Open Mouth, Insert Campaign Ending Foot
When is it OK for anyone, regardless of political affiliation, to equate a personal family experience to Slavery?
Never. Nunca.
One Republican congressional candidate (Renee Swann) believes that she knows what it’s like to be a slave. I get what she was trying to say (not really) but her blatant ignorance just sunk her campaign as her opponent and Black Americans are going to unload on her. Stick a fork in it! READ MORE
COVID-19 Spikes in Florida
As the state continues to re-open and as millions of Floridians continue to show just how stupid, ignorant and self-serving they are for not covering up, the number of cases of the virus is spiking.
But even though it appears that he continues to push back against Democrats and the media pressing what appears to be a concerted “doom and gloom” coronavirus narrative, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is still managing to find a balance when it comes to fulfilling his other tasks as governor, including signing the bills presented to him.
This past week, DeSantis signed a bill that would allow college student-athletes to make money off their name and likeness. The bill was introduced in the state senate by Senator Debbie Mayfield (R). READ MORE
DeSantis was in Miami this weekend commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Homestead Speedway. NASCAR continues to rev its engines in Florida.
Black Lives Matter to Democrats, But Not Rubio’s Opinion
It appears that Sen. Rubio can do nothing right in the eyes of congressional Democrats like Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who has dismissed Rubio’s support of “legitimate protestors” and his assertion that anarchists are causing the riots. Are these Democrats defending ANTIFA and other anarchists? READ MORE
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“Mucarsel-Powell dismisses Rubio’s support for “legitimate protestors”” by The Floridian’s Javier Manjarres – Since the beginning of the protests and riots that have gripped the nation when George Floyd was murdered by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota several weeks ago, Sen. Marco Rubio (R) has been pointing to the verified truth that anarchists and criminals have co-opted the peaceful protests and underminded “legitimate protestors.” You only need to look as far as what is happening in Seattle, where anarchists turned their “Black Lives Matter” protest into an anti-Government seizure of a portion of the city. In Miami, anarchists were behind the short-lived unrest that took place after Floyd died, leaving their “hammer and sickle” signature Soviet symbol when they vandalizing a Christopher Columbus statue in Downtown Miami. But while it is abundantly clear that anarchists are behind much of the property damage and assaults committed in the name of George Floyd, House Democrats continue to turn a blind eye to the obvious anarchist threat, and instead of condemning those radical groups, these Democrats are questioning Republicans like Sen. Rubio who are. “Senator you have been focusing only on this issue,” stated Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D) “ I’m not sure what you’re trying to achieve here. Let me just ask you, do you believe and can you say Black Lives Matter? Will you support the Floyd Justice in Policing Act? Stop deflecting and start acting.”
“Republican Figlesthaler calls Democratic Party ‘criminal enterprise’” by The Floridian’s Daniel Molina – “The Democrat Party has transformed into a criminal enterprise that is destroying our country from within.” – Dr. William Figlesthaler. With the 2020 presidential election around the corner and the political arena experiencing tension due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and discussions of disbanding police departments across the United States, Republicans and Democrats have been vocal on where they stand regarding political matters. Since Florida is a battleground state and Florida Rep. Francis Rooney (R) announced at the end of last year that he would not be seeking a re-election bid, Florida’s 19th Congressional district is up for grabs, and Dr. William Figlesthaler (R) is vying to replace Rooney as the newest Republican lawmaker to be elected in the sunshine state. Figlesthlaler took to social media to share a new campaign video with his followers, taking aim at Democrats. In sharing the new video ad, “Dr. Fig” said that “this is not your Grandma’s Democrat Party.” He added that “the radical left is destroying our nation from within,” noting that “failing to stop them could cost us everything” and assuring voters that “in Congress, I will fight like hell to stop them.” In the ad, Dr. Fig affirms that he’s “running for Congress because America is at its greatest crossroads yet.” However, to get there, Dr. Fig faces a tough and crowded Republican primary season, but he has worked to set himself apart from the other candidates, which include Florida Rep. Dane Eagle (R) and Florida Rep. Byron Donalds (R) who was recently endorsed by the Club for Growth PAC.
