Peter Schorsch
Sunburn – The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics.
By Peter Schorsch, Phil Ammann, Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster, Mitch Perry and Jim Rosica.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my friend and one of the top five best House Speakers of the last decade, Will Weatherford.
In all seriousness, I keep hearing about how happy Weatherford is spending more time at home and in the private sector, but his voice is sorely missed (point out the Florida Republican who is talking about generational poverty!). He should run for governor in 2018 and I say that as someone who would like Gwen Graham, Bob Buckhorn, Phil Levine, Rick Baker, Richard Corcoran, and Jack Latvala also to run.
THE ANGLING FOR 2018 HAS ALREADY BEGUN…
JOHN MORGAN FOR FLORDA GOVERNOR?
Such a notion is not only not absurd, but, in fact, could have surprisingly broad support across Florida.
I see it as one part Bernie Sanders, one part Donald Trump, and two parts bourbon. Doesn’t that sound like a cocktail Floridians would line up around the block to drink?
If you watched Morgan’s post-election press conference last Wednesday, you can get a taste of what a Morgan candidacy might look like.
He rejected as “not his fight” any future efforts to legalize marijuana in Florida, a natural question given his nearly four year long crusade to pass medical marijuana. But then he did something different and unexpected, pivoting to the topic of decriminalization and praising efforts by cities and counties to make marijuana possession a ticket-able, rather than arrest-able, offense.
Smart.
Floridians are in this weird place on marijuana reform where there is clearly no desire to legalize it here, but most believe sending people to jail for marijuana is insane.
I’m slightly paraphrasing but this was my favorite Morgan moment from that presser, and the one that could be informative of what a run for governor could look like:
“If I were King of Florida,” he started out, and for some reason I pictured him in a paper crown from Burger King, “I would walk through the prisons and release everyone in there for possession alone. Everyone.”
He went on to praise Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer for passing such a law.
And it didn’t come up at the press conference but one of Morgan’s other longtime causes is raising the minimum wage. People forget, but long before Morgan was Florida’s “Mr. Marijuana” he was the guy who gave big money to pass a constitutional amendment raising the state’s minimum wage way back in 2004.
He’s made some noise about doing it again, this time to $15 an hour.
When John Morgan makes that sort of threat, you take it seriously.
And this “Draft John Morgan” effort too, should be taken seriously. Do you think Ben Pollara, the guy who ran the medical marijuana campaign with Morgan, would be undertaking this without some tacit knowledge and assent by Morgan?
Something is happening here and I don’t know what it is, but it’s certainly worth watching. Who knows if Morgan has a single iota of interest in the job? If he ran, would he even run as a Democrat?
Florida Republicans like their crazy rich guys. We got two terms of Rick Scott, sent Trump to the White House and likely would’ve nominated, if not elected, Carlos Beruff but for Marco Rubio jumping back in. Democrats haven’t been so kind, sending certifiable crazy rich guy Jeff Greene packing in a 2010 primary for Senate, and more recently rejecting self-funder Jason Pizzo in a Democratic state Senate primary and seeing one percenter Randy Perkins easily dispatched in the general in CD 18.
I suspect, however, that Morgan might fare differently. Democrats were given a resounding message on Election Night – here and across the country – that they must find a way to steal back white working class voters in order to win. It may well be that one “old, fat, gray, George Clooney looking mother $#!%” who’s visage adorns thousands of billboards across the state could be the savior of the Florida Democratic Party.
As the man himself might say, “BELIEVE!!!!”
DAN GELBER FOR FLORIDA DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIR? – As Florida Democrats begin to think about who might lead their party out of the wilderness they found themselves in after last Tuesday’s elections, a familiar, respected name is emerging as one of the possible contenders.
Dan Gelber is interested in serving as chair of the Florida Democratic Party (FDP), according to a prominent Democratic operative close to the former state senator not authorized to speak on his behalf. “Dan is definitely interested,” the source said.
When contacted for comment, Gelber said: “I fully intend to be involved in this election cycle. Too much is at stake.” Gelber was no less cryptic when speaking with POLITICO Florida. “I’m sure 10 other people have been called, too, but I’m not uninterested.”
