Surrounded by law enforcement officials and other members of the Legislature on Tuesday, Governor DeSantis announced the proposal of three new initiatives designed to recruit and retain law enforcement officers in Florida.
The three proposed initiatives include, new officer signing bonuses of $5,000, the Academy Scholarship Program for the Florida Law Enforcement Academy, and out-of-state relocation support.
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As Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is appealing a ruling over the state’s mask mandate ban, three school districts are directly challenging the state’s rule by filing a challenge in the Florida Department of Administrative Hearings (DOAH).
Attorneys for the Alachua, Broward, and Orange counties filed the challenge targeting the Florida Department of Health’s (DOH) rule to block mask mandate bans. The ban keeps school districts from imposing a mask mandate so long as there is a parent permission opt-out.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis dispelled speculation and rumors around his prospects of being a 2024 Republican presidential candidate. DeSantis was asked about if he and former President Donald J. Trump would run for president while visiting a monoclonal treatment site in St. Cloud, Fla.
“All the speculation about me is purely manufactured,” DeSantis said. “I just do my job. We work hard. Obviously, our state has led on a lot of things, including on this (monoclonal antibody treatment) now. Other states are copying us. But that’s what it’s really all about, just helping folks here. I hear all this stuff and, honestly, it’s nonsense.”
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A complaint has been filed against Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-23) by the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT). The complaint is calling on the Office of Congressional Ethics to launch an investigation into Wasserman Schultz “for violating federal law and House ethics rules.”
The complaint alleges Wasserman Schultz failed to disclose financial transactions on time, along with a dependent child’s financial transactions.
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Funding for military projects out of Eglin Air Force Base in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, may get a boost after a bill by the U.S. House Armed Services Committee (USASC) was approved on Friday and sent to the House floor.
After applauding the passage of the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a press release by Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01) – member of the USASC – says that the proposal includes a $600 million in defense spending, with $359 million being construction projects.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said last week he could see himself supporting Texas-style abortion legislation. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed a “heartbeat bill” banning abortions as early as six weeks, which is considered the time when a fetus develops a heartbeat and can be heard through an ultrasound.
The Texas bill, SB 8, officially came into effect on September 1 after the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) denied an appeal from abortion providers.
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On Friday, September 3rd, the Legislative Budget Commission accepted a report that indicated Florida’s general revenue collections are projected to be above the pre-pandemic forecasted levels for Fiscal Year 2021-22 and Fiscal Year 2022-23.
Also, revenue collections are expected to increase approximately four percent per year throughout the forecast period.
Speaking Friday at the Joint Legislative Budget Commission, House budget leader Jay Trumbull credited Florida’s swift reopening and a history of prudent budgeting for getting the state’s finances back on track — and even above pre-pandemic estimates. Trumbull, a Panama City Republican who is co-chair of the Joint Legislative Budget Commission, said the report indicates “the state’s budget is in great shape.”
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The student Supreme Court at Florida State University has reinstated Jack Denton to his position as president of the Student Senate after he was removed for his Catholic beliefs. During Denton’s lawsuit against FSU, the student Supreme Court at the school ruled that the other senators were not tolerant of Denton’s religious beliefs.
Denton was removed from his position as senate president in June due to his Catholic beliefs about BLM and other leftist organizations, as Campus Reform previously reported.
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Senate President Wilton Simpson, a wealthy Republican from Pasco County whose business holdings include a large egg farm, filed paperwork Friday to run for state agriculture commissioner next year.
Based on his latest financial disclosure, Simpson is one of the wealthiest members in the Florida Legislature with a net worth of $31.5 million as of Dec. 31.
Simpson, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump earlier this year, is the highest profiled candidate to enter the race. Current Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, a Democrat, is running for governor.
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During a special Leon County School Board (LCSB) meeting on Thursday, Board member Rosanne Wood initiated a discussion about vaccine incentives focused on Leon County School (LCS) employees and students. The initiative could provide a monetary incentive for employees and students to get vaccinated.
Board member Wood opened the discussion by stating, “since we are the educators of Leon County, we need to be doing a better job of educating our kids, parents, and our families of the importance of this vaccine…”
Wood mentioned that SAIL High School is holding a vaccine clinic and will be offering Starbucks gift cards and Amazon gift cards to students and employees who get vaccinated.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) announced his administration has appealed a legal ruling striking down his July executive order banning mask mandates. DeSantis initially signed the order to prevent school districts from imposing district-wide mask mandates on students.
DeSantis has previously cited the recently signed “Parental Bill of Rights” legislation ensuring parents have the right to make healthcare decisions for their children, including wearing or not wearing masks.
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Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D) took jabs at Congressman Charlie Crist (D-13) over his previous political affiliations and supporting pro-life policies when he was a Republican. Fried and Crist are both running to unseat Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the 2022 gubernatorial election.