“Askar’s new campaign ad calls out “baseless attacks” against Trump” by The Floridian’s Javier Manjarres – With President Donald Trump running for re-election in 2020, just about every single Republican running for the U.S. Congress is running on the president’s “Keep America Great” coattails. Nowhere is this sentiment felt the most than in those hotly contested Republican primary congressional races across the country, like the race to replace retiring Rep. Francis Rooney (R) in SW Florida. Former U.S. Marine and businessman Casey Askar has released another pro-Trump campaign video that highlights the “baseless attacks” against Trump by the so-called “Fake News” and by “radical socialists and violent anarchists.” “We’re living in an unprecedented time – a pandemic has ravaged our economy, violent anarchists are disrupting Americans’ right to protest peacefully, and millions are still out of work. Yet Democrats in power continue to lob baseless attacks at the President instead of leading their broken liberal cities and states out of this crisis,” said Askar. “This spot illustrates the contrast between the Democrats’ ineffectual attempts at governance and the strong, consistent leadership of President Trump.”
“DeSantis signs bill that allows college student-athletes to get paid” by The Floridian’s Javier Manjarres – Miami-Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has signed a bill into law that would allow college student-athletes to make money off their name or likeness, making Florida the first state to do so. DeSantis couldn’t have picked a better backdrop than the indoor training facility at the University of Miami in Coral Gable, Florida. With banners of past Hurricane Football greats hanging from the rafters above him, DeSantis, who was joined by Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez, state Sen. Debbie Mayfield (D), Reps. Chip La Marca (R) and Kionne McGhee (D), and several current and past collegiate athletes, sat and signed the bill into law. “We’re not talking about, you get a scholarship to Florida State and Miami and the universities are gonna pay you to play. That’s not what we’re talking about,” DeSantis said. “But if you have a situation where you have some of the great athletes, particularly in sports like football and basketball, whose name, image, and likeness is being used to make millions and millions of dollars, and they don’t have the opportunity to get any of that, there’s something fundamentally unfair for that.”
“Florida wildlife officer shot, killed in Hendry County; three suspects being questioned” by Tampa Bay Times’ Jamal Thalji – A state wildlife officer was found shot and killed in LaBelle early Sunday, according to the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office. The officer was identified as Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Officer Julian Keen Jr. He was 30 and had served with the agency for six years. Keen was shot and killed while trying to stop a hit-and-run driver, according to local news reports. He was off-duty at the time. Now three people are in custody and being questioned, according to the Sheriff’s Office. But the agency did not say if any arrests have been made in this case or release any other details about the investigation. “I’ve known the officer since he was 10 years old,” Hendry Sheriff Steve Whidden told WINK News. "He was a dear friend of mine. We considered him family. He was our brother. Julian was an absolute role model to everyone here. “This was a heartbreaker. It hit me personally and it hit our community personally.”
“Florida scientist makes own COVID-19 map after refusing to doctor state data” by NY Posts’ Vincent Barone – A Florida data scientist who claimed she was fired by the state for not doctoring coronavirus figures released her own COVID-19 map. Former state Department of Health worker Rebekah Jones said she was fired because she refused to “manually change data to drum up support for the plan to reopen.” So now the enterprising Sunshine Stater has created her own map, similar to Florida’s version, except for one major additional detail: her map includes report cards for each county on whether they meet the state’s own criteria for entering the next phase of reopening. Jones told NPR she hopes to give people a source of trusted information untainted by the politics of reopening. “I think I’m uniquely equipped to try to help with that,” she said, “so that’s what I’m doing. I just I don’t want people to panic. I don’t want anybody to feel afraid or powerless.” By Jones’ calculations, only four of Florida’s 67 counties are ready to loosen coronavirus restrictions. She has said she tried to add the report cards to the state’s own data portal, but health department officials made her drop the feature when they realized it cast the state’s progress in a negative light. “When I went to show them what the report card would say for each county, among other things, they asked me to delete the report card because it showed that no counties, pretty much, were ready for reopening,” she told NPR. “And they didn’t want to draw attention to that.”
“Florida Elections Take Shape As Qualifying Ends” by CBS Miami – As Democrats hope to dent Republican majorities in both legislative chambers, the major parties will clash in 96 of 120 state House seats and 17 of 20 Senate contests, according to data posted by the Florida Division of Elections after the qualifying ended Friday at noon. Candidates were required to file paperwork and fees by noon Friday for August primary and November general elections. As of Saturday morning, 322 candidates qualified for House seats and 65 others qualified to run for the Senate. Just eleven incumbent Democrats, all House members, and Republican Rep. Brad Drake of Eucheeanna had no opposition. Eight of 29 upcoming GOP House primaries feature incumbents. Republicans Mike Hill of Pensacola, Alex Andrade of Pensacola, Jay Trumbull of Panama City, Clay Yarborough of Jacksonville, Scott Plakon of Longwood, Thad Altman of Indialantic, Randy Fine of South Brevard County, and Daniel Perez of Miami will face challengers on Aug. 18. All of the 12 incumbent senators up for reelection also are being challenged, and eight open seats in the upper chamber are up for grabs.
“Coronavirus Florida: Editorial: Mounting protests by the state’s frustrated jobless are well-founded” by The Palm Beach Posts’ Editorial Board – Driven by frustration, anger, and, in many cases, sheer desperation, Floridians are taking to the streets in cities across the state to demand action to fix an inept and insulting unemployment benefits system. In the midst of a viral pandemic that is far from abating, we will not advocate that people stand physically shoulder-to-shoulder to shout their frustrations. But all Floridians should stand in spirit with the many thousands of hardworking residents whose jobs vanished months ago in the public-health emergency, yet even now are forced to coax from state government the small stipends they ever more urgently need. By now, the litany of vexations is well known: the jammed phone lines, the hours on hold, the online system that balks and crashes, the inexplicable responses to re-file and then re-file again. All for a meager $275 a week — Florida’s maximum jobless allowance, one of the lowest in the nation. And for many recipients, not a dime of the additional $600 federal supplement to which they’re entitled. Last Sunday, The Post Editorial Board published a long string of letters that we received after asking readers to send us their unemployment-benefit nightmare stories. They made for depressing reading. “I was furloughed on March 12. I have been trying to get through to DEO ever since,” said Jocelyne Dunn of West Palm Beach, all too typically. She was referring to the mockingly named Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
“Florida rep. says US shouldn't have soccer team if players don't stand for anthem” by WEAR Staff – Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida is calling out the U.S. Soccer Federation for allowing its players not to stand for the national anthem. The U.S. Soccer Federation oversees the men's and women's national teams. In light of the Black Lives Matter movement, it voted this week to repeal a policy requiring players to stand for the national anthem before matches. Rep. Gaetz tweeted Thursday: "I’d rather the US not have a soccer team than have a soccer team that won’t stand for the National Anthem. You shouldn’t get to play under our flag as our national team if you won’t stand when it is raised." U.S. Soccer initiated a ban on kneeling during the anthem in 2017 after Megan Rapinoe kneeled during the national anthem in support of former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who started taking a knee before games in 2016 to protest police brutality. However, the kneeling received heavy backlash from President Donald Trump and others, saying it was disrespectful to the American Flag and the country. Kaepernick has not been on an NFL team since 2017.
“Hospital beds filling up as coronavirus surges” by Sun Sentinel’s Naseem S. Miller, Steven Lemongello, Adelaide Chen, and Anthony Mann – The supply of available hospital beds in South Florida is getting tighter as a statewide surge in coronavirus is picking up. In Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties — a region with a much higher rate of COVID-19 than the rest of the state — about 70% of intensive care unit beds, used for the sickest patients, were in use on Sunday. General hospital beds also were about 70% occupied, according to numbers from the state Agency for Health Care Administration. The numbers were in line with most other heavily populated counties in Florida, but they masked the tightening situation at a number of individual hospitals. At Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, state numbers showed 15% of ICU beds were available Sunday along with 30% of general hospital beds — compared with 28% of ICU beds and 29% of general beds two weeks ago. Occupancy was lower at the Broward Health system’s three other hospitals: Coral Springs, Imperial Point and North. At Memorial Hospital West in Pembroke Pines, the figures showed 5% of ICU beds were available, along with 16% of general hospital beds on Sunday. The percentage of open ICU beds stood at 10% on June 1 and 16% of general beds.
