Since Adam Putnam announced his decision to run for Governor of Florida, he has been hailed as an experienced leader who has served Florida for decades. His supporters believe him to be a man of the people who will uphold the right values and promote conservatism. Is this the real Adam Putnam, or is this merely an illusion that he has cast of himself as he campaigns tirelessly to serve as Governor of Florida?

Despite a passionate letter endorsing Putnam on News Press, it appears as though the latter is the most accurate scenario. An excerpt from the endorsement reads: "For 20 years, Adam Putnam has been serving Florida in some public service capacity." While such a bold declaration appears admirable on the surface, upon dissection, it begins to lose some of its appeal. Throughout all this time that Putnam has supposedly been "serving Florida in some public service capacity," when has he connected with the actual, everyday people of Florida? How has he had time to do this when he has been surrounded by public officials throughout his entire career?

The people of Florida want a Governor who is aware, informed, and able to connect with them. For so long, there has been an insidious pattern where politicians who have served in office for the duration of their careers actually turn out to be completely disconnected from the people for whom they are asking to vote for them. What is to say that Putnam has not fallen into this unfortunate trap?

Sure, he has served as one of the State House of Representatives and even rose to the United States House of Representatives, but these feats do absolutely nothing to speak to his fitness to connect with everyday Floridians. In fact, one could argue that Putnam's consistent time away from ordinary people has isolated him from the voters.

The New Press endorsement letter goes on to hail Putnam as someone who "understands the concerns, the issues, the process, the people, and how to navigate through a highly complex system, edging out a learning curve that ultimately plagues many candidates for the position in their first term."

This assertion is debatable at best. How can Putnam understand the people and their concerns when he has been away from them for the entirety of his career? The demand for politicians is rapidly changing. Voters want leaders who have worked with everyday people and not just politicians and lobbyists for the entirety of their career. So far, Adam Putnam has yet to fall into this category.