JUICE — Florida Politics' Juicy Read — 2.7.2022 — Central FL GOP Primary Gets Ugly— Democrats Accused of Gerrymandering—More...

Dirty Politics…HELLO ELECTION SEASON!

With The Floridian breaking the news that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, aka AOC, could be coming to Florida to help potential congressional candidate Rep. Anna Eskamani, Republican congressional candidates Cory Mills and Rep. Anthony Sabatini both used the news as a fundraising tool this past weekend.

On the very same day the AOC news broke, The Floridian also posted the story of the American Conservative Union (ACU) endorsing Mills over Sabatini.

It appears as if Rep. Sabatini was expecting and counting on the endorsement from the Conservative heavyweights, but they sided with Mills, the former combat vet that recently rescued an American family of four in Afghanistan.

Sabatini quickly turned on the ACU.

One of Rep. Sabatini’s endorses, Arizona State Senator Wendy Rogers, called Mills an “anti audit communist.”

Huh?

Mills responded to the allegation, destroying her argument, which prompted her to push out a hit piece story against Mills from an inconsequential Florida blog.

Mills hit back at Sen. Rogers, posted the image of Sabatini in Blackface and a story we wrote of him voting as a Democrat during all three of the 2008 Obama elections.

The posting that Mills unleashed about Sabatini appears to stem from his Liking of Rogers’s tweet about Mills.

Rogers then blocked Mills.

This race is getting ugly. Fast. READ MORE

The Fentanyl Epidemic

With hundreds of Americans dying every week of accidental drug overdoses as a result of illicit drugs laced with Fentanyl, lawmakers like Rep. Kat Cammack continue to sound the alarm and place blame on the Biden administration for allowing the drugs to enter the country through the southern border.

"The leading cause of death for Americans 18-45 is fentanyl. It's not climate change. It's not COVID. It's fentanyl.

Every single American is affected by this drug, pouring across our border and into our communities, courtesy of this administration's policies."—Rep. Kat Cammack

Rick Scott-Florida is resilient because we prepare for natural disasters by investing in mitigation. My bipartisan bill will bring this commonsense approach to core federal assets & property & I look forward to its passage on the Senate floor.

Rep. Val Demings-We need to do more than just fix current supply chains. We need to create sustainable, resilient supply chains going forward.

Rep. Darren Soto-Thrilled to announce that the #AmericaCOMPETES Act includes our bipartisan #RestoringResilientReefs Act Our local reefs are threatened by pollution, climate change, and coral bleaching. We are coming together to stop these threats and save the #GreatFloridaReef.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz-Democrats are hard at work to solve supply chain challenges and bring costs down. Every. Day.

Michele Rayner-Goolsby (She/They)-This is great. What’s not so great is that we are not allocating a significant amount of the budget to deal with the affordable housing crisis and the rise in the cost of living. Remember-its never the lack of resources.

Rep. Carlos G Smith-Parents have a right to control what their child reads, but not what OTHER parents’ children are reading. #HB1467 emboldens book banning efforts that target LGBTQ material and ban content about US…I’ll try not to be offended by that.We don’t ban books in FREE states.

Rep. Allison Tant-We need to expand the access to vote in the state of Florida, not make it harder. I echo the concerns of my colleagues that this elections bill will have a negative impact on our local SOE’s and will make it harder for individuals to vote.

Rep. Matt Gaetz=I remember my last meeting with Mike Pence. It was before January 6 in the White House. I knew then that he was not going to show a great deal of boldness before the Congress.

 

"Mast: ‘Putin Could be Testing NATO’ by Threatening Ukraine" by The Floridian's Daniel Molina—With the Beijing Olympics underway, reports indicate that both Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping have issued a joint statement as the tension between the United States and both Russia and China respectively increase. While the statement did not address Ukraine, the statement did address NATO expansion, and Florida Rep. Brian Mast (R) argued that “Putin could be testing NATO” by antagonizing Ukraine.

"Diaz-Balart Slams ‘Aggressive Democratic Gerrymandering’ by The Floridian's Daniel Molina—Florida Rep. Mario Diaz Balart (R) is weighing in on the redistricting battle in Florida and across the United States, accusing Democrats of “aggressive Democratic gerrymandering.” In speaking to The Floridian over the weekend, the Florida Republican commented on whether or not redistricting could result in a ‘red wave’ in the upcoming 2022 midterm election.

"AZ Sen. Rogers Rebuked After Calling Florida Combat Vet a 'Communist'" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres—Arizona State Senator Wendy Rogers just inserted herself into a hotly contested Republican primary race in Florida, calling her endorsed candidate's opponent, decorated Combat Veteran Cory Mills an "anti audit communist."

"Florida House Plan Could Cut Student Grants" by Ryan Dailey of News Service of Florida—TALLAHASSEE — Calling the plan "punitive," leaders of Florida's private colleges and universities are crying foul about a House proposal that could link the amount of money students get from a state-backed grant program to their schools' performance.

"Surgeon General Ladapo to Go Before Second Committee" by News Service of Florida

"Waltz Responds to Syrian Counterterrorism Operation" by Daniel Molina

"RNC Censures Reps. Cheney & Kinzinger For Serving On Democrat-Led Jan. 6 Committee" by The Floridian's Mona Salama

"AOC Praises Eskamani's Work, Calls her a 'Legitimate' Congressional Candidate" by The Floridian's Jim McCool—As Florida's political class continues to wait to see how the final congressional redistricting map is drawn, there has been speculation that Progressive State Rep. Anna Eskamani (D) was eyeing Rep. Stephanie Murphy's congressional seat in District 7.

