Crowley Political Report

When you decide to run for statewide office in Florida, a candidate can expect the state's media to very carefully examine who they are, what they say, and how they got where they are. If a candidate exaggerates his resume - well, it is gonna get ugly.

Ugly has hit U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy. And none of this is good for his bid to win the Democratic U.S. Senate nomination.

And if does win the nomination, Murphy has handed likely GOP nominee Marco Rubio fodder to use against him.

Reporter Jim DeFede of CBS4 has done a two-part examination of Murphy's claims about his role as a small businessman and as a CPA. In great detail, Defede, one of South Florida's toughest reporters, takes apart Murphy's claims.

He finds that Murphy was not a CPA who spent years reviewing top companies.

From DeFede:  when Murphy said in 2012, “I got my CPA license and I spent years going to numerous Fortune 500 companies,” the truth is he only spent at most eight months – and not years – with Deloitte & Touche holding a CPA license valid only in Colorado, a state where Murphy has never lived or worked.

In fact, DeFede reports that Murphy's role at Deloitte & Touche was a minor entry level position.

Murphy also had claimed he was a small business owner of Coastal Environmental which worked on the BP oil spill.

DeFede finds that Murphy did not own the business (something Murphy has acknowledged) and that the company was a subsidiary of his father's company.

From Defede: Murphy’s involvement with Coastal Environmental was brief, no more than two to five months. And while it did operate, according to state records, Murphy wasn’t the president of the company. He was vice president. . . .neither Patrick Murphy nor Coastal Environmental Services were awarded a single contract to clean up oil in the Gulf.

Defede also notes: In May, the Miami Herald pointed out Murphy claimed for years to hold dual degrees from UM in Accounting and Finance. He even listed it as part of his official biography for the House of Representatives. In fact, he holds a single undergraduate degree in Business Administration.

The text of Defede's story can be found here.