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From: Sephora - Tuesday Mar 15,2022 11:05 am

Mar 15, 2022

Good Tuesday morning.

Seen at the Capitol — It’s not every day you see the governor standing by side-by-side with the top two legislative leaders of the state as he almost jokingly explains his plans to veto their bill.

Is this fun? — But that’s what happened moments after the 2022 regular session ended and Gov. Ron DeSantis joined with Senate President Wilton Simpson and House Speaker Chris Sprowls for the traditional Sine Die ceremony. (A ceremony that also had a bizarre start when protesters interrupted it by yelling and dumping fake $100 bills that had DeSantis’ face on them.)

Unfinished business — State legislators gave DeSantis just about — emphasize just about — everything he wanted this year even if they trimmed and altered some of the key details. But they did not give the Republican governor what he wanted on redistricting. When asked about his previously made threat to veto the map approved by the GOP Legislature, DeSantis sort of smirked and said “What do you think?”

Tick, tick — Of course, interestingly enough, the new map for Florida’s 28 districts — a map that dismantles Democrat Al Lawson’s North Florida seat — has yet to be sent to the governor even though we're only three months to qualifying.

Unknowns — House Speaker Chris Sprowls said he “appreciated the governor’s candor” but added that lawmakers had been focusing on the budget in the closing days on the session and not on redistricting. Um, OK. But the plain fact is this: We don’t know when DeSantis will act. We don’t know if there will be a special session or whether the Legislature will be content to just let this play out in the courts.

It’s a legal matter — DeSantis has made it clear that he has legal concerns about the new map, largely in that it protects minority access districts that his team has questioned. NBC News’ Marc Caputo reported on Monday that the speculation is that what DeSantis wants is a map that will trigger litigation that could undo either Florida’s Fair Districts or even the Voting Rights Act.

Timing is everything — Meanwhile, the governor also seems to be making some interesting decisions while this plays out, including handing a GOP primary endorsement on Monday to one of the Republican state representatives who voted against the map approved by the Legislature. Another no vote — GOP Rep. Jason Fischer — was seen departing from the governor’s office on Monday. Hmm.

Where this could go — If the governor continues to get involved in Senate races, that could be the impetus for legislative leaders to just walk away and let the courts handle the redistricting mess. Another argument is this: Giving DeSantis the kind of map he wants could lead to a lot of prodding via depositions into who was giving the governor advice and who actually drew his January proposal that blew up two Black Democratic seats. (Florida’s Fair Districts standards approved by voters makes it clear seats can’t be drawn for partisan intent.)

— 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: gfineout@politico.com

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MAPMAKER, MAPMAKER

‘THEY FEAR HIM’ — “‘Throwing kerosene on every fire’: DeSantis targets Black-held congressional seats. And his own party,” by NBC News’ Marc Caputo: “Dragging legislators back to Tallahassee, which would be the ultimate power play for DeSantis, is on brand for a governor who became a top 2024 Republican presidential contender — second only to former President Donald Trump — for his willingness to fight anyone who hints at crossing him. ‘This is DeSantis’ M.O.: What he cares about, he cares about deeply. And if you get in his way, he’s going to roll through you,’ said state Sen. Jeff Brandes, a St. Petersburg Republican. ‘Members don’t know him and don’t know what he’s going to do. And that not knowing is part of the reason they fear him.’ Brandes said DeSantis is particularly tough for Florida Republicans to go up against because of his skyrocketing profile within the party.”

VETO TIME — “Florida’s congressional maps still in limbo at end of 2022 legislative session,” by POLITICO’s Gary Fineout: Gov. Ron DeSantis, standing side-by-side with GOP legislative leaders, publicly doubled down on his threat to veto a new congressional map passed earlier this month by the Republican-controlled House and Senate, telling reporters when asked about the future of maps: “What do you think?” “I think that people should just be very confident of the fact that when I get it, we will do it,” DeSantis said at the end-of-session ceremony. “We will lay out a lot of the objections we have.”

... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ...

AWKWARD — “Lawmakers closeout contentious 2022 session as uncertainty looms,” by POLITICO’s Matt Dixon: Opponents of the Republican majority’s recently passed agenda dumped fake $100 bills on a gathering of the state’s most powerful lawmakers, including Gov. Ron DeSantis, as their chants rang through the Florida Capitol’s fourth floor rotunda. Then someone shouted an abrupt “shut up,” authorities removed protesters and the annual pomp and circumstance marking the end of the legislative session commenced.

