Staff Reports
Last Call – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
Despite pushback from the right, University of Florida Board of Trustees Chair Mori Hosseini is standing by lone Presidential finalist Santa Ono ahead of the Trustee vote next week.
“He is the right person to accelerate UF’s upward trajectory and help make it the undisputed leader among America’s public universities,” Hosseini and Trustee Vice Chair Rahul Patel wrote in an email Thursday to alumni.
“The Search Committee unanimously selected Dr. Ono because of his exceptional academic credentials, his principled leadership, and his demonstrated ability to drive meaningful, positive change. He is a builder, and the University of Florida is on the move. UF has never had more momentum.”
They called Ono “one of the most respected academic leaders in the world.”
Ono is facing criticism from the left for shutting down the University of Michigan’s DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) and for his handling of pro-Palestinian protests. But Ono is also angering conservatives, including U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, who is running for Governor.
“UF needs to go back and figure out somebody else,” Donalds said, criticizing Ono for a 2023 speech praising DEI.
In their email to Gator Nation Thursday, the UF trustees rebutted the narrative that Ono is too liberal to lead Florida’s flagship university.
“Recently, a handful of external voices have sought to question Dr. Ono’s alignment with Florida’s vision for higher education. Dr. Ono is not shifting his views to fit Florida. He has been evolving his perspective over time — before UF ever approached him about this role,” their email said.
Read more on Florida Politics.
Evening Reads
—”Donald Trump thinks it was ‘stupid’ not to cash in harder on his first term. He’s making up for it” via Tim Dickinson and Asawin Suebsaeng of Rolling Stone
—”The largest upward transfer of wealth in American history” via Jonathan Chait of The Atlantic
—”Florida congressional delegation touts, condemns House passage of ‘Big Beautiful Bill’” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics
—”Supreme Court deadlocks, blocking creation of first religious public school” via Justin Jouvenal, Laura Meckler and Ann E. Marimow of The Washington Post
—”Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Trump paint bleak picture of chronic disease in U.S. children” via Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Dani Blum via The New York Times
—“There’s a better way to help underpaid workers than ‘no tax on tips’” via Abdallah Fayyad of Vox
—”Single, young and conservative: These people want to ‘Make America Hot Again’” via Ashley Wong of The Wall Street Journal
—“In court hearing, attorneys debate palatability of new restrictions on citizens’ initiatives” via Christine Sexton of the Florida Phoenix
—”They’d just recovered from Hurricane Helene. Then came the fire.” via Shauna Muckle of the Tampa Bay Times
—”ChatGPT is shockingly bad at poker” via Nate Silver of the Silver Bulletin
—“Bluesky is plotting a total takeover of the social internet” via Kate Knibbs of WIRED
Quote of the Day
“The sausage is not only bad, it’s rancid and filled with maggots.”
— Tallahassee attorney Glenn Burhans Jr., arguing against Florida’s new ballot initiative law in federal court.
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. District Judge Allen Winsor has the final say, but it might be time to serve former Rep. Joseph Harding a Freeman’s Cocktail.
Order a Gator Chomp for UF Board of Trustees Chair Mori Hosseini for his fierce defense of UF Presidential finalist Santa Ono.
Send a Firewall Fizz to Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz, who is ramping up security at Jewish places of worship and gatherings following the murders of Israeli embassy staff in D.C.
Breakthrough Insights
Tune In
Postseason begins for FSU baseball
Florida State begins play in the ACC baseball tournament on Friday as the second-seeded Seminoles face Duke in Durham, N.C. (3 p.m. ET, ACC Network).
Florida State (37-13, 17-10 ACC) earned a bye into the quarterfinals as one of the top four teams in the conference. FSU is three wins away from a postseason conference championship. They are ranked #6 in the most recent D1Baseball rankings.
Shortstop Alex Lodise has been the hitting star for the Seminoles. He ranks sixth in the nation with a .422 batting average and ranks just outside of the top 50 nationally in home runs (17) and runs batted in.
He was named the ACC Player of the Year and ACC Defensive Player of the Year. He is the 10th player in program history to earn conference player of the year honors and the second player in ACC history to win both awards in the same season.
The Seminoles have won the ACC postseason title eight times, most recently in 2018.
Florida State took two of three against Duke in the regular season.
The NCAA regionals will be announced on Monday. Florida State is expected to host a regional again this season.
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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.
