| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard | | | |  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks at a news conference Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in Miami Beach, Fla. DeSantis spoke about legislation being considered to ban homeless camps on public property and offered law enforcement assistance to cities that have a surge of tourists during spring break. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier) | AP | Good morning and happy Leap Day. Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to sign legislation in Palm Beach this morning to release state grand jury records of an investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender and financier who killed himself in jail. The bill is one of the few agenda items DeSantis has enthusiastically pledged to sign, without being prompted, albeit late in the session. Unlike in past years, DeSantis did not come into this session with an extensive list of agenda items but instead has picked off certain bills to comment on or has weighed in when asked directly at press conferences throughout the state. The legislation would open access to investigations and testimonies from more than 20 years ago, when Palm Beach authorities first investigated Epstein for allegedly sexually abusing minors. The case was referred to a grand jury and culminated in Epstein getting a deal in which he avoided federal charges or extensive time in federal prison. Overseeing the agreement was then-federal prosecutor Alex Acosta, who would later go on to be labor secretary in the Trump administration. Acosta resigned his secretary role amid outcry over the Epstein investigation reported extensively in the Miami Herald. Epstein killed himself in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. His death fueled countless online conspiracy theories about how he died in jail and connection to wealthy and famous people. DeSantis ordered an investigation into the deal after Epstein was arrested in a Manhattan federal court but the FDLE concluded in 2021 that it didn’t find wrongdoing by prosecutors or investigators. The Epstein bill DeSantis will take up today is about more than transparency and openness — it gives DeSantis an opening for a clear area of contrast against President Joe Biden, just as he has tried to do on illegal immigration and term limits ever since leaving the presidential race. DeSantis already went to social media to criticize the federal government over not releasing more documents, accusing officials of trying to “stonewall accountability,” and wondering aloud about how the abuse went on so long and why no one besides Epstein and former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell were held accountable. “Biden should release the Epstein files associated with the federal government, which is probably much more extensive,” DeSantis said during a press conference last week. This year the federal government released more than 3,000 pages, but there still remained questions over whether anyone else had been involved in the abuse, per The Associated Press. DeSantis told reporters last week about his plans to sign the legislation in Palm Beach, and the bill was presented to him yesterday and alerted from his office last night. Today’s bill signing also puts DeSantis on the turf of a certain ex-president and former 2024 Republican presidential rival, who himself is set to appear in court in Fort Pierce on Friday. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com | | A message from Alibaba: Every day, American businesses generate big global sales on Alibaba's online marketplace – to the tune of $66B in one year alone. These sales are having a bigger impact on communities back home. Florida companies like Timberwolf Pet Foods and DS Laboratories sell to over one billion consumers in China through Alibaba, supporting 15,800 local jobs and contributing $1.9B to Florida's GDP. Learn more about how Alibaba positively impacts Florida's economy. | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | |  Florida State House Speaker Paul Renner speaks during an event at the Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla., Jan. 10, 2024. (Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images) | AP | SUSPENSE — As veto threat looms, Florida House looks at ‘alternatives’ on social media restrictions, reports POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury. Florida’s high-profile proposal to create strict social media prohibitions for minors could see changes after House Speaker Paul Renner acknowledged Wednesday that lawmakers are considering “alternatives” to legislation currently pending approval — or a veto — from Gov. Ron DeSantis. Renner insisted that the sides are working on a way to salvage his top priority as intrigue and speculation mount in Tallahassee surrounding the bill’s fate. DeSantis has until this Friday to act on the legislation that would cut off anyone younger than 16 years old from many social media applications, something he has raised several concerns about during session. But legislators and lobbyists throughout the Capitol expect DeSantis to veto the measure, triggering an unusual outcome of a Republican governor jettisoning a top ask from a key GOP ally. INVESTIGATION — “Florida knew prison well could be contaminated but let women keep drinking,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Max Chesnes and Christopher O’Donnell. “State environment officials warned the Florida Department of Corrections in a December 2022 email that the contamination was spreading south toward the prison and asked to dig a monitoring well on the Lowell campus. Within four months, testing from the well confirmed that the groundwater beneath the prison contained chemical compounds from the foam at almost three times the level considered safe by the state, records obtained by the Tampa Bay Times show.” RELIGIOUS FREEDOM — “Satanic Temple 'looks forward to participating' if Florida school chaplain bill passes,” reports Douglas Soule of USA Today Network - Florida. “As legislation that would allow volunteer chaplains in Florida public schools nears passage, The Satanic Temple says it's looking forward to the opportunity. ‘Any opportunity that exists for ministers or chaplains in the public sector must not discriminate based on religious affiliation,’ wrote The Satanic Temple’s director of ministry, who goes