Why Randy Fine’s flip matters

From: POLITICO Florida Playbook - Wednesday Oct 25,2023 11:03 am

Oct 25, 2023

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Randy Fine chats with colleagues.

Florida Rep. Randy Fine chats with colleagues during a Florida House of Representatives hearing on Jan. 13, 2022, in Tallahassee, Fla. | Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP Photo

Good morning and welcome to Wednesday.

Most Republicans in Florida’s Legislature still back Gov. Ron DeSantis over Donald Trump for president. But GOP Rep. Randy Fine’s turnabout Tuesday, where he very publicly dropped his endorsement of DeSantis for president, raises questions about whether other members will similarly flip.

“I’m not trying to convince legislators to endorse or not endorse,” Fine told Playbook, though he said that since his announcement he received messages from his colleagues that were tinged with “envy" — “wishing they could do it but perhaps feeling stuck.”

Sen. Joe Gruters, a former Florida GOP chairman and longtime Trump supporter who has publicly tangled with DeSantis, said in an interview that he saw Fine’s decision as “a death blow to the DeSantis campaign.”

“I don’t know if any member who has been closer to the governor or who has traveled more with him than Randy Fine,” he said, predicting more members of the Legislature would be “jumping ship” given DeSantis’ poll numbers.

Signs that Fine was about to defect were piling up. Earlier this month, he sent a letter to DeSantis urging him to shut down pro-Palestinian protests, saying in an interview, “That was my last desperate plea to do something.” He also told CBS12 on Monday that he thought the sanctions DeSantis wanted levied against Iran were merely symbolic.

Fine expressed frustration at how he felt DeSantis took credit for others’ work, including his own pro-Israel policies. On Tuesday, for example, Florida ordered universities to disband campus groups with ties to the national Students for Justice in Palestine organization, reported POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury. “I’m glad they rushed something together today after I made my announcement,” Fine said. “I wish it hadn't taken that for them to do the right thing.”

DeSantis called Fine’s switch “pure politics” while campaigning in New Hampshire on Tuesday, per POLITICO’s Lisa Kashinsky. He blamed the spat on Fine’s ambitions to run for state Senate after he didn’t get a job as president of Florida Atlantic University.

And former state Rep. Anthony Sabatini — a staunch Trump ally — said some members saw Fine as “disloyal and petty.”

But Fine’s move taints DeSantis’ efforts on Israel. After Hamas attacked Israel, DeSantis floated anti-Iran sanctions, orchestrated rescue flights of Americans stranded in Israel and warned law enforcement to be vigilant against antisemitism — a stark contrast to Trump, who criticized Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Trump campaign already blasted out Fine’s news to reporters.

Fine said he expects he’ll get punished for flipping. DeSantis still has two years in the governor’s office left and will have the power to veto legislation or parts of the budget.

Fine said a few years ago he gave DeSantis advice he gives a lot of people: “Be nice to people when you're on the way up because there is going to come a point when you're on the way down.”

“I don't know if that’s advice that sunk in,” he said.

— WHERE'S RON? Gov. DeSantis will speak with Iowa media and he’ll appear on Jesse Watters Primetime on Fox News in the 8 p.m. ET hour.

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... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ...

TODAY — Florida’s State Board of Administration — DeSantis, CFO Jimmy Patronis and Attorney General Ashley Moody — is meeting by phone. (See the agenda.)

‘DESANTIS AIRWAYS’ — “Florida doles out $50 million to contractor providing DeSantis Israel flights,” reports the Orlando Sentinel’s Jeffrey Schweers. “State officials have offered little information about who’s involved in helping Americans leave Israel amid the war with Hamas, besides identifying Project Dynamo, a Tampa-based nonprofit international rescue group founded by ex-military personnel helping to run the mission. So it’s unclear if all of the money is going to the Israel evacuation or to DeSantis’ controversial migrant flights as well.”

SEPARATE LAWSUIT — Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody on Tuesday sued Meta, Facebook’s parent company, alleging it’s addictive, hurts children’s mental health and illegally collects their data. The lawsuit was separate but similar to a bipartisan, 33-state lawsuit, reported POLITICO’s Rebecca Kern. Florida was among several other states that filed their own lawsuits and Kylie Mason, spokesperson for Moody said the multistate complaint “involved a confidentiality agreement that redacted parts” but that Moody’s office “thought it was important for the public to get a clear and understandable exposition of why we were bringing action against Meta.”

SEEKING DOCUMENTS — Patronis on Tuesday filed a public records request to NCAA President Charlie Baker, asking for records regarding the NCAA’s transfer waiver process for University of North Carolina wide receiver Tez Walker and Florida State University defensive tackle Darrell Jackson. Walker’s was overturned, and he’s now eligible to play, because of “new information,” and Patronis wants to know what that is and why Jackson’s also wasn’t overturned.

SCOTUS — Florida petitions U.S. Supreme Court for a partial stay in Hamburger Mary’s drag show case, by POLITICO’s David Kihara. Melanie Griffin, secretary of the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, asked the high court for a partial stay, pending an appeal, after a federal judge in central Florida, Gregory Presnell, in June issued a preliminary injunction at the request of the restaurant chain Hamburger Mary’s.

