A political mystery man with an unfathomable portfolio of super PACs is now lobbying Congress against MetLife's business practices — and to be installed as president of Haiti.
Floridian Josue Larose stormed onto the political scene in 2009 when he formed the American Federal Lobbying Firm and registered 60 previously unheard-of clients as super PACs across nearly every business and industrial sector.
Larose's latest filings urge Congress to take action against MetLife for alleged business fraud surrounding the lack of payment of death benefits and to make him Haiti's president.
Larose's recent lobbying filings are as diverse and odd as his history in political fundraising. Larose's super PACs have raised very little money — most of them have made none — yet Larose continues to file quarterly reports, keep up with paperwork and respond to Federal Election Commission queries. Larose also constantly changes the super PACs' names without regard to their messages: One PAC alone has changed from the United States Civil Engineers Federal PAC to the Federal PAC of the Gubernatorial Candidate Josue Larose, to the United States Presidential Dinners Fund Committee, to the White House Federal PAC, to the Obama Biden 2012 Presidential Reelection Fund Committee, to the Bank of America Customers Super PAC.
The intention behind all these machinations remains unclear because Larose avoids the spotlight. No one seems to know where he derives his self-proclaimed "billionaire" status. He did tell the Fort Lauderdale newspaper Sun Sentinel in 2009, "I just want to give everybody a voice."
He has filed to run in several federal elections, including as a Republican for president in 2016. His super PACs include the names Billionaire Josue Larose's Female Catholic Priests Committee, Billionaire Josue Larose's Misses of Beauty Committee and the Florida Intellectual Elites Political Committee.
In 2012, MetLife agreed to pay nearly half a billion dollars for its alleged failure to pay death benefits to heirs. Haiti is in turmoil following President Michel Martelly's recent resignation amid corruption charges. An interim president will be installed until new elections can be held April 24.
One of Larose's latest filings, on Feb. 2, stated: "American Federal Lobbying Firm will lobby the White House, United States Department of State, President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and State Secretary John Kerry in favor of the Haitian Chamber of Commerce of America President Josue Larose to put him as the President of Haiti on February 07, 2016 for a period of one year to organize the next Presidential Election of Haiti during the Month of December 2016."
