Last Call for 8.12.24 – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics

Last Call – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.

First Shot

X and Tesla CEO Elon Musk plans to speak with former President Donald Trump today.

Musk and Trump announced on Aug. 4 that an interview would be hosted on X. There are no details yet on the subject matter, but Trump has called it a “major” interview.

This marks the Republican candidate’s first high-profile engagement with the platform since he was banned in January 2021, when the platform was not owned by Musk. He has since been unbanned, though he has mostly snubbed the platform in favor of Truth Social.

Still, the interview has raised eyebrows over Musk’s potential bias. The multibillionaire publicly endorsed Trump on July 13 — with reports indicating he endorsed him privately before that — the same day Trump survived an assassination attempt at one of his rallies.

Trump has acknowledged and invited Musk’s support, going so far as to reverse his stance on electric vehicles due to Musk’s ownership of Tesla.

After purchasing Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion, Musk had employees tinker with the algorithm to put his posts atop users’ timelines. Musk has also been clear in selling X as a news source, dubbing it a “platform of free speech.”

However, critics say that Musk is simply using his platform to push his preferred political candidate, with Popular Information calling the talk “the most expensive political ad of all time” in reference to the hefty price tag attached to Musk’s X purchase. This came with a questioning of Musk’s ability to interview with journalistic integrity, pointing to misinformation he has spread about Trump’s opponents.

Most of these cases involve Musk’s activity on X, with him responding to, acknowledging and agreeing with posts that are viewed as false or misleading, such as a tweet accusing Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, of mandating tampons be placed in boys’ restrooms in middle schools.

The Washington Post pointed to other instances of Musk’s bias potentially interfering with the platform, including the recent suspension of various accounts supporting Harris’ campaign.

Musk’s conversation with Trump will be held at 8 p.m. EST.

Evening Reads

—“Is Georgia the new Pennsylvania?” via Chris Cillizza of So What

—”Five major questions facing Kamala Harris now” via Myah Ward of POLITICO

—”GOP pleads with Donald Trump to control impulses, focus on policy” via Brett Samuels of The Hill

—”Harris honed her Senate identity as a Trump foil” via Liz Goodwin and Leigh Ann Caldwell of The Washington Post

—“People hate JD Vance.” via Dave Trotter of Voting Trend

—“Why fewer women (and men) are running for Congress this year” via Simone Pathe of CNN

—“Eddie Speir falsely claims local GOP endorsements” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics

—”Everyone hates ‘Congress.’ But who are you really mad at?” via Christian Paz of Vox

—”‘Very disturbing’: Florida teens get longer prison sentences than adults” via Shirsho Dasgupta of the Miami Herald

—“Metal detectors cause long lines and delays on first day of school in Broward” via Scott Travis of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Quote of the Day

“Regardless of how someone feels about abortion or marijuana, I don’t believe that those issues should be resolved in the state constitution.”

— U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, coming out against Amendment 3 and Amendment 4.

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.

The Florida GOP’s voter registration advantage has crossed the one million mark. That earns them a Runaway Train … in the sense that they’re running up the score, not because of any connection to the Soul Asylum song.

With Ashley Moody sounding the alarm about fentanyl-tainted vapes and street drugs, drinking a Happy Pill seems like it might be safer than popping one.

The Sunshine State is home to some of the most expensive business rental markets according to a new study. Perhaps because bars have such big bills to pay, Florida is also home to some of the Most Ridiculously Expensive Drinks money can buy.

Breakthrough Insights

Tune In

Now that the Olympics have come to a close, we return to our regularly scheduled sports calendar. That includes the dog days of the Major League Baseball schedule which includes the Tampa Rays opening up a three-game series at home against the Houston Astros tonight (6:50 p.m. ET, Bally Sports Sun).

After trading away a bushel of veteran players in moves that have roundly been applauded by analysts, the Rays (59-58) have continued to play competitive baseball. Tampa Bay enters play tonight 5.5 games out of the final wild-card spot.

The Rays are anticipating the return of starting pitcher Ryan Pepiot, who has been rehabbing at Double-A Montgomery. Pepiot returned to Tampa Bay after a solid outing on Saturday night.

The Astros are battling the Seattle Mariners for the American League West title. The division title is particularly important for the Astros, who have a worse record than the final wild-card teams in the American League.

The Rays took two out of three against the Astros in Houston early this month. With less than 50 games to go in the season, the playoff push is beginning.

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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.