Radel speaks English, Spanish and Italian. Trey Radel: 10 things to know

Florida Republican Rep. Trey Radel came under fire Tuesday when news broke that he was charged with possession of cocaine. The 37-year old has made waves in the past with everything from his music selections to his social media ventures, and he’ll appear in court on Wednesday. Here’s 10 things to know about Radel:

1. Real name is Henry. Trey was born Henry Jude Radel III.


2. Loves to tweet Sky Mall magazine. He shares his finds in the airline publication, such as garden gnomes, under the hashtag #treyonplane during his trips back and forth from D.C. He’s very active on Twitter, and has even used it to review a Jay-Z album.

3. Calls himself a hip-hop conservative. He says his favorite artists growing up included Eric B., Big Daddy Kane and Chuck D of Public Enemy. He said in a community post on Buzzfeed that music is a way to bring people together, and that music helps him “communicate the conservative message to people, cutting across cultural, generational and ethnic lines.”

4. Took comedy classes at Second City. He told National Journal that he trained as an actor and a comedian, and met Rachel Dratch from Saturday Night Live.

5. Is a former journalist. He once interned at CNN in Atlanta, worked as a TV show host on WINK-TV, a radio talk show host on a Fox News Radio affiliate, and purchased a community newspaper, Naples Journal in Collier County, Fla.

6. Favorite vacation destination is Cartagena. He told Roll Call that he prefers his home state Florida to Washington D.C., but outside of the Sunshine State, he enjoys Colombia.

7. Has a nonprofit. Radel and his wife Amy founded U.S. Forces Fund, which helps wounded soldiers return home.

8. Serves on two House committees: Foreign Affairs and Transportation and Infrastructure.

9. Is trilingual. He speaks English, Spanish and Italian.

10. Tech savvy. His campaign came under scrutiny in 2012 when it came out that “Friends of Trey Radel, Inc.” had purchased the domain names of his opponents more than a year before he announced his entry into the race. He first denied knowing about it, but later admitted to purchasing them.

Mackenzie Weinger contributed to this report.

This article tagged under: Trey Radel