Protesters at the Florida Capitol interrupted Gov. Ron DeSantis and threw down fake money featuring DeSantis's picture at an end of session ceremony March 14, 2022

Workers at Florida State Capitol begin to sweep and pick up fake money featuring the picture of Gov. Ron DeSantis. Protesters interrupted a Sine Die ceremony on March 14, 2022 and threw down the money from a balcony on the floor of the rotunda. | Gary Fineout - POLITICO

‘DIFFERENT POSTURE’ — “Environmental spending bill DeSantis once rejected now heads to his desk,” by POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie: Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters on Monday that the bill "is much different now" than when he opposed it in February when he said it threatened a planned reservoir to be used in Everglades restoration. "I think that the concerns I had are certainly not as acute," DeSantis said. "Now I haven't sat down and read everything on it. But that is in a dramatically different posture than it was a month ago." DeSantis and environmentalists had opposed the bill when it required the South Florida Water Management District to not make decisions affecting the needs of existing water users.

SCHOOL DAZE — “Florida lawmakers ramp up university scrutiny over ‘anti-woke’ provision,” by POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury: Florida lawmakers are giving universities a hefty incentive to make sure they follow the state’s proposed new rules for teaching about race — the risk of losing out on some $560 million in combined funding. Tucked into Florida’s 2022-23 budget, the Republican Legislature introduced in the waning hours of session a policy that will make state universities ineligible for highly coveted performance dollars if the schools violate the recently passed bill attempting to root out “woke” trainings and school lessons like those surrounding “white privilege.”

— “Florida Legislature wraps up combative culture-war session,” by Orlando Sentinel’s Skyler Swisher and Jeffrey Schweers

— “ U.S. Surgeon General warns Parental Rights bill hazardous to Florida kids’ health,” by Florida Politics’ A.G. Gancarski

— “2022 session is already spinning lawsuits; a conservative FL Supreme Court awaits ,” by Florida Phoenix’s Michael Moline

— “Ron DeSantis: ‘A lot of nursing homes will be very, very happy’ after 2022 session,” by Florida Politics’ Christine Jordan Sexton

— “Florida lawmakers pass $112 billion budget, largest in state history,” by Miami Herald’s Ana Ceballos

— “ Florida Legislature leaves without addressing property insurance crisis,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Lawrence Mower

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CAMPAIGN MODE

A MYSTERY UNRAVELS — “U.S. charges Russian oligarch with making illegal political donations ,” by POLITICO’s Myah Ward and Josh Gerstein: A Russian oligarch has been charged with conspiring with Lev Parnas, Igor Fruman and others to funnel foreign cash into U.S. political campaigns, according to an unsealed indictment released on Monday. In September 2020, a grand jury returned an indictment against Andrey Muraviev of Russia, charging him with making illegal political donations and for conspiring to make illegal campaign contributions in the names of straw donors, joining Lev Parnas, Andrey Kukushkin and Igor Fruman, who had been previously charged in the case, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York announced on Monday.

GETTING ASSERTIVE — “‘Clock is ticking’: 2024 Republicans try to leap out of Trump’s shadow,” by POLITICO’s Alex Isenstadt: Republicans looking to run in 2024 once lived in fear of crossing former President Donald Trump. That’s starting to change. Over the past few weeks, three would-be presidential candidates who hail from the conservative wing of the Republican Party — Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — have prodded at or even outright criticized the former president’s record. After spending years lavishing praise on Trump and touting his policies, they are zeroing in on key moments from his tenure in office, from his pandemic response, to his words and actions regarding Russia, to the prison reform legislation he signed into law.

TREND LINES — “How is Biden doing in Miami-Dade County? New poll has good and bad news,” by Miami Herald’s Bianca Padró Ocasio: “As President Joe Biden’s approval numbers fail to stabilize across the country, his popularity in Miami-Dade, a county crucial to Florida Democrats as they head into the 2022 midterms, is above the national average, according to a new poll released Monday. But Biden’s support among those surveyed by Bendixen & Amandi International this month is practically the only good news for Democrats in a county where they have historically won with double-digit margins. The bad news for Florida Democrats is that Biden has been unable to gain ground against former President Donald Trump, leading in the poll by seven points — the same margin of victory he had in the county in 2020.”

TAKING SIDES — “DeSantis backs Ingoglia, putting GOP Senate leaders in tough spot,” by POLITICO’s Matt Dixon: Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday endorsed GOP state Rep. Blaise Ingoglia’s bid for the Florida Senate, in the process taking the rare step of using his huge political sway to influence what will likely be a hotly contested Republican primary. DeSantis has been selective with his endorsements since taking office, generally picking candidates that are overwhelming favorites or Republicans in general elections, but has so far never put his thumb on the scales in a contested GOP primary contest.

Conflict ahead — DeSantis backing Ingoglia, a former Republican Party of Florida chair, is also notable because his opponent, Republican Rep. Ralph Massullo (R-Lecanto), is widely expected to get the support of the Florida Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee, the organization led by incoming Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, a Republican from Naples. That group’s endorsement represents leadership’s blessing and comes with a big financial boost for the supported candidate. A publicly endorsed FRSCC candidate has never lost in a contested primary, but this is also the first time that scenario could include going up against a sitting popular Republican governor.