On Friday, current FDP Chairwoman Allison Tant announced that she will soon be leaving her post. Her term ends in January. Tant’s decision to leave comes after a poor showing among Democrats during this year’s election. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton lost the state – and the Electoral College – to Republican Donald Trump. Plus, Democrats did not do as well in congressional and legislative elections as they had expected. Democrats picked up just one seat in the state Senate and two in the Florida House.
One of the last election cycles in which Florida Democrats were successful in winning more than a marginal number of legislative contests was in 2005-06. That’s when Gelber, as incoming House Democratic Leader, was in charge of the party’s “House Victory” program. The Democrats netted seven seats in the House during the general election, plus two more seats during subsequent special elections.
Steve Schale, the Democratic consultant who served under Gelber during that period, says that although he has not spoke to him about the possibility of him leading the FDP, he’s “absolutely number one on my draft board.” Gelber “has a winning track record, has good ties to activists and can raise money,” said Schale. “Not sure anyone can fit the bill as well as he can.”
Other names being bandied about to succeed Tant are Alan Clendenin, the state committeeman from Hillsborough County, and Annette Taddeo, who was the party’s lieutenant governor nominee in 2014 and recently lost a bid for Congress. POLITICO Florida also reported that Susannah Randolph is in the mix, while the Miami Herald reported former state Senator Dwight Bullard said he would like to chair the party.
— “Gelber, Randolph, Clendenin top list to lead dispirited Florida Democrats” via Marc Caputo of POLITICO Florida
— “FDP Boss: Bullard wants it, but is Taddeo looking to sneak in the back door?” via Allison Nielsen of Sunshine State News
— “Gobsmacked by election, Florida Democrats try to refocus” via Patricia Mazzei of the Miami Herald
— “The Florida Democratic Party is a damn disgrace” via Tim Elfrink of the Miami New Times
MEANWHILE…
GWEN GRAHAM’S OFFICE HELPS VETERANS RECEIVE $500K IN BENEFITS via Tiffany Jackson of MyPanhandle.com – Graham announced that her office has helped local veterans receive more than $500,000 in benefits owed to them. Local veterans also spoke about their personal experience with Rep. Graham helping them receive the benefits they deserve. …
“It has been so important to me to know that we can make a difference in the lives of North Florida veterans and their families. It has just been such an honor, such an honor and I have so many good friendships that have developed that I will carry with me always,” said Graham. Graham added that she is confident her successor, Neal Dunn, will continue to make helping veterans a priority.
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HILLARY CLINTON BLAMES FBI DIRECTOR FOR LOSS via the New York Times – In a phone call with donors, Clinton cast blame for her surprise election loss on the announcement by the FBI director, James B. Comey, days before the election that he had revived the inquiry into her use of a private email server. Clinton said Comey’s letter to Congress had prevented her from ending the campaign with an optimistic closing argument. Said Clinton: “There are lots of reasons why an election like this is not successful… our analysis is that Comey’s letter raising doubts that were groundless, baseless, proven to be, stopped our momentum.”
GALLUP: DONALD TRUMP FANS ARE RELIEVED; HILLARY CLINTON FANS ARE AFRAID via Phillip Bump of the Washington Post – Unsurprisingly, when Gallup surveyed voters in the wake of the election, the most common sentiment about the results was surprise. Three-quarters of respondents said that the result caught them off-guard, including 9-in-10 Clinton supporters. Fewer Trump supporters felt that way, but more than half still did. In short, most Americans expected something else to happen. Where Gallup’s numbers are more revealing is in the other emotions Americans felt. About as many feel afraid as relieved by the result — thanks to a split between supporters of the two candidates.
The most common sentiments expressed by Trump backers are positive ones: Relief, excitement, pride. The most common sentiments expressed by Clinton backers, besides surprise? Fear, anger, devastation. Overlapping with the partisan splits are splits by age that are worth noting. More than half of those age 40 or younger described their reaction to the results as fear, compared with only a quarter of those age 60 or older. That old group was also more likely to say they felt relief (57 percent) than the younger group (22 percent).
