Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
Florida’s Democratic members of Congress condemned University of Florida President Kent Fuchs on Tuesday after the school blocked three faculty members from providing expert testimony in a lawsuit challenging voting restrictions signed into law earlier this year.
The three UF political science professors were told by UF that they could not testify in the case because “UF is a state actor” and faculty participating in “litigation against the state is adverse to UF’s interests.”
On Monday, Fuchs and Provost Joe Glover sent a memo to UF students and staff clarifying that the faculty members are not prohibited from testifying but barred from accepting expert witness pay. The memo said UF would reexamine the existing policy for “consistency and fidelity.”
U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a UF alumna and former president of the Student Senate, said that’s not good enough.
“As a delegation, there are few values we want to foster and protect more in our public university system than the freedom to speak out against laws that infringe on our fundamental rights as citizens,” she wrote in a letter to Fuchs. “We urge you to reconsider this ‘prior restraint’ on speech that violates the First Amendment as well as the deeply rooted principles of academic freedom that we know you and the University of Florida community hold so dear.”
The South Florida congresswoman also noted that UF professors participated in a similar 2019 legal challenge to a different law restricting voting rights.
“On matters of public concern, state university professors should not be punished or prohibited from speaking if they do not disrupt the educational environment or proper functioning of the University,” the letter reads. “In this instance, it is hard to envision a matter of greater public concern than whether Florida’s citizens can exercise their right to vote.”
Also signing the letter were U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor, Ted Deutch, Frederica Wilson, Lois Frankel, Charlie Crist, Val Demings, Al Lawson, Stephanie Murphy and Darren Soto.
Separately, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, a former UF student body president who earned three degrees from the university, called on alumni to halt donations to UF until Fuchs “does what’s right.”
Evening Reads
“Gov. Ron DeSantis’ bid in Special Session for OSHA alternative might not work in practice” via Michael Moline of the Florida Phoenix
“Nikki Fried: DeSantis ‘manufactured’ vax mandate fight for ‘extremist base’” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics
“‘Limited recognition’ keeps DeSantis behind Donald Trump, Mike Pence in 2024 poll” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
“Facebook to shut down face-recognition system, delete data” via Matt O’Brien and Barbara Ortutay of The Associated Press
“Erin Grall: PIP is coming back in 2022, but not ‘phantom medical bills’” via Christine Jordan Sexton of Florida Politics
“The big question this Thanksgiving: Are you vaccinated?” via Christina Morales of The New York Times
“Why are we microdosing vaccines for kids?” via Katherine J. Wu of The Atlantic
“CFO Jimmy Patronis demands feds refund Florida income taxes over border payouts” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
“VISIT FLORIDA extension clears first Senate panel” via Scott Powers of Florida Politics
“UF faces accreditation probe as union accuses DeSantis of barring professors’ testimony” via Steven Lemongello of the Orlando Sentinel
“Why you should care that Florida manatees are starving to death” via Stephanie Hayes of the Tampa Tampa Bay Times
“What happens when billionaires jump on the biodiversity bandwagon?” via Benji Jones of Vox
Quote of the Day
“I have been working on PIP for my first five years (in the House) and I’m looking for the solution of how we get the Governor on board. So I am not giving up yet. I’ve worked on it too long to give up on it yet.” — Rep. Erin Grall, on another attempt to repeal the no-fault auto insurance system.
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