| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard | | Presented by |  | | | |  Gov. Ron DeSantis prepares to speak in West Palm Beach, Florida. | Joe Raedle/Getty Images | Good morning and welcome to Monday. There’s only one month left in 2024. But instead of winding down, Florida’s leaders still have a hefty to-do list for December. They have to tie up loose ends, lay out the agenda for state policy and pick new representatives. Here are just a few things on the to-do lists of Florida’s biggest players: Gov. Ron DeSantis — The governor’s budget isn’t due until at least 30 days before the March 4 start of legislative session, but DeSantis generally tends to signal his priorities for Florida in a series of public appearances leading up to it. The governor is term limited after 2026, so new laws he talks about in the coming weeks — and then pushes over the next two years — could help till the soil for another presidential run in 2028. Aside from that, DeSantis has a big decision to make in the weeks ahead that could signal how he plans to handle his political future — and his approach to President-elect DONALD TRUMP: Who he’ll pick to replace Sen. MARCO RUBIO (R-Fla.), tapped by Trump to be secretary of state. The governor has already said he’s spending the coming weeks interviewing and vetting options, and plans to unveil his pick by January. But the governor is running out of time to use President JOE BIDEN’s policies as a foil for Florida, given that a Republican will soon occupy the White House. (The “resistance” mantle is expected to shift to California once DONALD TRUMP is sworn in, POLITICO California colleagues reported.) If DeSantis has other ways he plans to use the might of his office to try to show up Democrats back in Washington, he has less than two months to do it. The Legislature — Lawmakers will be back in Tallahassee this month for training about filing bills and various policy areas. Some have already started filing legislation, on issues ranging from improving storm resilience to increasing criminal penalties when people drive boats recklessly. The coming weeks may also provide insight into the extent to which even a GOP-supermajority Legislature plans to stand up to the governor. Leaders have already put the kibosh on retooling regulations regarding strengthening condo safety rules that DeSantis pushed for before the end of this year. “The Legislature has a responsibility to do its job, and the governor has a responsibility to do his,” House Speaker DANNY PEREZ (R-Miami) recently told CBS News Miami’s JIM DEFEDE. “We work together. May we disagree from time to time? Of course, that’s natural. That’s natural in any relationship.” Special elections — A couple of elections are coming soon, following Trump’s appointment of Floridians to his incoming administration. Floridians will know who is running for Congress by the end of this week in the deep red 1st and 6th Districts. Trump has endorsed in both races — giving Florida Chief Financial Officer JIMMY PATRONIS and state Sen. RANDY FINE a colossal advantage — but candidates still need to fundraise, hold campaign events, field media interviews and possibly fight off oppo from challengers. Back in Washington, D.C. — Parts of Florida are still recovering from dual hurricanes, and they’ll need the help of Congress. The body is expected to pass additional funding for FEMA and the Small Business Administration this month to help fill back depleted funds that help people rebuild their homes. There are also a couple of hearings to watch out for this week: An education subcommittee hearing on Wednesday led by Rep. AARON BEAN (R-Fla.) on education curriculum sounds like it has similar themes to those reshaping Florida’s education system. And a House hearing Thursday could shed further light on security lapses that occurred in Jupiter, Florida, when RYAN ROUTH allegedly tried to assassinate Trump. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com.
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Learn more. | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | |  Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez speaks during a press conference outside the Florida State Capitol on Jan. 10, 2024. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | TODAY AND TOMORROW — Florida International University’s Adam Smith Center for Economic Freedom is hosting the Americas Tourism Summit. Speakers include Lt. Gov. JEANETTE NUÑEZ and Miami Mayor FRANCIS SUAREZ, as well as ministers of tourism from Paraguay, El Salvador, Honduras, Colombia, Guatemala and Chile. DIFFERENT SPEEDS — “Democrats slam DeSantis filling GOP vacancies quicker than others,” reports Steven Lemongello of the Orlando Sentinel. “Members of both parties have criticized DeSantis’ scheduling of special elections, most hotly when a U.S. House seat was left vacant for more than nine months. An election to fill Democratic U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings’ seat after his death in April 2021 was set for January 2022, leaving much of Broward and Palm Beach counties without a representative for nearly half the 117th Congress.” AROUND THE HORN — Florida Politics interviewed various lawmakers about their priorities for the upcoming session: — GOP state Sen. CLAY YARBOROUGH, who’ll chair the Judiciary Committee, wants to see a bill pass that would close a loophole in medical malpractice lawsuits, per Florida Politics A.G. Gancarski. — GOP state Sen. ED HOOPER, who’ll chair the Appropriations Committee, will work to distribute funds for hurricane recovery infrastructure, reports Florida Politics’ Janelle Irwin Taylor. — Democratic state Sen. LINDSAY CROSS wants to add flood inspection to the My Safe Florida Home Program — which provides grants toward home hardening, writes Florida Politics’ Janelle Irwin Taylor. OVER BUDGET — “Juvenile Justice education program having trouble figuring out finances,” reports Jay Waagmeester of the Florida Phoenix. “A new Department of Juvenile Justice education program run through the Florida Virtual School is projected to cost significantly more than budgeted, in part because officials underestimated the number of students requiring special education accommodations. The situation arose from the state’s reorganization of education programs for juvenile offenders last year. SB 7014 created the ‘Florida Scholars Academy’ to administer mostly online instruction to each of the 38 residential centers housing students for the Department of Juvenile Justice.” — “Ron DeSantis legalized 15-liter bottles of wine in Florida. But why were they outlawed in the first place?” by Scott Nover for Slate.