TWEET, TWEET: @Redistrict: Trump’s share of the popular vote just fell to 47.1%, which puts him below Mitt Romney’s 47.2% in ’12
MOST SAY TRUMP’S WIN WAS LEGITIMATE: A new Washington Post-ABC poll finds 74% of all Americans say they accept the election of Donald Trump as legitimate while 18% do not.
JEB BUSH CALLS TRUMP TO EXTEND CONGRATULATIONS via Alex Leary of the Tampa Bay Times – “They had a very productive call and Gov. Bush was extremely gracious congratulating Mr. Trump on his victory and wishing him well as our next president,” Trump’s campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, told reporters in New York on Sunday morning.
TRUMP MAY REVISIT TRUMP COUNTRY DURING A VICTORY TOUR via Julie Pace and Jonathan Lemire of the Associated Press – Trump may take a victory tour to states that elected him president … Kellyanne Conway said Trump’s next public appearance was expected “in the next couple of days.” When asked if he’d take a victory tour soon, she said: “It’s possible. It’s possible. We’re working on the schedule.
TRUMP PICKS REINCE PRIEBUS AS CHIEF OF STAFF via Michael Shear and Maggie Haberman of the New York Times – Trump on Sunday chose Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee and a loyal campaign adviser, to be his White House chief of staff, turning to a Washington insider whose friendship with the House speaker, Paul Ryan, could help secure early legislative victories. In selecting Priebus, the president-elect passed over Stephen K. Bannon, the right-wing media mogul who oversaw his presidential campaign. If Trump had appointed Bannon, a fierce critic of the Republican establishment, it would have demonstrated a continued disdain for a party that Trump fought throughout his campaign. Trump’s choice is certain to anger some of his most conservative supporters, many of whom expect him to battle the Washington establishment over issues like taxes, immigration, trade, health care and the environment. They view Priebus as a deal maker who will be too eager to push the new president toward compromise.
FLASHBACK to this August profile of Bannon in The Guardian: … It was not just the obvious support for Trump that troubled employees, but also the clear objective of Bannon to diminish the former reality TV star’s opponents in the Republican primary. The website ran overwhelmingly unfavorable coverage of Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush … especially with articles about the bilingual candidates’ support for immigration reform. “His whole mindset in general was: ‘We need to go after Rubio, we need to go after Bush,’” said (Kurt) Bardella. The focus on Rubio was particularly relentless, as the Florida senator emerged as one of the final candidates in the race. Stories ran near daily with headlines asserting that, if Rubio were elected president, immigrants and terrorists would stream across the US border.
TWEET, TWEET: @AnaNavarro: Oh, hell! White supremacist, anti gay, anti Semite, vindictive, scary-ass dude named Senior Strategist. After vomiting, be afraid, America.
TWEET, TWEET: @CalFlorida: @SharonDay would make a wonderful RNC Chair!
CAN TRUMP BROADEN HIS GOVERNMENT BEYOND LOYALISTS – AND DOES HE WANT TO via Phil Rucker, Dana Priest and Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post – Nowhere did Trump’s candidacy inspire more trepidation or alarm than in the national security community, inhabited by many Republicans who vehemently denounced their party’s nominee as dangerously unfit to be commander in chief. Now, as President-elect Trump begins assembling his government, scores of former senior national security officials, foreign policy specialists and career civil servants are wrestling with a dilemma: refuse government service or join the administration of the 45th president? Whether these seasoned experts step forward to help — and whether Trump accepts them into his administration — will send a powerful signal about the new president’s intentions and ability to broaden his sphere of influencers beyond the loyalists who helped steer him to an improbable triumph in the election.
TIMELY READ from former Tampa Bay Times’ reporter Michael Kruse – “The Executive Mr. Trump: The surprising truth about Trump as a boss-from the people he’s hired, fired and micromanaged“
— “Laura Ingraham under consideration for White House press secretary” via Jonathan Swan of The Hill
PAM BONDI SAYS SHE’S HONORED TO SERVE TRUMP IN HISTORIC TRANSITION EFFORT via Marc Caputo of POLTICO Florida – Bondi, the only statewide elected Republican who endorsed Trump before the state’s GOP primary, secured a spot Friday on the executive committee of the president-elect’s transition team. “I’m honored to serve President-elect Donald J. Trump in making this historic transition and assisting in finding the best individuals to bring change to Washington on day one, grow our economy, protect our children and families, and be unafraid to stand up for Americans,” Bondi said in a statement.
