Richard Giorgio and Francine Nelson of Patriot Games are trying to dodge a lawsuit over an outrageously false attack mailer they sent in the Amanda Silvestri vs. Marcia Andrews race for the Palm Beach County District 6 School board seat in August.
According to the disclaimer on the mail piece, it was sent by, Taxpayers for Public Integrity, an electioneering organization controlled by Giorgio and his partner Nelson.
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Here’s the problem for Patriot Games and Marcia Andrews: political speech is the freest of all speech, and one can say a whole lot of untrue things about a candidate for office, but as we’ve been told many times, free speech is not absolute.
The mailer says Silvestri has a history of financial mismanagement that includes “Foreclosures, Judgements, Liens, and Outstanding Debts.”
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According to Silvestri, none of that is true. Before she married her husband, he had a house foreclosed on as a result of the last great housing crash.
The defamatory mailer was sent to the voters in an effort to deter them from voting for me based on false information. Marcia Andrews is desperate to keep her seat and will smear, lie, and defame to do so.
If she will lie about this, what else will she lie about? ~Amanda Silvestri
The letter from Silvestri’s attorneys, Levy and Levy, is an offer to settle before a lawsuit is filed. The full letter is embedded below, but this is a critical paragraph:
Based upon the documentation in our possession, TPI sent out mailers containing false and malicious claims regarding Mrs. Silvestri, including, but not limited to, the statement that Mrs. Silvestri has a “history of financial mismanagement” including “foreclosures, judgements, and liens”. This is 100% false and even a cursory review of her court records would show this. Thus, you either intentionally sent out this false information in order to smear my client’s name with lies, or were egregiously reckless in failing to ensure that these allegations were correct. Either way, they are false and were solely done to harm my client’s reputation in the community. These were not opinions, nor were they protected campaign speech. They were malicious, egregious, intentional, and outright false.’
Depending on the judge, “egregiously reckless” or “intentionally sent out this false information” could turn out to be an enormously expensive proposition for the trio of Giorgio, Nelson, and Andrews.
It’s doubtful Patriot Games would have sent the mailer without Andrews’ approval, putting Andrews in the same legal jackpot as the rest.
Levy & Levy, PA letter dated Sept. 13, 2022
Pretty standard stuff for legal disputes, but Giorgio’s response is priceless. Giorgio answers the letter from Levy and Levy by saying he was in the hospital and has been moved to a physical rehabilitation facility and he’s uncertain of his release date, but he’ll answer by Nov. 10.
Richard Giorgio’s response
Her consultant, Giorgio, claims that he will not be able-bodied to respond to my demand letter until two (2) days after the election is laughable. The voters deserve to know the “real Marcia” before they cast their vote! ~Amanda Silvestri
I suppose it’s possible Giorgio could be that sick, but one has to wonder why Francine Nelson, who, according to the Florida Secretary of State, is the actual President of Patriot Games, doesn’t answer. Is Nelson not the president and not an actual partner in the company? That only Giorgio can answer seems an awfully patriarchal way for two wokester progressive consultants to do business.
I don’t wish bad health on anyone. I wish Giorgio well, but he’s always been the Mr. Potato Head among political consultants in Palm Beach County. Giorgio is infamous for acting like a male “Karen” and constantly filing picayune technical election complaints against his opponents, complaints more successful and serious consultants consider beneath them.
I’m not a big believer in coincidences, either. I mean, come on: Giorgio doesn’t know when he’ll get better, but he is sure he’ll be better right after Election Day.
It’s understandable that Patriot Games and Andrews don’t want bad publicity before the election.
Andrews is in runoff and has yet to win reelection. She could lose if enough light is shined on the slimy tactics being used to drag her across the finish line.
Get well soon, Giorgio.
When you’re better, you’ll have to answer.
Taxpayers for Public Integrity
Patriot Games Articles of Incorporation
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