Peter Schorsch
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
Veteran journalist Gary Fineout is a treasure among the Capitol Press Corps. His institutional memory is both legion and legend, and his ability to hold the mighty accountable awes even the most experienced colleague.
Here are excerpts from a recent “He Said, She Said’ podcast interview, where Florida Politics publisher Peter Schorsch and wife Michelle Todd Schorsch talked to Fineout at the Florida Democrats’ annual convention in Orlando. (As usual, comments have been edited for clarity and brevity.)
On his new job with POLITICO Florida: “It’s going great. One of the deals with POLITICO is I get to focus my coverage. The thing about AP is you have to be a master of all trades. You have to jump into a story on a lot of different topics and sometimes you’re not up to speed, and it takes a while (to) get up to speed on things. When you’re a media outlet that is only focused on a handful of things, it can really do those well. The difficulty comes when you work for a general interest publication.”
On the ever-shrinking media space: “I think as we’ve seen media become more and more fragmented over the years, I think more and more people get their (news) about particular things from a particular source. I think they want to go be the end-all of that particular topic. I think we all would acknowledge that there are a handful of national brands — and I think POLITICO is one of them — that have a mission and they focus on that mission …
“The challenge we continue to see is in media markets that are medium-sized or smaller, the challenge of being a general interest publication, the challenge of having subscribers, the challenge of having resources, and already this year we’ve seen a lot of disruption in the industry.”
On the struggle of putting Playbook together every morning: “I’ve only been doing it for a couple of months, but yes, there is a time commitment. You spend time working on it and there are nights that I’m up fairly late putting it together, and then I get up early in the morning and I have an editor who looks at it before it goes out. And if there’s questions, you have to answer questions.
“But I know what the expectations are and I know what I’m shooting for … It’s an evolution. There’s room in the conversation with the people I deal with at POLITICO about stuff I’ve added that wasn’t in there before.”
If you’re interested in hearing more, catch the full episode online here or download for later via Apple Podcast.
Evening Reads
“Q-Poll: Joe Biden leads Donald Trump 50-41 in Florida” via Scott Powers of Florida Politics
“Our endorsement for president in 2020: Not Trump” via the Orlando Sentinel editorial board
“RNC chairwoman: Trump is delivering for all Americans” via the Orlando Sentinel
“The 11 types of people you’ll see at the Democratic debates in Miami” via the Miami New Times
“Marco Rubio, Rick Scott line up with Trump on trade, frustrating some Florida businesses” via Alex Daugherty of the Miami Herald
“Scott becomes latest Senator to support 9/11 victim fund” via Nikki Schwab of the New York Post
“Ron DeSantis lawyer in middle of census debate” via Ana Ceballos of the News Service of Florida
“Proposed constitutional amendment on Florida consumer ‘energy choice’ gets fire from all sides” via Mitch Perry of the Florida Phoenix
“Critics howl over hazards of ‘Swiss Army knife’ of ethics enforcement” via Matt Dixon of POLITICO Florida
“Dan Daley ready to be seated months after securing HD 97 seat” via Ryan Nicol of Florida Politics
“Marion Hammer appeal cites right to be ‘let alone’” via the News Service of Florida
Quote of the Day
“The crux of this case is the sacrosanct but often neglected right of every private citizen to be ‘let alone’ and free from unwelcome interactions in non-public settings.” — From a brief by attorneys for National Rifle Association lobbyist Marion Hammer, in a federal appeal of her lawsuit over emails she alleged were harassing and threatening after last year’s mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Bill Day’s Latest
Breakthrough Insights
Wake Up Early?
The Florida Chamber of Commerce will conclude a two-day “Learners to Earners Workforce Summit.” That’s at 8:30 a.m., Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek, 14651 Chelonia Parkway, Orlando.
The Citizens Property Insurance Corp. Board of Governors will meet, 9 a.m., Sheraton Orlando North, 600 North Lake Destiny Dr., Maitland. Call-in number: 1-888-942-8686. Code: 9447106691.
The Florida Citrus Commission will meet, 9 a.m., Florida Department of Citrus, 605 East Main St., Bartow.
The Florida Board of Pharmacy will meet, 9 a.m., Rosen Plaza Hotel, 9700 International Dr., Orlando.
The Florida Commission on Offender Review will consider cases from across the state. That’s at 9 a.m., Betty Easley Conference Center, 4075 Esplanade Way, Tallahassee.
The state Revenue Estimating Conference will hold what is known as a post-session “impact” conference at 9 a.m., 117 Knott Building, the Capitol.
Rep. Margaret Good, a Sarasota Democrat, will hold a town-hall meeting at 6 p.m., Historic Spanish Point Visitors Center, 337 North Tamiami Trail, Osprey.