On Twitter, Fried posted a YouTube clip with the added caption that she is the only candidate who has been “pro-choice” her entire life, referencing an old clip where Crist said “I am pro-life, I am pro-gun, and I am pro-family, and I am anti-tax and I always have been.”
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Florida joined a coalition with 17 other states to back an amicus brief asking the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to deny the Biden administration’s motion for a stay on the Texas Supreme Court ruling to reinstate Migrant Protection Protocols (MPPs), or the “Remain in Mexico” policy, established under former President Trump.
In the brief, it states, “The border is in crisis. This Administration is increasingly and alarmingly lawless. And the States continue to suffer escalating irreparable harm as the border slips further and further away from the Administration’s control.”
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Governor DeSantis announced Thursday that the 21 monoclonal antibody treatment centers he issued last month have positively resulted in a decrease in the number of hospitalizations in Florida that surged due to the COVID-19 delta variant.
Data from the Florida Hospital Association from Wednesday showed that 14,682 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 on Tuesday – a decrease of 9.9% in the last seven days.
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Governor DeSantis will make two appointments to the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) out of six finalists who were sent to the Governor on Tuesday by the Florida Public Service Commission Nominating Council (PSCNC).
The two positions are opening due to current commission members Art Graham and Andrew Fay’s terms expiring in January 2022 – both of whom are among the six finalists and looking for reappointment.
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The Florida Hospital Association President Mary Mayhew said she has been encouraged with the latest trends regarding COVID in Florida.
Mayhew appeared on MSNBC last week and said she is hopeful given the drop in hospitalization numbers.
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Florida’s Attorney General, Ashley Moody (R), has entered into the fight against rogue school districts defying state law. She voiced her opinion after a court decision earlier this week saying Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ mask mandate ban was unconstitutional and unenforceable.
DeSantis said they will be quickly filing an appeal to the decision in another attempt to “defend the law and parents’ rights in Florida.”
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has been attracting national attention for his handling of the COVID pandemic and after taking different campaign trips across the country he has attracted some of the GOP’s biggest donors.
According to Friends of Ron DeSantis’ campaign documents, Kenneth Griffin, founder of Citadel, a Chicago-based hedge fund, as donated $5 million. David MacNeil, founder of WeatherTech, donated $500,000 in May, and Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus gave $250,000.
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Stephen Alford, a Florida developer and fraud convict, was arrested and charged for attempting to extort $25 million from former Florida Senate President Don Gaetz, father of embattled Congressman Matt Gaetz, according to POLITICO.
After Don Gaetz wore a wire for the FBI, it was found out that Alford would have ensured one of Gaetz’ family members received a presidential pardon, and no one would go to prison. The family member was identified as Don Gaetz’s son, Congressman Matt Gaetz.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has selected the next secretary for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). DeSantis picked Shawn Hamilton who oversaw the state park system as deputy secretary. Hamilton was previously a superintendent in the Alabama Air National Guard and also served in the Iraq War who has also worked in environmental conservation.
Hamilton would be the first black man to lead the FDEP and DeSantis said he we would bring “a strong, proven record of environmental stewardship and management of award-winning state parks and conservation lands.”
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Florida Agriculture Commissioner and 2022 Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Nikki Fried, has filed her financial disclosure forms, showing updates to her 2019 financial forms and new changes.
Fried was hours away from racking up fines for potentially not filing by the September 1 deadline, which was the end of the extended grace period. Form 6, which Fried completed, was originally due on July 1.
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In an announcement made by the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) on Monday, the Department said it will officially withhold monthly salaries of school boards in Alachua and Broward counties for issuing mask mandates for their students in violation of state law.
In July, Governor DeSantis signed an executive order banning school boards and districts from placing mask mandates in Florida schools, referencing the Parents’ Bill of Rights that DeSantis established in the 2021 legislative session.
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The U.S. Department of Education (U.S. DOE) announced they are investigating state laws across the country pertaining to mask mandate bans. The states subject to investigation are Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah. Notably, Florida was not included in the list regarding the initial investigation.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order banning mask mandates on July 30 kicking off a month of threats, legal action, and defiant school boards.
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Judge Layne Smith, a Circuit Judge in Leon County, sided with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his administration over the decision to cut off federal unemployment dollars for Floridians in June.
Smith ruled DeSantis was within his rights as governor as the state has attempted to get Floridians back to work during a national labor shortage.
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Florida Crystals’ Okeelanta Corp., U.S. Sugar, and the Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative filed separate lawsuits and are suing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over proposed reservoir water levels. The sugar companies say the proposed levels will be too low to supply enough water to their fields.
The Corps are attempting to keep the water low as part of an Everglades restoration project, but the growers would want to see the levels returned to a standard adopted in 2000.
