Legislation to bring legal sports betting to Puerto Rico, recently sent to Governor Ricardo Rosselló Nevares for his signature, may end up on the back burner amid controversy about profanity-laden texts in which he called a political rival a “whore,” labeled another one “the daughter of a bitch,” said a possible gubernatorial opponent was “off her meds,” and advised a U.S. federal financial oversight board to “Go f*** yourself.”
The messages between Rosselló and his top aides, published by Primera Hora, is the latest chapter in the unfolding soap opera that is the Puerto Rican government. The unsavory headlines could further incapacitate an administration that has faced multiple financial crises and investigations and filed for bankruptcy two years ago. At a July 11 press conference, Rosselló said he is “ashamed” of his texts but will not resign.
“Women are legitimately offended and there must be many apologies,” he said.
The vulgar comments first came to light when Jenniffer González, Puerto Rico’s non-voting representative in the U.S. Congress and a member of Rossello’s pro-statehood party, wrote on Twitter that “the sexist expressions in the governor’s group chat are offensive and unacceptable,” according to Bloomberg News. U.S. Representative Raul Grijalva, chairman of the House committee that oversees the island, called for Rosselló’s resignation after the U.S. Justice Department indicted his former education secretary and health insurance administration director over government contract awards.
Meanwhile, Rosselló has been tussling with the both the Trump White House and the U.S. financial oversight board over his request for billions in aid to help the island rebuild and recover after Hurricane Maria. Republican Rep. Greg Walden said the aid may not be approved unless greater oversight and “program integrity measures” are put in place on the island.
Last month, Treasury Secretary Raul Maldonado was fired after alleging a culture of corruption in his own department including influence peddling, issuance of fake licenses, destruction of documents and accessing confidential taxpayer records. Maldonado’s son, Raul Maldonado Nieves, later called the governor “corrupt,” and claimed Rosselló ordered an auditing firm to alter a report on Hurricane Maria aid that would have shown mismanagement in a relief effort involving his wife, Beatriz. The governor has denied the allegations.
According to CourtHousenews.com, 889 pages of “Chatgate” were leaked.
The texts showed “more than misogyny and homophobia on the part of the governor and his men, however: the public was exposed to total dysfunction among the top echelons of the island’s government in the middle of a historic storm that left thousands dead,” the website said.
Earlier this month, a number of high-ranking government officials, businesspeople and contractors were arrested by the FBI and charged with 32 counts of fraud and related charges. They include former Education Secretary Julia Keleher and former Puerto Rico Health Insurance Administration head Ángela Ávila-Marrero. The alleged fraud involves $15.5 million in federal funding between 2017 and 2019, reported NBC News.
In a statement that was at once apologetic and defiant, Rossello said, “I want to start by asking for forgiveness for my expressions in a private chat. I am the governor of Puerto Rico. I used a private chat and those flaws manifested themselves there. I would use it to release tension. Nothing justifies the words I have written and said.
“I will not resign. I am proud of the results we have obtained for our people. The answer is clear and blunt: I will not resign. I will continue working for our people. I can handle blows. I am a fighter and in the end, I guarantee victory. I am a resilient governor.”
Carlos Méndez Núñez, president of the commonwealth’s House of Representatives, said, “Impeachment isn’t on the table yet. But we reserve the right to evaluate if that’s merited.”
U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, chairman of the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee called on Rossello to “take a housecleaning approach as quickly and thoroughly as possible” to restore the public trust.