“Gates: Obama, GWB used military as a prop -- but Trump administration takes those efforts to 'a new level'” by Fox News’ Gregg Re – Former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush liked to "use the military as a prop" — but the Trump administration has taken those efforts "to a new level," former Defense Secretary Robert Gates charged Sunday. The admonishment from Gates came a week after President Trump's former Defense Secretary James Mattis urged Americans to "reject and hold accountable those in office who would make a mockery of our Constitution." That was a clear reference to Trump, whom Mattis faulted for staging a June 1 visit to Lafayette Square and St. John's Church alongside Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley. Rioters had torched the famous church the night before. Speaking to NBC News' "Meet the Press," Gates applauded Milley's apology for the episode; Milley specifically acknowledged that his "presence in that moment and in that environment created a perception of the military involved in domestic politics.” The Secret Service has said that one agent used pepper spray to clear protesters out ahead of the president's visit, although the administration has maintained that demonstrators were becoming violent and that the decision to clear the park wasn't related to Trump's visit. "I think he really wrestled with how to respond, when he realized how the appearances of being present for the photo op seemed to the rest of the country," Gates told anchor Chuck Todd. "I've known Mark Milley for a long time. He's a man of great integrity. He takes his responsibilities to be an apolitical military officer very seriously. I think the important thing was that he made the statement ... [and sent a] written statement to senior commanders around the world about the apolitical nature of the American military."
“Pompeo to meet with Chinese officials in Hawaii amid escalating tensions” by CNN’s Kylie Atwood – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo plans to meet with Chinese officials in Hawaii early this week, two US officials and one Western diplomat told CNN on Sunday. Pompeo is expected to discuss a wide range of issues during the meetings, which will take place at Hickam Air Force Base, according to a US official familiar with the trip. Pompeo will only be on the ground in Hawaii for about 24 hours, the source said. Pompeo's plans were first reported by Politico. The secretary of state's meeting comes as tensions between the US and China have been escalating for months, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and the Chinese legislature vote to impose a highly contentious national security law in Hong Kong. Chinese officials have also recently sought to exploit the death of George Floyd and the unrest it has caused in US, leading Pompeo to call their efforts "laughable propaganda" last week. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in turn called Pompeo's comments laughable. The sources would not say which Chinese officials Pompeo will be meeting with, and there are currently no plans to bring reporters on the trip.
CNN has reached out to the Chinese Embassy for comment. The State Department declined to comment to CNN on the trip. The department has kept a tight hold on the plans, leaving diplomats from allied countries curious about Pompeo's agenda, explained two western diplomats.
