Robert F. Hyde
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Robert Hyde | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 19, 1979 |
| Party | Republican |
| Alma mater | Central Connecticut State University |
| Occupation | Businessman, lobbyist, political candidate |
| Known for | Association with the Trump–Ukraine scandal |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Marine Corps |
| Years of service | 1995–2005 |
Robert Finley Hyde (born December 19, 1979) is an American businessman, lobbyist, and political candidate. Hyde gained attention during the first impeachment of Donald Trump as a figure associated with the Trump–Ukraine scandal. He runs a lobbying firm, Finley Hyde & Associates, in Washington, D.C.[1]
Hyde was raised in Canton, Connecticut, and attended Central Connecticut State University.[2] He has said that he served in the United States Marine Corps from 1999 to 2005 that he was deployed twice to Iraq.[2] He started a landscape company, RF Landscaping and Construction, in 2000.[2][3]
Career
Politics
In June 2019, Hyde filed to challenge Senator Richard Blumenthal in the 2022 United States Senate elections.[2] In August 2019, Hyde launched a congressional campaign to unseat Jahana Hayes.[1]
Following sexually crude comments Hyde made about Kamala Harris, Connecticut Republicans called on Hyde to end his campaign, and the Connecticut Republican Party refunded the contributions he made to the party.[1][4][5]
In the 2024 United States Senate election in Connecticut, Hyde was on the ballot as the candidate of the Cheaper Gas Groceries Party, facing off against incumbent Chris Murphy and two other candidates.[6] He earned 14,879 votes, representing 0.87 percent of the total vote.[7]
Hyde opposes red flag laws and universal background checks, and supports legalizing recreational marijuana use.[2]
Hyde has promoted the far-right QAnon conspiracy theory.[8][9][10]
Hyde has made monetary contributions to various politicians, candidates, and organizations, including Donald Trump, Devin Nunes, Greg Pence, Patrick Morrisey, Jim Renacci, America First Action, and the Tea Party Majority Fund.[11] Finley Enterprises LLC, which runs Finley's campaign page, managed several pro-Trump Facebook pages that would later be suspended by Facebook for coordinated inauthentic behavior.[12]
Trump–Ukraine scandal
| Trump–Ukraine scandal |
|---|
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| Events |
| People |
| Companies |
| Conspiracy theories |
Hyde was in communication with Lev Parnas, and reportedly had associates in Ukraine monitoring the movements of then-Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch.[1][13] Hyde shared timely information about the ambassador's movements, location and security coverage: "She's talked to three people. Her phone is off. Computer is off. She's next to the embassy… Private security." and "They will let me know when she’s on the move… They are willing to help if you/we would like a price."[14] The revelations were of great concern to various former foreign service officers[15] and the former ambassador asked for an investigation into this activity.[16] In a subsequent interview with Eric Bolling, Hyde claimed that he was joking.[17]
In an interview with Rachel Maddow on MSNBC on January 15, 2020, Lev Parnas said he did not believe that Hyde was being truthful, though he identified many other alleged participants discussing their roles in the Trump–Ukraine scandal. He also attributed Hyde's behavior to being "drunk all the time."[18][19]
On January 16, 2020, Hyde's home and office in Connecticut were searched by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.[20]