News: POLITICO Florida Playbook: Quiet time for DeSantis to continue — Culture wars fueled Trump's gains with Latino voters

Monday, November 23, 2020

POLITICO Florida Playbook: Quiet time for DeSantis to continue — Culture wars fueled Trump's gains with Latino voters — Florida in midst of 'viral resurgence'

Nov 23, 2020

Good Monday morning.

The daily rundown — Between Saturday and Sunday, the number of Florida coronavirus cases increased by 6,586 (0.7 percent), to 938,414; active hospitalizations went up 174 (5 percent) since Friday, to 3,613; deaths rose by 61 (0.3 percent), to 17,991.

Quiet time — Gov. Ron DeSantis has not said a lot lately. And it's expected to stay that way for at least another week.

Limited engagements — DeSantis' post-election period of silence has come under increasing scrutiny since he hasn't said much since early November about the contest itself nor has he acknowledged Joe Biden's win. (DeSantis did congratulate top Florida Republicans on a conference call late last week about President Donald Trump's victory in the Sunshine State.) The governor also chose to release a five-minute video last week about his conversations with federal officials about a Covid-19 vaccine instead of discussing it publicly.

The DeSantis doctrine — Look, the governor — who engaged in a lot of press-bashing before the election — is under no obligation to meet with the media or even answer questions. And the argument on his behalf is that he has recently been working on vaccine plans and trying to ensure Florida gets its fair share even though Covid-19 cases are rising more quickly in other states. There are lots of logistical questions to be settled, including how the vaccine will be distributed to residents of long-term care facilities. This week DeSantis is expected to remain out of public view as he spends time with his family during the Thanksgiving holiday.

Others will speak — The flip side, however, is that others — including Democrats — will fill the void. Then there's the lingering question of how much longer top allies of Trump such as DeSantis will stay conspicuously quiet amid a flurry of questionable lawsuits and the spread of conspiracy theories that are undercutting American democracy. It's worth noting, for instance, that Dominion Voting Systems — a target of baseless claims — is used in 18 Florida counties, most of which went for Trump.

Leave a message — So maybe we will hear from the governor in early December. Even without the election, there's a lot of going on, from Covid-19 to unemployment.

— WHERE'S RON? — Gov. Ron DeSantis is scheduled to be in Tallahassee.

PROGRAMMING NOTE: Florida Playbook will not publish on Thursday, Nov. 26 and Friday, Nov. 27. After the hiatus, we'll be back on our normal schedule on Monday, Nov. 30. Please continue to follow POLITICO Florida.

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TRAIL MIX

PROFILES IN COURAGE — "Miami Republicans won't criticize baseless Trump claims of Venezuela vote rigging," by Miami Herald's Alex Daugherty and David Smiley: "Miami's Republican leaders say they have no evidence to back up the Trump campaign's baseless allegation that widespread voter fraud in the November election involved Venezuela, Cuba and potentially China — but they haven't called on the president and his team to stop making the allegations without proof."

No reply at all — "Sen. Marco Rubio and Florida Sen. Rick Scott — Republicans with leadership positions in the U.S. Senate — both said on Friday they have seen nothing to back up [Trump campaign attorney Sidney] Powell and [Rudy] Giuliani's claims during their press conference, which one former Trump administration intelligence official called in a tweet 'the most dangerous 1 hr 45 minutes of television in American history.' But they did not answer when asked if it was irresponsible for the president's legal team to make allegations of Venezuela changing votes in the U.S. without showing proof."

— "No, Venezuelan communists did not interfere in the election. Yes, Trump's legal team claimed that," by Associated Press' Calvin Woodward and Ali Swenson

BASED ON WHAT? — "Bill Posey seeks federal investigation of election results, related to software companies," by Florida Today's Dave Berman: "U.S. Rep. Bill Posey called Friday for a federal investigation related to software used by a number of states in the 2020 election — a move that attempts to cast doubt on Joe Biden's narrow victory over Donald Trump in the Nov. 3 presidential election. Some of the concerns raised by Posey, R-Rockledge, in a letter co-signed by five other Republican members of Congress are disputed by election security experts."

