Hello and welcome to Tuesday.
Congratulations to The Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times, which picked up Pulitzer Prizes on Monday.
Tick, tick — There’s less than two weeks to go before state legislators are supposed to return to Tallahassee for a special session aimed at doing something about the meltdown in Florida’s property insurance market.
Here’s what we know right now — There is still no deal, or agreement, on what legislation will be enacted during the week-long special session, which continues to be beset by rumors that other items — can you say data privacy? — will be added to the mix as well.
Behind the scenes — Word is that draft legislation is being floated around. There is also optimism that some sort of resolution will be reached to try to deal with a vicious cycle that involves lawsuits, rate hikes, undercapitalized companies, the ever-growing policy count of the state-created Citizens Property Insurance and the continued clout of out-of-state reinsurers. Reinsurers do a good job at pushing back against proposals that would make it easier for in-state insurers to access Florida’s reinsurance fund known as the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund.
Enter the governor — During the most recent regular session, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis did not get deeply involved in the legislative fight over how to fix homeowners insurance and whether an ultimate solution would require additional costs for residents. DeSantis, however, did say after the session he was supportive of a Senate proposal that went nowhere in the House (in part due to a push to thrust some of the expense onto consumers). The Republican governor’s decision to announce a special session, however, means that his staff have to help forge a consensus that will result in the passage of some type of legislation.
The other statewide official responsible for insurance — In the past, Florida’s chief financial officer — who has equal power with the governor to hire and fire the state’s insurance commissioner — has taken a lead role in dealing with insurance problems. But even as bad headline after bad headline has mounted, current CFO Jimmy Patronis has not inserted himself into the thick of negotiations. Behind closed doors Republican legislators as well as lobbyists roll their eyes when Patronis’ name is mentioned.
Patronis’ current idea — The primary suggestion from Patronis for the special session is to change state law regarding an existing insurance fraud hotline. The CFO wants to offer rewards up to $25,000 to people whose tips lead to an arrest. Right now, the rewards are only handed out to those whose tips lead to a conviction.
Tax break — Patronis’ office has also pointed out that the CFO did champion a substantial tax break included in the recently signed tax cut package: a two-year sales tax exemption for the purchase of storm-resistant windows, doors and garage doors. This “home hardening” could potentially lead to a break on insurance bills down the line, but it would also require consumers to pay for these improvements first.
Anything else? — Will there be anything more substantive from Patronis, legislators or the governor? That remains a work in progress. But here’s what we do know: hurricane season starts in less than a month.
— WHERE’S RON? — Nothing official announced for Gov. DeSantis.
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GEARING UP — “With Ron DeSantis stoking culture war issues, school boards emerge as major Florida battleground,” by USA Today Network-Florida’s John Kennedy: “When Tina Descovich lost her bid for re-election to the Brevard County School Board two years ago, the high-profile conservative was quick to level blame. ‘The final beating wasn’t really issue-based,’ Descovich said of her 10-point loss to Jennifer Jenkins, a school speech pathologist in the county. ‘She won because the Democratic Party out-maneuvered us.’ ‘Democrats take education seriously, but Republicans didn’t pay attention. They’re not engaged,’ Descovich said, following her defeat. Not anymore.”
FALLOUT — “Abortion issue scrambles Florida campaigns,” by POLITICO’s Matt Dixon: The Supreme Court’s likely overturning of the Roe v. Wade decision has elevated abortion into a major topic for Florida’s U.S. Senate and gubernatorial races, with both sides trying to cast their opponents as extreme on the issue. Republicans and Democrats in Florida have had to recalibrate their campaign messages less than four months ahead of the state primary after POLITICO last week revealed an initial draft high court opinion that would strike down the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion.
Positions — Democrats in Florida’s U.S. Senate and governor’s race all agree that there should be exceptions for women who become pregnant after being the victim of rape and incest, and that abortion should be legal up to the time a fetus can be “viable” outside of the womb, which is generally considered to be around the 23 or 24 week mark.
Dems — Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), who is challenging Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), has been an abortion rights supporter throughout her political career — as have Democratic gubernatorial candidates Agriculture Commission Nikki Fried and Florida Sen. Annette Taddeo (D-Miami). Rep. Charlie Crist’s (D-Fla.), who once served as Republican governor, has changed his position on abortion during his more than two decades in Florida politics, which has opened him up to criticism from Fried and Taddeo.
GOP — On the Republican side, Rubio and DeSantis have not defined their platforms beyond saying they are generally anti-abortion. Both have long anti-abortion track records but recently would not define their position in specific terms or say if they support a complete ban on the procedure, as was recently floated by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader of the Senate, as an option if Roe is overturned.
