Jay Collins’ campaign deleted a tweet attacking Ken Griffin after saying a subcontractor posted it without approval. The reversal put a sharp stop to a post that tied Griffin to Byron Donalds and billionaire influence in Florida politics.
One post carried three headlines and a quote, including attacks on Miami real estate buys and Griffin’s criticism of Zohran Mamdani and Bernie Sanders. It also said Byron Donalds was backed by one of the largest billionaire donations of the race, a line that made the tweet more than a routine political swipe.
Vickery and Cardillo explain the reversal
Jennifer Vickery said the campaign was disavowing a Collins tweet that was sharply critical of Griffin and described it as the work of a “subcontractor who is trying to help” but did so “without knowledge or approval” from the campaign. John Cardillo added that Collins “did not review and post himself. The contractor posted on his behalf without approval from Jay or the campaign team.”
The post is no longer on the news feed, and Cardillo said, “The situation has been rectified.” For readers following the race, that means the campaign has moved to contain the damage rather than defend the message.
Griffin’s money and Collins’ pivot
$10 million in support from Griffin to Byron Donalds gave the deleted post immediate political weight. Collins was attacking a donor who has also contributed to Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2004 and has made at least a billion dollars in real estate buys over the years, which helps explain why the tweet tied Griffin to money, land, and influence in one message.
$5 million in support from Propel Florida LLC, which is connected to Julie Jenkins Francelli, came as Collins amended his own AI position, and in recent months he has stepped up warnings about AI and data centers. That makes the deleted tweet part of a broader message shift, not a one-off burst of online combat.
Donalds, DeSantis and the cleanup
Gates McGavick responded by saying, “We are grateful to have the support of Ken Griffin as well as tens of thousands of unique donors. Nothing will distract us from beating Democrat David Jolly and ensuring that Florida remains the best state in America to start a business and raise a family.”
Ken Griffin’s backing of Ron DeSantis over the years, plus his investments in tech stocks through Citadel and Griffin, left Collins’ now-deleted message aimed at a donor with deep Florida ties and a large record of giving. The campaign’s real test now is not the tweet itself but whether its approval process can prevent another subcontractor-driven misfire before the race moves on.