‘SLEEP BATTLES’ — Florida lawmakers will consider anesthesia legislation, reports Florida Politics’ Christine Jordan Sexton. “Two Republicans are sponsoring legislation this year that strikes a requirement for certified registered nurse anesthetists to put patients under without having to enter into written protocol agreements with physicians. Cape Coral Republican Rep. Mike Giallombardo says striking the paperwork requirement will help improve access to health care and will keep highly trained nurses working in the state. But opponents say HB 257 is ‘scope creep’ and will work to kill it.”

GO INSIDE THE CAPITOL DOME: From the outset, POLITICO has been your eyes and ears on Capitol Hill, providing the most thorough Congress coverage — from political characters and emerging leaders to leadership squabbles and policy nuggets during committee markups and hearings. We're stepping up our game to ensure you’re fully informed on every key detail inside the Capitol Dome, all day, every day. Start your day with Playbook AM, refuel at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report and enrich your evening discussions with Huddle. Plus, stay updated with real-time buzz all day through our brand new Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here.

PENINSULA AND BEYOND

CONFIRMED — Orlando council members have agreed to buy the Pulse Nightclub to build a memorial in honor of the 49 people killed in the 2016 mass shooting, reports WMFE’s Joe Byrnes.

4% OF POPULATION — Almost 425,000 Cubans migrated to the U.S. during the past two years, reports The Miami Herald. “The population of Cuba stood at 11,113,215 by the end of December 2021, according to Cuban government statistics. The alarming wave of migration over the past two years is akin to a scenario where all the residents of the central province of Cienfuegos packed up and abandoned the island.”

A message from Alibaba:

CAMPAIGN MODE

Republican presidential candidate, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis chats with a guest, left, while visiting a diner with New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, right, during a campaign stop at a diner, Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023, in Londonderry, N.H. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

WAITING ON SUNUNU — Three retail stops, two house parties, one town hall and zero endorsements. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu spent more time on the campaign trail with DeSantis yesterday than he has with any other presidential candidate so far this cycle, reports POLITICO’s Lisa Kashinsky. But the Granite State governor said he’s waiting until at least after the third debate, on Nov. 8 in Miami, to make up his mind.

EARS PERKED — Sununu confirmed on “Good Morning New Hampshire with Jack Heath” that he’ll be endorsing someone who is a governor or ex-governor and predicted the third debate would be “very impactful.”

“It won’t be a former president, I’ll tell you that,” he said on radio of his forthcoming endorsement.

BUT — Sununu also said the race was “wide open” and that “three or four candidates that are clearly surging ahead,” counter to how DeSantis has insisted it’s a two-person race between Trump and him, reported The Messenger’s Stephanie Murray.

NEW DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE — Whitney Fox, 36, is running for Florida’s 13th congressional district, for a seat currently held by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna. Fox is a former Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority communications and marketing director who resigned to run for office. She’ll face two other Democrats in the primary. “Right now, our government is at a standstill because of Anna Paulina Luna, who has used her position to cause chaos and confusion to raise her profile,” Fox said in a statement.

DATELINE D.C.

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Representative Byron Donalds arrives for a House Speaker candidate forum on Capitol Hill on October 23, 2023.

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) arrives for a House Speaker candidate forum on Capitol Hill on Oct. 23, 2023. | Francis Chung/POLITICO

SPEAKER [FILL IN THE BLANK] — Byron Donalds was running for speaker. Then he wasn’t. Then he was again. But now, Donalds is officially out of the race as Republicans back nominee Mike Johnson of Louisiana with the hopes of finally securing a Speaker of the House.

The House has been speakerless for 21 days, but a vote at noon today may — or may not — change that. Johnson, who beat Donalds last night in the final speaker vote of the day, said he believed he could get to the 217 votes needed.

And the Florida delegation appears to be behind Johnson. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna posted on X, “Mike Johnson. Overwhelming support. LET’S GO.”

Other members, such as Rep. Matt Gaetz, who initially ousted former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, said they’re supporting Johnson.

As Johnson gave a quick press conference following his nomination, Reps. Kat Cammack, Mario Diaz-Balart, Maria Salazar, and Vern Buchanan — and even a fist bumping Gaetz — were seen behind the new speaker-designate.

— Mia McCarthy

DeSantis weighs in on Speaker drama: “I represent the antidote to the chaos,” he said during a stop in New Hampshire on Tuesday, per our POLITICO colleague Lisa Kashinksy, who was on the ground in New Hampshire. “They can’t get their act together.”

NEW LETTER — Florida Republicans, including Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott, want D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to remove a Black Lives Matter street mural, reports Florida Phoenix’s Mitch Perry. They argue the Black Lives Matter movement has shown support for Hamas.

HELP FOR ENDANGERED SPECIES — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed a new conservation area in Florida that would cover the Everglades to the sawgrass prairies in the south, reports Amy Green of Inside Climate News. The proposal comes during a time of construction growth in Florida.

TRANSITION TIME

Danamarie McNicholl is joining FOX News Channel as a Miami-based correspondent. She’ll start Nov. 6.

ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN

SPORTS FASHION — “The stratospheric rise of Lionel Messi’s pink jersey,” by The New York Times’ Kevin Draper and Rory Smith: “That the jersey has become, apparently overnight, the hottest piece of sports merchandise on the planet is a simple, capitalist equation: the result of an irresistible combination of one of the most recognizable and beloved athletes of his generation; a distinctive, exotic color; and the ruthless efficiency of textile factories in Southeast Asia.”

BIRTHDAY: Gaston Cantens, former state representative and vice president for corporate relations for Florida Crystals

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