Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
If you’re looking for a lead-in to the vice presidential debate, Sen. Bobby Powell has you covered.
Powell, who also chairs the Florida Black Legislative Caucus, will host the FLBC 2020 Election Town Hall. The event will focus on the six constitutional amendments slated for the ballot.
It starts at 7:30 p.m. will be streamed over Facebook Live and Zoom — the meeting ID is 833 2674 7782. The passcode is 782239. The tech-averse can also call 1-929-205-6099 to listen in.
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Vice President Mike Pence and U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris will debate for the first and only time tonight at 9 p.m.
Similar to last week’s presidential debate, tuning in is easy — it will air on ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, PBS, and numerous cable news channels. It will also stream live on YouTube and through the various networks’ smartphone apps.
Also similar to the Donald Trump vs. Joe Biden showdown, there won’t be a shortage of debate watch parties.
Biden-Harris supporters can tune into a Virtual Watch Party hosted by U.S. Rep Frederica Wilson. The event gets underway at 8 p.m. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker is expected to show up for part of the stream. Those looking to attend can RSVP online.
Those backing the Trump-Pence ticket can swing by one of three in-person watch parties hosted by the campaign:
— Miami Young Republicans President Armando Ibarra and Florida Federation of Young Republicans Chairwoman Jessica Fernandez will host a watch party at 2859 SW 42nd St. in Miami starting at 7:45 p.m.
— Trump 2020 Director of Strategic Communications Marc Lotter will headline a watch party at the Tampa Tap Room, 13150 N Dale Mabry Hwy. in Tampa. It starts at 7:45 p.m.
— Former Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll will headline the Jax area watch party at Maharlika Hall and Sports Grill, 14255-E Beach Blvd. in Jacksonville. It starts at 8:15 p.m.
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Oddsmakers say Harris has better odds than Pence to win tonight’s VP debate.
US-Bookies is giving the California Senator 4/7 odds to come out on top in CNN’s post-debate poll. Meanwhile, Pence has 9/5 odds to score a win.
“After the first presidential debate, many viewers are wondering if the VP one will be as chaotic,” a US-Bookies spokesperson said. “Heading into the debate, the bookies expect CNN polls to list Kamala Harris as the winner, but many political commentators expect her to take a different debate approach than Joe Biden.”
US-Bookies also gave odds for a gimme: Candidates have 1/100 odds of saying “coronavirus” or “COVID-19.”
Meanwhile, the odds of either candidate saying “China virus” are 1/1, and either candidate mentioning “fake news” has 1/5 odds.
But what will they wear? US-Bookies has come up with betting lines for that, too.
“Candidates’ outfits are often widely discussed betting markets, and bookies expect this debate to feature Pence and Harris wearing their typical garb,” a US-Bookies spokesperson said. “A red tie seems to be the odds-on choice for Pence. Bookies expect Harris’s jacket to be blue, with 1/4 odds of this being so, but they’re not counting out a black jacket, giving it 6/5 odds.”
Coronavirus Numbers
Positive cases:
— 713,902 FL residents (+2,544 since Tuesday)
— 8,805 Non-FL residents (+38 since Tuesday)
Origin:
— 6,037 Travel related
— 264,026 Contact with a confirmed case
— 6,393 Both
— 437,446 Under investigation
Hospitalizations:
— 45,259 in FL
Deaths:
— 15,084 in FL
Evening Reads
“A guide to how Mike Pence and Kamala Harris debate” via David Weigel of The Washington Post
“How to watch the 2020 vice presidential debate” via PolitiFact
“Pence preps for debate as chances to shakeup the race dwindle” via Betsy Klein of CNN
“Pence to target Joe Biden on terrorism, hostages in VP debate” via Jonathan Swan of Axios
“Pence brought conservatives home. What if they don’t need him anymore?” via Jeremy Peters of The New York Times
“In 2016, Pence was an asset for Donald Trump. In 2020, it’s not so clear.” via Aaron Blake of The Washington Post
“Harris faces unique challenges in the VP debate” via David Axelrod of CNN
“Why Harris has been so quiet as Biden’s No. 2” via Christopher Cadelago of POLITICO
“What Prince tells us about Harris” via Teresa Wiltz of POLITICO
“Tonight Harris may need to prove she’s tough to beat gender stereotypes. That affects foreign policy.” via Joshua Schwartz and Christopher Blair of The Washington Post
“‘Let me help you, Mrs. Ferraro’: The first time a VP debated a woman, it did not go well” via Gillian Brockwell of The Washington Post
“The plexiglass barriers being used at tonight’s debate are pretty useless, experts say” via Apoorva Mandavilli of The New York Times
Quote of the Day
“We are going to hear from him in his capacity as the chair of the White House Coronavirus Task Force seven months into an unprecedented pandemic and economic crisis where they still do not have a plan.” — Sen. José Javier Rodríguez, on Mike Pence ahead of the VP debate.
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