Haridopolos admits under oath his Greer answer "was not the whole story"

Senate President Mike Haridopolos, in sworn testimony in the Jim Greer case, now admits not telling the truth last year when he denied that he and other party leaders signed a confidential agreement to force Greer's ouster.

"I believe what I told him was not the whole story, yeah," Haridopolos says in reference to the videotaped interview with Miami Herald reporter Marc Caputo in 2010.

In the deposition conducted last week in Tallahassee, Greer's attorney, Damon Chase, asked Haridopolos why he denied any knowledge of the agreement. The senator's explanation: "I said the contrary, because I thought I wasn't allowed to talk about it."

"Was it the truth that you did not sign the agreement?" Chase asked Haridopolos during the approximate 90-minute deposition.

"Well, I signed the agreement in January," Haridopolos replied.

Haridopolos is one of numerous GOP notables being placed under oath in the case, in which Greer faces fraud and money laundering charges. The Senate president co-signed a severance agreement to pay Greer $124,000 to step down, and testified that he was unaware at the time that Greer had formed a secret consulting company that was receiving party funds. 

Also in the deposition, Haridopolos calls Greer "incredibly unpopular and arrogant," so Chase asked the senator why he agreed to a glowing public statement about Greer on Jan. 5, 2010, when he resigned as chairman. Said Haridopolos: "It was a political statement." 

-- Steve Bousquet

Comments

[Al Swanson]

What chapter in his book covers issuing statements about disgraced GOP party bosses?

[Kathy Henley]

I guess lying in a deposition ... a court proceeding...doesn't violate Haridopolus' oath of office, so when someone files an ethics complaint against him, the Florida Commission on Ethics will come up with a finding that somehow exonerates him. To bad.

The oath of office he took:

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support, protect, and defend the Constitution and Government of the United States and of the State of Florida; that I am duly qualified to hold office under the Constitution of the state; and that I will well and faithfully perform the duties of (title of office) on which I am now about to enter. So help me God.”, and thereafter shall devote personal attention to the duties of the office, and continue in office until a successor qualifies.

[Preston Scott]

Kathy...did you read Steve Bousquet wrote? Haridopolos did NOT lie during a deposition. He did not tell a reporter with the Miami Herald the truth. There is a difference and it is a significant one. You can go to jail for being dishonest during a deposition; you do not go to jail for feeding a line to a reporter. Honestly, comprehension is something learned in grade school. I would have not commented to the reporter on a confidential agreement and I would not have given Greer glowing comments. The Senator made some mistakes, no doubt.