CAMPAIGN ROUNDUP — Maxwell Alejandro Frost, one of the Democrats running for Florida’s 10th Congressional District, notched two major endorsements on Monday. Frost, who is seeking to become the first Gen Z member of Congress, was endorsed by BOLD PAC, the campaign arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus as well as the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC. The two caucuses combined make up more than half of the Democrats in the U.S. House. “Maxwell Frost is a bold progressive who will be a valuable member of Congress and critical to our efforts to deliver for working families across the country,” said Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC co-chairs Pramila Jayapal, Mark Pocan, and Jamie Raskin in a statement. One of Frost’s main primary opponents in the race is state Sen. Randolph Bracy.
BRACY’S EVER-CHANGING WIKIPEDIA PAGE — Speaking of Bracy, it seems that someone has been involved in efforts to tinker with his Wikipedia page and remove a somewhat misleading section over his voting record on guns. Bracy’s Wikipedia page initially highlighted that the Orlando area Democrat was one of three House members who back in 2016 voted in favor of a bill that would have allowed concealed weapon permit holders to bring guns on to college campuses.
Context — Worth noting: This section that was in Bracy’s Wikipedia page did not note that he had voted against the bill in committee, or that he switched his yes vote to a no vote minutes after the floor vote happened. Bracy told Playbook on Monday that he mistakenly hit the yes button, which is why he switched it quickly afterwards. “My intention was to vote no,” Bracy said in a text message.
Edit function — Yet someone with IP addresses from the Capitol — and then later from somewhere in downtown Orlando near City Hall — removed the section completely last December. And one user in April eventually inserted editorializing language — which is still there — stateing that Bracy is a “a leader on commonsense gun control policy” who sponsored bills to ban “assault weapons.” When asked about the Wikipedia page changes and whether anyone with his legislative or campaign was involved, Bracy asserted that “my staff didn’t do it.” He did not respond to a question about whether he made the changes himself.
SAVE THE DATE — The Republican Party of Florida announced late Monday that it will be holding its 2022 Sunshine Summit and Victory Dinner on July 22-23 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood. The Victory Dinner is the big annual fundraiser event done on behalf of the party and it will come roughly a month before the primary elections. It is anticipated that one of the main speakers at the event will be Gov. Ron DeSantis.
— “Black lawmakers to launch ‘Stay Woke Go Vote’ campaign,” by Florida Politics’ Christine Jordan Sexton
COUNTERPOINT — “State fires back in redistricting lawsuit,” by News Service of Florida’s Jim Saunders: “Attorneys for Secretary of State Laurel Lee fired back Monday at an attempt to block a new congressional redistricting plan, saying plaintiffs in a lawsuit want to ‘revert to some racially gerrymandered’ map that would stretch a district across a swath of North Florida to elect a Democrat. Lee’s attorneys filed the arguments two days before Leon County Circuit Judge Layne Smith is scheduled to hold a hearing on a request for a temporary injunction to block the redistricting plan, which Gov. Ron DeSantis pushed through the Legislature last month.”
SCHOOL DAYS — “DeSantis signs bill mandating communism lessons in class, as GOP leans on education,” by Miami Herald’s Bianca Padró Ocasio: “Speaking at Miami’s Freedom Tower before a crowd of local lawmakers and supporters, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 395, which designates Nov. 7 as the state’s official “Victims of Communism Day,” making Florida one of a handful of states to adopt the designation.
New requirement — “It is, however, the first state to mandate school instruction on that day, as Florida Republicans continue to seize on education policy while placing school curriculum at the forefront of their political priorities ahead of the 2022 midterms. … ‘There are so many people in our community who have suffered and our own family members have suffered and to us it’s so gratifying to honor them,’ said Armando Ibarra, president of Miami Young Republicans and founder of the Florida Commission of Victims of Communism.”
— “Panhandle’s anger over FPL may have helped spur DeSantis veto of anti-solar bill,” by Miami Herald’s Mary Ellen Klas
— “Ron DeSantis worried Wilton Simpson’s prized bill will protect puppy mills. Will he veto it?” by Seeking Rents Jason Garcia
‘WE HAD TO SWAT THEM DOWN’ — “Esper: Trump White House discussed blockade of Cuba and military action in Venezuela,” by El Nuevo Herald’s Nora Gámez Torres: “Former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said he prevented ‘dangerous things’ from happening during the time President Donald Trump was in office, including military intervention in Venezuela and a blockade of Cuba. ‘At various times, certainly during the last year of the administration folks in the White House were proposing to take military action against Venezuela, to strike Iran,’ Esper said in an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes on Sunday about his forthcoming memoir ‘A Sacred Oath.’ At some point, he said, ‘somebody proposed we blockade Cuba.’”
