It looked like an April Fool’s joke inspired by the onion domes of the Kremlin. But Florida Sen. Jason Brodeur filed the bill on Tuesday (Feb. 2), and it is no joke, at least not to him, though National Review today called him a “moron” for filing it.
The bill, which has no chance of becoming law, would require bloggers who write about Gov. Ron DeSantis, the lieutenant governor, members of the cabinet and members of the Legislature to register with the government of Florida. It would also require the bloggers to file laborious monthly reports with the government, tallying how much money they were paid for every blog post about any of the government officials in the affected categories, and who paid the bloggers’ fees.
Violators would be fined $25 per post or article per day that it isn’t accounted for in reports to the government, for up to $2,500 fines per post or article.
The accounts, to be filed by the 10th of every month, would have to be turned in to the Office of Legislative Services or to the Commission on Ethics, depending on the subject of the article. No reports are due if the blogger hasn’t written about any of the given government officials during the previous 30 days.
Brodeur, a native of Daytona Beach and a resident of Sanford, has worked in health care and still works as president of a chamber of commerce in Seminole County, serving in the Florida House for eight years before his election to the Senate in 2020. He has had an unremarkable career in the Legislature, serving as a loyal foot soldier for the Rick Scott and DeSantis agendas.
The bill is unlikely to hurdle its way through three committees and make it to a floor vote in the legislative session, which begins Monday. It does not have a House companion. But the ground has shifted considerably under Tallahassee norms.
On the almost inconceivable possibility that it would become law, the bill would not easily survive a legal challenge on several constitutional grounds, among them the First, Fifth and 14th Amendments. It is also in violation of the Florida Constitution, which holds that “no law shall be passed to restrain or abridge the liberty of speech or of the press.”
But the filing–rather than the bill itself–is not without telling significance. That a Republican member of a Florida Legislature bullish on its GOP supermajority found it appropriate to file, whether as a taunt of civil libertarians and the media–both are reflexive targets of reigning Republicans in the state–or in defiance of constitutional norms, is a ready echo of the ACLU’s warning this week that the legislative session is shaping into an unprecedented assault on civil liberties. (See: “On Eve of Legislative Session, ACLU Warns of Brazen Attacks on Floridians’ Civil Liberties.”)
The conservative National Review today called Brodeur a “Moron” in a headline over an article by Charles Cooke that starts with him calling Brodeur an “idiot.”
“The bill is an unconstitutional, moronic disgrace, and the guy who wrote it,” Cooke wrote, “is an embarrassment to the GOP. Thankfully, though, the number of people in Florida’s legislature who are interested in this bill is . . . well, is Senator Jason Brodeur of Seminole County. Brodeur wrote the bill. Brodeur sponsored the bill. And that’s as far as it’s got. It’s not going to pass. It’s not going to be signed. It’s not even going to be considered. It is, as the kids say, not really ‘a thing.'”
Brodeur’s bill defines a “Blog” as “a website or webpage that hosts any blogger and is frequently updated with opinion, commentary, or business content. The term does not include the website of a newspaper or other similar publication.”
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The dude says
Taxes doubled. Homeowners insurance doubled or not available at all. Education decimated (long before the DuhSantis assaults began actually). Infrastructure antiquated, inadequate, and in horrible shape…
Yet this is what MAGA chooses to spend its time and energy on.
JwLamd says
More and more like Germany in early 1930s!
Gina Weiss says
DISGUSTING!
JEK says
Moron? Yup
James says
Kinda like they would NEVER take on Disney, right? Get your documents in order, FlaglerLive. It’s a super majority up there and DeSantis gets what he wants.
Wow says
More “freedom”! First amendment, maybe? We live in dangerous times.
New MAGA slogan “Register bloggers, not guns!”
Tundra says
He would never survive this. Every court would strike this down even if it passed. Nobody is as moronic as the GQP in Florida, but Texas isn’t far behind.
erobot says
Correction: … get what WE want.
Skibum says
Heil Deathsantis! he’s checking off all of the boxes… already banned books – YES! Already taken over college boards – YES! