| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard | |  The new shots all target the XBB.1.5 subvariant of Omicron, following the FDA's June recommendation. | John Minchillo/AP Photo |
Good morning and thanks for reading Playbook.
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ handling of Covid made him famous. And he’s not ready to let it go. The uptick in Covid cases and its related developments — including the Food and Drug Administration approving a new round of boosters, a handful of schools forcing masks and Dr. Anthony Fauci doing the rounds on TV — are reviving one of the governor’s favorite cases for why he should be president: That he opened up Florida far earlier than other states and rejected pandemic mandates. And it gives DeSantis an opening to separate himself not just from President Joe Biden but former President Donald Trump (the latter of whom has leveled charges of hypocrisy in return). Here are just a few ways DeSantis is leaning in against Covid measures:
- The governor and Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, a well-known Covid vaccine skeptic, advised the public to refuse the latest round of shots and pledged the state would not return to lock downs.
- An email from the DeSantis campaign urged supporters to “fight back against every bogus attempt the Left makes to expand government control.”
- DeSantis began testing out the “Trump-Fauci White House” name on X.
- DeSantis pledged a “reckoning” of the FDA, CDC and National Institutes of Health if elected president.
- Fauci and Trump lookalike mascots showed up at the big football game in Iowa this weekend. (Though it’s not clear who was behind the dress up, it underscores how well the issue plays with GOP primary voters.)
Asked about the latest government actions on Covid, Bryan Griffin, press secretary for DeSantis' campaign, accused Democrats of pushing a “new wave of Covid hysteria” and said the Covid pandemic revealed “the depths of government overreach and abuse.” Today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is meeting to decide who should get the latest round of boosters.
Of course, it’s not 2020 anymore. The GOP base has long been frustrated with the Covid response, but most Americans have grown fatigued with it all — even 80-year-old Biden, whose wife recently tested positive, made light of masking. Just 20 percent of adults got the last booster a year go and it’s not clear how many are going to want this next one. One of DeSantis’ top Democratic critics, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, acknowledged on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that criticisms over strict lockdowns were valid. That brush-off attitude, however, is not going to go unaddressed by the DeSantis campaign or many Republicans who want answers and apologies. In a statement, Griffin criticized politicians who backed lockdowns and other restrictions for showing “no remorse, no regard for data and an inclination to do it all over again.” — WHERE'S RON? Nothing official announced for Gov. DeSantis. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | | | | | GO INSIDE THE WORLD’S BIGGEST DIPLOMATIC PLATFORM WITH UNGA PLAYBOOK: The 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly will jam some of the world's most influential leaders into four city blocks in Manhattan. POLITICO's special edition UNGA Playbook will take you inside this important gathering starting Sept. 17 — revealing newsy nuggets throughout the week and insights into the most pressing issues facing global decision-makers today. Sign up for UNGA Playbook. | | | | | |  Paul Renner, R- Palm Coast, makes a point, Monday, Jan. 13, 2020, during a combined meeting of House Commerce, Education and Judiciary Committees to discuss equal treatment of student athletes at the Knott Building in Tallahassee, Fla. (AP Photo/Phil Sears) | Phil Sears/AP Photo |
Speaking of health care policy ... House Speaker Paul Renner (R-Palm Coast) recently unveiled a new select committee on health care innovation meant to make such care more affordable and accessible.
Rep. Kaylee Tuck (R-Lake Placid) will chair the 15-member committee, many of whom have health-care backgrounds. One area that could be considered, Playbook learned, has to do with “scope of practice,” an option that gives more health care providers leeway to provide the same type of care doctors do (doctor groups hate it). Another possibility is medical price transparency, according to a health-care lobbyist who spoke on condition of anonymity. Not on the list, of course, is Medicaid expansion. An aide from Renner’s office said it didn’t make sense to expand the government-funded program when the state faced a shortage in medical providers. (During the last session, the Legislature did give more kids access to federal and state-funded medical coverage.) Democrats have an opportunity, too. Rep. Joe Casello (D-Palm Beach) said in an interview that one of his priorities as a committee member would be to boost the number of mental-health counselors in schools. He also plans to grab the “bully pulpit” on Medicaid expansion even though he knows it won’t go anywhere. “What I hope doesn't happen is that we don't see more reproductive health restrictions coming through,” he said. ‘THROUGH THE ROOF’ — “Florida insurance crisis threatens DeSantis’ 2024 bid as hurricane season intensifies,” by Miami Herald’s Max Greenwood: “With nearly three months left in the official 2023 hurricane season, the storms have shined a spotlight on Florida’s property insurance crisis at a critical moment for DeSantis, who has put his record in the governor’s mansion at the center of his 2024 presidential bid and touted the so-called ‘Florida Blueprint’ on the campaign trail.” NEW BILL — “Hard cash: Bill requires some Florida businesses to accept currency, coin or pay penalties,” by FloridaPolitics’ Christine Jordan Sexton: “The bill would authorize the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to levy a $2,500 fine against companies that refuse to accept cash. The fine would double to $5,000 for a second violation and would increase to $10,000 for repeated violations.” — “These 5 books banned from Florida school shelves might surprise you,” by Tallahassee Democrat’s Ana Goñi-Lessan and Steven Walker LATEST EXECUTION — Attorney General