There are all types of members of Congress. Republican George Santos or Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick are examples of one type. Reaching conclusions about their financial miscreancy is straightforward for me.
Then there are other types. As I see it, some of them are worse because their behavior extends beyond corruption for money. They jeopardize the safety and security of the United States. They make me wonder how they can get elected and pull the wool over the eyes of their constituents. Rep. Luna is one of those.
She happens to be a case study who represents a district nearby to Sarasota. In my opinion, she has crossed the line. Readers can decide for themselves. If you have no interest in government policy or politics, save your time and stop reading now.
At the end of this commentary, I will explain what I chose to do and why. For me, Luna’s behavior is not only inappropriate; it also offends me personally. And that is not about finance, economics, or markets.
I will open with this six-minute YouTube from last October:
“NEW ALLIANCE: Luna SNUBS Zelensky, Meets Kremlin Aide, Hailed As Peace Force” | Times New World,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydDoxhH0KEQ
You will meet Rep. Luna, and you will meet a recognized Russian. Remember, this is last October. See also https://luna.house.gov/about.
Just a few days ago, the meeting that was discussed in the YouTube happened. Luna hosted sanctioned Russians for a private tour of the US Capitol. Both the Hill and POLITICO covered the story:
“Luna hosts Russian lawmakers to mixed GOP reactions, outrage from others” | The Hill, https://thehill.com/policy/international/5803437-luna-russian-delegation-meeting/amp/
“Pro-Ukraine lawmakers call out Russian delegation’s visit to Washington” | POLITICO https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/27/russia-lawmakers-washington-capitol-hill-00848559.
Excerpt:
“Luna was joined by Republican Reps. Eli Crane (Ariz.), Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) and Andy Ogles (Tenn.), as well as Democrat Vicente Gonzalez (Texas), for a meeting, according to a picture posted by Luna.”
The reading list at the end of today’s missive details how Putin’s Russia is helping Iran wound and kill Americans. It references how Moscow lies about the war with Ukraine while claiming false victories after four years of a war that Putin started with an invasion. That war followed the 2014 Russian invasion in Crimea.
A few days ago, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) posted the following in a daily report (March 28th):
Russian forces struck a maternity hospital in Odesa City overnight on March 27 to 28. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces launched 273 Shahed, Gerbera, and Italmas-type drones, including about 180 Shaheds, primarily toward Odesa Oblast. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Ukrainian forces downed 252 drones, that 21 drones struck 18 locations, and that fragments of downed drones struck nine locations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russian forces launched over 60 drones just at Odesa City and struck a maternity hospital in the city. Odesa Oblast Military Administration Head Oleh Kiper stated that Russian forces killed two and injured 12 at the maternity hospital and launched over 100 drones against Odesa Oblast, also damaging critical, residential, and port infrastructure. The Ukrainian Health Ministry reported that there were 22 women in labor and 19 newborns in the maternity hospital at the time of the strike
(“Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 28, 2026” | Institute for the Study of War, https://understandingwar.org/research/russia-ukraine/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-28-2026/)
I would ask Congresswoman Luna and the others, “After the chocolates, flowers, and tour, did you ask why Russia targets a maternity hospital in Odessa? And why ambulances are targeted by Russian drones? Why Russian soldiers raped Ukrainian women in Mariupol? Did you ask how Russia transports munitions to Iran today? Or how Russia enabled Syria’s Assad to kill thousands of his citizens? Or why Assad now hides in Russia, protected by the very people you are hosting at America’s capitol even though they are on the US sanctioned list?”
Dear readers, in the extensive reading list that follows this commentary, you will also see reports on how Ukraine is now beating Russia on the battlefield.