The path to becoming a Trump insider didn’t come without a toll for Bondi. She was excoriated by Trump’s critics for previously receiving a donation from him shortly before her office declined to bring a fraud case against Trump University. Bondi and Trump denied any wrongdoing, and no evidence surfaced to prove critics claims that there was a quid pro quo.
One Trump supporter who also backs Bondi said she’s friendly with Trump’s oldest daughter, Ivanka Trump, and was admired by the candidate because she didn’t buckle under the media scrutiny over the Trump University controversy. “Bondi is solid. She knows what she’s doing. And she’s loyal,” the source, unauthorized to speak for Trump, said on condition of anonymity, said. “Loyalty and service go a long way with Donald.”
HEARING that it’s not a lock yet that Bondi will join the Trump administration and, therefore, vacate the AG’s office. But if she does, one of the early favorites to succeed her is Jesse Panuccio, the former Executive Director of DEO.
SPOTTED: Rick Scott in this POLITICO article about Trump’s Cabinet-in-waiting as a possible Secretary of Health and Human Services.
JOHN MICA BEING TALKED ABOUT AS TRUMP’S SEC’Y OF TRANSPO via Scott Powers of Florida Politics – Sources told FloridaPolitics.com that Mica’s name is being floated by Trump’s transition team, and that the congressman is interested in the job, but has not heard anything definitive. … Orange County Republican Chairman Lew Oliver said he spoke directly to Mica about it and said the congressman indicated he had heard indirectly — but not directly — that he was on a Trump list for the post, and that he is interested. Mica is widely credited as being key to bringing federal support and money to Florida for transportation infrastructure including SunRail, the I-4 expansion, high-tech street and highway traffic control systems, Orlando International Airport’s train station and international terminal, and sea ports expansions.
WILL MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT’S ‘S DIRECTOR HEAD TO WASHINGTON TO WORK FOR TRUMP via Doug Hanks of the Miami Herald – (B)uzz is growing around Miami International Airport director Emilio González getting tapped for a senior federal post, either at the Cabinet level or a layer below. Since González has already been part of a Republican administration, his possible move to Washington has been such an open topic of speculation that Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez joked after a press conference Wednesday that maybe González would be “secretary of something” under Trump. Between 2005 and 2008, González served as director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services under President George W. Bush, an under-secretary position within the Homeland Security department that required Senate confirmation. Before that, the retired U.S. Army colonel served as director of Western Hemisphere affairs on the National Security Council under Bush.
TRUMP’S PRESIDENTIAL VICTORY COULD STOP FLIGHTS OVER HIS PALM BEACH ESTATE via Andy Reid of South Florida Sun-Sentinel — Winning the presidency may also help Trump win control of the skies over his Palm Beach estate. Trump for 20 years has waged a legal battle trying to stop flights out of Palm Beach International Airport from passing over Mar-a-Lago, his island club and part-time residence. Now security measures for the president-elect could, at least temporarily, keep planes from flying over his property. The Federal Aviation Administration has already created temporary flying restrictions over Trump Tower in New York and is looking into how to handle Trump’s visits to Mar-a-Lago. … Trump’s latest lawsuit involving the airport, filed in January 2015, seeks $100 million in damages for “creating an unreasonable amount of noise, emissions and pollutants at Mar-a-Lago.” … Trump’s lawsuits trying to change flight patterns started in 1995. He has argued that noise, vibrations and emissions from airport traffic have been damaging the historic oceanfront estate. The lawsuit also argues that because of his legal fight, officials have concentrated air traffic over the island estate instead of spreading flights out in different directions.
WORTH THE READ — “Still depressed about Donald Trump? Meet the badass women who just got elected to public office in Florida for the first time” via Antonia Farzan of the Miami New Times
HAPPENING THIS WEEK — SCOTT WALKER, NIKKI HALEY, RICK SCOTT SCHEDULED TO SPEAK AT RGA ANNUAL CONFERENCE — The Republican Governors Association will hold its 2016 annual conference on Nov. 15 and Nov. 16 at the Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek in Orlando. The annual conference is a change for GOP governors and governors-elect to discuss policy priorities. The event kicks off on Tuesday, with Govs. Walker, Haley, and Scott scheduled to speak throughout the day. On Wednesday, Govs. Susana Martinez, Greg Abbott, and Gary Herbert are scheduled to speak. Media interested in covering the event should RSVP to [email protected].