Ashley Moody asked the state Supreme Court to reject a stay of execution from Michael Duane Zack, who is otherwise set to put to death on October 3. Attorneys argued that carrying out the death penalty on the convicted killer would violate a constitutional ban on executing people with intellectual disabilities because he has fetal alcohol syndrome, the News Service of Florida reported. STILL POPULAR — “60% of Floridians back legalizing recreational marijuana. Poll finds youngest people aren’t the biggest supporters,” by South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s Anthony Man: It could be because older adults are getting cannabis prescriptions for medical conditions. MAPMAKER, MAPMAKER — Attorneys representing Secretary of State Cord Byrd, the Florida Legislature and the civil rights and voting rights groups that challenged DeSantis’ congressional map late Friday formally asked the 1st District Court of Appeal to expedite their legal battle and send the litigation up to the Supreme Court of Florida. Both sides had agreed to make this move as part of an agreement they made in August to narrow the scope of the lawsuit that went before Circuit Judge J. Lee Marsh. Marsh, an appointee of former Gov. Rick Scott, ruled earlier this month that the map pushed by DeSantis, and which blew up then-Rep. Al Lawson’s (D-Fla.) seat, violated voter approved redistricting standards because it diminished the ability of Black voters to elect a candidate of their choosing. The state appealed the decision to the appeals court based in Tallahassee. In their request to the appeals court, attorneys for both sides wrote that “this appeal requires immediate resolution by the Florida Supreme Court to provide certainty to voters, potential candidates, and elections officials regarding the configuration and validity of Florida’s congressional districts sufficiently in advance of the 2024 elections.” The hope is that the dispute will be resolved by the high court by the end of the year so the Legislature could consider the matter during its 2024 session. Meanwhile, a separate federal lawsuit challenging the congressional map is set to go trial on Sept. 26. In a pre-trial report, the two sides suggested that the trial — originally scheduled for eight days — could be wrapped up in just five days. The report says that lawyers for the DeSantis administration and the groups that sued over the map both want to call Alex Kelly, the interim chief of staff for the Republican governor and secretary of the Department of Commerce to the stand. Kelly helped draw up the DeSantis map last year. — Gary Fineout | | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | |
NEW — Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has collected 5,000 petitions to qualify for the 2024 ballot. She’ll need 15,294 signatures total, but she used the same qualification method back in 2020 and the latest numbers put her on track to do it again.
DEATH TOLL — As of Monday, the Medical Examiners Commission has confirmed four deaths attributed to Hurricane Idalia. | | | DESANTISLAND | | |
EVOLVED — “'Green governor' to 'active hostility': DeSantis' shifting climate change politics,” by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune’s Zac Anderson: “While DeSantis never embraced climate change as an important issue and was cautious about how he discussed it, his 2018 campaign centered around environmental advocacy. Climate-related initiatives are part of his early environmental record.”
RED WAVE — “Ron DeSantis probably didn’t turn Florida red,” by FiveThirtyEight’s Nathaniel Rakich: It’s hard to prove that DeSantis' ban on mask mandates and other restrictions drew people Florida and DeSantis can’t take most of the credit for the GOP’s inroads among Latino voters, the article concludes. It also disputes that Florida will continue to vote GOP moving forward. But: “DeSantis probably had more of an impact on Florida’s political hue by investing in campaign field operations to expand the state GOP.” TENSION — “Reliance on super PAC causes headaches for Ron DeSantis’s campaign,” by WSJ’s Alex Leary: “Some DeSantis allies have privately complained that there hasn’t been a more focused effort to sell voters on the governor’s biography or to respond to attacks from Trump and his super PAC, MAGA Inc.” | | | DATELINE D.C. | | |
FLORIDA WILL PROBABLY COME UP — The U.S. Senate’s House Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on book bans at 10 a.m.
— “Gaetz insists he’s serious about McCarthy amid criticism of ’empty threats,’” by The Hill’s Lauren Sforza | | CAMPAIGN MODE | |
WHAT DEMOCRATS ARE READING — “Presidential campaign ads to slump in Florida, with state seen as 'no contest,'” by John Kennedy of USA Today: The tracking firm AdImpact projected today that “after leading the nation in media spending in the 2020 race between Trump and Biden, Florida will likely tumble to eighth place next year … The reason: Florida has shed its toss-up reputation in recent years, turning decidedly Republican red. That takes away the motivation for either party to spend heavily here, AdImpact concludes.”
THIS WEEK — The Republican Party of Florida is having its Statesman’s Dinner at the Rosen Centre in Orlando on Thursday. Speakers include Ben Shapiro, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez, Attorney General Ashley Moody, CFO Jimmy Patronis and Agricultural Commissioner Wilton Simpson. CONNECTICUT FUNDRAISER — The Hartford Courant got a look at the invitation for the Wednesday fundraiser in Greenwich, revealing “the price for the VIP reception that includes a photo with DeSantis costs $23,200 per couple” and “those who raise $50,000 from others will also be admitted to the VIP reception. The general reception costs $3,300 per person or $6,600 per couple.” | | Transitions | |
Adams and Reese has hired Patrick Gillespie, former Florida Department of Management Services deputy secretary of business operations.
| | | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | |
SEE PICTURES — Lionel Messi buys $10.8M mansion in South Florida, via NYP: “The 10,486-square-foot residence, at 91 Compass Lane, is in the Bay Colony gated community. It boasts eight bedrooms, 9½ baths and a three-car garage — along with a pool and two docks.”
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