Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
Gov. Ron DeSantis opened up about his family’s streaming diet and there’s a noted theme: movies where America’s pastime takes center stage.
During an interview with Hugh Hewitt, the Republican presidential candidate said his frequent trips to Iowa inspired the binge.
“Because you know, we’re in Iowa, campaigning in Iowa, I introduced my kids — 6, 5 and 3 — to the Field of Dreams baseball field and the cornfield. And so now, they’re watching Field of Dreams, Now, they’re watching other baseball movies, and so we’ve been showing them different things,” DeSantis said.
While the Kevin Costner film is considered a classic (it was a Best Picture nominee in 1989), not every film in the DeSantises’ watch history is so critically acclaimed. His son’s favorite du jour is the 1993 sports comedy “Rookie of the Year.” For the uninitiated, that’s the one “where the 12-year-old has the rocket arm and pitches for the Cubs.”
“We’ve been kind of doing the on-demand baseball movies right now,” said DeSantis, who played in the Little League World Series as a child and was considered a star on the Yale baseball team during his college days.
The Governor didn’t name-drop any other titles — no word on whether Walt Disney Pictures’ family-friendly flick “Angels in the Outfield” or the more adolescent-focused film “The Sandlot” were in the rotation.
He did admit that Hewitt’s favorite in the genre, “Major League,” failed to pass muster.
“It’s not age appropriate. I’ve already screened it. I can do it. I can show them pieces of ‘The Natural.’ I can show them pieces of ‘Field of Dreams.’ ‘Major League’ is just not there. But it is an excellent movie. I agree with you,” he said.
Evening Reads
—”Ron DeSantis is really bad at running for President” via Nicole Norea of Vox
—“Donald Trump’s legal woes mount as trial dates and campaign calendar collide” via Charlie Savage of The New York Times
—”The long-shot candidate who has the White House worried” via Mark Leibovich of The Atlantic
—”An intriguing poll on the potential 2024 impact of No Labels” via Aaron Blake of The Washington Post
—“Vivek Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley are leading in early state visits so far” via Amelia Thompson-DeVeaux of FiveThirtyEight
—”Medicaid ‘unwinding’ not what state expected” via Christine Jordan Sexton of Florida Politics
—”Why would millionaire Randy Fine want to be FAU president? To do DeSantis’ bidding, critics say” via Steven Lemongello of the Orlando Sentinel
—”Environmental racism is rampant in Florida, but don’t mention it” via Craig Pittman of the Florida Phoenix
—”Yes, tourism has slowed in Orlando, but don’t blame Disney vs. DeSantis” via Dewayne Bevil of the Orlando Sentinel
—“Bullet fired into children’s room at Spencer Roach’s home” via Jesse Scheckner of Florida Politics
—”Filling campaign coffers with filler? Republican HD 94 candidate to hold ‘Botox Party’ fundraiser.” via Anne Geggis of Florida Politics
Quote of the Day
“A presidential campaign is a lot different than a gubernatorial campaign. And his staff is just not measuring up in the same way that he’s not measuring up. His incompetence is compounded by his bad luck.”
— Former GOP strategist Mac Stipanovich, on DeSantis’ presidential campaign.
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Last Call is published by Peter Schorsch, assembled and edited by Phil Ammann and Drew Wilson with contributions from the staff of Florida Politics.
