida — or, rather, someone who used to be on the staff — made a big booboo Thursday when they chose the wrong topic to tweet an intended jab at Crist, who is running in the Democratic primary to challenge Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and is considered the frontrunner.
“Charlie Crist: focused on the issues he thinks really matter in Florida,” the early afternoon tweet said. It was referring to Crist’s invitation to Britney Spears to go to Congress to talk about her experience in freeing herself from her guardianship after 13 years.
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Um, yeah, guardianships and the abuse associated with conservatorships — which almost always targets the elderly — matter in Florida. Duh! It’s a national issue, but the problem is so bad in retiree-rich Florida — with guardians and lawyers selling assets of seniors without their knowledge or consent — that The Florida Court Clerks and Comptroller’s Association last year created a Guardianship Improvement Task Force.
Crist has co-sponsored bi-partisan legislation in Congress, introduced last July, to establish federal regulation of guardianship and conservatorship programs, like the one that controlled every aspect of Spears’ life. Key word: Bipartisan. The Freedom and Right to Emancipate from Exploitation, or FREE Act, “would establish federal safeguards through a four-pronged approach to protect Americans under guardianship and conservatorship from abuse and exploitation.”
In December, Crist invited Spears, who freed herself from her father’s guardianship grip last year after in a prolonged, public battle, to speak before Congress about her experience. Her father Jamie Spears was her court-appointed guardian following a public breakdown in 2007.
The RPOF faux pas gave the Crist campaign a perfect opportunity to embarrass them.
“The Republican Party of Florida and Ron DeSantis are so desperate to attack Charlie Crist’s record, that they’ve gone as far as supporting elder abuse,” said Crist campaign press secretary Samantha Ramirez, in a statement. “For years, an alarming number of Florida seniors and vulnerable people with disabilities have been trapped in abusive guardianships, their life’s savings stolen, isolated from any contact with family and friends, with no way out and no one to turn to.
“If they had any shame, the RPOF would apologize to the countless Floridians and their families who have suffered from guardianship abuse,” Ramirez said.
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But that was soft compared to the reaction on social media. Some responses:
- “Speaking of conservatorships, does Trump still have a lot of influence over the GOP?”
- “So you don’t care about abusive conservatorships or you don’t want Florida’s government to care? I’m confused.”
- “It’s seriously sad that you think your tweet is some sort of sick burn against Crist. This is a bipartisan concern.”
- “This is an interesting subject as we just learned that my parents and the parents of an in law were talked into irrevocable trusts that were not in fact trusts. Shyster GOP lawyers!”
- “DIDN’T @REPMATTGAETZ SPEND AN AWFUL LOT OF FLOOR TIME SIMPING FOR BRITNEY NOT TOO LONG AGO?”
Ouch.
Among the replies was a barb back from former GOP State Rep. and lawyer to the pols J.C. Planas, who recently switched to the Democratic Party.
“Actually, a lot of elderly in our state get robbed of property and money by abusive conservatorships,” Planas tweeted. “You would know that if you weren’t busy hurting immigrant kids, restricting minority votes, stopping gay teens from coming out and legislating away women’s reproductive rights.”
Double ouch.
RPOF apologist Helen Aguirre Ferre, who may even have been the one to post the original offense, tried to make Crist look like an opportunist and just made things worse. “Don’t fall for this Brittany! Charlie’s just another grifter trying to gain from your hard work and talent,” she tweeted from her own account.
Yes, she spelled the superstar’s name wrong. ¡Que pena! But also, turns out she is the opportunist.
Funny she uses the word grifter. That’s the same word Congressman Matt Gaetz used to describe the people taking advantage of Spears’ through her old guardianship. Aguirre must have forgotten, however, how many Republicans, including Gaetz — who yelled on a megaphone outside the L.A. courthouse where the guardianship trial was held virtually — have both poured love on Spears and gained from her hard work and talent.
Gaetz had a better word than grifter for the singer’s aprovechado father: Dick. Wonder if he’d use the word on Aguirre or his own party.
Meanwhile, Ms. Spears hasn’t replied to the RPOF jab and might be oblivious to the disrespect, but she did respond to the invitation by Crist and Congressman Eric Swalwell, a fellow Dem from central California.
“I was immediately flattered and at the time I wasn’t nearly at the healing stage I’m in now,” Spears wrote on Instagram. “I’m grateful that my story was even ACKNOWLEDGED 🙏 !!! Because of the letter ✉️, I felt heard and like I mattered for the first time in my life !!!
“In a world 🌎 where your own family goes against you, it’s actually hard to find people that get it and show empathy 🤷♀️🙄 !!!!”
She didn’t say whether she would share her story with Congress. But it sure looks like the invitation mattered to her.
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