For now, here’s one excerpt from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW):
Russia is preparing to temporarily suspend all gasoline exports as of April 1, likely in response to domestic gasoline price increases partly caused by Ukraine’s long-range strike campaigns against Russian oil infrastructure. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak instructed the Ministry of Energy during a March 27 meeting to prepare a draft resolution banning all gasoline exports from April 1 to July 31, 2026, in order to stabilize gasoline prices and prioritize supplies to the domestic market. Russian authorities previously suspended gasoline exports in September 2025 but lifted the ban for large exporters at the end of January 2026. Gasoline prices in Russia have risen sharply since Fall 2025 following the intensification of Ukraine’s strike campaign against Russian oil infrastructure, placing increasing burdens of the war on the Russian populace as inflation continues to rise, real income continues to fall, and the price of household goods remains high. Russia’s decision to suspend gasoline imports comes amid continued Ukrainian strikes against Russian oil infrastructure in recent weeks, as well as the war in the Middle East contributing to rising energy prices writ large. Russia’s decision to temporarily suspend gasoline exports, the revenues from which fund Russia’s war machine, is likely the result of increasing pressure on the Kremlin to balance between funding its war effort and mitigating the costs of the war on its domestic populace.
(“Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 28, 2026” | Institute for the Study of War, https://understandingwar.org/research/russia-ukraine/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-28-2026/)
The reading list reports Russian failures at war, at economics, at global initiatives for peace. It reveals how Russian propaganda falsely claims success. And it documents how ruthless Putin was and is. He has accrued over a million casualties among his own people in this war he started.
So, Rep. Luna, did you inform yourself regarding Russia’s behavior before you hosted your guests?
I will quote one of Luna’s Republican House colleagues, Rep. Don Bacon (NE). He is a retired US Air Force brigadier general who served for nearly 30 years (1985–2014), specializing in electronic warfare and intelligence. He is a combat veteran with four deployments to the Middle East. He said:
Russia’s Putin and his cronies hate America, hate freedom, and want to undermine the U.S. at every step. Their invasion of Ukraine is one giant war crime.
(“Pro-Ukraine lawmakers call out Russian delegation’s visit to Washington” | POLITICO, https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/27/russia-lawmakers-washington-capitol-hill-00848559)
Why is Luna’s hosting Russian lawmakers for a Capitol tour a personal affront for me?
In 1886, my Ukrainian ancestor settled in New Jersey after his journey from the Odessa Oblast, Anan’ivs’kyi district, Dolyns’ke village. Those who didn’t leave were persecuted by the czars. Others came after WW1. Those who didn’t leave were persecuted or killed by Stalin and any who were left by Hitler. And now it’s Putin. I have no way to know if one of those killed in that maternity hospital is a family member from the distant past.
What I do know is that Putin has not budged a single inch with regard to his objectives for Ukraine since he walked the red carpet in Anchorage, Alaska, many months ago. And what I do know is that Rep. Luna has decided to be on Putin’s list and not Emily’s List.
Here’s what I have done. I decided to ignore my political registration as a Republican voter in Sarasota County. I spoke with and then met with a retired Army brigadier general named Leela Gray. She’s 55, with a grown daughter and a supportive husband who is former Navy. She has never run for political office. She is not a professional politician like Luna. She served in the US Army for over 30 years and held four commands. Then she went to law school and studied constitutional law. And now she is running for Congress to unseat Rep. Luna. Her campaign website can be found at https://www.leelagray.com.
You will see me on her political contribution list for the maximum of $7000 — $3500 for her primary and $3500 for the general election. I contributed to Leela Gray even though I am not in that congressional district, even though I will not be able to vote for her. But I can try to get her elected and get Luna out. I am doing this because I love my country, and I put my country ahead of any political party affiliation.
I did not base my choice on one issue alone. Rep. Luna also failed her district during Hurricane Milton. The details are in the reading list.
But her biggest headline claim to fame in the US House of Representatives is that, on January 28, 2025, Luna introduced H.R. 792 in the 119th Congress to direct the Secretary of the Interior to add Donald Trump’s likeness to the Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Readers, let’s unpack that one. A deficit-ridden US federal budget is asked to borrow millions more to chisel granite at Mt. Rushmore. This is from the same Rep. Luna who cannot find a way to pay TSA agents but has plenty of time to host Russians in the US Capitol.
