Tag Archives: Florida

The Guardian reports: The Republican presidential candidate and Florida governor Ron DeSantis said on Sunday he would aim to revoke China’s permanent normal trade relations status if he wins the White House next year. “I favor doing that,” DeSantis told Fox News. “I think we probably need Congress but I would take executive action as appropriate to be able to …

Florida Politics reports: New polling from the Florida Atlantic University Mainstreet PolCom Lab tells a familiar story about the GOP presidential race in the state. Right now, it’s Donald Trump’s to lose. The former President leads Gov. Ron DeSantis, 50% to 30%, in a poll of 315 likely voters in next year’s GOP Primary. No other candidate is close. Author …

From the Miami Herald editorial board: Gov. Ron DeSantis has made no secret that his approach to governing is “You’re either with me or get the heck out.” He has signed laws and used state power against: teachers; transgender people; African Americans; women’s bodies; teachers and unions; university professors and academic freedom; universities that want to diversify their student body; …

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports: Broward County has lost more than a half-dozen conventions as their organizers cite the divisive political climate as their reason to stay out of Florida. The list was compiled by Visit Lauderdale, formerly known as the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau. Broward’s tourism arm said the lost conventions could have brought hotel stays …

Florida Politics reports: A video spotlighted by the DeSantis War Room Twitter account that painted Donald Trump as accommodating on LGBTQ+ issues has been quietly deleted. However, the Tweet highlighting the video is still up as of this writing Saturday morning. The deletion, first noticed by Axios reporter Alex Thompson, caps off days of blowback against Ron DeSantis which included …

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports: Just days before the three finalists for Florida Atlantic University’s next president were set to speak at public forums, the search has been stopped in its tracks. State University System of Florida Chancellor Ray Rodrigues sent a letter to Brad Levine, chairman of both the FAU Board of Trustees and the Presidential Search Committee, citing …

From the Wall Street Journal editorial board: An estimated 772,000 undocumented immigrants lived in Florida in 2019, many of whom have been there for years and contribute significantly to the state economy. Construction, agriculture and hospitality depend heavily on undocumented workforces, not least because of a shortage of U.S. workers for such lower-wage and -skilled jobs. Employers in these industries …

Florida Politics reports: Gov. Ron DeSantis continues to explain away disappointing polling numbers, blaming the “corporate media” and Mexico’s President Andrés López Obrador this time. During a Thursday night interview on Fox News Tonight, host Will Cain confronted the 2024 presidential candidate with polling that has seen DeSantis “between 10 and 20%,” “numbers that have stayed there for two months.” …

Florida Politics reports: Florida’s First Lady is kicking off the presidential campaign’s iteration of “Mamas for DeSantis” with a new video highlighting the Governor’s stances against drag queens, masks and Anthony Fauci. The video, which runs slightly more than two minutes, juxtaposes stern narration against a visual backdrop of a parade of horribles for DeSantis and his supporters. “When you …

The Miami Herald reports: Two former staffers for Florida Rep. Fabian Basabe filed a lawsuit Thursday detailing allegations of sexual harassment and unwanted touching by the freshman Republican lawmaker. The lawsuit says Basabe made repeated lewd sexual comments and advances toward a legislative aide and an intern, slapped the aide’s butt without his consent while they attended an elementary school …

The Associated Press reports: A super PAC supporting Miami Mayor Francis Suarez ‘s run for the Republican presidential nomination has launched an artificial intelligence chatbot to answer questions about him, marking yet another example of how generative AI tools are being used in 2024 presidential campaigns. The bot unveiled Wednesday by SOS America PAC listens to a user’s questions and …

Politico reports: Gov. Ron DeSantis and former President Donald Trump are finding that the price to make the 2024 Florida primary ballot is going up. All GOP candidates will have to pledge their loyalty to the eventual Republican nominee to make the March 19 primary, a contest that could tip the balance of the crowded race since Florida’s contest is …

The Florida Phoenix reports: Noting the “escalating waves of hostile actions and legislation coming out of Florida,” the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP) is ditching its scheduled annual conference at the Hyatt Regency Miami later this year and instead will hold it in Chicago. In a letter sent to ACSP educators, researchers, and students posted on the organization’s …

NBC News reports: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis defended a controversial video Wednesday that went after former President Donald Trump over LGBTQ rights and was shared by his campaign. They were his first public comments on the video. “Identifying Donald Trump as really being a pioneer in injecting gender ideology into the mainstream, where he was having men compete against women …

Variety reports: After Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign shared a bizarre and wildly homophobic video that includes footage of Cillian Murphy’s character in “Peaky Blinders,” the team behind the British crime drama has denounced the video, adding that the footage of the show was “obtained without permission or official license.” The video, shared by DeSantis’ campaign on Twitter, slams rival 2024 …

“It probably wasn’t the best idea for an ad, in part because you win elections when you add people to your voting rolls, you don’t win elections when you keep subtracting them. “But the fact is there are many people in that community who are conservative and vote Republican. You want those voters and just in the same way that …

Via press release from Sen. Rick Scott: Today, I had the great honor to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, government officials and members of the U.S. military to discuss our work together to advance our shared national security and economic interests, and reinforce our commitment to promote and protect America’s valuable relationships with our partners across the Middle East. …

NBC News reports: In the four years since DeSantis took office, his administration has routinely stonewalled the release of public records, approved a slew of new legal exceptions aimed at keeping more information out of the public eye, and waged legal battles against open government advocates, the press and other watchdogs. DeSantis, a Harvard-educated lawyer and former U.S. attorney, is …

CNN reports: A federal judge on Monday blocked a Florida election law that would have set limits on voter registration in the state. Chief US District Judge for the Northern District of Florida Mark E. Walker said while it’s correct for the state to “seek integrity” in its electoral system, “Florida’s solutions for preserving election integrity are too far removed …

Florida Politics reports: Florida’s Governor says he is still flummoxed by a long-standing nickname Donald Trump gave him. During an interview conducted by supporter and surrogate Josh Kimbrell of South Carolina, Ron DeSantis said he still didn’t know what Trump means when he refers to him as “Ron DeSanctimonious.” “I still haven’t figured out what it actually means,” DeSantis said …