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Floridians hospitalized for COVID has decreased for a fourth day in a row, according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data.
The data shows Florida’s hospitals are taking care of 15,778 COVID patients which accounts for only 27.5 percent of all Floridians hospitalized. Similarly, Florida’s ICU’s are helping 3,477 COVID patients, which was over 200 less COVID patients than Thursday, last week.
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During the first six months of 2021, more than 6,250 “unaccompanied alien minors” were transported to Florida by the federal government and released to sponsors with little oversight, Gov. Ron DeSantis said.
Other than that, the governor says there’s little information provided by the federal government about where people detained for attempting to illegally cross the U.S.-Mexico border are being housed and how many are now in Florida.
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Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (R) criticized President Joe Biden for the alleged list the United States gave to Taliban leaders containing names of Americans and allied personnel still on the ground in Afghanistan seeking to evacuate.
Rubio’s comments were contained in a letter sent to the White House.
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Last week the Miami Herald published a story with a headline which garnered national attention, mainly from critics of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. The headline read “Florida COVID update: 901 added deaths, largest single-day increase in pandemic history.”
The story was picked up by many predominantly left-leaning pundits and news sites to blast DeSantis for their claims of his poor effort in handling of the COVID pandemic.
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The Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) announced the temporary closure of three prisons in North Florida on Friday, Cross City Correctional Institution (CCCI), Baker Correctional Institution (BCI), and New River Correctional Institution (NRCI).
CCCI has been closed since August 7th when it was evacuated due to flooding, while BCI and NRCI have experienced significant staffing shortages and will be closed in the coming weeks.
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Florida State Rep. Jay Trumbull (R-6), House Appropriations Chair, is calling on the Florida Ports industry to lobby for more infrastructure cash while still waiting on federal COVID stimulus money.
Trumbull said he wishes he wishes “we could have done more” for the ports industry, but he is concerned Florida’s ports could lose out on commerce and industry to nearby Alabama and Georgia.
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In Jacksonville and Ocala, Regeneron’s monoclonal antibody treatment sites are seeing hundreds of people receive the therapy, and it is proving successful in its early treatment phase.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has been pushing for the use of the treatment for COVID patients early in their infection. The design is to receive the monoclonal treatment before serious symptoms kick in.
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The state of Florida has restored more than 950,000 jobs that were lost due to the pandemic, according to Chief Economist and Director of Research for the Florida Chamber of Commerce (FCC), Dr. Jerry Parrish.
In an online presentation titled Florida By the Numbers published by the FCC, Parrish notes that the pandemic resulted in the loss of approximately 1.3 million jobs since April 2020, and that there are still 315,800 jobs to be restored in order to get back to “pre-COVID levels.”
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Leon County Circuit Judge, John C. Cooper, has ruled Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis executive order banning mask mandates is unlawful and cannot be enforced, saying it does not “pass constitutional muster.”
Cooper sided with the parents challenging the legality of DeSantis’ order, and cited two previous Florida Supreme Court cases which indicated rights can be limited in the event others’ rights could be impacted. He specifically noted the prohibition of yelling “fire” in a crowded theater.
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Florida Surgeon General Scott Rivkees is leaving his post at the Florida Department of Health (FDOH). Rivkees has been with Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration since 2019 and led the FDOH since the COVID pandemic began in Florida in March 2020.
“We thank Dr. Rivkees for his meaningful work during the most challenging pandemic of our lifetime. We appreciate his service to the people of Florida and wish him the best in his future endeavors,” said DeSantis’ press secretary Christina Pushaw to Florida Politics.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced they won back $5 million in a settlement from a lawsuit the state filed against the nonprofit group, the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence (FCADV). The figure at the center of the suit was Tiffany Carr, who worked at the coalition for decades, was accused of defrauding the State of Florida and the federal government by convincing the board of directors to pay her millions of dollars, as her salary, over years.
“For several years, FCADV and Tiffany Carr concocted to pay herself an excessive compensation scheme, millions of dollars meant to benefit domestic violence victims. When uncovered, this scheme threatened to disrupt funding to domestic violence centers,” said Attorney General Ashley Moody. “I am pleased that through these actions, we succeeded in getting rid of the bad management, dismantling the organization, implementing a new system to serve victims of domestic violence and recouping millions of misappropriated funds.
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The American Medical Association (AMA) is calling for public and private vaccine mandates.
“With the highly transmissible and more virulent Delta variant wreaking havoc and emergency departments once again overwhelmed, physicians and all frontline health care workers need help,” the AMA said. “The way to regain the upper hand in this fight is requiring vaccinations—specifically vaccine mandates.”
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Judge Layne Smith of Florida’s Second Judicial Circuit Court held a hearing Wednesday for a lawsuit filed against Governor Ron DeSantis, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) and its Secretary, Dane Eagle.
