| | | | | |  | | By Gary Fineout | Hello and welcome to Wednesday. Do you remember when? — Gov. Ron DeSantis declared in November 2020 that Florida's election was a model for the nation and that the state may have "finally vanquished the ghosts of Bush versus Gore." Give it to me — Well, now the governor — and top Republicans in the Legislature — find themselves under mounting pressure from the GOP rank and file to conduct a full-blown "forensic audit" of the election (whatever that really is) and a hand recount of more than 11 million ballots. Must have got lost — This of course is coming in the wake of the election "audit" in Arizona and the ongoing baseless allegations of widespread voter fraud perpetrated by former president and Florida resident Donald Trump. Flamethrower — But the Lake County Republican Party has passed a resolution calling for a recount and audit contending that Trump's margin of victory could have been larger than reported. Rep. Anthony Sabatini, the firebrand conservative legislator running for Congress (and also from Lake County), has filed a bill calling for an audit. Alfie Oakes, an outspoken conservative business owner (and state committeeman from Collier County), has promised to give DeSantis $100,000 for his re-election campaign if he can have a two-hour meeting to prove to him why the election was tainted. Freeze frame — DeSantis, who is in office primarily due to Trump's help, has refused a couple of times to directly answer questions about whether he thinks the election was "rigged." The governor did push for changes to Florida's election laws this year. He also led the charge to have Florida join a multi-state consortium that allows it to screen its voter rolls to look for those registered in multiple states. Sanctuary — Secretary of State Laurel Lee, a Republican appointed by the governor, says there is no need for a full-blown audit, citing the pre-election testing of machines and post-election random audits. Helen Aguirre Ferré, executive director of the Republican Party of Florida, maintains DeSantis has been pushing for election integrity from the "get go." Come back — Some rank-and-file Republicans have warned that a push for an audit could "undermine" DeSantis' re-election in 2022. Sabatini counters Republicans just want an "independent" review of what happened in the state. And there's the dilemma: Top Republicans in the state — including the governor — have praised how the election was handled. Now legislators, party chapters and state committeemen are contradicting that assertion. — WHERE'S RON? — Gov. DeSantis is expected to be in Tallahassee. PROGRAMMING NOTE: Florida Playbook will not publish on Monday, Oct. 11. We will back on our normal schedule on Tuesday, Oct. 12. Please continue to follow POLITICO Florida. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch: gfineout@politico.com | | | | THE MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE 2021 IS HERE: POLITICO is excited to partner with the Milken Institute to produce a special edition "Global Insider" newsletter featuring exclusive coverage and insights from one of the largest and most influential gatherings of experts reinventing finance, health, technology, philanthropy, industry and media. Don't miss a thing from the 24th annual Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles, from Oct. 17 to 20. Can't make it? We've got you covered. Planning to attend? Enhance your #MIGlobal experience and subscribe today. | | | | |
|  | CAMPAIGN MODE | | DO IT AGAIN — "Lake County GOP demands Florida election audit, despite Trump's win," by Orlando Sentinel's Steven Lemongello and Gray Rohrer: "Lake County Republicans are the latest GOP group to echo former President Trump's false claims of election fraud by demanding a statewide forensic audit of Florida, a state Trump won by almost 372,000 votes. In a letter and two resolutions unanimously approved last week and sent to Florida GOP leaders, the Lake County Republican Executive Committee claimed 'a majority of citizens doubt that the November 3, 2020, election was conducted openly and fairly' and 'doubt the number of legal votes cast for each candidate equals the reported and certified results, in Lake County, the State of Florida, and the United States.'" PRESSURE — "Florida Republicans push DeSantis to 'audit' election despite Trump win," by POLITICO's Gary Fineout: Gov. Ron DeSantis and top Republicans in the state Legislature are coming under mounting pressure from members of their own party to do an audit of the 2020 election in a state that former President Donald Trump easily won. The Republican push for a "forensic audit" — and a hand recount of more than 11.1 million votes — could create an awkward moment for DeSantis, who said in the immediate aftermath of the 2020 election that Florida has shed its reputation for electoral mishaps and was now the "model" for the nation. | 
Gov. Ron DeSantis with state legislators after the end of the 2021 session of the Florida Legislature. | Gary Fineout, POLITICO | MOTION — "Groups challenging new Florida election law seeks documents about how it was drafted," by News Service of Florida: "Groups challenging the constitutionality of a new Florida elections law are asking a federal judge to force the conservative Heritage Foundation and its lobbying arm to turn over documents about the development of the law. The Florida State Conference of the NAACP, Common Cause and Disability Rights Florida filed an 18-page motion in federal court last week seeking to force the Heritage Foundation and Heritage Action for America to provide documents subpoenaed in the underlying challenge to the law (SB 90)." | | CORONAVIRUS UPDATES | | The daily rundown — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that there were 3,598 Covid-19 infections on Monday. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that 4,588 beds were being used in the state for Covid-19 patients. The Florida Hospital Association reported Tuesday that 19.3 percent of adult patients in intensive care units are infected with Covid-19. SHOTS IN ARMS — "COVID-19 vaccines prevented 2,400 deaths among seniors in Florida, HHS report says," by McClatchy DC's Michael Wilner: "A new government report has found that 17,000 senior citizens in Florida were shielded from being infected with the coronavirus because they were vaccinated against COVID-19, 6,700 were saved from being hospitalized, and 2,400 avoided death. The report from the Department of Health and Human Services, scheduled to be released on Tuesday, found that Florida was among three states, alongside California and Texas, that benefited the most from the vaccine shots." SHOWDOWN — "Broward School Board stays defiant on masks as state threatens to strip $421,000 Biden grant," by Sun Sentinel's Scott Travis: "A week after the Biden administration awarded Broward Schools $421,000 for defying a state ban on mask mandates, Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran has threatened to take that money away. Corcoran sent a letter to the State Board of Education on Monday asking for more financial penalties for the Broward School District — including an amount equal to the recent federal grant — for violating a state rule that parents must be given a choice over whether their children wear masks in schools." — " PBC school board could face sanctions this week over its mask mandate for students," by Palm Beach Post's Andrew Marra — "Hillsborough schools soften mask mandate," by Tampa Bay Times' Marlene Sokol — " Florida woman got $3.4M COVID grant she never applied for," by The Associated Press | | | | HAPPENING THURSDAY – POLITICO'S FIRST EVER DEFENSE FORUM : President Joe Biden is making critical shifts in the Pentagon's priorities, including fully withdrawing all U.S. troops from Afghanistan, scaling back U.S. military presence across the Middle East and rethinking the positioning of military forces around the world to focus more on China. Join POLITICO on Oct. 7 for our inaugural defense forum to talk to the decision makers in the White House, Congress, military, and defense industry who are reshaping American power abroad and redefining military readiness for the future of warfare. REGISTER HERE. | | | | |
| | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | SNAPPING BACK — "DeSantis: I'll fight FBI probe of violence against school boards over masks, race theory," by News Service of Florida's Jim Turner: "Gov. Ron DeSantis tweeted Tuesday that he will fight a federal effort to address a spike in threats against educators over COVID-19 mask rules and Critical Race Theory. DeSantis responded on Twitter to a move Monday by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland ordering the FBI to work with local officials to help address a 'disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation and threats of violence' against educators and school board members." MEANWHILE — " Angry protesters target School Board Chairwoman Shirley Brown's house," by Sarasota Herald-Tribune's Ryan McKinnon: "A crowd of roughly a dozen angry protesters stood outside of Sarasota County School Board Chairwoman Shirley Brown's house on Monday evening with a siren and bullhorns, calling her a 'tyrant' and urging her to come out, according to photos and video of the event." THE PATH AHEAD — "Casey DeSantis' cancer journey will include balancing the private and public, survivors say," by USA Today Network-Florida's Jim Rosica: "[Barbara] Pariente, appointed to the state's highest court by Gov. Lawton Chiles in 1997 and retired in 2019, was asked Tuesday what she'd share with Casey DeSantis based on her own experience. She was first diagnosed in 2003. 'I would first give her a hug, then say, 'it will be a journey, but you will come out of this and you will be stronger than ever, and continue to do the great work that you're doing in the area of mental health, children and families. But remember to take care of yourself first.'" FOLLOW THE MONEY — "Legislature, agencies defend spending conservation money on pollution control, promotional programs," by POLITICO's Bruce Ritchie: The Florida Legislature and state agencies are defending having spent conservation funding under a 2015 ballot measure on farm pollution controls, computer monitors and event promotional hats and other publicity actions. State agencies and the Legislature on Monday filed in Circuit Court in Leon County responses to environmental groups who have asked that a judge declare that the state has misspent funds under a 2014 statewide ballot measure. The measure was expected to provide nearly $20 billion over 20 years for water and land conservation. The briefs were posted online on Tuesday. — "Unemployed Floridians continue to fight for $300 federal unemployment benefit," by WINK's Andryanna Sheppard — "Constitutional carry legislation might have legs in 2022 Florida session," by Capitol News Service's Jake Stofan | | Bidenology | | FOR YOUR RADAR — "Oil drilling proposal for Everglades may face tougher time with Biden administration," by Sun Sentinel's David Fleshler: "A Texas company's plans to drill for oil in the Everglades may have a tougher time winning approval, now that an administration that's skeptical of fossil fuels has taken over in Washington. Burnett Oil Co. has proposed drilling at two sites in Big Cypress National Preserve, important Florida panther habitat that sprawls across both sides of Alligator Alley. Although oil drilling has taken place there on a modest scale since the 1970s, the potential expansion has generated intense opposition from environmentalists." | | Gaetz-gate | | PUSHING IT BACK — "Gaetz 'wingman' asks judge to delay sentencing until March 2022," by POLITICO's Matt Dixon: Ex-Seminole County Tax Collector Joel Greenberg, who pleaded guilty to six federal crimes and is a former close associate