— "Trump team disavows lawyer who peddled conspiracy theories on voting," by New York Times' Maggie Haberman and Alan Feuer

GOVERNOR WHO? — "DeSantis and Bondi disappear as Trump's election challenges grow desperate and chaotic," by Tampa Bay Times' Steve Contorno and Allison Ross: "The comment landed like a grenade in an oil field. And DeSantis, a close political ally of the president, disappeared almost immediately after throwing it. The Republican leader has kept a low profile since that interview with Laura Ingraham. As Trump advanced a series of frenzied, last-ditch lawsuits to overturn the results in multiple states, DeSantis avoided reporters, emerging only for a brief interview on The Weather Channel before Tropical Storm Eta's approach. As Trump's legal efforts have been defeated in court, repeatedly, DeSantis has been silent. His Twitter feed instead includes announcements about the coronavirus vaccine and an extension of the state's red snapper season."

DIGGING DEEPER — "Culture wars fuel Trump's blue-collar Latino gains," by POLITICO's Marc Caputo: Donald Trump lost the presidency, but showed Republicans a way to win the culture wars with working-class Hispanics. Despite four years of being defined as a racist for his rhetoric and harsh immigration policies, Trump improved his margins in 78 of the nation's 100 majority-Hispanic counties. And he did better with Latinos in exit polls of each of the top 10 battleground states, a POLITICO review of election data found.

Working it — In Florida, Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, a Miami native of Cuban descent, faces reelection in two years. He said Trump assembled a strong coalition in the state that the GOP could improve as it appeals to Hispanics as patriotic Americans and working-class people. "There are people in this community who happen to be Hispanic — from Cuba, Colombia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic or wherever — but their primary political identity is not Hispanic. Their primary political identity is worker," Rubio said. They're "working people who believe that the people that Trump is against are just crazy." Rubio said. "'They want to defund the police. They defend rioters.'"

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) speaks to members of the media.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) speaks to members of the media. (Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images)

'RED-BAITING WORKS' — "Sorting through the Miami-Dade disaster," by Nathan Taylor Pemberton for GQ: "But for some within their ranks, countervailing forces in Miami-Dade proved too strong. 'Red-baiting works!' Rachel Gilmer told me early into the night, moments after introducing herself. The 32-year-old co-director of the Dream Defenders had to shout the point through her cloth mask in order to be heard over a hectic Rosalia remix filling the area. When we sat down at a table flanked by camera crews and TV lights, Gilmer expanded on how the right successfully whips up fears about socialism and communism in Miami's immigrant community, where memories of Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez loom large."

'THE PEOPLE OF PUERTO RICO SPOKE' — "Puerto Rico's road to statehood could run through Florida," by Orlando Sentinel's Steven Lemongello and Jennifer A. Marcial Ocasio: "The voters of Puerto Rico chose statehood on Election Day. But after years of partisan bickering and skepticism, it remains unclear if this latest referendum will actually get results, or if Florida's two U.S. senators will push fellow Republicans to hold a vote on making the island the 51st state… But this month's choice was a simple yes or no on statehood. And while it wasn't binding, officials on the island and in Florida are taking the 52% to 48% vote for statehood as their cue to strongly push for a congressional vote as soon as possible. 'The people of Puerto Rico spoke, and we should be admitting them as a state in the Union along with the District of Columbia,' said Darren Soto, D-Kissimmee, the first member of Congress from Florida of Puerto Rican descent."

PRIORITIES — "Jeb Bush lectures Room Rater account for 'partisan' Zoom background ratings," by Newsweek's Khaleda Rahman: "Jeb Bush accused the 'Room Rater' Twitter account of judging Republicans more harshly than Democrats, and immediately faced a backlash for calling out a Twitter feed while staying silent amid President Donald Trump's continued efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 election. The popular account rates the Zoom or Skype backgrounds of politicians, celebrities and public figures during television interviews conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Bush, the former governor of Florida and brother of former president George W. Bush, on Saturday accused the account's operators of being 'hyper partisan' when it comes to their assessments."