HAPPENING WEDNESDAY – MAVPAC HOSTS POST ELECTION BRIEFING — The conservative young professional network will hold a post-election briefing lunch at noon, Nov. 16 at the offices of the Florida Realtors, 200 South Monroe Street in Tallahassee. Ryan Tyson, the Vice President of Political Operations at Associated Industries of Florida, and David Johnson, a top Republican strategist, are expected to discuss the election.
BY THE WAY … DAYS UNTIL: The presidential inauguration: 66; The 2017 Election: 358; The 2018 election: 722.
WILL TREASURE COAST LOSE CLOUT IN CONGRESS WITH BRIAN MAST? via Isadora Rangel of TC Palm — Mast is the second freshman the Treasure Coast has sent since 2012 to the House, where seniority and relationships with leadership dictate who gets things accomplished among the chamber’s 435 members. Mast will be under pressure to establish clout to address local issues, such as Lake Okeechobee discharges, before he’s up for re-election in 2018. “Everything traditionally in Congress is pretty much based on seniority,” said U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, a Republican who represents Indian River County. “We’ve had a move in the last couple of years to change that and make it more member-driven. There are still not enough folks to vote for a member-driven system.”
… Mast, 36, has been lobbying House leadership to sit on committees where he said he thinks he can do more for District 18, which stretches from St. Lucie to northern Palm Beach counties. He asked Speaker Paul Ryan during a meet-and-greet in Palm Beach County about two weeks ago if he could get on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Mast said the committee would allow him to address the top issues in his district because it oversees the Army Corps of Engineers, the agency responsible for Everglades restoration and the Herbert Hoover Dike around Lake Okeechobee. Mast also wants to serve on the Committee on Veteran Affairs and if he can sit on a third committee, it would be Natural Resources. Ryan said Mast’s requests are reasonable; he’s not asking to be on more coveted committees, such as appropriations.
TRUMP ‘TSUNAMI’ IN PASCO LED TO STUNNING RESULT IN HD 36 RACE via Mitch Perry of Florida Politics — In presidential election years, Florida Democrats perennially have high hopes to increase their meager numbers in the Legislature by winning crucial swing district races. They lost several of them on Tuesday, including most surprisingly in House District 36, where 21-year-old University of Central Florida student Amber Mariano knocked off Democratic incumbent Amanda Murphy in a stunning upset by 732 votes, or .6 percent. From another perspective, however, it might have been considered an upset if Murphy HAD held on to the seat she initially won in 2013. That’s because Trump defeated Clinton in Pasco County by 21 percentage points, 58 percent to 37 percent. “It was a Trump tsunami in Pasco,” says Janet Cruz, the Florida House Democratic Leader-designate. “Amanda Murphy is a boots-on-the-ground, hardworking member. She couldn’t have knocked on any more doors than she knocked on, and she couldn’t have raised any more money than she raised to make a difference,” Cruz said. … Winning at the age of 21, Mariano — the daughter of Pasco County Commissioner Jack Mariano — now becomes the youngest person ever elected to the Florida House. On the campaign trail, she talked often about higher education issues, including allowing Bright Futures scholarship money to be used for summer classes. She also talked about wanting to help Pasco address its flooding issues with funding for stormwater projects.
“None of this was possible without Speaker Corcoran or Commissioner Mariano,” says Anthony Pedicini, Mariano’s campaign manager. He says Jack Mariano believed they could win the seat without spending a large amount. Pedicini says he was skeptical. “Honestly, with the polling, her lack of fundraising and intimate knowledge of the last race run against Murphy, I didn’t think we had a shot,” he admits. “Then Amber came up with an idea. After all the walks and work at early voting, people kept asking her if the governor supported her and if she supported Trump. We only had a couple licks to get in those last 10 days, so everything was about tying Amber to Trump and against the status quo.”
