Another Political Hoax Bites The Dust in DeSantis World
Arguably, the biggest story of the week in Florida was the announcement that the Department of Justice would not be filing any criminal charges in the Hope Florida Medicaid scandal that appeared to have shelved First Lady Casey DeSantis' apparent 2026 gubernatorial run for office.
Yeah, The Floridian broke the news this week, and some fake news media outlets and their fake reporters refused to give us attribution. They acted as if they were reporting the breaking news themselves. Others tried to dismiss the fact that we spoke to a confidential source within the DOJ.
Funny, it's legitimate for mainstream media sites to cite their 'confidential sources,' but when we or other not-so-legacy-media news outlets do, it's a big NO-NO. FU.
Fake news will be fake news....Happy Reading
The President's Day Whine
It is rare in this century that any solution is so simple, so apparent, so close…yet so far.
For about fifteen years, I have been opining and whining that the Presidents Day holiday should be celebrated the Monday after the Super Bowl. A federal holiday on the largest call-in sick day of the year is so easy to move; just one week stands between insanity and reason. For 2026, the estimate is that over 27 million US employees will miss work the Monday after the Super Bowl, millions more will be late, and tens of millions more will be less productive.
It is difficult for Congress to achieve much these days, and to simply move the date a week will solve many problems for the economy and the morale of America. I believe George, Abe, Teddy, and every President would approve of the move, and I am certain President Trump would proudly sign the legislation.
So again, be it resolved…
—David Johnson, Republican Political Consultant, Tallahassee
Trump Making Minerals Great Again
The most underreported story of the week? The Trump administration’s historic milestone in American energy security was the launch of Project Vault, a $12 billion strategic critical minerals reserve. This bold initiative, backed by a landmark $10 billion EXIM Bank loan, mirrors the Strategic Petroleum Reserve by insulating U.S. manufacturers from geopolitical supply shocks and adversarial leverage.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio further solidified this agenda at this week's inaugural 2026 Critical Minerals Ministerial. By convening representatives from over 50 nations, Rubio spearheaded a "whole-of-government" diplomatic effort, signing eleven new bilateral frameworks to diversify global supply chains. These decisive actions accelerate the administration’s "Unleashing American Energy" mission, ensuring that U.S. defense, technology, and manufacturing sectors are powered by reliable, domestic, and allied-sourced materials. This strategy effectively ends decades of foreign dominance over the building blocks of the 21st-century economy.
—Justin Sayfie, Partner at Ballard Partners and Co-chair of Ballard Media Group
Gary Fineout: For your radar: Next week Fla House will vote on a bill to designate the American flamingo as state bird & the Florida scrub-jay as the state song bird. If passed this would end the nearly 100-yr old reign of the mockingbird. Fla Leg named mockingbird the state bird in 1927.
Stephen Miller:California is getting ready to free up to 33 thousand criminal illegal aliens.
James Uthmeier Announces CHINA Prevention Unit, Adds to Crackdown of Illicit Vapes— Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the establishment of the Consumer Harm from International Nefarious Actors (CHINA) Prevention Unit to fight ongoing threats from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) imposed
Florida Department of Health Finds Glyphosate in Common Bread Products — Gov. Ron DeSantis revealed this week that the Florida Department of Health (DOH) detected Glyphosate, a herbacide commonly applied in weed control, in six of eight bread products across five national brands commonly found in grocery stores as part of its commitment to...
Wilton Simpson Announces $600M Grant for Farmers Impacted by Hurricanes —Florida Agricultural Commissioner Wilton Simpson announced this week that Florida Farmers can soon apply for more than $600 million in grant assistance from the Florida Block Grant Disaster Relief Program following impacts from the 2023 and 2024 hurricane seasons, which included 2024 storms Milton and Helene.
City of Miami Commissioner Miguel Gabela Pays Close to a Quarter Million Dollars in Taxpayer Funds to Communications Aide—Recent public records received from the office of Miguel Gabela, and reflected in documents provided in response to a public records request, show that nearly a quarter million dollars in taxpayer funds have been paid to a little-known communications vendor over the past several months.
CMS Must act now and Approve Florida’s SDP Program— OPINION
Put Patients First: Free CRNAs to Do the Critical Work They Have Trained For — OPINION
James Uthmeier Sends Two to Prison for Cocaine Trafficking—Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced sentences for a pair of individuals, Delmetrice Rogers and Lasonya Savage, on multiple cocaine felony counts of cocaine trafficking while speaking in Tallahassee this week.
Florida Council of 100 Releases $10M Campaign Targeting CEO's to State's 'Gold Coast' —The Florida Council of 100 launched a multi-million-dollar nationwide campaign, dubbed "Ambition Accelerated," this week to promote Florida's “Gold Coast” as a marquee destination for corporate business growth.
Meg Weinberger Says She's Turning the Channel on Bad Bunny. Will You?— One prominent Florida lawmaker is changing the channel on the Super Bowl halftime show this weekend. Rep. Meg Weinberger (R-Palm Beach Gardens) says she will not be watching the performance of Bad Bunny,
'Undercover Fraud Professor' Outlines Scams, Warns of Dark Web Industry —Dr. David Maimon, a leading expert in uncovering fraud and scams by going covert on the dark web, discussed his day-to-day operations as an "Undercover Professor” in an interview with The Floridian this week.
Associated Industries of Florida Endorses Blaise Ingoglia for CFO —The Associated Industries of Florida (AIF) announced its endorsement of Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia for a full term as CFO this week.
James Uthmeier Announces Additional Charges Against Man Accused of Child Rape—Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced this week that 47 additional charges have placed on a Hernando County man already accused of capital sexual battery on a child under twelve. Nathan Douglas Holmberg, 36, was indicted on 25 original charges, including seven counts of capital sexual battery, in November 2025.
James Uthmeier Announces Conviction, Arrests of Sexual Predators—Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the conviction and arrests of several sexual and child predators while speaking at a news conference in Tampa this week.
THE LOUNGE is posted by Michael Costeines and Javier Manjarres
