Last Call for 1.7.25 – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida

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

First Shot

The crowd of candidates vying to succeed former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz made their cases on Monday in a candidate forum hosted by the Niceville Republican Women.

Ten Republicans in the race for Florida’s 1st Congressional District showed up, hoping to separate themselves from the pack.

Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis is the presumptive front-runner. He has the endorsement of President-elect Donald Trump and has secured support from influential conservative groups such as AFP Action FL.

Patronis played into his Trump endorsement and pledged to advance the incoming President’s agenda if elected.

“I remember where I was the day President Trump was shot … When you see him get up and yell ‘Fight, fight, fight,’ you realize how far our country has fallen when the President of the United States, by an act of God, is standing here today,” Patronis said.

“That is why I’m running. President Trump called me and asked me to run, and it would be the honor of a lifetime to represent CD 1 in Washington.” 

Patronis also cited his past political accomplishments. The second-term Cabinet member previously served as a state Representative and a member of the Public Service Commission, the state’s utility regulatory body.

“There’s nobody that will work harder than Jimmy because for the folks of Congressional District 1, I’ve got a heck of a work record of accomplishments, and I intend to take what I’ve been doing for the last 10 years for the entire state of Florida and make a difference in CD 1,” he said.

A Special Primary for CD 1 will be held on Jan. 28, followed by a Special General Election on April 1.

Evening Reads

—“Donald Trump Jr. arrives in Greenland with a message from his dad: ‘We’re going to treat you well’” via Jamey Keaten and Vanessa Gera of The Associated Press

—“As Donald Trump eyes Greenland, Danish king makes it bigger on his coat of arms” via Annabelle Timsit of The Washington Post

—”Trump wants ‘one big, beautiful bill.’ Can he get it?” via Li Zhou of Vox

—”Joe Biden administration moves to ban medical debt from credit reports” via Madeleine Ngo of The New York Times

—”Confirmation hearings planned for Pam Bondi, Marco Rubio” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics

—”Virginia Holds the first elections of the New Trump Era” via Reid J. Epstein of The New York Times

—”The coming assault on birthright citizenship” via Amanda Frost of The Atlantic

—”Meta ends fact-checking on Facebook, Instagram in free-speech pitch” via Meghan Bobrowsky and Gareth Vipers of The Wall Street Journal

—”Constitutional officers installed in Miami-Dade, where a GOP wave helped deliver a sweep” via Jesse Scheckner of Florida Politics

—”What is … the greatest game show of all time?” via Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone

Quote of the Day

“It has a beautiful ring. It covers a lot of territory. The Gulf of America. What a beautiful name. And, it’s appropriate.”

— President-elect Donald Trump, offering a new name for a body of water touching Florida’s west coast.

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.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi will take Save The Dates while preparing for their confirmation hearings later this month.

Rosie Cordero-Stutz gets a New Sheriff in Town because, well … she’s the new Sheriff in town.

For now, Monique Worrell gets a Welcome Home; whether the Governor will swipe it from her remains to be seen.

Breakthrough Insights

Tune In

Gators host No. 1 and undefeated Tennessee

The Florida Gators face #1 ranked Tennessee in Gainesville tonight (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2).

Florida (13-1, 0-1 SEC) saw their perfect season end on Saturday in a 106-100 loss at Kentucky. Walter Clayton Jr. equaled a career-high with 33 points in the loss. Clayton leads the Gators, averaging 18.3 points per game. The 13-game winning streak was Florida’s longest to start a season since 2005-06.

Last year, the teams played only once in conference play, with Tennessee dominating in Knoxville 85-66. This year, the Gators and Vols are scheduled to play twice in the regular season, with Florida traveling to Tennessee on Feb. 1.

Tennessee (14-0, 1-0) has risen to the top of the polls thanks to Chaz Lanier, the leading scorer in the SEC. Lanier averages 20.3 points per game and has made more three-point attempts than any player in the conference. Point guard Zakai Zeigler leads the SEC with eight assists per game.

To beat the top-ranked Volunteers, Florida must shoot better from the free-throw line. Against Kentucky, the Gators missed 13 free throws including a pair of front ends of one-and-ones. They must also take better care of the ball than they did against Kentucky. The Wildcats outscored the Gators 15-0 in points off nine turnovers. 

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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.