Tampabay.com
AUGUST 11, 2006

Jeb, The Gossip

If you wanna keep your love life under wraps, you might not want to let Florida's governor know about your latest beau.

That's what Alia Faraj, Gov. Jeb Bush's communications director, found out Friday when her boss outed her new relationship to a gaggle of Tampa Bay reporters.

Bush had just finished up an appearance at Tampa General Hospital Friday morning when a lingering reporter from WFLA asked the final zinger question: Was it true Alia Faraj might marry before Bush's second and final term ends?

Bush apparently relished the moment, calling back reporters and television cameras that had ambled off. He waited for the cameras to turn back on, then he announced: Alia has a boyfriend. Click here to listen for yourself.

Faraj, reached by Buzz in Tallahassee, was understandably mortified. But she's also a good sport. The new beau is Robert Harrison Johnson, a senior Cabinet aide in the governor's office. The pair, however, is not engaged.

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For Florida political news today, the Buzz is your can't-miss-it source. Tampa Bay Times writers offer the latest in Florida politics, the Florida Legislature and the Rick Scott administration. Keep in mind: This is a public forum sponsored and maintained by the Tampa Bay Times. When you post comments here, what you say becomes public and could appear in the newspaper. You are not engaging in private communication with candidates or Times staffers.

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