| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard and Kierra Frazier | |  Taylor Swift performs at Wembley Stadium as part of her Eras Tour on Friday, June 21, 2024 in London. | Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP, File | Good morning and happy Friday. Pop superstar and Kamala Harris endorser Taylor Swift has three shows in Miami this weekend. And Florida Democrats are … ready for it. The Florida Democratic Party is teaming up with the Swifties for Kamala voter outreach group to host listening parties, statewide canvasses and phone banking. They’ve teed up new merch and live streaming of Swift’s surprise song mash-ups at her shows. Text banking will prod as many as 1.5 million Florida voters with messages like, “I Know Places You Can Vote” and “How To Get The Girl Elected.” Campaign volunteers will make beaded friendship bracelets that have become a signature accessory among Swift concert-goers, the bulk of whom are Gen Z and Millennial women. They’re calling it all the “Eras Tour (GOTV Version).” The Democratic National Committee is getting in on the action with a new Snapchat filter whose banner reads, “In My Voting Era” and “Be fearless for ____.” Users then get to fill in the blank space with words like “Equality,” “Reproductive Rights” or “Climate Action,” and their followers can click on a link to IWillVote.com. The DNC also snapped up Miami concert-area billboards, featuring Harris and messages like, “Welcome to your voting era! Swiftly go to the polls and vote for Democrats!” There hasn’t been any indication that Swift will use her Miami tour to make a political statement. Democrats remember all too well when a widely circulated false rumor took hold that Beyoncé would make a surprise appearance at their convention in Chicago. But that isn’t going to stop Democrats from trying to use the opportunity to canvass outside the concert or from doing voter events with Democratic Senate candidate Debbie Mucarsel-Powell and Florida state House candidate Laura Kelley. And it hasn’t stopped Democrats from wishing Swift would weigh in again on candidates or issues. “She holds immense power to get out the vote,” said Eden Giagnorio, spokesperson for the Florida Democratic Party. “We hope our organizing efforts will help voters connect the dots — but nothing compares to her advocacy around it.” After all, Swift’s latest album features a song called, “Florida!!!” She has used her platform to encourage people to vote and endorsed other candidates earlier in her career. She recently posted about supporting “a women’s right to her own body” just as Florida voters are facing a question about abortion on the ballot in November . And Harris’ 60th birthday is on Sunday, the same day Swift’s Miami tour wraps. (Harris is scheduled to campaign in Michigan on Friday and Georgia Saturday.) “Nothing that Taylor Swift does is accidental,” Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said in Tallahassee this week. “She's very purposeful in how she interacts with her fans, and so I think that her voice in this election is making a big difference.” Republicans are shaking off Democrats’ festivities. In Miami, they’re gearing up for a Trump-themed caravan on Sunday that’ll start at a parking lot at Tamiami Park, make its way east down Eighth Street and end downtown at the Freedom Torch. Kevin Cooper, vice chair for Miami-Dade GOP, told Playbook the party’s messaging around Swift’s concert would likely focus on how expensive concert tickets had become, calling it a “prime example of economic devastation under the Biden-Harris administration.” Cooper predicted that if Swift were to make a political statement, it could come with a reputational risk. “People are there to have a good time and listen to music,” he said, not to receive “partisan political messages.” But both sides readily recognize that a Swift callout would get a ton of attention. On “Pod Save America” this week , Mucarsel-Powell was asked about being a Post Malone fan, and she acknowledged that his “Fortnite” collaboration with Swift was one of her favorite songs. One of the hosts, Tommy Vietor, lightheartedly suggested Mucarsel-Powell get them to do a show geared around the election. “That would be the height for me," she said. "If I get Taylor Swift in the concert and then Post Malone comes out and they’re like, ‘Ok everyone vote for Debbie Mucarsel-Powell she needs to be your next senator.’ That’s it, that’s all I need." — Gary Fineout contributed reporting. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget in the campaign reporting that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com. |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | ‘FIRST AMENDMENT, STUPID’ — “Federal judge blocks Florida health regulator from punishing TV stations over abortion ads,” reports POLITICO’s Gary Fineout . “A federal judge is temporarily blocking Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration from taking action against television stations airing an emotionally-charged ad that urges voters to approve a proposed abortion rights initiative. U.S. Chief District Judge Mark Walker slapped a temporary restraining order on the state on Thursday until Oct. 29, when he will hold a more in-depth hearing. But in his 17-page ruling, Walker expressed deep skepticism over the actions undertaken by the Department of Health and State Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo.” RESIGNATION LETTER — “Why the DeSantis administration lawyer who threatened TV stations over abortion ad quit,” by the Miami Herald’s Anna Ceballos . “When he abruptly resigned from his post last week, the top attorney for the Florida Department of Health suggested in a resignation letter that he was uncomfortable with decisions taken by the state agency, which days earlier had threatened to prosecute television stations over political advertisements … His resignation came seven days after he sent cease-and-desist letters to Florida television stations that threatened to criminally prosecute them if they did not take down political advertisements in support of Amendment 4, a ballot measure that if approved on Nov. 5 would broaden access to abortion.”
