The Mystery of Millionaire Donor Steve Mostyn: Why Charlie Crist, Why Florida?

Sunshine State News ^ | 11/21/14 | Nancy Smith

[SoFloFreeper]

The biggest mystery that never unraveled in Florida Election 2014 has to be super-uber trial attorney Steve Mostyn.

Why would a Houston multimillionaire with no current business in the Sunshine State out-donate billionaire George Soros, giving it to Democrat Charlie Crist's Florida gubernatorial campaign and the Florida Democratic Party?

We never did get to the bottom of it. Crist and Mostyn didn't really know each other before the campaign. What did Mostyn want?

Soros, founder of the far-left Open Society Institute, who advocates bringing European social democracy to the United States, only gave Crist a smidgen over $1 million.

But Mostyn, who has a load of money but nowhere near Soros' loot, comes riding out of the cactus with more than twice that in his saddlebags -- $2.3 million. And all for Crist and the FDP trying to get him elected.

What a way to say howdy pardner.

And that $2.3 million doesn't count the in-kind trips Crist took on Mostyn's jet during the campaign. It might not even be a grand total -- there may be contributions from other sources we're not aware of.

Here's how the $2.3 million we know about breaks down -- by date, amount of contribution, contributor and recipient....

Since Mostyn didn't return my calls to his main office at 3810 W. Alabama St. in Houston -- and, be honest, election's over, why would he? -- I asked some of the tort reform folks who keep tabs on trial lawyers: Why would this East Texas native who got rich on hurricanes, and who with his wife Amber built and was propping up Wendy Davis' black hole of a gubernatorial campaign in Texas, want to dive neck-deep into Florida politics? Isn't $2.3 million serious money?

None of the tort reformers I talked with knew for sure, but the conversation I had that made the most sense came from Darren McKinney, director of communications for the Washington, D.C.-based American Tort Reform Association. McKinney knows the nature of Mostyn's game and identifies Florida, particularly South Florida, as a magnate for litigators. He believes Mostyn's interest was all about business expansion.

The courts are just plain friendly to plaintiffs in the Sunshine State, "and that appeals to all entrepreneurial plaintiff's attorneys like Steve Mostyn," he told me.

"Mostyn isn't George Soros, but if he's not a billionaire yet, he's close. He can set up shop anywhere in the country he likes, and I think he liked the look of Florida under Charlie Crist," McKinney said.

"It's the construct of the state Supreme Court. Four of the seven justices are due to leave the court before the next governor is out of office." He said if Crist were doing the choosing, the Florida court system would be an even greater treasure for trial lawyers. It's not just the Supreme Court, either. The governor fills empty seats on the bench with all the state's judges.

McKinney said Crist's election would have been an investment in Mostyn's future with an almost guaranteed payoff.

Mostyn is quite a player, make no mistake. He is the largest funder of liberal candidates in Texas, candidates who oppose lawsuit reform and push a pro-lawsuit agenda.

Becase he knows most Texans are conservative and detest lawsuit abuse, he has created a number of groups with conservative-sounding names to pull the wool over voters' eyes.

A story on the Texans for Lawsuit Reform website, "The Invisible Hand of Steve Mostyn," describes how Mostyn puts up millions for deceptively named groups during election years -- groups that "back candidates who want to roll back the lawsuit reforms that are keeping the Texas economy strong."

Says the story, "He’s hoping voters won’t realize that the money is coming from a liberal, personal injury trial lawyer whose primary agenda is, presumably, his own self-interest."

Have a look at some of the groups the story is talking about -- as confirmed by the Texas Ethics Commission:

Texans for Individual Rights was founded by Mark McCaig, an associate of Steve Mostyn’s law firm and another personal injury trial lawyer, Matthew Griffing. "This group pretends to support conservative principles but its real mission is to roll back the lawsuit reforms advocated by Texans for Lawsuit Reform and to push legislative proposals that would stifle job creation in Texas and create windfall profits for plaintiff lawyers."