WITH STATE ORDER, MACHINE RECOUNT FOR ASENCIO-RIVERA HOUSE RACE SET FOR TODAY by Kristen M. Clark of the Miami Herald — Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner has ordered a machine recount in a tight race between Democrat Robert Asencio and Republican David Rivera for Miami-Dade County’s House District 118 seat. In unofficial results, Asencio edged Rivera by just 68 votes — a tenth of a percentage point. State law requires automatic recounts when results are within a half of a percentage point. The Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections office announced the county canvassing board will begin its recount at 10 a.m. Monday — “and continuing in succeeding days as needed” — at the Miami-Dade County Elections Department. Detzner’s order requires the canvassing board to file a second set of unofficial results no later than 3 p.m. Thursday.
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11 APPLY FOR STATE SUPREME COURT via Jim Rosica of Florida Politics – The last application received as of the Friday deadline was from Circuit Judge Michael Joseph Rudisill of the 18th Judicial Circuit for Brevard and Seminole counties. There, Rudisill had replaced James E.C. Perry, now the justice whose December retirement is creating the Supreme Court vacancy. Besides Rudisill, here are the other applicants that will now be considered by the Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission: Judge Wendy W. Berger of the 5th District Court of Appeal; Circuit Judge Alice L. Blackwell of Orange County; Assistant U.S. attorney Roberta J. Bodnar of the Middle District of Florida; Orlando civil-trial defense attorney Dan Gerber; Sylvia Grunor, a Central Florida trial lawyer; State Attorney Brad King of the 5th Judicial Circuit; Chief Judge C. Alan Lawson of the 5th District Court of Appeal; Republican state Rep. Larry Metz of Yalaha; Circuit Judge Michelle T. Morley of Sumter County; Circuit Judge Patricia Strowbridge of Osceola County. The commission will discuss the applicants in a conference call Monday at 9 a.m. Its members are then scheduled to interview finalists Nov. 28 and submit six recommendations to Gov. Rick Scott by Dec. 13. Scott then will name Perry’s replacement, his first chance to pick a state Supreme Court justice.
14 ARRESTED IN FLORIDA PIPELINE PROTEST via Bruce Ritchie of POLITICO Florida – Fourteen people were arrested Saturday while protesting at the construction site of the Sabal Trail natural gas pipeline being built through Florida, according to the Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office. … Environmentalists say the pipeline is a threat to rivers, springs and drinking water supplies in the region and would increase to use of gas from fracking operations. They have filed federal lawsuits to try to block the project. … Protesters blocked a tanker truck carrying water as it turned from a road into the construction site. One of the protesters locked himself to the truck and another climbed on it, Manning said.
MEDICAL POT’S OK HAS INVESTORS HUNGRY FOR PIECE OF THE ACTION via Dara Kam of News Service of Florida — Florida voters’ approval of a constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana for a broad swath of patients might have spurred a green rush into the state by investors eager to cash in on what will soon be the nation’s second-largest pot market. Investors and operators are seeking to get in on the ground floor of the industry, which had already started because of legislation allowing more-limited medical marijuana. “I’ve gotten 13 calls over the last two days from people who want to know how to get into the business or where the opportunities are,” lobbyist Jeff Sharkey said Thursday. “It’s a remarkable spike in interest that obviously is a result of the passage of Amendment 2. It’s been rather dramatic.”
DOH IDENTIFIES SEVEN NEW TRAVEL-RELATED CASES OF ZIKA — The Florida Department of Health announced Friday it had identified seven new travel-related cases of Zika. The state health department reported four cases in Broward County, two cases in Miami-Dade County, and one case in Palm Beach County. The state also announced there were two new locally acquired cases of Zika. One individual is a Florida resident, and other is not a Florida resident. There are now 1,158 cases of Zika in Florida, 922 of those are travel related and 224 of those are locally acquired cases.
MIAMI MAY TRY BACTERIA-INFECTED MOSQUITOES IN ZIKA FIGHT via The Associated Press – Officials in Miami trying to stop the outbreak of Zika are exploring the use of mosquitoes infected with bacteria that inhibit the insects’ ability to transmit the virus. Florida’s surgeon general has been notified by Miami-Dade County that it may try using Aedes aegypti mosquitoes artificially infected with the naturally-occurring bacteria Wolbachia by researchers affiliated with the University of Kentucky, which promotes the approach under the brand name MosquitoMate. Miami-Dade officials have also been considering the release of genetically engineered mosquitoes to help stop Zika’s spread, technology promoted by the Oxitech company. The county has been working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to determine the best approach.