with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), has asked a judge to delay his sentencing until March 2022. His current sentencing date is scheduled for Nov. 18, but in a motion filed Tuesday, Greenberg asked that the sentencing be delayed so he can continue to cooperate with federal investigators. Prosecutors don't object to the postponement, according to the motion. | | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | TANGLED WEB — "Pandora Papers: The disgraced cardinal, his moneyman, and Elton John biopic and Miami condos," by Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project's Kevin G. Hall: "The transactions might have remained in obscurity, just two more sales of South Florida properties, which are frequently bought and sold by foreign nationals who depend on local lawyers to cloak the transactions in anonymity. But this Florida company, HP Finance, has an interesting distinction. It is cited by name in a recent 488-page indictment by prosecutors in Vatican City that accuses the Italian banker of aggravated fraud. [Enrico] Crasso, in turn, is tied to disgraced Cardinal Angelo Becciu, ousted by Pope Francis in 2020 for allegedly misspending money raised from the faithful for charitable purposes." DIAZ DE LA PORTILLA WATCH — "Embattled Miami police chief offers olive branch. One critic still wants him to 'pack his bags,'" by Miami Herald's Charles Rabin: "Early Tuesday evening after reading the chief's new plan and attempted mea culpa, Commissioner [Alex] Diaz de la Portilla said it did little to change his mind. 'It's clear that his so-called plan is wholly inadequate. His six months in our city has been marked by malfeasance, theft, and cover-ups. It's time for him to pack his bags and go," said the commissioner. The friction between [Chief Art] Acevedo and commissioners is so bad that they have twice altered the police department's budget by moving hundreds of thousands of dollars from senior level positions to fund more patrol officers." COMPANY THAT JUST WON BIG STATE CONTRACT — "Judge orders Skanska to pay $92,000 in fees for destroying evidence in bridge trial," by Pensacola News Journal Emma Kennedy: "A federal judge has ordered Skanska to pay more than $92,000 in fees after the court found the construction company had destroyed potential evidence in the Pensacola Bay Bridge case. The order was filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida and follows months of back-and-forth between Skanska's attorneys and the attorneys representing business owners, commuters and governments in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties who say they were impacted by the bridge's nine-month outage." NOT TO TOUCH THE EARTH — " South Florida 'Lizard King' charged with wildlife smuggling," by Sun Sentinel's David Fleshler: "A South Florida wildlife dealer who gained fame as "the Lizard King" was charged Tuesday with running an operation that smuggled turtles from Florida to China, Japan and other countries. Michael Van Nostrand and his company Strictly Reptiles of Davie were both charged by federal prosecutors with running a network of collectors who caught turtles in the wild. Van Nostrand then falsely labeled the turtles as captive-bred on export documents, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida." GONE — "Florida's ivory-billed woodpecker is officially extinct — but a few still hope," by Tampa Bay Times' Jack Evans: "In the Green Swamp of Polk County, Paul Sykes heard a sound that raised the hairs on the back of his neck. The sharp honk may have sounded, to a layperson, like a stepped-on squeaky toy. But to Sykes, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist then based in Delray Beach, it sounded like the recordings he'd heard of the spectral ivory-billed woodpecker. It was 1967, more than 20 years after the last undisputed sighting of the bird. Sykes climbed out of the Jeep, looked toward the tree the sound had come from — and saw a blue jay. An imitator." UNDERWAY — "Brawl trial begins for Florida massacre suspect," by The Associated Press' Terry Spencer: "A slow slog of jury selection began Tuesday in the trial of the suspect in 2018′s Florida high school massacre on charges that he attacked a jail guard nine months after the shooting. Prospective jurors were ushered into the courtroom in groups of 32 and asked basic questions about their knowledge of Nikolas Cruz, the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland that left 17 dead, whether they could put that aside and their availability to serve." — " Red Tide is out there, but so far Pinellas, Pasco spared major fish kills," by Tampa Bay Times' Jamal Thalji — "State officials working to confirm red tide, cause of fish kills off St. George Island," by Tallahassee Democrat's Karl Etters — "Niceville High School teacher placed on leave for allegedly playing R-rated movie 'Alexander,'" by Northwest Florida Daily News' Tom McLaughlin — "Man accused of vandalizing LGBTQ Pride intersection to stand trial," by Sun Sentinel's Austen Erblat | | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | | — "Man who pulled gun amid Walmart face mask spat says PBSO defamed him on social media, files lawsuit," by Palm Beach Post's Jane Musgrave: "A 30-year-old Greenacres-area man, who made global headlines last year after he pulled a gun on a fellow Walmart shopper during an argument over face masks, has sued Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw for defamation and malicious prosecution. Vincent Scavetta claims Bradshaw's decision to trumpet his arrest on social media damaged his reputation, according to the lawsuit filed Friday in Palm Beach County circuit court." BIRTHDAYS: Mat Bahl, chief of staff for House Speaker Chris Sprowls … former State Sen. Kevin Rader … Joe Follick, director state communications for the Foundation for Excellence in Education ... Jon Ausman, former Leon County DEC chairman
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