Aronberg announces bid for attorney general
Following service as an assistant attorney general and state senator, Dave Aronberg announced today that he will run for Attorney General of Florida in 2010.
The announcement from Aronberg, a Democrat from Greenacres, touts a record for cracking down on consumer fraud and says he has also established himself as a one of the “few leaders who has the ability to work with both political parties to protect taxpayers and find real solutions that help provide relief and security to hard-working families and retirees in Florida.”
A former assistant attorney general in the economic crimes division under former AG Bob Butterworth, Aronberg has led a consumer protection project from his office that has returned more than $4 million to victims of consumer fraud. He also led the fight against the lease and sale of state roads to private, foreign-owned corporations – such as the controversial deal to sell Alligator Alley.
Aronberg also highlights a record of going after violent offenders and receiving national recognition for his efforts to crack down on sex predators and sex offenders.
“Whether it is tightening our state laws against sex offenders, safeguarding our ports, or going after corporate scam artists who target our seniors, we need an attorney general who really understands what it takes to stand up for the people of this state,” said Aronberg in a prepared statement.
“Public safety is not some political theme to me. It is a passion. The people of this state deserve a true watchdog who will fight to protect them everyday – that’s exactly what I will be,” Aronberg said. “Corporations have their attorneys, and criminals have their attorneys. I will be the people’s attorney. And as your Attorney General, I have one message for those who seek to commit crimes or fraud against our citizens: if you target Floridians, the state will target you.”
A native Floridian, Aronberg is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School. When he returned home to Florida, he took up the plight of Holocaust victims whose European insurance companies had refused to honor their policies. Aronberg was appointed a prestigious White House Fellow, where he served as a Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Treasury Department. In that role, Aronberg went after international money laundering, including the laundering of terrorist assets.
In 2002, he ran as a virtually unknown candidate to the Florida Senate, and won a highly competitive district stretching over five counties from West Palm Beach to Fort Myers. While in the Senate, Aronberg distinguished himself as a tough-on-crime Democrat, “leading the effort to pass legislation that tracked sex offenders, created tough sentences for ‘peeping toms,’ and to keep violent sex offenders away from schools, parks and public libraries.”
Aronberg’s inclusive approach and public safety platform have won him support in areas that traditionally vote Republican, according to his announcement.
His Web site is www.dave4florida.com
Source: Campaign for Dave Aronberg