GUESS HE GOT A BETTER OFFER — Florida Politics reported on Monday that former State Sen. Oscar Braynon is taking a job with the Miami offices of The Southern Group, the major lobbying firm run by Paul Bradshaw. Braynon had been urged by several Democratic elected officials to seek the chairmanship of the Florida Democratic Party but he decided against it. Braynon will reportedly help out clients with both local and state government, even though he has legal restrictions on lobbying the state.

— "Biden won big in Weston. Here's how a pro-Trump candidate became mayor," by Miami Herald's Aaron Leibowitz

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CORONAVIRUS UPDATES

EVERYTHING IS FINE — "Ahead of Thanksgiving, Florida in midst of COVID-19 'viral resurgence,' White House task force says," by Orlando Sentinel's Naseem S. Miller: "Florida is in the midst of a 'viral resurgence' and the number of counties in the red zone — indicating a high rate of increase in COVID-19 cases and test positivity — has doubled in the last week, according to the most recent weekly White House Coronavirus Task Force report. Ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, when medical experts fear that family gatherings could lead to outbreaks across the country, more than 80% of Florida counties have moderate or high levels of community transmission, says the Nov. 15 report."

— "Rick Scott tests positive for coronavirus," by POLITICO's Marianne LeVine

STAY AWAY — "The CDC upgrades cruise ship COVID-19 infection risk to highest level possible," by Miami Herald's Bianca Padro Ocasio: "The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention upgraded the cruise ship travel risk to a level 4, the federal agency's highest risk level possible for contracting COVID-19. Amid reports of widespread outbreaks in cruises earlier this year, CDC recommends for travelers to avoid cruise ships, including river cruises, around the world, given the 'very high' risk of becoming infected or spreading the novel coronavirus. If passengers decide to go on cruises, they should get tested three to five days after the trip. Even if they test negative after a trip, cruise ship travelers should stay home for seven days after the trip."

'THEY HAD THE VISION' — "DeSantis choice for COVID isolation centers was Republican donor who faced federal 'kickback' suit," by Florida Bulldog's Daniel Ducassi: "Gov. Ron DeSantis touted in May the opening of a COVID isolation center to protect the elderly in Jacksonville run by a company that federal authorities had accused of engaging in a 'kickback' scheme involving a sham medical director and phony paperwork. Clear Choice Health Care paid $1.5 million last year to resolve the allegations without admitting any wrongdoing. Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration partnered with 23 companies to serve as COVID isolation centers in the state. Chief among those was Clear Choice Health Care, which manages Dolphin Pointe Health Care along with two other facilities AHCA was working with. The state's deal with 146-bed Dolphin Pointe alone is worth millions to Clear Choice."

NOT MUCH — "Gov. Ron DeSantis doesn't want to shut down Florida. What power do mayors have to control the virus?" by Orlando Sentinel's Ryan Gillespie and Stephen Hudak: "Across the country, states and counties are ordering residents to hunker down or wear masks as governors brace for another surge of coronavirus cases. But in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis has prohibited nearly all shutdown actions that local counties were able to take early in the pandemic. It's a stark contrast from March when Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings first ordered residents to stay at home when there were just 50 cases of the virus across the county of 1.4 million people. Today the county has surpassed 53,000 cases since more than 600 residents dead."

HOMECOMING — "Residents may leave Florida facilities for Thanksgiving, could bring coronavirus back," by Tampa Bay Times' Bailey LeFever: "Some of Florida's long-term care residents are eager to get out to visit family members over the holidays, but their return runs the risk of pushing up coronavirus cases. A state executive order issued in October mandates that facilities allow residents to visit their families' homes. Experts and advocates worry that the state has not simultaneously put in place more safety protocols."

