Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
U.S. Sen. Rick Scott has been elected Chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the GOP’s Senate campaign arm. “I’m honored my colleagues entrusted me with this responsibility, and I look forward to the challenge. Keeping a Senate majority is vitally important to the future of this country and to preserving the American dream,” Scott said.
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By a wide margin, bettors say President Donald Trump will hold his ground and refuse to admit defeat.
Irish oddsmaker BoyleSports announced Tuesday it is no longer accepting wagers on whether Trump will concede to President-elect Joe Biden.
When the books closed, the chances of a smooth transition were slim to none — BoyleSports pushed the odds of a Trump concession this week out to 10/1, the equivalent of a 9% chance. The odds a few days ago stood at 7/2.
The chances of Trump not conceding by this weekend or never conceding at all crashed into 1/20 from 1/3 as the President continued to receive rebukes from Twitter over disputed electoral fraud claims.
“This transition looks increasingly turbulent, and not a single punter was backing Trump to concede even when we pushed the odds out on Tuesday,” BoyleSports spokesperson Lawrence Lyons said. “Instead, the chances of him delaying a concession or never admitting defeat at all were gambled into 1/20 before we had no choice but to suspend betting.”
Few bettors anticipate Trump will back down despite Biden earning a clear advantage that’s likely to grow if his leads in Georgia and Arizona hold.
Currently, projections have Biden as the winner with 290 electoral votes. If he captures Georgia, his total will hit 306. Meanwhile, Trump carried states worth a combined 214 electoral votes and is likely to pick up 18 more — 15 in North Carolina and 3 in Alaska.
Coronavirus Numbers
Positive cases:
— 840,652 FL residents (+4,282 since Monday)
— 11,522 Non-FL residents (+71 since Monday)
Origin:
— 7,775 Travel related
— 320,861 Contact with a confirmed case
— 8,771 Both
— 503,245 Under investigation
Hospitalizations:
— 50,872 in FL
Deaths:
— 17,450 in FL
Evening Reads
“‘My faith is shaken’: The QAnon conspiracy theory faces a post-Donald Trump identity crisis” via Drew Harwell and Craig Timberg of The Washington Post
“Joe Biden says transition doesn’t need Trump’s cooperation” via Scott Powers of Florida Politics
“Biden, Boris Johnson look to ‘build back better’ in chummy call” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
“Inside the Lincoln Project’s new campaign targeting Trump’s law firm” via Greg Sargent of The Washington Post
“Rick Scott warns that America has ‘lost confidence’ in electoral process” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
“U.S. Supreme Court justices may pave the way to uphold Obamacare; Biden says ACA ‘affects every single American family’” via Issac Morgan of the Florida Phoenix
“Their county was once a bellwether. Now, these Barack Obama-Trump voters wonder what the future holds.” via Robert Samuels of The Washington Post
“Florida Democrats crashed and burned on Election Day. What went wrong?” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics
“Florida’s 2022 elections are already shaping up. Here’s who is (and may be) running” via David Smiley of the Miami Herald
“Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine’s next big challenge: Giving it to enough people” via Max Colchester and Drew Hinshaw of The Wall Street Journal
“The husband-and-wife team behind the leading vaccine to solve COVID-19” via David Gelles of The New York Times
“FDA authorizes Eli Lilly antibody drug that Trump touted, but supply will be limited” via Carolyn Y. Johnson of POLITICO
“Lawsuit on sewage is payback for criticizing Ron DeSantis, Democratic Mayor says” via Martin Vassolo of the Tampa Bay Times
“Confluence of 2021 events could stress Florida Chamber of Commerce goals” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics
“Florida’s COVID-19 positivity rate reaches highest level since mid-August” via Florida Politics
Quote of the Day
“I’d like to know how General Motors justifies working with a company that’s aggressively seeking to undermine the validity of a free and fair election.” — Rick Wilson, on The Lincoln Project’s new campaign against the law firm handling Trump’s election challenges
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