Scott Powers
While Puerto Rico got hammered by Hurricane Maria, U.S. Rep. Darren Soto defended his re-election campaign fundraiser he is holding Wednesday night in Kissimmee, home to Florida’s most concentrated Puerto Rican population.
Soto, a Democrat from Orlando, said he’s been in constant contact with Puerto Rico officials and readying federal financial support for the country’s recovery following both Hurricane Maria and Hurricane Irma, and that those efforts will not be affected by Wednesday night’s event.
His fundraiser, starting at $100 for individual donations and going up to $1,000 donations for hosts, is set for 6 p.m. at the Seasons Florida Resort in Kissimmee.
Soto has touted his Puerto Rican heritage and advocated for Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans in Florida while in Congress. His district, which includes southern Orange County, eastern Polk County and all of Osceola County, has an estimated Puerto Rican population in the hundred thousands.
Hurricane Maria crossed onto the island Wednesday morning as a Category 4 storm and reports of widespread damage and flooding are pouring from the island. The storm is expected to continue to ravage Puerto Rico well into the night.
Criticism of his decision to go forward with the fundraiser has been widespread on social media. Republican Wayne Liebnitzky, who faced Soto in the 2016 election and is campaigning for a rematch in 2018, called Soto’s decision “in poor taste.”
“I think it’s absolutely shocking, disgraceful,” Liebnitzky said. “That event needs to be cancelled. He needs to postpone it to a later date.”
Soto defended the event as not relevant to his efforts to help Puerto Rico.
“I have been in hourly contact with [Puerto Rico] Gov. [Ricardo] Rosselló‘s office, spoke at length with our House Appropriations Chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen today in Jacksonville about Puerto Rico, FEMA funding, and am leading letters to ensure full financial support of Puerto Rico’s recovery over the next few days,” Soto said in a message to Orlando-Rising.com.
“Our efforts and readiness to advocate for an effective federal response will not be affected by an Osceola event with local Democratic activists,” he added.
One comment
David
September 24, 2017 at 8:32 pm
Congressman Darren Soto is an opportunist who touts his “Puerto Rican” heritage for political conveniency. What did he do while in the Florida House and Senate to advance the collective agenda of Puerto Ricans/Latinos in Central Florida? Did he advocate for more equity in the hiring of Latinos in state employment (we are grossly underrepresented)? Did he advocate that Latino serving organizations get their fair share of state resources to help the community (once again grossly underrepresented)? Has he engaged in conversations with the leadership of the unions in Central Florida (who assume we will give them our support although they fail to hire people from our community in their ranks)? Yes, representation is important – but while many of my Boricua/Latino brothers and sisters are drinking the symbolic kool-aid of having the first Puerto Rican elected to Congress from the State of Florida – I am more concerned with action and what concrete steps are being taken besides symbolic ethnic pride in advancing the quality of life for our people. This is not just about Congressman Darren Soto, but of other Puerto Rican/Latino elected officials that use the pain and struggles of our people as leverage to climb the political ladder with their soundbites and talking points- and do little to ensure systemic change and equity across the board.
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