The following article by Stephanie Akin was posted on the Roll Call website August 23, 2018:
The new yacht smell has barely worn off of Vern Buchanan’s 73-foot ocean liner. But it is causing the Florida congressman’s re-election campaign to take on water this week, after a report raising questions about the seven-figure bank loan Buchanan used to finance the vessel.
Buchanan, one of the wealthiest members of Congress, borrowed as much as $5 million from a Canadian bank that was lobbying for the GOP tax bill in 2017, the Florida Center for Investigative Reporting said. Buchanan, who leads the Ways and Means subcommittee on tax policy, bought the boat on the same day he voted for the tax package.
It is unclear how much drag the episode will have on Buchanan’s campaign. Inside Elections with Nathan Gonzales ranks the district Likely Republican. But Democrats, seeing an opportunity to throw the six-term incumbent off course, bore down.