Staff Reports
Last Call – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
One day into his term, Donald Trump issued a series of executive orders, some of which test the boundaries of presidential power.
Undoubtedly, the most controversial item in the initial volley is an executive order that would end birthright citizenship — the constitutional guarantee that those born on U.S. soil are granted U.S. citizenship regardless of whether their parents are citizens.
Nearly two dozen states have already moved to challenge the order in court. Florida is not one of them, and it’s unlikely that it or any other GOP-run state will be in the future.
Trump also reversed one of former President Joe Biden’s final acts, placing Cuba back on the state sponsor of terrorism list. Biden’s order was unpopular on both sides of the aisle in Florida.
Barring something unprecedented, U.S.-Cuba relations will not soften after the next four years. Florida’s now-former U.S. Senator, Marco Rubio, was officially sworn in as Secretary of State this morning. During his confirmation hearing last week, he vowed to reverse Biden’s order and said that he had “zero doubt” Cuba meets “all the qualifications for being a state sponsor of terrorism.”
Trump followed through with rebranding the TAFKA as “Gulf of Mexico.” The Sunshine State was among the first to embrace the change in an official capacity, with Gov. Ron DeSantis using “Gulf of America” in the first line of a Monday executive order declaring a state of emergency related to the severe (for Florida, at least) winter weather.
Evening Reads
—“Inside Donald Trump’s Oval Office — Version 2.0” via Annie Linskey of The Wall Street Journal
—“Twenty-two states sue to stop Trump’s birthright citizenship order” via Mattathias Schwartz and Mike Baker of The New York Times
—”The single most unconstitutional thing Trump did yesterday, explained” via Ian Millhiser of Vox
—“Justin Trudeau says Canada will respond to U.S. tariffs as Ontario’s premier says Trump ‘declared war” via Rob Gillies of The Associated Press
—“Trump administration ousts Coast Guard’s top officer” via Dan Lamothe of The Washington Post
—”Prosecutors ask to drop Yulee man’s Capitol riot case after Trump pardon; how about others?” via Steve Patterson of The Florida Times-Union
—“The 36 must-see lines from Trump’s inauguration speech” via Chris Cillizza of So What?
—“Gov. Ron DeSantis: ‘Believe it or not, in the state of Florida, we’re mobilizing snowplows’” via Gabrielle Russon of Florida Politics
—“Northeast Florida colleges, schools announce shutdowns ahead of wild Winter storm” via Drew Dixon of Florida Politics
—”Again? Carolina Amesty is the second Florida lawmaker accused of COVID fraud” via Scott Maxwell of the Orlando Sentinel
Quote of the Day
“We used to think Blizzard Beach was a theme park in Orlando.”
— Gov. Ron DeSantis, on the frigid weather sweeping across North Florida.
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.
Order a round of Fresh Picked Freedoms for the many Floridians convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot who received presidential pardons on Trump’s first day back.
Gov. Ron DeSantis could use a Snowplow. Once that’s taken care of, he could also use, like an actual snowplow.
Weather got your teeth chattering? The upside is it’s finally appropriate for Floridians to enjoy a hot cocktail — here are some of the best.
Breakthrough Insights
Tune In
Lightning looking for consistency in Montreal
The Tampa Bay Lightning tries to narrow the gap in the Atlantic Division as they travel to Montreal to face the Canadiens (7 p.m. ET, FanDuel Sports Network Sun).
The Lightning (25-17-3) trail their Sunshine State rivals, the Florida Panthers, by four points for second place in the division. Tampa Bay has not been able to string together more than back-to-back wins since a four-game winning streak in mid-December.
Right-winger Nikita Kucherov continues to lead the Lightning attack with 21 goals and a team-high 48 assists. Kucherov’s 69 points are tied for second in the NHL this season.
Montreal (23-19-4) struggled to start the season but has found a rhythm. After opening the campaign with four wins in the first 15 games, the Canadiens have won 18 of the last 30 games. Among the recent wins was a 5-2 decision over the Lightning in Tampa Bay on Dec. 29.
The two teams will meet again in the regular season after tonight when the Lightning return to Montreal on Feb. 9.
Just over halfway through the regular season, Tampa Bay is in a position to return to the playoffs, while the Canadiens would be on the outside looking in if the playoffs started today.
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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.
