Jesse Scheckner
Tracy Caruso already wears several hats, but she’s donning another.
She’s an editor for Florida Jolt, a conservative news media website. She’s a candidate for House District 87, where she hopes to succeed her term-limited husband, Republican Rep. Mike Caruso, an ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
She’s also Chair of the Palm Beach County Housing and Finance Authority and a Board member of the Health Care District of Palm Beach County — both through appointment by DeSantis.
Now she’s taking on a third DeSantis-appointed role, subject to Senate approval, as the newest member of the Palm Beach State College Board of Trustees.
DeSantis’ Office announced Caruso’s appointment and the reappointment of Board member Daniel Epstein, an adviser to the U.S. Department of Commerce, on Friday. He didn’t include any personal statement.
Caruso, who previously ran for Delray Beach Mayor, is President of Delray Beach Executive Suites, a private rental company she runs with her husband.
She’s given sparingly to political campaigns. At the state level, she gave $1,100 to Hispanic Vote of Palm Beach County, a political committee run by Financial Management Strategies CEO Jorge Garrido, and about $100 to her husband’s 2018 and 2022 campaigns.
At the federal level, she gave $700 in 2019 to the Republican Party of Florida and $382 between 2016 and 2020 to President Donald Trump’s election and re-election efforts.
Delray Beach Executive Suites also gave $250 to Hillsborough County Republican Rep. Danny Alvarez in 2019 and $1,000 in 2021 to Democrat Katherine Waldron, who in November lost her House District 93 seat in Palm Beach County to Republican Anne Gerwig, a former Wellington Mayor.
Caruso holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from New York University.
The Palm Beach State College Board of Trustees governs the school’s direction, finances and overall governance. It consists of five citizen members and a student trustee. All citizen members are appointed by the Governor and typically serve staggered, three-year terms.
Epstein’s reappointment comes a year and three months after DeSantis first named him to the Board. He is an assistant professor of law at St. Thomas University, a private Catholic institution in Miami Gardens, but it’s his political involvements that have garnered him press.
Epstein is Vice President of America First Legal, an organization founded and led by Trump policy adviser Stephen Miller that bills itself as “the long-awaited answer” to the American Civil Liberties Union.
In February, he was part of James Uthmeier’s transition team after DeSantis tapped Uthmeier to succeed Ashley Moody as Attorney General, according to his LinkedIn page.
Epstein, of Boca Raton, is among Trump’s many lawyers and is currently representing the President in a lawsuit against CBS over the network’s allegedly deceptive editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris.
Last week, a mediator recommended CBS settle for $20 million.
According to his St. Thomas University bio, Epstein’s writing has been published in an array of popular media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and The Washington Post. He’s also appeared on Fox News, ABC, CBS and NBC.
Among his writings: a February 2024 article for The Federalist titled, “How Obama’s Secrets Could Save Trump In His Mar-A-Lago Documents Snafu.”
Epstein holds a doctorate in political economy from George Washington University, a Juris Doctor from Emory University and a bachelor’s degree in political philosophy from Kenyon College.
He also serves as a Commissioner for the 4th District Court of Appeal Judicial Nominating Commission.