"Murphy Sole Democrat to Vote Against COMPETES Act" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres

January Jobs Report Blows Away Expectations As Unemployment Rate Rises" by The Floridian's Mona Salama

"Cherfilus-McCormick Won't Commit to Joining House Progressive 'Squad'" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres—After winning the Special Election in Florida’s 20th Congressional District to replace the late Rep. Alcee Hastings (R), newly-minted Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D) has hit the ground running in Washington and looks to work across the aisle with Republicans and won't doesn't appear as if she will join the House's Progressive "Squad."

"Wasserman Schultz Vows to Hold NFL Accountable Over Sexism and Race" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres—WASHINGTON— A day after the NFL's Washington Football Team announced its new name, the Washington Commanders, six former Washington Redskins employees testified before the House Oversight & Reform Committee about the sexual harassment they endure while employed by the team.

"Diaz-Balart Says Florida's Entire Congressional Delegation Supports Everglades Restoration" by The Floridian's Jim McCool—Washington—There's not much of anything Republicans and Democrats in Congress agree on, but  US Rep. Mario Diaz Balart (R-FL) says that there is bipartisan support for getting Everglades Restoration funding passed.

 

"Cory Mills Scores Massive American Conservative Union (ACU) Endorsement" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres—The Conservative heavyweight American Conservative Union (ACU) has weighed in one of Florida's most hotly contested Republican primary races of the 2022 midterm election cycle and has endorsed Combat Veteran Cory Mills for the U.S. Congress.

"Rep. Brian Mast: U.S. Must 'Take out' Chinese Satellites That Attack U.S." by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres—WASHINGTON—Republicans members of Congress, including Florida Reps. Brian Mast, Mario Diaz-Balart, and Michael Waltz have been railing against the soon-to-be-voted-on COMPETES Act, accusing House Democrats of writing a bill to protect the U.S. against China, but actually helps the Chinese.

"FL Legislative Black Caucus Pushes for Priority Legislation" by The Floridian's Jim McCool

"Waltz, Wexton: 'Rot Has Run Deep' in IOC" by The Floridian's Daniel Molina

Judge Takes Aim at Landmark First Amendment Ruling" by Joe Saunders of News Service of Florida—In a case involving a former Orange Park councilman, a Florida appeals-court judge Wednesday blasted a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the First Amendment. Judge Brad Thomas of the 1st District Court of Appeal wrote an 11-page concurring opinion that took aim at the Supreme Court’s 1964 New York Times v. Sullivan ruling, which, in part, required that public officials prove “actual malice” to prevail in defamation lawsuits.

"New Poll Shows Biden, Democrats Struggling In Florida Ahead Of Midterms" by The Floridian's Mona Salama—Floridians broadly expressed a poor opinion of President Biden's job performance almost ten months before the 2022 midterm elections, with more than half of potential voters disapproving his handling of the economy and pandemic, a new poll revealed.

"(VIDEO) Rubio Credits Trump for Environmental Funding, Not Biden" by The Floridian's Daniel Molina—In a press conference with other members of the Florida Republican Congressional delegation, US Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) flipped the script on Democrats giving Trump credit for environmental support over the current Biden Administration.

"Elections Law Fights Ramp Up Again" by Joe Saunders of News Service of Florida—TALLAHASSEE — Amid fierce opposition from Democrats, a Senate committee Tuesday backed an elections bill that includes adding more rules for voting by mail and creating a state office to investigate allegations of voting irregularities.

"Demings Responds to Rubio Congratulating her for Receiving 'Hyperpartisan' Endorsement" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres—Florida Senator Marco Rubio (R) has aimed criticism at Florida Rep. Val Demings (D), calling her a far-Left candidate who’s a “Pelosi Puppet.” In a recent assessment, the senior senator from Florida added that Demings would also be a “Schumer Puppet” should she be elected to the Senate. As endorsements pour in for each candidate, Rubio’s reelection team is now congratulating Demings for having received the endorsement from a Green New Deal PAC, calling it “hyperpartisan.”

"DeSantis's Environment Resiliency Plan Receives Bipartisan Praise" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres

"Republican-led Florida Legislature Could Tackle Corporate Welfare" by The Floridian's Javier Manjarres—In the era of COVID, Americans from all walks of life have endured extraordinary economic woes because of the U.S. economy practically shutting down with the spread of the pandemic, and now the Florida legislature may play a role in ending 'Corporate welfare.'

"Levine Cava Touts Decrease in gun Violence" by The Floridian's Daniel Molina—Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava took to social media this week to discuss the accomplishments of the Miami-Dade County government, affirming that “our plan is working,” Levine Cava discussed how she has addressed gun violence.

"Central Florida Republicans Raise Big Cash to Replace Stephanie Murphy" by The Floridians—The Republican congressional primary race to replace retiring Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D) in Florida’s 7th Congressional District is heating up, this as the top three contenders in the crowded primary race —Navy Seal Brady Duke, Rep. Anthony Sabatini, Combat Veteran Cory Mills—have all reported raising over $700,000 for their respective campaigns.

"NRSC Launches New Podcast 'Red Zone' With Trump as Its Debut Guest" by The Floridian's Mona Salama

"New Poll: DeSantis Beats Biden in 2024, but not Trump" by The Floridian's Jim McCool—Amid rumors of him running for president in 2024, Floridians do not seem to be fully behind Governor DeSantis (R-FL) leaving his post as governor. In fact, Floridians prefer President Trump to Gov.DeSantis in the latest 2024 presidential polls.

The JUICE is squeezed by Javier Manjarres, Daniel Molina, and Jim McCool