Staff Reports
Last Call – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
After drama late in Session appeared to leave the plan dead, Gov. Ron DeSantis says a drug treatment research center will be named for Sen. Darryl Rouson after all.
The Republican Governor revealed that the Senate and the University of South Florida reached a deal to honor the Democratic lawmaker, who has shared his own story of addiction publicly throughout his political career.
Rouson told that personal tale again as he stressed the importance of studying the causes of drug dependency.
“Twenty-seven years, three months ago, when I woke up in Hanley-Hazelden treatment facility, I will never forget the day I asked for help,” Rouson said. “The hopelessness, the loneliness, the anger, the fear, the deep gut rage, the gift of desperation. The bottom was my gift of desperation. I became desperate to change, and whether I believed I could, or whether I believed I couldn’t, I knew I was right.”
That experience shaped Rouson’s work on addiction through his years in the House and Senate, and during his recent tenure on the Commission on Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorders. That panel ultimately issued policy recommendations that became part of a mental health package (SB 1620) passed this year by the Legislature and signed by DeSantis on Wednesday.
The legislation at one point included Senate language to establish the research center at USF and to name it in Rouson’s honor. But the House resisted that and killed the project in statute before kicking it back to the upper chamber.
That created a tense standoff between the chambers late in the Legislative Session. DeSantis, as well as First Lady Casey DeSantis, also engaged in that conversation, with the Governor calling the omission “pettiness.”
But Rouson called on colleagues to pass the larger bill anyway, saying other items in the package were more important than the naming of the center. DeSantis said his Office worked with Senate leaders and the university to make sure the naming still occurred. Rouson learned about it only on the day of the bill’s signing.
Read more on Florida Politics.
Evening Reads
—”President Donald Trump’s 73 zigzag hours in the Israel-Iran War” via Azi Paybarah of The Washington Post
—”Marco Rubio fleshes out Trump’s case that Iran nuclear capacity was eliminated” via David E. Sanger and Tyler Pager of The New York Times
—“The devastating impact of Trump’s big beautiful bill, in one chart” via Dylan Scott of Vox
—“How much will you save or lose with Trump’s ‘big’ tax bill?” via Szu Yu Chen, Shelly Tan, Rachel Lerman and Jacob Bogage of The Washington Post
—”Snake venom, urine, and a quest to live forever: Inside a biohacking conference emboldened by MAHA” via Will Bahr of WIRED
—”J.D. Vance memes are back thanks to disputed border control incident” via Miles Klee of Rolling Stone
—“Gov. Ron DeSantis says Camp Blanding will supplement ‘Alligator Alcatraz’” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
—”DeSantis dismisses environmental concerns regarding ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ detention center” via Mitch Perry of the Florida Phoenix
—”UF gets $50M commitment and 20 acres from Jacksonville City Council for downtown campus” via Drew Dixon of Florida Politics
—”ChatGPT and OCD are a dangerous combo” via Sigal Samuel of Vox
Quote of the Day
“Clearly, from a security perspective, if someone escapes, you know, there’s a lot of alligators.”
— Gov. Ron DeSantis, on ‘Alligator Alcatraz’
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 Governor, Senate, and USF came together to name a drug treatment research center after Sen. Darryl Rouson. In honor of the St. Petersburg Democrat’s decades of sobriety, order something off this list of Cocktails for the Sober Curious — some of them look pretty tasty!
UF Trustees Chair Mori Hosseini and City Council President Randy White get a Deal Closer now that Jacksonville has agreed to provide 20 acres of land and $50 million to bring the Gator Nation to the Bold City.
To all the NYPD officers yearning for some sunshine, Gov. Ron DeSantis has Cash and Prizes waiting for you … not really, of course, but you could certainly buy one with a recruitment bonus check.
Breakthrough Insights
Tune In
Marlins continue series at Giants
The Miami Marlins continue a series in San Francisco against the Giants this evening (9:45 p.m. ET, FanDuel Sports Network Florida).
Miami took the first game of the three-game series last night, winning 4-2. Miami took a 2-0 lead after three innings and held on for the win. The team announced that right-hander Maxx Meyer will undergo season-ending surgery on his left hip. Meyer was originally placed on the 15-day injured list on June 3, the latest of a string of tough appearances. His season ends with a 3-5 record and a 4.73 ERA. He is expected back sometime next year.
Miami sits in fourth place in the National League East, 14 games behind division-leading Philadelphia. Miami has a half-game lead on the Washington Nationals, who sit at the bottom of the division standings.
If there is some hope for the future for the Marlins, it can be found in the team’s Triple-A affiliate. The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp clinched a playoff spot by winning the International League’s Eastern Division first-half title. The Shrimp finished the first half 47-28, half a game ahead of Lehigh Valley in the standings.
Among the top prospects at the Triple-A level for Miami are catcher Joe Mack, infielder Deyvison De Los Santos, and right-handed pitcher Adam Mazur, all of whom are listed among the top 12 prospects in the Marlins system.
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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.
