Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
The Southeast Coral Reef Ecosystem Conservation Area could be named in honor of the late Rep. Kristin Jacobs if a pair of newly filed bills get traction.
Sen. Lauren Book and Rep. Christine Hunschofsky filed bills Tuesday (HB 217 and SB 588) to rename the state waters stretching from the St. Lucie Inlet to the northern boundary of the Biscayne National Park as the “Kristin Jacobs Coral Reef Ecosystem Conservation Area.”
Jacobs was a member of the House who built a career centered on climate and resiliency policy. She was also a former Broward County Commissioner and two-time Broward Mayor. The Coconut Creek Democrat died in 2020 after a yearslong battle with cancer.
She was a tireless fighter for Florida’s waterways until the end. In the 2020 Session, the Legislature approved one of her longtime priorities — a ban on the shark fin trade — and named it in her honor.
“Kristin not only fought to preserve Florida’s natural treasures, she worked hard to ensure public access to and enjoyment of those resources whenever and wherever she could,” said Book, who worked with Jacobs on many legislative initiatives, including women’s rights and environmental issues.
Hunschofsky, who succeeded Jacobs in House District 96, said she was honored to sponsor the companion bill.
“Kristin understood both the economic and ecological benefits to this coral reef area and helped ensure its protection by having it designated as an important conservation area. This is a fitting tribute to forever honor and recognize her legacy of protecting this vital Florida asset,” she said.
Coronavirus Numbers
Positive cases:
— 1,476,484 FL residents (+14,526 since Monday)
— 26,998 Non-FL residents (+370 since Monday)
Origin:
— 12,293 Travel related
— 550,791 Contact with a confirmed case
— 16,479 Both
— 896,921 Under investigation
Hospitalizations:
— 66,204 in FL
Deaths:
— 23,585 in FL
Evening Reads
“Donald Trump says ‘tremendous anger’ in nation over impeachment” via Lisa Mascaro of the Associated Press
“Mitch McConnell is said to be pleased about impeachment, believing it will be easier to purge Trump from the GOP” via Jonathan Martin and Maggie Haberman of the New York Times
“Group pledges up to $50 million to defend Republicans who support impeaching Trump.” via Annie Karni of The New York Times
“Inside the remarkable rift between Trump and Mike Pence” via Josh Dawsey and Ashley Parker of The Washington Post
“Six hours of paralysis: Inside Trump’s failure to act after a mob stormed The Capitol” via Ashley Parker, Josh Dawsey and Philip Rucker of The Washington Post
“Trump blames antifa for riot” via Jonathan V. Swan of Axios
“‘No regrets’: A Capitol rioter tells his story from inside” via William Turton of Bloomberg
“Parler users breached deep inside U.S. Capitol building, GPS data shows” via Dell Cameron and Dhruv Mehrotra
“FBI report warned of ‘war’ at Capitol, contradicting claims there was no indication of looming violence” via Devlin Barrett and Matt Zapotosky of The Washington Post
“Top military leaders condemn ‘sedition and insurrection’ at Capitol, acknowledge Joe Biden win” via CNBC
“Ron DeSantis says he’s ‘glad’ violent Trump protesters are being arrested” via Lawrence Mower of the Tampa Bay Times
“Florida lawmakers tell staff to avoid state Capitol Sunday because of election protests” via Kirby Wilson of the Tampa Bay Times
“Tallahassee, Florida law enforcement agencies on high alert amid state Capitol threats” via Jeff Schweers of the Tallahassee Democrat
“Cord Byrd addresses political tweet posted by wife” via Scott Johnson via News4Jax.com
“Randy Fine wants state divested from tech giants following Trump’s purge from social media” via Lisa Mascaro of the Associated Press
“Kelli Stargel poised to lead Florida Senate through a difficult budget process” via Karen Murphy of The Capitolist
“Manny Diaz files latest effort to preempt vacation rental rules” via Scott Powers of Florida Politics
“Jim Boyd pushes bill to override cruise ship limits set by Key West voters” via Ryan Nicol of Florida Politics
“South Florida adds 4.8K COVID-19 cases as hospitalizations trend upward in Broward, Miami-Dade” via Ryan Nicol of Florida Politics
Quote of the Day
“I don’t want to see that, but if anything is disorderly, we are going to act very quickly. Don’t worry about that.” — Gov. Ron DeSantis, on the possibility armed supporters could show up at the Florida Capitol.
Bill Day’s Latest
Breakthrough Insights
