Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
Today is the two-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, sparking statements from organizations and political figures nationwide.
On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that the U.S. Constitution does not confer the right to obtain an abortion, which opened the door to more restrictive abortion laws in many states, including Florida, where a six-week abortion ban has been in effect since May.
The Biden-Harris campaign released a statement from President Joe Biden, criticizing former President Donald Trump for appointing the Supreme Court justices who joined the majority in the court ruling and saying Trump would push the envelope further on abortion restrictions if he regained the presidency.
“Donald Trump is the sole person responsible for this nightmare,” Biden said. “If given the chance, there is no question he will ban abortion nationwide, with or without the help of Congress. You don’t have to take my word for it — his advisers have already laid out the plans to do it.”
In Florida, the post-Dobbs opposition has organized behind a proposed constitutional amendment — which will appear on the November ballot as Amendment 4 — that would prohibit any law limiting the ability to obtain an abortion before fetal viability (generally 20-25 weeks into a term).
The bill is sponsored by the pro-abortion rights group Floridians Protecting Freedom. Campaign director Lauren Brenzel marked the two-year anniversary of SCOTUS’ ruling by urging people to vote for Amendment 4.
“Everyone should have the freedom to make their own personal health care decisions without interference from politicians,” Brenzel said. “The Dobbs decision that overturned Roe sent these decisions back to the states to decide. And that’s just what Amendment 4 does.”
Numerous other pro-abortion rights groups chimed in.
Florida Women’s Freedom Coalition Executive Director Anna Hochkammer called the ruling “deeply disturbing” and claimed it was the first time in the country’s history that Americans were granted a right only for it to be rescinded.
Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book also released a statement in support of Amendment 4, citing the fallout medical institutions and patients are facing in Dobbs’ wake.
“Since that time, we’ve seen unprecedented harm from dangerous abortion bans and government interference into private medical decisions,” Book said. “Doctors have been forced to choose between imprisonment or abandoning their Hippocratic oath, IVF has been attacked, and women have been pushed to the brink of death in order to receive needed health care.”
“Our opponents want to distract with inflatable gimmicks that have nothing to do with the dangerous and extreme Amendment 4,” said Taryn Fenske of the No on 4 campaign. “If passed, Amendment 4 would strip away crucial medical safeguards, allow abortion clinic employees who aren’t doctors to approve late-term abortions for undefined health concerns and allow abortions for minors without parental consent. Florida voters deserve the truth – Amendment 4 is not about reproductive rights – it’s about giving abortion clinics a rubber stamp to approve late-term abortions throughout the entire pregnancy.”
Florida voters will determine Amendment 4’s fate in the Nov. 5 General Election.
Evening Reads
—”Donald Trump is on a fundraising blitz. But there are other warning signs for Republicans.” via Adam Wren of POLITICO
—”What Obama is whispering to Joe Biden: The Presidents’ plan to save their legacy from Trump.” via Gabriel Debenedetti of New York Magazine
—“What two years of Roe looks like, in eight charts” via Nicole Narea of Vox
—“Abortion debate shifts as election nears: ‘Now it’s about pregnancy’” via Kate Zernike of The New York Times
—”As Trump’s documents case crawls along, questions about judge abound” via C. Ryan Barber of The Wall Street Journal
—”Law enforcement is spying on thousands of Americans’ mail, records show” via Drew Harwell of The Washington Post
—“Red tape is making hospital ransomware attacks worse” via Matt Burgess of WIRED
—”The problem with ‘in demand’ jobs” via Kevin Carey of The Atlantic
Quote of the Day
“ … this is the first time I believe, probably in the history of the United States, where a right has been given and now taken away, and that is why people are so angry.”
— Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried, on SCOTUS’ Dobbs decision.
Put It on the Tab
Look to your left, then look to your right. If you see one of these people at your happy hour haunt, flag down the bartender and put one of these on your tab. Recipes included, just in case the Cocktail Codex fell into the well.
Two years on, abortion rights activists are still reeling from the impact of SCOTUS overturning Roe v. Wade. Still, they deserve a Fight On for refusing to crumble or concede after the landmark decision was handed down.
Florida Democrats may say a Salamis-esque victory is in the cards this year, but Biden-Harris 2024 campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon isn’t buying it. Meanwhile, RPOF Chair Evan Power could use a Cruise Control to sip on while the intraparty drama unfolds.
It’s unclear who inspired the IRS Delinquent, but it’s nonetheless the name of a tequila-based cocktail … and it would be a fitting drink to order for a certain former Florida Congresswoman.
Breakthrough Insights
Tune In
Stanley Cup will be raised tonight
There may be no more thrilling setting in professional sports than a game seven in the Stanley Cup Finals. Tonight, the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers will play for the NHL championship (8 p.m. ET, ABC).
Florida took control of the series early winning the first three games of the best-of-seven series. It appeared that the Panthers would roll to the franchise’s first championship. Instead, Edmonton fought back. The Oilers have scored at least five goals in the last three games, including an 8-1 win over Florida in Game 4 to ward off elimination.
It has been 31 years since a Canadian team has won the Stanley Cup. The 1993 Montreal Canadiens are the last team from the Great White North to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup. The Oilers have not won the Cup since 1990 when Mark Messier captained the team to victory. It was Edmonton’s fifth Stanley Cup in seven years. They haven’t won it since.
This is the third time in NHL history that a team was up 3-0 and then lost three straight to force a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Finals. Both preview occurrences came during World War II. Both times, the Finals involved the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs. In 1942, Toronto won four straight games after losing the first three to defeat Detroit. Three years later, Toronto won the first three games before the Red Wings rallied to force a Game 7, only to see the Leafs win the deciding game.
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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.