THE ROAD AHEAD — “‘It’s a tsunami’: Legal challenges threatening public health policy,” by POLITICO’s Krista Mahr: In the last year, four court rulings against the CDC, including one from the Supreme Court, have forced the agency to stop or change its pandemic mitigation orders. Most recently, a Florida district judge ordered a national injunction ending the agency’s mask mandate on public transport. “Litigation invites litigation invites litigation,” said Wendy Parmet, faculty co-director at the Center for Health Policy and Law at Northeastern University. It’s a cycle that “creates enormous uncertainty about what CDC could do going forward should the pandemic worsen again, or should another pandemic or even a more regional outbreak arise.”
WINNER — “Miami Herald wins Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News for Surfside condo collapse coverage,” by Miami Herald’s Carlos Frías: “When Miami awoke to the stunning, heartbreaking news of the sudden collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside overnight in June, readers found the Miami Herald had already been reporting for hours. And for that ample, wide-ranging reporting of the June 24 catastrophe that killed 98 people, the Miami Herald has won its 23rd Pulitzer Prize, the committee announced May 9. The Miami Herald was awarded the top prize in the Breaking News category, which judges how a news organization covers a major news event.”
WINNER — “Tampa Bay Times reporters win Pulitzer Prize for ‘Poisoned’ series,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Zachary T. Sampson: “Tampa Bay Times reporters were investigating a story about lead in the water at local schools when a source shared a lengthy state health report with two pages dog-earred. Those pages showed that Hillsborough County suffered a higher rate of lead poisoning than anywhere else in Florida. An unnamed battery recycler was to blame. Over the next several years, Times reporters Corey G. Johnson, Rebecca Woolington and Eli Murray scrutinized the recycler closer than any regulator ever had.”
— “Post/ProPublica investigation on sugar cane burning a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize,” by Palm Beach Post’s Holly Baltz
THE NEW NORMAL? — “As hurricane season approaches, experts say to beware of more rapidly intensifying storms,” by USA Today’s Dinah Voyles Pulver: “Lifelong Floridians, the McKinneys had ridden out many hurricanes over 46 years of marriage, but this one was more intense than anything they’d ever seen and far worse than they expected 30 miles inland. Michael had slammed into the coast between Tyndall Air Force Base and Mexico Beach as a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 160 mph. Just 24 hours earlier, the hurricane’s sustained winds had been 110 mph, but the intensity exploded when warm waters and conditions in the Gulf of Mexico handed Michael the equivalent of a high-octane energy drink.”
NEIGHBORLY — “Hernando County Planning Commission denies shelter plan for Ukrainian children,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Barbara Behrendt: “[Moisheloae Leid} Fedorovsky, an American citizen now, explained how his wife and other friends under the name Torah Ora, Inc., want to help by creating transitional housing for elementary and middle school Ukrainian children on two properties north of Weeki Wachee. ‘We have a lot of friends and a lot of relatives still in Ukraine,’ he said at the Planning Commission meeting, noting ‘they live in constant fear.’”
COME AND STAY — “Tourism and economic agencies join forces to market Orlando,” by Associated Press’ Mike Schneider: “It’s an idea that almost seems as compatible as Mickey and Minnie. Take the tens of millions of tourists who are thinking about visiting central Florida’s theme parks each year and sell them on the virtues of moving their companies or businesses to the region. In the half-century that Orlando has been a tourism hub, it had not been done, until now.”
— “Havana hotel explosion: Four more bodies found, a dozen people still missing,” by El Nuevo Herald’s Nora Gámez Torres
— “Seminole County high school to cover yearbook photos of ‘don’t say gay’ student protests,” by Orlando Sentinel’s Skyler Swisher
— “Third suspect in assassination of Haiti president brough to Miami for court appearance,” by Miami Herald’s Jacqueline Charles and Jay Weaver
— “Florida man among 3 U.S. tourists who died at Sandals resort in Bahamas,” by The Associated Press
— “WWE Hall of Famer accused in Florida DUI crash that killed 1,” by The Associated Press: “A World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer is accused in the DUI death of man in a traffic crash earlier this year, authorities said. Tamara ‘Sunny’ Sytch was arrested Friday night at the Hard Rock Hotel in Daytona Beach, according to a social media post by the Ormond Beach Police Department. The March 25 crash in Ormond Beach killed Julian Lasseter, 75.”
BIRTHDAYS: Former U.S. Ambassador Mel Sembler … Stephen M. Ross, principal owner of the Miami Dolphins … Ryan Wiggins, chief of staff with The Lincoln Project … Herald-Tribune’s Zac Anderson … The Associated Press’ Bobby Caina Calvan