'A ONE-IN-A-MILLION CHANCE' — "How Beyonce helped a Black-owned Miami hotel during COVID," by Miami Herald's Carlos Frias: "Jamila Ross and Akino West knew they would need a little luck if they were going to keep their Overtown hotel afloat during the pandemic. You could say they won the lottery. Ross and West won a $10,000 grant for their Copper Door Bed & Breakfast last week from the Beygood Foundation, a collaboration between the entertainer Beyoncé and the NAACP to support Black-owned businesses affected by the coronavirus."

CLASS ACT — "Debo Swinney blasts Florida State for postponing game after Clemson player tests positive," by ESPN's David M. Hale: "One day after Florida State abruptly postponed its scheduled game against Clemson because of a positive COVID-19 test among the Tigers' roster, Dabo Swinney lambasted FSU's administration for the decision. Swinney said Sunday that Clemson followed all required protocols when it traveled with a player who had shown prior symptoms of COVID-19 but did not receive a positive test result until after the team arrived in Tallahassee, Florida, on Friday night. Swinney implied that FSU's administrators wanted out of the game and used the positive test as an excuse to cancel. 'This game was not canceled because of COVID,' Swinney said."

— "Universal Orlando lays off 1,123 employees amid coronavirus pandemic," by Orlando Sentinel's Gabrielle Russon

— "Popular outdoor bar The Wharf shuts down; cited three times in one day for skirting virus rules," by Sun Sentinel's Susannah Bryan

— "No plan to close South Florida schools as COVID numbers rise in the schools, counties," by Miami Herald's David Goodhue and Colleen Wright

— "Fort Lauderdale Air Show flies above COVID-19 concerns as spectators – masked or not – pack the beaches," by Sun Sentinel's Wayne K. Roustan

PENINSULA AND BEYOND

TAKING A CLOSER LOOK — "Deputy involved in deadly shooting of teens has history of violence; Prosecutors did not file charges," by Florida Today's J.D. Gallop and Eric Rogers: "The Brevard County sheriff's deputy who fired the shots that killed two Cocoa teens last week exhibited a pattern of violence and rash behavior in connection with a domestic dispute in the months leading up to the shooting, according to Titusville police records. Records also show Deputy Jafet Santiago-Miranda was placed on administrative leave by the Brevard County Sheriff's Office in April following allegations he threatened a person with whom his wife — a Titusville police officer — was reportedly having an affair, reportedly telling her that the individual needed to 'wear a bulletproof vest.'"

WHAT'S IN YOUR WALLET? — "A controversial end of year tradition: politicians give taxpayer money to personal causes ranging from charities to Black Lives Matter," by Sun Sentinel's Lisa J. Huriash: "Broward County commissioners again are taking the controversial step of giving away taxpayer money to charities and social movements, with this year's list of beneficiaries including Black Lives Matter and New Florida Majority, two groups that galvanized voters to the polls in the presidential election. It's the time of year that commissioners dole out the leftover money in their annual budgets to the causes of their choice."

— "New Port Richey protesters slapped with megaphone fines," by Tampa Bay Times' Kavitha Surana

— "A Florida Keys coral reef just got $5M worth of help," by FLKeys.com's Gwen Filosa

ODDS, ENDS, AND FLORIDA MEN

— "Sheriff: Florida rapper made music, then fatally shot 2 men," by Associated Press: "A Florida rapper spent an evening recording music in a makeshift studio and then fatally shot two men who were with him, authorities say. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a news release that Billy Bennett Adams III, 23, was arrested Saturday on two counts of premeditated first-degree murder with a firearm and one count of armed burglary of a structure. Adams, who records under the name Ace NH, was jailed in Tampa without bail Sunday."

BIRTHDAYS: State Sen. Linda Stewart … Miami-Dade County Commissioner and former legislator Kionne McGhee … Screven Watson of Screven Watson & Associates … (Was Sunday) Bettina Inclán-Agen … Lauren Reamy, legislative director for Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) … (Was Saturday) Political consultant and author Rick Wilson … State Rep. Rick Roth… Former Rep. Tom Rooney (R-Fla.) is 50 ... Journalist Nancy Cook Lauer