Politics

DeSantis Press Secretary Registers as Foreign Agent

JUN 8 2022·Updated SEP 20 2022

#Politics

DeSantis Press Secretary Registers as Foreign Agent

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Image credit: SOPA images/Shutterstock [via Washington Post]

The Facts

A spokeswoman for Fla. Gov. Ron DeSantis' (R) has retroactively registered as a foreign agent after reportedly being contacted by the US Justice Dept. and instructed to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
wapo
It was recently disclosed that Christina Pushaw - who has been working as Desantis' press secretary since May 2021 - worked for Georgia Pres. Mikheil Saakashvili between 2018 - 2020.
wapo
According to her attorney, she lived in Georgia in 2018 and helped advocate for Saakashvili by writing op-eds and reaching out to officials and supporters. Over the course of two years, she was reportedly paid $25K to cover some of her living expenses.
Business Insider
The FARA, which originated in 1938, is intended to provide transparency about who is behind efforts to exert influence. Agents who deliberately fail to register could face prosecution.
Huffington Post

Sources Split

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The Spin

Democratic narrative

Pushaw has gained fame by making outrageous statements on social media, but most of her notoriety has come from fashioning herself as an "America First" advocate - ironic now that she has been revealed as a foreign agent.

MS Now

Republican narrative

This is clearly a smear campaign. The only reason Pushaw is being attacked is because she does a great job as press secretary and effectively calls out phony narratives - this is yet another hit piece against the DeSantis administration.