|  Sen. Jason Pizzo, D-North Miami Beach speaks to the media Monday, Feb. 6, 2023 in the Senate Office Building at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Florida. | Phil Sears/AP Photo | JUST SAY NO — State Circuit Court Judge Angela Dempsey, after a nearly hour-long hearing on Thursday, quickly tossed a lawsuit filed by Democratic state Sen. Jason Pizzo against the Department of Transportation over ads on marijuana that the agency started running last month. The ads include a sentence that states that DUI crashes increased in states that legalize marijuana. Pizzo maintained this was an illegal effort aimed at defeating Amendment 3, the pot measure on the November ballot. His lawsuit contended that the agency was never given the authority by the Florida Legislature to spend money on electioneering type ads. Ray Treadwell, an attorney with the firm of Lawson Huck Gonzalez representing the department, contended that the agency had broad authority from lawmakers to spend money and he argued that the ads did not advocate against the amendment. But Treadwell also argued that Pizzo lacked standing to bring the lawsuit. Dempsey, who was first appointed to the bench by then-Gov. Jeb Bush, agreed with Treadwell and dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice after concluding that the lawsuit also failed to state a claim. Pizzo, in a text message to POLITICO, said he was not surprised by the decision but added that “so long as the autonomy of one branch is compromised to fulfill the agenda of another, I will challenge. Even the ballot, a sacred method of democratic recourse against government overreach, is jeopardized." This is one of several lawsuits that have been filed regarding the contentious campaigns over both Amendment 3 and Amendment 4, the measure that would guarantee abortion access. — Gary Fineout FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT — “Florida's abortion ban sent this woman on an odyssey to America's Heartland. We went with her,” reports Palm Beach Post’s Antigone Barton . “[Sarah] was more than 19 weeks pregnant. Over the next four days, she would undergo three procedures to end her pregnancy. After each, she would return to a hotel room, where for the first time in her life she would be staying alone. She had never traveled without her family. Like thousands of women who in the past two years have traveled far from home to get the medical care they needed, she faced a strenuous, stressful and scary journey.” — “Gov. DeSantis stonewalls question about climate change, accuses media of ‘virtue signaling,’” reports Florida Politics’ A.G. Gancarski.