Further Reading
This is not the first time I have written about Luna. Here’s an excerpt from a commentary on Hurricane Milton:
Intentional liars and social media fictions are a dangerous and worsening problem. We will catalog only a few of the very many. Note some are political actors and others are malicious harm doers. Either form harms us. Both make matters worse.
On Sept. 25, Representative Luna (R–FL) voted against the stopgap spending bill that recently replenished the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) disaster relief fund. The next day, Hurricane Helene inflicted its worst damage on Luna’s Clearwater–St. Petersburg district. Luna did a blame-game about-face. On Oct. 3, Luna claimed that FEMA is underfunded because it gave money to immigrants (“Illegals got $1.01B from FEMA that was supposed to/ SHOULD GO to flood victims!” https://x.com/realannapaulina/status/1841942537608876403). That assertion has been thoroughly debunked. The following day, Luna joined a political rally on stage with presidential hopeful Donald Trump in North Carolina and repeated her lie. Lies have consequences, including lies about where FEMA money goes and lies about $750 being all the assistance people get. On October 14, federal assistance in Rutherford County, NC, was halted because of violent threats against FEMA.
(“Milton” | Kotok Report (item 4), https://kotokreport.com/milton/)
The following are the kinds of reports we might expect our Representatives to keep up with and factor into their decisions.
Putin, Russia, and Ukraine
“Ukrainian drones hit Russia’s Ust-Luga port again, sources say oil terminal hit” | Reuters, https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-drones-damage-russias-ust-luga-port-again-governor-says-2026-03-31/
“‘Mr. Nobody Against Putin’: A Deep Dive into Russian Propaganda” | Carnegie Politika,
“Putin is failing. These charts prove it.” Washington Post,
https://putin-is-failing-wapo.tiiny.site/?utm_campaign=21595320-DIGITAL_NLR%20AEI%20This%20Week&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9sUSFCp9afMY3HjagDGjZuPfMDNxh3euRyjWXAzLYxysdyWjjUGUa8sVmJzem7qEOFAN11W_Gl8y4pnSdb1bCbQr_IOw&_hsmi=407400953&utm_content=407400953&utm_source=hs_email
Charles-Henry Monchau, March 29 post on LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/posts/charles-henry-monchau-cfa-cmt-caia-4003096_breaking-russia-is-banning-all-gasoline-share-7443984270827732992-W2cw)
Excerpt:
The ban [on Russian gasoline exports] came out of an emergency meeting where officials admitted the domestic market is critically short on fuel. Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries have significantly reduced production of light petroleum products, and many refineries cannot resume operations due to sanctions on Western equipment.
“Ukraine’s top drone commander wants to bleed Russia’s army dry” | The Economist (paywall), https://www.economist.com/europe/2026/03/22/ukraines-top-drone-commander-wants-to-bleed-russias-army-dry)
“Russian lives for Ukrainian lands” | Reuters, https://www.reuters.com/graphics/UKRAINE-CRISIS/CASUALTIES/lgvdgmjbzpo/?utm_source=braze&utm_medium=notifications&utm_campaign=2025_engagement)
Excerpt:
Four years after its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Russia occupies about a fifth of Ukraine’s territory…. Russia is suffering “crazy losses” in Ukraine, tallying around 65,000 soldiers dead or injured over the last two months … [and] 1.2 million total casualties since 2022.
“Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 26, 2026” | Institute for the Study of War (ISW), https://understandingwar.org/research/russia-ukraine/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-26-2026/
Excerpt:
Russian forces are unlikely to seize Ukraine’s Fortress Belt in 2026. Russian forces likely began their Spring-Summer 2026 offensive against Ukraine’s Fortress Belt with a significant increase in mechanized and motorized assaults in various sectors of the front between March 17 and 21, and a period of intensified strikes, and the movement of heavy equipment and troops on the frontline. Ukraine’s Fortress Belt is a concentration of four heavily fortified and large cities in Donetsk Oblast, with a total pre-war population of over 380,000, that run north to south along the H-20 Kostyantynivka-Slovyansk highway. Russian forces tried and failed to seize the Fortress Belt in 2014 and 2022, and such an operation in the fifth year of the war will likely be a multi-year effort with significant personnel and materiel losses. Russian forces have also shown no ability to rapidly envelop, penetrate, or otherwise seize cities the size of those in the Fortress Belt.The Kremlin knows that Russian forces’ seizure of the Fortress Belt on the battlefield is not inevitable and is therefore demanding that Ukraine cede the unoccupied parts of Donetsk Oblast. The Kremlin seeks such a concession to save Russia the personnel and materiel resources and to put Russia in a more advantageous position to possibly re-invade in the future.
“Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 29, 2026 | Institute for the Study of War (ISW), https://understandingwar.org/research/russia-ukraine/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-29-2026/
Welcome to ‘New Russia’: How the Kremlin is remaking occupied Ukraine” | Reuters, https://www.reuters.com/investigations/welcome-new-russia-how-kremlin-is-remaking-occupied-ukraine-2026-03-26/
Putin, Russian, and Iran
“Moscow Rushes to Reap Reward of Oil Price Surge, Sanctions Pause” | Bloomberg (paywall), https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-03-16/moscow-rushes-to-reap-reward-of-oil-price-surge-sanctions-pause?cmpid=eveus&utm_campaign=eveus&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=260316
“Trump Puts Putin in an Iran Dilemma” | Foreign Policy (paywall), https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/03/04/putin-iran-israel-trump-war-attack-khamenei-killing/?mkt_tok=ODEzLVhZVS00MjIAAAGghorFKzNcA4E7l24cr-9_S9SuQhanxFyAbvOAmO3nbShXHwBHputIzOoqWnH29nNoGu8IES4lJPtLJPsMJI4JefMYmQB-UWSytGSZXwerTNw
“Putin’s ‘Hidden Hand’ Guides Iran’s Strikes in Widening War” | Bloomberg,
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-03-12/putin-s-hidden-hand-guides-iran-s-strikes-in-widening-conflict
“Russia has provided Iran with information that can help Tehran strike US military, AP sources say” | AP News,
https://apnews.com/article/trump-iran-russia-intelligence-35afae34198408d670941f971d383378
“Moscow Rushes to Reap Reward of Oil Price Surge, Sanctions Pause” | Bloomberg, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-03-16/moscow-rushes-to-reap-reward-of-oil-price-surge-sanctions-pause?cmpid=eveus&utm_campaign=eveus&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=260316
Dr. Orestis D. Valianatos, comment at LinkedIn, March 30, https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7444028099777675265?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28activity%3A7444028099777675265%2C7444369618787553281%29&dashCommentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_comment%3A%287444369618787553281%2Curn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7444028099777675265%29
Excerpt:
Kuwaiti authorities say Indian worker killed in attack that also caused ‘significant material damage’ to building.” …“The region produces 40 percent of overall global desalinated water, and it is consumed in the region.”Global markets are trading under the shadow of two strategic chokepoints. The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively shut, keeping a key artery for oil and gas exports offline. At the same time, rhetoric around Bab al‑Mandeb is hardening, raising the risk that a second vital route for energy and container traffic is drawn into the conflict.
For investors, this is far more than a shipping disruption. Prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, combined with even limited interference around Bab al‑Mandeb, is embedding higher risk premia into energy prices, inflation expectations and growth projections. Analysts believe that, until there is credible movement toward reopening Hormuz and de‑escalating threats to Red Sea trade, any relief rallies in risk assets are likely to be fragile and short‑lived rather than the start of a durable recovery.
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