Greene ready to spend in race for governor

Billionaire says he’ll shell out ‘whatever it takes’ to tell his story.

Billionaire Palm Beach real estate investor Jeff Greene says he’s willing to spend $100 million or more of his personal fortune on his late-starting Democratic campaign for Florida governor.

“I’m prepared to spend whatever it takes. I’m not going to take my foot off the accelerator this time. I’m going to get my message out there,” Greene told The Palm Beach Post in an interview late Tuesday.

Greene, whose net worth was estimated at $3.8 billion by Forbes last year, spent about $24 million of his own money on a losing Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in 2010. He was asked if he’s ready to spend that much again this year.

“It’s going to be a significant multiple of that through the general election. To go all the way through the general election in a statewide race against a very well-funded Republican machine, it could be $100 million,” said Greene.

Greene, who has been doing a series of one-on-one interviews this week, floated a $200 million figure to The Associated Press.

“Whether we spend $100 million, $50 million, $200 million — whatever it is, we will spend whatever it takes to make sure that our message is heard at least equally to what the Republican message has been,” Greene told the AP.

Greene wouldn’t estimate how much he’ll spend on the Aug. 28 Democratic primary against Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum,

former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, Winter Park businessman Chris King and former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine. The winner of that race faces the winner of the Republican primary between U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis and Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam.

“We’ll be on the air and we’ll be doing everything you do in a campaign to win it,” said Greene, who said his TV ads should start appear- ing soon.

Greene, 63, and wife Mei Sze have signed onto “The Giving Pledge,” in which wealthy people promise to give a majority of their fortunes to philanthropic causes.

“We’re going to give away more than half of our net worth to philanthropy anyway and the only purpose of doing that is to make a differ- ence. So I don’t care what I spend on this,” Greene said.

In his 2010 Senate campaign, Democratic rival Kendrick Meek accused Greene of making his money off the misery of others and crit- ics made much of Greene’s friendships with celebrities like Mike Tyson and Lind- sey Lohan.

Greene made hundreds of millions of dollars by predicting the subprime mortgage bubble would burst and investing in sophisti- you have these challenges,” cated contracts called credit Greene said. default swaps that increased “When people know my in value as home loans went story, which they really bad. didn’t last time, and they

“I didn’t bet against any really understand I’m not homeowners. I went up some guy who just won the against the biggest banks lottery last week, some loser on Wall Street and I beat who became a billionaire, them, basically,” Greene said but they understand that of his investments. I’m a different kind of bil

Greene said he learned lionaire,” Greene said. from his 2010 campaign “I’m a Kennedy-Rockefelexperience to be more proler billionaire that really is active in telling his story of intent on making a difference rising from modest means — not a Donald Trump bilto staggering wealth. lionaire who basically comes

He said he grew up in a up with phony universities middle-class home in Massato rip people off and doesn’t chusetts, but his family forpay his workers and just is tunes plummeted when the kind of the wrong kind of textile industry moved out guy,” said Greene, who lives of the state and his father two properties south of the lost his business selling texpresident’s Mar-a-Lago Club tile machinery. His parents and is a member there. moved to West Palm Beach, Greene, who started The where his father tried his Greene School in West Palm hand at a variety of jobs Beach because he wasn’t satbefore dying of a heart attack isfied with public or private in 1979, when Greene was 24. education options for his

“People are going to say three children, said educa‘Oh, you’re just this biltion and improving reading lionaire,’ whatever. First of for kids before third grade all, I know what it’s like to will be priorities of his camstruggle. I struggled. I was a paign. busboy and a waiter at The Greene said there’s “nothBreakers. I did everything. I ing wrong” with his four painted apartments, sanded Democratic rivals, but “the floors. I was on the road for leader in this race is ‘undethree years in sales living cided’ because n one of out of my Pontiac Grand these candidates have really Am. I’ve struggled plenty,” inspired the voters ... I don’t Greene said. think any of their ideas are

“More than that, I know really that great.” how important it is to have somebody there in the government to help you when