CAMPAIGN ROUNDUP — Nikki Fried’s campaign for governor announced three hires on Monday. Keith Edwards will serve as communications director, Benjamin Kirby will a communications and policy adviser and Caroline Korba will serve as press secretary. Edwards worked as a senior digital adviser for Jon Ossoff’s U.S. Senate campaign and he worked for the Lincoln Project. Kirby worked as communications director for former St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman. Korba worked as senior development coordinator at the International Women’s Media Foundation … DMFI PAC announced on Monday that it is endorsing 20 candidates, including Val Demings for U.S. Senate.

— “Anna Eskamani files for re-election in new HD 42,” by Florida Politics Jacob Ogles

DATELINE D.C.

PARTY PROBLEMS (via POLITICO’s Stephanie Murray) — One of the biggest promoters of NRSC Chair Rick Scott’s new GOP agenda may surprise you. Or maybe it won’t. The DSCC launched a new website this week — GOPTaxHike.com — to highlight Scott’s new plan. “Do Senate Republicans want to raise your taxes? Yes! Find out more below,” the website reads. It’s the committee’s latest stunt to blast Scott’s proposals, following a mobile billboard that circled a meeting of Republican lawmakers last week for six hours.

Reception — Scott’s “11 Point Plan to Rescue America” fell flat when he launched it last month, as Democrats seized on his controversial tax proposal and Republicans cringed. Only one of the 27 GOP Senate campaigns that POLITICO contacted last month on Scott’s tax plan provided an official position.

TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP

FLORIDA MAN — “Document in Jan. 6 case shows plan to storm government buildings,” by The New York Times’ Alan Feuer: "A document found by federal prosecutors in the possession of a far-right leader contained a detailed plan to surveil and storm government buildings around the Capitol on Jan. 6 last year, people familiar with the document said on Monday. The document, titled '1776 Returns,' was cited by prosecutors last week in charging the far-right leader, Enrique Tarrio, the former head of the Proud Boys extremist group, with conspiracy. The indictment of Mr. Tarrio described the document in general terms, but the people familiar with it added substantial new details about the scope and complexity of the plan it set out for directing an effort to occupy six House and Senate office buildings and the Supreme Court last Jan. 6."

— “Donald Trump PAC highlights Rick Scott, reminding where loyalties lie,” by Florida Politics’ A.G. Gancarski

CORONAVIRUS UPDATES

‘WORKING TO SHIFT OUR FOCUS’ — “Florida limits COVID data to every two weeks, state says via meme,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Ian Hodgson: “Florida officials have again rolled back access to the state’s COVID-19 data, and will now only release key pandemic metrics such as the number of people who have been infected, died and vaccinated once every two weeks instead of every week. The state did not announce the new policy in any traditional fashion, such as issuing a press release or an official statement via its social media accounts. Instead, Florida Department of Health spokesperson Jeremy Redfern made the announcement at 4:31 p.m. Friday using his personal Twitter account. The tweet included a popular meme featuring World Wrestling Entertainment CEO Vince McMahon reacting to the news.”

POSITIVE OUTLOOK — “Florida recovers all 1.28 million jobs lost in pandemic, report says,” by News Service of Florida’s Jim Turner: “The total number of jobs in Florida has bounced back to pre-pandemic levels, and the state’s unemployment rate in December and January has dropped to 3.5%, according to a report released Monday. The state initially estimated a 4.4% unemployment rate for December but dropped it to 3.5% Monday, largely because of annual U.S. Department of Labor revisions. The new numbers indicate a resurgence in most job sectors despite lingering impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic and inflation.”

PENINSULA AND BEYOND

— “More than 100 Haitian migrants land in Florida Keys, gather in yard of oceanfront home,” by FLKeysNews.com’s David Goodhue and Miami Herald’s Jacqueline Charles

— “Remains of a half-billion downed trees left from Hurricane Michael feeding Bertha fire,” by Northwest Florida Daily News’ Tom McLaughlin

— “ Judge makes ban on Saget autopsy records release permanent,” by The Associated Press

ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN

— “Central Florida power couple to join SNL’s Pete Davidson on Blue Origin ride into space,” by Orlando Sentinel’s Richard Tribou: "Blue Origin announced the next set of civilians to take a flight on its New Shepard rocket, and while Saturday Night Live comedian Pete Davidson may be the headliner, Winter Park couple Marc and Sharon Hagle will be taking the ride, too. Their trip will fulfill a journey that has been in the works for more than a decade. Marc Hagle is president and CEO of Maitland-based commercial property company Tricor International Corp., and Sharon Hagle is founder of local nonprofit SpaceKids Global as well as a board member of the onePULSE Foundation.”

BIRTHDAYS : State Sen. Audrey Gibson … former state Senate President Mike Haridopolos ... Austin Durrer, chief of staff for Rep. Charlie Crist

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