“Trump Administration Issues Rule to Roll Back Transgender Protections in the Affordable Care Act” by WSJ’s Stephanie Armour – The Trump administration on Friday released a rule that would roll back Obama-era protections for transgender patients under the Affordable Care Act, despite a last-minute push by Democrats and health groups to block a change they say will curtail health-care access during the coronavirus pandemic. The policy change could lead to transgender individuals and others in the LGBTQ community being denied health-care services, critics say. The rule, which will take effect in 60 days, will only be enforced on Health and Human Services programs. The rule would affect protections for the 1.4 million transgender adults and 150,000 transgender teenagers ages 13 to 17 in the U.S., according to the Williams Institute, a research group at the University of California School of Law in Los Angeles that studies sexual-orientation and gender-identity policy. Trump administration officials have said that the policy is being changed to more closely hew to the ACA text, which doesn’t explicitly mention gender identity as a protected category in health care. The provision has spurred a host of lawsuits from states and religious plaintiffs that claimed the expanded protections are unlawful. Some religious groups opposed to the Obama-era provision said health providers and insurers could be forced to cover gender reassignment procedures, which they oppose. Those objections were raised in part by a 2016 lawsuit filed by a woman against her employer after its insurer refused to cover her son’s gender reassignment surgery. The child was diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
“Atlanta police shooting autopsy: Rayshard Brooks suffered 2 gunshot wounds to the back, death ruled homicide” by Fox News’ Frank Miles – As the killing of a 27-year-old black man in an encounter with two white officers late Friday rekindled fiery protests in Atlanta and prompted the police chief’s resignation, the medical examiner found Rayshard Brooks suffered two gunshot wounds to the back and his death has been ruled a homicide. The office of Fulton County Medical Examiner performed an autopsy on Brooks on Sunday, and said that the gunshot wounds to the back created organ failure because of blood loss. One minute, Brooks was chatting cooperatively with Atlanta police, saying he’d had a couple of drinks to celebrate his daughter’s birthday and agreeing to a breath test. The next, they were wrestling on the ground and grappling over a Taser before Brooks took the weapon and pointed it at the officers. Seconds later, three gunshots sounded and Brooks fell to the ground. Atlanta police video released Sunday showing a seemingly routine sobriety check outside a Wendy’s restaurant that quickly spun out of control, ending in gunfire. Police said Sunday the department terminated Officer Garrett Rolfe, who fired the fatal shots, and Officer Devin Brosnan was placed on administrative duty. Rolfe had worked for the department since October 2013, and Brosnan since September 2018. L. Chris Stewart, a Brooks family attorney, said the officer who shot him should be charged for “an unjustified use of deadly force, which equals murder.” Stewart said Brooks, a father of four, on Friday had celebrated the eighth birthday of one of his daughters.
“Virginia congressman who officiated same-sex wedding loses GOP nomination in drive-thru convention” by CNN’s Kelly Mena and Veronica Stracqualursi – A Republican congressman, whose decision to officiate a same-sex wedding last year angered some local Republicans, lost his party's nomination to a conservative challenger in Saturday's drive-thru convention. Rep. Denver Riggleman of Virginia lost to Bob Good, a former Campbell County supervisor and former employee of the Liberty University athletics department, with 42% of the vote to Good's 58%, according to results provided to CNN by 5th District Republican Committee Chairman Melvin Adams Sunday morning. All day Saturday, delegates voted in the 5th District's GOP convention by driving through the parking lot of a Lynchburg church -- a change in format due to the coronavirus pandemic. The church was the only voting location in the expansive district, which stretches from the North Carolina border north toward the outer suburbs of Washington, DC. The ballot tabulation went into the early hours of Sunday morning. Late Saturday, before the results were known, Riggleman tweeted about "voting irregularities" and "ballot stuffing." "Voter fraud has been a hallmark of this nomination process and I will not stand for it," the congressman tweeted, before adding that the Republican Party of Virginia "needs to reevaluate their priorities."
“Frustrated Stock-Market Skeptics Stick With Cautious Bets” by WSJ’s Amrith Ramkumoar and Michael Wursthorn – Many investors remain skeptical the stock market’s powerful ascent can continue and are maintaining their cautious stances, a sign of lingering unease that could challenge the rally in the weeks ahead. Some of these doubters have been bruised by the S&P 500’s 18% climb this quarter and are perplexed by what they deem a seismic disconnect between the battered economy and roaring financial markets. Hopes for a swift economic recovery following coronavirus lockdowns and historic stimulus measures by the world’s central banks have lifted stocks, pushing the technology-laden Nasdaq Composite to a record last week. Yet cynics say there are plenty of reasons to remain cautious. These include projections for a bumpy economic recovery, setbacks to developing a coronavirus vaccine and uncertainty surrounding November’s presidential and congressional elections. Those concerns dragged down markets last week, a rare slide in what has been a weekslong surge. In recent weeks, prominent investors including billionaire Jeffrey Gundlach of DoubleLine Capital LP and Scott Minerd, the global chief investment officer for Guggenheim Partners LLC, have publicly called stocks overvalued, only for them to continue ripping higher. Famed money manager Jeremy Grantham wrote in a recent letter to investors that “the current market seems lost in one-sided optimism.” The Boston investment firm he co-founded, Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co., said in the letter that it lowered its stockholdings in its flagship benchmark free-allocation strategy.