TRANSPORTATION OFFICIAL APOLOGIZES FOR BELITTLING FACEBOOK POST via Dinah Voyles Pulver of the Daytona Beach News Journal – John Browning, the member of the Florida Transportation Commission and St. Johns River Water Management District board who authored a belittling Facebook post on his way to Donald Trump’s victory party in New York, has apologized. While waiting for a commercial flight at Jacksonville International Airport on Monday, Browning had snapped a photo of a man of apparent Middle Eastern descent wearing a red and white checked headscarf. He posted it publicly to Facebook, asking his friends if anyone had ever wanted to get off a plane when loading. A story about Browning’s post was published on The News-Journal’s website on Friday afternoon at 4:49 p.m. Sometime Friday night, Browning’s post disappeared from his Facebook page. On another Facebook page where The News-Journal’s story had been shared, Browning posted an apology.
RAY RODRIGUES RISES IN HOUSE via Bill Smith of Fort Myers News-Press — It is a job that conjures notions of backroom deal making and vote trading, and if that doesn’t work, a bit of arm twisting. Some might have raised an eyebrow when the soft-spoken state Rep. Ray Rodrigues, R-Estero, was announced as incoming Speaker Richard Corcoran’s choice to be majority leader in the Florida House of Representatives. The announcement came Wednesday; Corcoran says he knew much earlier. “If you watch Ray on the floor or if you watch him or talk to him on the bills that he sponsors, Ray researches his bills as good or better than any legislator,” said Corcoran in a telephone interview with The News-Press. “He’s an absolute principled conservative.” Rodrigues said he and Corcoran share a similar agenda. “Becoming more transparent, raising the ethical standards on ourselves, and putting in more accountability in the process,” he said. “Those were the nexus of our conversations.”
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POKER AGAIN REINS SUPREME OVER RACING EVENTS via Don Jensen of the Tampa Bay Times – For the 10th time in the past 11 years, poker rooms in Florida continued their tremendous growth while wagering at parimutuel windows suffered another decline. The Florida Division of Parimutuel Wagering reported in fiscal year 2015-16, which ended June 30, that poker reached an all-time high in gross and tournament receipts at $147,298,438 at the state’s 24 card rooms. It was an increase of 8.4 percent from the previous year. At the opposite end of that trend was the combined wagering on greyhounds, thoroughbreds, standardbreds, quarter horses and jai-alai. Betting on those events fell to its lowest level in more than a decade to $740,622,947, a 4.97 percent dip over the past 12 months at the 36 sites that reported handle.
FLORIDA BULLDOG CELEBRATES ITS SEVENTH ANNIVERSARY via Florence Snyder for Florida Politics – Bulldog celebrates its seventh anniversary Tuesday at YOLO, a popular watering hole on Las Olas Blvd. There’s a lot to celebrate, at least for people who aren’t reading about themselves on Bulldog’s increasingly well-trafficked website.
Bulldog was the first, and for years, the only news outlet willing to lend credence and column inches to Graham’s concerns about the role of the government of Saudi Arabia in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Media lawyer Tom Julin, a partner at the Gunster law firm, has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of time to FOIAlitigation on behalf of Bulldog as it digs for truth in the face of federal stonewalling and sandbagging.
The Bulldog party begins at 6 and goes on until 9, or until people in #TheProcess run out of stories to leak to reporters in the room, whichever is later. The event is free, and so is the first drink. YOLO is located at 333 East Las Olas Blvd.
MEMORIAL PLANNED FOR JANET RENO IN SOUTH FLORIDA via the Associated Press – Family members announced in a news release Friday that the memorial would be held Dec. 11 at the Kendall Campus of Miami Dade College. Reno died last Monday at age 78 from complications of Parkinson’s disease, which she had battled for more two decades.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the brilliant Karen Cyphers, as well as Brittney Metzler and no-longer-just-a-rising star Victoria Kirby York.
