Karla Hernandez-Mats Accuses Journalists of Being Republican Operatives

karla Hernandez

Karla Hernandez-Mats, Charlie Crist's (D) pick for Lt. Governor in the 2022 midterms, continues to attract controversy less than a week after being selected. In a Sunday interview with the Miami-based Local 10 news program This Week in South Florida, Hernandez-Mats seemingly responds to the interviewers' questions in a condescending fashion and accuses them of working on behalf of the Republican Party.

DeSantis War Room tweeted an edited portion of the interview Monday morning, referring to Mats by her unofficial nickname "Karla Marx," a nickname earned from a (now deleted) tweet Mats wrote in 2016 seemingly mourning the death of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.

"ICYMI: Charlie Crist's running mate #KarlaMarx sat down for an interview with two well-known local journalists in Miami. They (gently) pushed back on her false assertions... and she accused them of being Republican operatives. (They aren't)," the tweet says.

Host Michael Putney brings attention to Mats' alleged friendship with Wendell Nibbs, a Miami area teacher currently serving eight years for sexually assaulting middle schoolers. Mats responds, "well, listen, first of all, Michael, I know that you have to ask these questions, but I hope that you're not stumping for, you know, the Republican Party."

"But let me set the record straight," Hernandez-Mats continues, "cause I'm a truth-teller, I'm a teacher. And I'm a teacher, so I'm going to educate you on a few of those points." Mats then says Putney and co-host Glenna Milberg have not done their homework. "There's some research you have not done."

In the full interview, which can be accessed here, Mats claims that her relationship with Nibbs "has already been debunked," and throws in a random attack towards Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL-1). Her remarks about being a teacher and "educating" Putney and Milberg come from Milberg's questions about Miami-Dade area school funding.

Regardless of knowing the full context, Mats' standoffish tone certainly does not aid in improving her and Crist's alienating image.

Grayson Bakich

Florida born and raised, Grayson Bakich is a recent recipient of a Master’s Degree in Political Science at the University of Central Florida. His thesis examined recent trends in political polarization and how this leads into justification of violence.