by Penemue Grigori, in an email. ‘Our ministers look forward to participating in opportunities to do good in the community, including the opportunities created by this bill, right alongside the clergy of other religions.’” PROPERTY COVERAGE — “Florida could push some Citizens customers to unregulated insurers,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Lawrence Mower. “In a first for the state, lawmakers are poised to allow companies known as surplus lines insurers to take out policies from Citizens. Up to 80,000 Floridians — those whose second homes are covered by Citizens — could find themselves with policies lacking basic consumer protections, such as a guarantee that their claim could be paid.” HATE SPEECH — “Florida Senate unanimously passes bill to define antisemitism,” reports Brendan Farrington of the Associated Press. “The bill language was taken from the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. It defines antisemitism as ‘a certain perception of Jewish individuals which may be expressed as hatred toward such individuals. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish and non-Jewish individuals and their property and toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.’” OUTCRY — “Transgender activists came to Tallahassee to protest House bill on driver’s licenses,” reports Mitch Perry of Florida Phoenix. “More than a hundred activists supporting transgender rights marched and held a rally outside the Capitol on Wednesday in protest of a bill scheduled to go for a vote in the Florida House this week that would require driver’s licenses to display a person’s sex assigned at birth, rather than the gender identity. The bill (HB 1639) also requires all health insurance plans in the state that provides transgender-related health care to provide coverage for treatment to detransition from such procedures for ‘an appropriate additional premium.’” But the bill appears to be dead … Senate President Kathleen Passidomo said the legislation won’t be heard in the upper chamber. “That bill is still stuck in committee,” she said yesterday, “and so, pursuant to our rules. We don’t take bills. We don’t do the cards or ever take bills out of committee.” LAND USE DISPUTES — Senate amends bill to restrict local charter measures dealing with developments, land use, reports POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie. The Florida Senate on Wednesday passed an agency bill after amending it to ban some citizen-led county charter measures, a move that critics say is aimed at helping developers in Orlando-area land use disputes. The bill now would ban any charter amendments that thwart local land development regulations, development orders or comprehensive land use plans and do not require county commission approval. PUSHBACK — Public Counsel raises initial objection to Duke's $818M rate hike request, reports POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie. The Office of Public Counsel has filed an initial objection to Duke Energy Florida's three-year rate hike request on procedural grounds. Public Counsel Walt Trierweiler, in a Feb. 22 letter to the Public Service Commission, objected to Duke Energy basing its rate hike request for three separate years of future earnings starting in 2025. The objection could require additional proceedings in advance of Duke filing its testimony on April 2. HUDDLING — “Negotiations between lawmakers and the Governor’s Office are underway regarding revisions to a ban on Chinese nationals buying real estate,” reports Florida Politics’ Jacob Ogles. “GOP Sen. Clay Yarborough told Florida Politics that his aim is not to undo barriers to the Chinese Communist Party hoarding Florida farmland. But he has pursued changes to allow refugees from China and investors in residential development some leeway.” — “House passes disclosure requirement for AI in political ads,” reports Florida Politics’ Gray Rohrer — “Legislature won’t raise minimum age for strip club workers this year,” reports Florida Politics’ A.G. Gankarski | | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Don’t miss out on POLITICO’s Global Playbook, the newsletter taking you inside pivotal discussions at the most influential gatherings in the world, including WEF in Davos, Milken Global in Beverly Hills, to UNGA in NYC and many more. Suzanne Lynch delivers the world's elite and influential moments directly to you. Stay in the global loop. SUBSCRIBE NOW. | | | | | IMMIGRATION LAWS — “Hialeah officially condemns Biden for a migrant surge in the city, but evidence is limited,” report the Miami Herald’s Verónica Egui Brito and Syra Ortiz Blanes. “With the mayor saying that tens of thousands of migrants are overrunning the community, Hialeah’s City Council voted Tuesday to admonish the Biden administration’s ‘open border policies’ and demand that the federal government put tighter restrictions in place to stem the flow of people coming from the southern border to northwest Miami-Dade County. … The resolution, proposed by Councilman Bryan Calvo and approved by a 5-0 vote, states that the influx of migrants has ‘brought significant social and economic challenges to the city,’ and that Hialeah has not received the money and support it needs to address the resulting problems. Council members Carl Zogby and Monica Perez were absent.” MAR-A-LAGO CLASSIFIED DOCS CASE — “Trump to be in Fort Pierce Friday for court hearing,” report Will Greenlee and Melissa E. Holsman of Treasure Coast Newspapers. “The scheduling conference at the Alto Lee Adams, Sr., U.S. Courthouse, 101 S. U.S. 1, begins at 10 a.m., and in part it may determine whether Trump’s trial will still begin on May 20, as U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon has ordered. Trump's appearance was confirmed Wednesday by Kenny Nail, a top local Republican party official.” — “Tent cities for the homeless? Here’s why some in South Florida won’t back state plan for camps,” reports Susannah Bryan and Lisa Huriash of the South Florida Sun Sentinel | | CAMPAIGN MODE | | | | 
Nikki Fried speaks during an interview on April 21, 2022, in Miami. | Wilfredo Lee/AP | | | | | A message from Alibaba:   | | |
TODAY — Nikki Fried, chair for Florida Democrats, is stopping in Ybor City to meet with local officials, union members and faith leaders in Tampa. The tour is the last of six across the state in February to mobilize Black voters and mark Black History Month.