“NYC's de Blasio fires back at Cuomo's threat to shut down Manhattan over coronavirus social distancing” by New York Posts’ Kate Sheehy – Mayor Bill de Blasio on Sunday fired back at Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s threat to shut down Manhattan again if the city didn’t enforce social-distancing better — saying through a rep that “imprisoning people” isn’t the answer. “We must balance safety with people’s need to reopen their businesses,” a City Hall spokeswoman said in an e-mail. “We had social distancing ambassadors out all weekend distributing masks and encouraging people to disperse after making their purchases. “These businesses are allowed to be open per the governor’s guidelines and we don’t believe imprisoning people or taking away their livelihood is the answer.” Hours earlier, Cuomo had announced that he would close down Manhattan and the Hamptons on Long Island again amid the coronavirus if their “local governments” didn’t do a better job reining in scofflaws who aren’t properly social distancing and wearing masks, particularly outside bars and restaurants. “We are not going back to that dark place,” Cuomo vowed, referring to the peak of the pandemic in the state, when nearly 800 people died in one day from the contagion.“People send videos of these violations,” the governor said of the rogue residents — hundreds of whom have been caught on video partying closely together, many without masks, around St. Marks Place in the East Village in Manhattan the past couple of days.
“Trade adviser says the White House wants $2 trillion manufacturing stimulus” by CNN’s Jason Hoffman, Kirsten Appleton, and Betsy Klein – White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said Saturday that the White House is targeting a phase four stimulus package focusing on American manufacturing that will be "at least $2 trillion dollars." "We are facing significant structural headwinds" because certain service-oriented industries like entertainment, hospitality and transportation have especially been hurt because of Covid-19, Navarro told CNN. "The only way to fully rebuild the economy in the face of those headwinds is to significantly expand and strengthen our manufacturing base." "Put simply, we need to create more manufacturing jobs," Navarro said. "Manufacturing jobs not only provide good wages but also create more jobs both up- and downstream through multiplier effects." Navarro said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would like a $3 trillion dollar package, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would like a $1 trillion dollar package, but President Donald Trump would like a package of "at least $2 trillion dollars that is strategically focused around the President's two simple rules -- Buy American, Hire American -- along with incentives for American companies to bring offshored jobs back home." On the timing of any potential deal, Navarro said it must be done before the August recess "for the sake of American workers and small businesses now in pain." "But it's hard to pass bills when Capitol Hill is a ghost town," he added.
“White House Ties With Military Face Major Test” by WSJ’s Michael R. Gordon – President Trump’s response to the violent turns at some racial-justice protests in U.S. cities earlier this month has ushered in the most acute test of civil-military relations in decades. Mr. Trump’s consideration of deploying active-duty troops to impose order—though ultimately not acted upon—drew objections from Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Army Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. And his decision to involve both men in a photo session at a nearby church shortly after federal law enforcement and National Guardsmen used force to clear peaceful protesters added to the tensions. Gen. Milley later said he was wrong to have accompanied Mr. Trump to the event. These events veered toward involving the armed forces in domestic politics, challenging the military’s identity as an apolitical institution that transcends partisan differences, according to retired generals, Pentagon officials and academic experts. “The military plays a key role in our constitutional order and is the most respected institution in America,” said retired Army Gen. Joseph Votel, former head of U.S. Central Command. “It respects civilian control, is representative of the people and is an apolitical organization that is not beholden to any particular party.”
President Donald Trump @realDonaldTrump- Interesting how ANTIFA and other Far Left militant groups can take over a city without barely a wimpier from soft Do Nothing Democrat leadership, yet these same weak leaders become RADICAL when it comes to shutting down a state or city and its hard working, tax paying citizens!
Debbie Wasserman Schultz @DWStweets -As if his rabid white supremacy weren't enough, Trump is now reminding us of his disgusting transphobia. This new rule will make it harder for LGBTQ patients to access medical care during a pandemic. We’ll have a lot to fix once this hateful man is gone
