4/24/2020

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…. Florida Politics: “Jimmy Patronis asks Mike Pompeo for help identifying Chinese cash”   “Jimmy Patronis asks Mike Pompeo for help identifying Chinese cash” Renzo Downey, Florida Politics April 23, 2020 For Full Story Click HERE   The Department of Financial Service’s Division of Unclaimed Property has $2 billion in unclaimed assets and wants to know whether any of it may belong to the Chinese Communist Party.   In a Wednesday letter to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, CFO Jimmy Patronis asked for federal assistance identifying Chinese assets held in Florida. Such an action by DFS could position the federal government for possible retribution against the East Asian hegemon where the novel coronavirus originated.   …   Patronis asked for “technical assistance,” essentially a list of Chinese-based or Chinese-bought companies and their subsidiaries that operate in Florida. The state could then cross reference the unclaimed property in its possession against the Department of State’s list.   “While the national media may debate whether COVID-19 came from a wet market or a lab in Wuhan, everyone agrees it originated in China,” the CFO wrote. “Moreover, there’s no debate that lives could have been saved had the Chinese government been more transparent with the world about the severity, and contagious nature of the COVID-19 virus.”   “Based on these facts, I am of the opinion that China has a debt to pay to our country, and the State of Florida, for their negligence and deceptive practices,” he added.   …   ###

About CFO Jimmy Patronis  Chief Financial Officer and State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis is a statewide elected official and a member of Florida’s Cabinet who oversees the Department of Financial Services. CFO Patronis works each day to fight insurance fraud, support Florida’s firefighters, and ensure the state’s finances are stable to support economic growth in the state. Follow the activities of the Department on Facebook (FLDFS) and Twitter (@FLDFS).