GOP COUNTY OUTCRY — This week, the Lake County Republican Party voted to censure Senate President Kathleen Passidomo after comments she made recently rejecting a Republican Party of Florida policy wish list. Passidomo said at the time that writing laws was up to elected leaders, not the party. County chair Anthony Sabatini, who’d urged the party to outline an agenda, called Passidomo a “disgrace” over social media and accused her of stabbing conservatives in the back. Passidomo spokesperson Amanda Bevis called Sabatini’s actions “extremely disappointing” and accused him of lobbing a “selfish attempt to advance his own campaign” for Congress. Sabatini used to be a member of the Florida House until 2022. "Anthony Sabatini lost the support of his own constituents in 2022, the same election cycle that Kathleen Passidomo led the campaign operation that elected the largest Senate Republican supermajority in more than a decade,” Bevis said, going on to state that the senate president had passed “the most conservative agenda since Republicans earned majority control of state government” that included restrictions on illegal immigration, universal school vouchers, anti-abortion measures and tax cuts.
| | DATELINE D.C. | |
NO SHUTDOWN — Lawmakers in Congress managed to reach a deal to keep funding the government, avoiding a partial shutdown, per POLITICO’s Congress reporting team.
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Then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) flanked by Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), John Thune (R-S.D.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) in 2018. | J. Scott Applewhite/AP | MITCH OUT — Also in big news yesterday was how Mitch McConnell’s exit as Senate GOP leader officially kicks off a succession battle that has so far played out only in the backrooms of the Capitol, POLITICO’s congressional reporters write. The three lending contenders are all named John: Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.), former whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) and GOP Conference Chair John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). But considered a “wild card” candidate is GOP Sen. Rick Scott, who lost overwhelmingly to McConnell after the 2022 midterms. Asked Wednesday about his plans, the vocally pro-Trump Floridian didn’t rule out running but said he was focused on winning reelection in November. In a statement issued yesterday, he said the opening was an “opportunity to refocus our efforts” on America’s problems and “actually reflect the aspirations of voters.” A big open question is how involved Trump intends to get in the succession and whether he has a favorite. His campaign didn’t respond to a question about it. Florida Democrats, meanwhile, took the opening to criticize Scott. Former U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who is running for the Democratic nomination to challenge Scott, said: “An extreme Republican Senate caucus led by Rick Scott would be disastrous for working families in Florida and across the country.” | | | | On the ground in Albany. Get critical policy news and analysis inside New York State. Track how power brokers are driving change across legislation and budget and impacting lobbying efforts. Learn more. | | | | |
AFTER TBT INVESTIGATION — “Florida lawmaker pushes for congressional hearing on kratom,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Sam Ogozalek and Hannah Critchfield. “U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, told the Times she wants kratom experts and the federal Food and Drug Administration to answer questions about the psychoactive plant during testimony on Capitol Hill to help lawmakers determine next steps.”
| | A message from Alibaba: Timberwolf Pet Food, a family-owned company based in Windermere, Florida, achieved an impressive 7-figure growth after launching on Alibaba's online marketplace, which reaches over one billion consumers in China. Partnering with Alibaba helped the 25-year-old company double its sales projections, allowing Timberwolf to expand its product lines, production, and staffing to meet the increasing demand.
Florida businesses generated enough global sales on Alibaba’s online marketplace to add $1.9 billion to Florida’s economy, supporting 15,800 local jobs and $1.1 billion in wages in one year.
"I knew from experience that Alibaba, with over one billion online consumers, was essential to launch our brand in China successfully," said Timberwolf CEO Kam Martin.
Learn more about how Alibaba positively impacts Florida's economy. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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