Conservative Voters of Texas. Despite its conservative sounding name, this multimillion-dollar PAC was founded by Mostyn associate Mark McCaig in the last election cycle to attack pro-tort reform legislators and candidates. Exclusively funded by Mostyn, Conservative Voters of Texas spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in 2012.

Back to Basics PAC was created by Mostyn in 2010 to attack Gov. Rick Perry and other leaders and candidates who support lawsuit reform. The PAC spent over $4.5 million. Mostyn contributed $3,975,181 in 2010 alone, and another $377,060 in the 2012 election cycle.

Texans for Public Education, Texas Forward Committee, and the Valley Political Action Committee were all established by Mostyn in 2010 to allow him to contribute to individual candidates without voters knowing directly that the money was coming from him.

Mostyn is a stealth fighter, and I guess there's nothing wrong with that. No doubt he was heartily encouraged by stories of Crist's alleged quid pro quo arrangements -- judgeships for campaign contributions.

But I admit, it does my heart good to see political players with as much money as Mostyn has, with no real feel for the state they're playing in or the people who live there, whose political convictions are intertwined with their personal-business ambitions ... it does my heart so good to see them lose their investment at the polls. Take a bow, voters.

[SoFloFreeper]

"It's the construct of the state Supreme Court. Four of the seven justices are due to leave the court before the next governor is out of office." He said if Crist were doing the choosing, the Florida court system would be an even greater treasure for trial lawyers. It's not just the Supreme Court, either. The governor fills empty seats on the bench with all the state's judges.

Whoa. I did not know that....so will Rick Scott get to appoint FOUR justices to the Florida Supreme Court????

Conservative Voters of Texas. Despite its conservative sounding name, this multimillion-dollar PAC was founded by Mostyn associate Mark McCaig in the last election cycle to attack pro-tort reform legislators and candidates. Exclusively funded by Mostyn, Conservative Voters of Texas spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in 2012.

Another lesson in this article for conservatives....look at WHO backs any so-called "conservative" organization...kind of like it is now with "Christian" organizations.....

[SoFloFreeper]

Pretty important Florida news, imo!

[madprof98]

Phony conservative outfits actually pushing a liberal agenda? Couldn’t that be said of a certain Grand Old Party?

[Sherman Logan]

Take a bow, voters.

You're welcome.

[Timber Rattler]

Somebody asked him to, in exchange for favors to be given later.

[rrrod]

EXCELLENT CATCH!!! Too often I, as well as others, can get side tracked by side orgs claiming to be on the RIGHT side.

This has to be one of the most important post in a loooooong time. Thanks.

[GladesGuru]

It could be said that Florida is a place where Liberal money comes to retire. It moves in and never moves again.

Sort of a “Roach Motel” for Liberal funds, in that they check in but never ‘check out’, Ya know.

Indeed, Liberals are following the advice of the Florida Chamber of Commerce - “Keep Florida Green”.

[tbpiper]

a liberal, personal injury trial lawyer whose primary agenda is, presumably, his own self-interest

Like John "for the people" Morgan? Just one more toke for liberty.

[SoFloFreeper]

What is scary is how CLOSE Florida came to electing anti-Constitutional Alex Sink in 2010 and her pal Charlie Crist in 2014.

[PGalt]

OUTSTANDING post and article by Nancy Smith. Thanks for posting, SoFloFreeper.

You would use the law to oppose socialism? But it is upon the law that socialism itself relies. Socialists desire to practice legal plunder, not illegal plunder. Socialists, like all other monopolists, desire to make the law their own weapon. And when once the law is on the side of socialism, how can it be used against socialism? For when plunder is abetted by the law, it does not fear your courts, your gendarmes, and your prisons. Rather, it may call upon them for help.

Florida was a huge win…as was every other in the 8-0 pounding of the socialists.

C'mon Louisiana.

C'mon 2016.

It's easy to…

live - free - republic

[Ann Archy]

LOVER???

[Cry if I Wanna]

Amazing article and we’ll researched. This reminds me of the type of writing old fashioned investigative reporters used to do. Thanks for posting.

