Gov. Scott's office confirms it eyed La. official in place of McCarty

UPDATE: Gov. Rick Scott's office confirms that it sought to recruit a Louisiana insurance official as a possible replacement for Florida insurance regulator Kevin McCarty before Scott publicly suggested last week that McCarty be replaced.

An online news service that covers the insurance industry, SNL, first reported that Scott's office asked Louisiana Deputy Commissioner of Consumer Advocacy Ron Henderson to interview for McCarty's job weeks before Scott said he was looking for "new leadership" at OIR. SNL said it learned about Scott's interest in Henderson from Henderson's boss, Louisiana Insurance Commissioner James Donelon, who alerted McCarty.

Donelon has received campaign contributions and free meals from Fred Karlinsky, a long-time Tallahassee insurance industry lobbyists with close ties to Scott, Louisiana public records show. Karlinsky was a leading fund-raiser for Scott's recent second inauguration and Scott appointed Karlinsky last month to the Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission.

In response to Times/Herald inquiries, Scott's office issued the following statement:

"As we made the transition to a second term in office, Ron Henderson was brought up as a possible candidate for Commissioner of OIR. We reached out and asked for his resume. We did not discuss Mr. Henderson with other Cabinet staff. As the governor said last week, the next Cabinet meeting would be a good time to discuss a process to begin a full search for new candidates to lead OIR, OFR and DOR. The governor believes government needs to be more like business and frequently change leadership to bring in new ideas and fresh energy.

"He (Henderson) came to me to advise me that he had been invited to interview, and with my blessing, he said he would indicate that he was interested," Donelon told SNL in an article published last Friday, Jan. 23. "That was about two weeks ago. It was a while before all the news hit the media last week."

Donelon told SNL he gave McCarty a heads-up.

"I was in California for the committee assignment meeting last weekend and told Commissioner McCarty that I had been apprised of that," Donelon said. "I was not lobbying for his removal or replacement, but I did give my deputy the approval to go forward."

Donelon said he did not know if Henderson was pursuing the Tallahassee job. Scott's office has not commented on the SNL report.

McCarty does not report only to the governor. He also reports to all three Cabinet members, as did Gerald Bailey, former commissioner of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), who was ousted from his job Dec. 16 by Scott's office but without the knowledge or concurrence of the Cabinet members.

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Gov. Scott's office confirms it eyed La. official in place of McCarty