Good to see Tampa native Francisco Sanchez back in town. He was here recently in his capacity as Under Secretary for International Trade at the U.S. Commerce Department. Last Friday Sanchez and other senior Administration officials participated in the White House Hispanic Community Action Summit at the University of Tampa. On Monday he joined Mayor Bob Buckhorn, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor and other government officials at the Port of Tampa to sign an agreement between federal and local partners to promote local exports to international markets.
Sanchez, the former chairman of the National Hispanic Leadership Council, is an Obama insider, an Hispanic with political heft. And, as opposed to when he ran for mayor back in 2003, he now goes by “Francisco” these days. Back in ’03 the recently returned Sanchez was “Frank” because that’s what his friends called him and Tampa is an informal Bob, Pam, Dick, Sandy kind of town. Although Charlie Miranda, as we know, did his best to rebrand him “Francisco” (the outsider) during that ’03 campaign.