It was deleted within seconds, but an errant Twitter message yesterday afternoon from U.S. Senate candidate George LeMieux was around long enough to gain notice. "Remember to touch base with Lew," it read. "They should be able to do 100k. Thanks, Ed."
So who is Lew, and who is Ed?
The LeMieux campaign isn't saying. But political operatives and observers think it's either Lew Oliver, a lawyer, or Lew Hey, chairman of NextEra Energy, a subsidiary of Florida Power & Light. Hey was a supporter of Charlie Crist's failed U.S. Senate campaign and FP&L $1 million to Crist's 2008 Amendment 1 campaign to cut property taxes.
Ed could be Ed Tancer, a shareholder in LeMieux's lawfirm, whose last employer was NextEra Energy. Tancer left NextEra after reports that he organized a party for a utility regulator during the Kentucky Derby.
You can bet LeMieux's rivals are scouring the public record for connections to FP&L, his campaign contributions and any actions he took while serving as a interim U.S. Senator. A financial disclosure LeMieux filed with the Senate showed that FP&L was among his many lawfirm clients after he left Gov. Crist's office and opened the lobbying practice of Gunster Law.
LeMieux brushed off the mis-Tweet yesterday with another Tweet.
"Made a mistake. Onward! George."
Posted by Alex Leary, St. Petersburg Times
It certainly wasn't Lew Oliver, the switch hitter from Orange County. He couldn't raise funds at a girl scout bake sale.
Posted by: Pepe | July 22, 2011 at 07:59 PM
Good catch, Herald!! It appears he accidentally Tweeted a forwarded note from Ed Tancer. they will be filing their new rate with the PSC shortly, and they think - ONCE AGAIN - they have it greased. FPL's corporate arrogance knows no bounds. Lets see if they figured out how to use slick accounting tricks to hide the fact that ratepayers are subsidizing their corporate jet travel.
This will be a great one to follow over the course of the next few months. Thank you to the Herald for continuing to stay on the story.
Posted by: I use megawatts not kilowatts | July 25, 2011 at 10:28 AM