| | ...HURRICANE HOLE... | | ‘MODEST’ CHANGES — Gov. Ron DeSantis used his emergency powers on Thursday to waive and bend election rules for counties affected by Hurricane Milton. DeSantis, who called the changes “modest but reasonable accommodations,” had already allowed counties hit by Helene to relax rules dealing with polling places, early voting, vote-by-mail and poll workers. The two executive orders cover a total of 20 counties, many of them located along Florida’s Gulf Coast, although the latest directive includes counties such as St. Lucie and Orange. One of the biggest changes in place for the run-up to the election would allow Pinellas and Taylor counties to conduct early voting through Election Day at local election offices. Some election activists, however, say that DeSantis should have done more to aid voters displaced by the storm. Brad Ashwell, Florida state director of All Voting is Local, said the executive order should have included additional counties and that the governor should have relaxed vote-by-mail rules further. “It’s clear that they could have done more,” said Ashwell. Voting is already underway ahead of the Nov. 5 election. The latest figures from the Division of Elections show that nearly 834,000 voters have already voted by mail and more than 2.39 million ballots have gone out but have not been returned. And next week early voting will get underway. — Gary Fineout ‘STAGGERING’ — “Simpson says Hurricane Milton caused up to $2.5B in farm damages,” reports POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie. “[State Agriculture Commissioner Wilton] Simpson announced his department's preliminary damage assessment, along with a letter to federal Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack requesting a quicker federal disaster declaration in the wake of Milton. Simpson noted that similar requests for declarations related to three previous tropical storms dating back to Hurricane Idalia in August 2023 also are awaiting approval.” ‘VERY SCARY’ — “Florida homeowners fear soaring insurance cost after hurricanes,” reports Reuters’ Michelle Conlin and Matt Tracy . “For 32 years, Jim Tynan had a homeowners' policy with Allstate on his 1,200-square foot condo in Ponte Vedra, Florida. In January, Tynan's Allstate subsidiary told him it was going to drop him. Tynan called ten different agencies, ‘and none would cover me,’ he said. Finally, he found one that would. It cost 50% more. … ‘I live in fear I will get a letter from my new company telling me they are going to drop me, too,’ said Tynan, speaking after the latest hurricane. ‘It's very scary.’”
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | | | | 
President Joe Biden receives an operational briefing from Director John Louk, Director of Emergency Management, Taylor County, Florida, on the damage from Hurricane Helene in Keaton Beach, Florida, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, as Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., right, looks on. | Susan Walsh/AP Photo | NO PAUSE ON POLITICS — “Two Florida hurricanes haven't put brakes on Scott, Mucarsel-Powell US Senate race,” reports Gray Rohrer of USA Today Network — Florida . “The heated campaign barbs between Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Scott and his Democratic challenger, former U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, weren’t cooled by the double blow of hurricanes Helene and Milton. In fact, the storms provided more campaign fodder as the sides clashed over disaster response efforts of the federal government, as well as climate change and property insurance.” CITIZEN INVOLVEMENT — “Citizens put abortion on the Florida ballot. Lawmakers may make petition process harder,” reports Miami Herald’s Romy Ellenbogen. “Gov. Ron DeSantis’ election security office is calling for changes to the citizen petition process in a report last week claiming widespread fraud by people who collected signatures to put the measure on the ballot. While the report includes little data to back up many of its claims, it says the office has ‘a great deal of information’ it plans to deploy as legislative proposals in the coming session.” REVISED — “Kamala Harris tweeted edited video of pre-hurricane call to Florida mayor to remove self-praise, concern about aid speed,” reports Steven Nelson of the New York Post . “Vice President Kamala Harris posted a video to X of herself speaking last week to the mayor of St. Petersburg, Fla., as Hurricane Milton neared … A more complete version of the tape from [Mayor Ken Welch] end of the line, obtained by The Post, reveals that the Harris team edited out the 59-year-old saying, ‘I am a devout public servant, but I know how bureaucracy and red tape can get in the way of getting stuff done in a timely manner.’”
| | DATELINE D.C. | | UP FOR GRABS — “Rifling through the home of a corrupt, jailed congresswoman,” by The Bulwark’s Joe Perticone . “Inside [Corrine] Brown’s home, the former congresswoman was nowhere to be seen. Instead, those of us who came were surrounded by hired curators and sellers. There were two floors of boots, shoes, dresses, mink coats, bejeweled hats, and enough silk scarves to equip Dr. Deborah Birx for a month of TV appearances. There were hundreds of bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and other pieces of jewelry arrayed in silver and gold and adorned with diamonds, turquoise, and other precious stones.”
| | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | | BIRTHDAYS: Former state Rep. Amber Mariano Davis … former Rep. Dennis Ross .... Walt Disney Co’s Caitlin Conant … Dara Kam, senior writer/editor with the News Service of Florida … (Saturday) Former state Rep. Ramon Alexander … former state Rep. Brett Hage … (Sunday) Former state Rep. Anthony Sabatini … Tom Flanigan, program director for news at WFSU Public Media … Russell W. Galbut, attorney and real estate developer. | | | | 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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