| | | | REGISTER NOW: As the 118th Congress ends, major decisions loom, including healthcare appropriations. Key focus: site neutrality. Can aligning hospital and clinic costs cut federal spending, reflect physician costs, and lower patient expenses? Join policymakers and providers to discuss. | | | | | | | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | ECHOES OF RFK JR. — Miami-Dade Commissioner ROBERTO GONZALEZ indicated in a recent social media post that he agreed with ridding drinking water of fluoride, per Douglas Hanks of the Miami Herald. It comes after Florida Surgeon General JOSEPH LADAPO sent out a warning about putting fluoride in drinking water, as POLITICO’s Arek Sarkissian reported. Meanwhile, in Central Florida, as Stephen Hudak and Martin E. Comas write for the Orlando Sentinel: “Winter Haven city commissioners voted 3-2 this month to remove fluoride from their water system, prompting Ladapo to visit the Polk County city’s water treatment plant last Friday, where he labeled fluoridating water as ‘public health malpractice.’” — “Disinformation transformed Miami politics. This radio station is one reason why,” by Ali Bianco for POLITICO Magazine.
| | | | A message from Instagram:   | | | | | ...HURRICANE HOLE... | | DONE FOR THE YEAR — Florida’s hurricane season officially ended on Saturday, marking what NPR called “one of the deadliest and most costly ever.” Per Ryan Truchelut of WeatherTiger: “The 2024 hurricane season, foreseen as an impending disaster due to record-setting Atlantic warmth and a shear-reducing La Nina pattern, lived up to the hype with two major hurricane landfalls in Florida. As a one-two punch on the continental U.S, Helene and Milton rank second only to Harvey and Irma as the most destructive duo of hurricanes in a single year.” LOSING HELP — “FEMA to Florida cities hit by hurricanes: Rebuild higher or lose your flood insurance,” by the Miami Herald’s Alex Harris. “FEMA announced that starting next year, Fort Myers Beach residents will no longer get a 25 percent discount on their flood insurance — an average increase of about $300 per resident — because FEMA found that rebuilding efforts from previous storms weren’t good enough. And if the town makes any future mistakes in the rebuilding process from this year’s double whammy of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, residents could lose federal flood insurance altogether.” — “Did Florida insurance reforms work? 'We are watching' insurers, says Senate president,” by Anne Geggis of The Palm Beach Post. — “They help to hold back the storm for Florida’s hospitalized patients and nursing home residents,” by Christine Sexton of the Florida Phoenix.
| | TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP | | | 
President-elect Donald Trump. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | HEADHUNTING IN FLORIDA AGAIN — Trump announced Saturday night that Hillsborough County Sheriff CHAD CHRONISTER would be the next administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration. Chronister overlapped with PAM BONDI, Trump’s attorney general pick, when she was assistant state attorney in Hillsborough County. He has donated toward the reelection of Sen. RICK SCOTT (R-Fla.) — who appointed him to the sheriff post when he was governor — and to the Republican Party of Florida. Chronister previously celebrated Hillsborough County’s vote to decriminalize marijuana, reports Marijuana Moment’s Tom Angell. DeSantis will be tasked with choosing Chronister’s replacement. PILGRIMAGE TO FLORIDA — Trump saw a slew of visitors at Mar-a-Lago over the holiday week as he continued to roll out personnel announcements, including ELON MUSK joining his Thanksgiving-day feast. Among the other visitors was Meta CEO MARK ZUCKERBERG, who ate dinner with Trump on Wednesday, reports POLITICO’s Natalie Allison. Also paying a visit was Canada Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU, soon after the president-elect threatened to slap tariffs onto the U.S.’s northern neighbor, reports POLITICO’s Mickey Djuric. Trump confirmed the meeting on Truth Social, saying the two discussed trade policy as well as the opioid crisis. — Several Trump picks faced bomb threats over the holiday, including a relative for former Rep. MATT GAETZ (R-Fla.), who recently dropped out of the running to be attorney general, reports POLITICO’s Emmy Martin. BLUEPRINT — “Florida has a weird political culture. It’s about to take over the White House,” by David Kihara for POLITICO Magazine. “Florida is a place of contradictions. It’s economically lax and also morally overbearing, freewheeling and uptight. … And now, the rest of America could become a little more like Florida.”
| | | | Want to know what's really happening with Congress's make-or-break spending fights? Get daily insider analysis of Hill negotiations, funding deadlines, and breaking developments—free in your inbox with Inside Congress. Subscribe now. | | | | | | | CAMPAIGN MODE | | BOOMERANG — Republican state Rep. DEBBIE MAYFIELD will be running for the state Senate seat she was just term-limited out of because the current seat holder, GOP state Sen. RANDY FINE, decided to run for Congress. She announced her plans just ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. Per Florida Politics’ Gabrielle Russon: “Because she left the seat, term limits reset and the next more than 1.5 years won’t count toward limits this time.” — “Latinos have become a new battleground frontier for political candidates,” reports Bryan Mena of CNN.
| | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | | — The Orlando Sentinel is accepting donations for its community news fund for investigative reporting. — Democratic megadonor and trial attorney JOHN MORGAN said BARRON TRUMP was smart to send his father onto podcasts during the election, reports USA Today Network-Florida. BIRTHDAYS: State Rep. Debbie Mayfield … (Was Friday) Marshall Critchfield, external relations for Florida Power & Light in Martin and Saint Lucie Counties.
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