[sportutegrl]

Speaking of Louisiana, maybe some LA mAD Men could get a few million from this guy for the Landrieu election. This guy seems to like Southern lost causes. I don’t think he’s tapped out, yet.

[GladesGuru]

FReepers in every county will have to check the voter rolls for Zombie voters, and verify all write in and early votes.

Checking citizenship of each voter on the roll is essential.

[PGalt]

I like the way you think. Plunder the scum-sucking socialists and their enablers/benefactors.

DEPOPULATE them from the body politic.

DEFUND their supporters, collectives…foreign and domestic.

[isthisnickcool]

This is a very well researched piece. I have met Mostyn and know lawyers who have worked for him. He is a nutcase at times but has made a pile of money.

I'm about to post something very interesting and something I bet nobody has ever caught before. This is from a Galveston County court room camera that was running in 2010. Someone requested the video under the state open records law and posted it on youtube. Here is a youtube video where radical Democratic Mostyn is fighting in a Galveston court about the release of information related to past IKE claims. He does not want information related to what he was paid on the IKE cases released. The fellow he is mad at is Joe Nixon who was instrumental in passing tort reforms in Texas. Mostyn is pissed at a state representative, Larry Taylor (he is not in the court room), about Taylor's work to restructure the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. TWIA is the government insurer who covers most windstorm insurance on the Texas coast. Rep. Taylor brought in attorney Joe Nixon and Mostyn is asserting that Joe Nixon used "barrantry" in contacting Taylor. He is saying that Joe Nixon illegally called Taylor to come in to the case they are fighting over. You can hear Mostyn say "you called him" at 17 seconds as he points his finger. The blockbuster is at 38 seconds, if you listen very carefully Mostyn threatens to use Democrat Travis County DA Rosemary Lehmberg to go after Joe Nixon and "stamp out barratry".

"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xc59kL9Q2Ok">video

Lehmberg is the drunk Democrat travis County DA who is prosecuting Rick Perry tried to throw her out of office. The DA before her, Ronnie Earle went after Tom Delay. What Mostyn is saying to Joe Nixon is that he can use the Travis County we now know as a raging drunk to screw with Joe Nixon. One of the richest Democrat trial lawyers in Texas, the subject of this thread about using his money in Florida, is telling us that he can influence the Travis County DA. That is my take on it. Mostyn shoots his mouth off and it gets caught on tape. At the time it did not mean much but today after what has happened with the Travis DA and Rick Perry this kind of proves that the action against Perry is purely political and generated by the Democrats. Something we all knew already.

The fellow sitting at the desk besides Mostyn is Tony Buzbee. In the past and around the time of this video Tony was mostly supporting Democrats. Today he is a conservative in most ways and supports mostly Republicans. He is also the lead lawyer representing Rick Perry against the Travis County DA today. Tony is somewhat an enigma but absolutely God gifted brilliant. He and Rick Perry are old friends from Texas A&M.

The bottom line is that the video seems to indicate that heavy weight Democrats like Steve Mostyn who throw their millions around like its water to get their way threaten people with the Travis county DA's office.

FYI, Mostyn spent a pile of money trying to unseat state Rep. Larry Taylor and when Larry ran for the Texas senate he spent even more. But like in Florida it did him no good at all. Larry kicked Mostyn's ass.

What you see here from Mostyn is one reason why Obama has done what he has done with the executive order for illegal alien amnesty. The want to change the color of Texas and the only way they can do that is get the illegals on the dole and voting Democrat.

[isthisnickcool]

I messed up the video link above. Here it is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xc59kL9Q2Ok

[isthisnickcool]

Found this too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt-Nb97nVwI

[isthisnickcool]

Something else I just ran across:

http://thetruthaboutstevemostyn.com

[Joe Boucher]

Had wondered how Crist got the financial backing to run a competitive campaign.
Thanks, this makes sense.
NOw i have to go take a shower after even talking about the slimy Crist.