The complaint was filed on July 25th by attorneys on behalf of a group of Broward County residents in response to the $300-a-week in federal unemployment benefits – known as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or the ‘CARES Act’ – that were cut off in Florida on July 26th.
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A motion to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act that bans transgender females from participating in high school athletics, was sent to a federal judge on Monday.
The Act, also known as SB 1028, was approved in April by the Florida Legislature, and signed into law by Governor DeSantis in June on the basis that it would ensure that biological males do not participate in female sports in order to keep spots open for biological females.
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A Leon County Circuit Judge is hearing arguments from parents seeking an end to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ mask mandate ban. Specifically, the parents are seeking to challenge DeSantis’ executive order from July 30, which numerous school districts have been defying.
Charles Dodson, a former judge and is representing the parents, said schools are not safe until everyone is masked.
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The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) released statewide unemployment data on Friday, showing slight increase in the unemployment rate from June to July.
As stated in the DEO release, Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.1 percent in July 2021, up 0.1% from the June 2021 rate, and down 6.4% from a year ago.
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Commissioners for the City of Orlando unanimously approved an incentive agreement between the city and a tech company known as Checkr Inc. that will establish an office that will create 630 new high-wage jobs by the end of 2024.
Additionally, Checkr will receive just over $1.1 million from the city over the next six years, but will make a $2.7 million capital investment to the city in return that includes the lease to a 25,000 square foot office building in the Millenia Lakes area of Orlando.
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Congressman Byron Donalds (R-19) has called on President Joe Biden to resign in the wake of the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban.
“It has become clear that President Biden has lost complete and total confidence of the American people through his haphazard decision to withdraw from Afghanistan,” Donalds said in an exclusive statement to the Daily Caller.
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The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) announced they have opened an investigation into the 2020 election related to Florida Senate District 9, which saw then-candidate Jason Brodeur (R) defeat Patricia Sigman (D) by approximately 2 percentage points.
The Orlando Sentinel reported the specific allegations have not been publicly disclosed, but noted the Seminole and Volusia County election, and the political scene at-large, has been mired in scrutiny and controversy for months.
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Parents raised millions for their beloved local Catholic school, but then the administration allegedly became so woke it ultimately violated its own mission, according to a lawsuit filed in June.
Anthony and Barbara Scarpo charged the Academy of the Holy Names in Tampa, Florida, with “distancing itself from mainstream Catholicism, and embracing the new, politically correct, divisive and ‘woke’ culture.” Gender identity and openness to LGBTQ lifestyles, pro-abortion stances, white guilt and other “hot-button issues” replaced Catholic teaching, and students were allegedly taught to feel “guilt for not having been ‘woke’ sooner,” according to the lawsuit.
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The Leon County School District is the latest public school district to announce they are imposing K-8 mask mandate without a parent permission opt-out form. The district operated the first couple weeks of school without the opt-out form, but Superintendent Rocky Hanna made the announcement Sunday night.
“I do have an obligation to uphold the laws of the state of Florida,” said Hanna. “But, I have a greater obligation however to protect, the health, safety and welfare of the children of Tallahassee and Leon County.”
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After Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ press secretary was suspended from Twitter and the Associated Press (AP) sent a letter criticizing DeSantis, DeSantis responded with his own letter to the AP saying they deserved a little pushback against the AP’s “smear” tactic.
“I assumed your letter was to notify me that you were issuing a retraction of the partisan smear piece you published last week,” DeSantis wrote. “Instead, you had the temerity to complain about the deserved blowback that your botched and discredited attempt to concoct a political narrative has received. The ploy will not work to divert attention from the fact that the Associated Press published a false narrative that will lead some to decline effective treatment for COVID infections.”
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Despite Florida’s recall laws not pertaining to statewide elected officials, Newsweek magazine published a story highlighting the growth of a Florida statewide petition calling for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ recall.
Newsweek placed the detail related to the prohibition of recalling statewide elected officials at the bottom of the article.
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The Florida Elections Commission will look to add three new members after Governor DeSantis appointed Nicholas Primrose, Marva Preston and Carlos Lopez-Cantera to the panel on Friday, Primrose being the designated Chair.
DeSantis’ appointments are subject to confirmation by the Florida Senate and are the first in over a year to replace all current members of the FEC whose terms have expired but are still serving.
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Last week, the Associated Press (AP) published a story regarding Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his push for monoclonal antibody treatment, which is sold by Regeneron. In the wake of the article, DeSantis’ press secretary, Christina Pushaw, found her Twitter account suspended for allegedly “harassing” the reporter who broke the AP story.
In the original article, Brendan Farrington, who wrote the piece, noted Citadel, a Chicago-based hedge fund, owns over $15 million of Regeneron. The CEO of Citadel, Ken Griffin, is a multi-million-dollar donor to the DeSantis campaign.
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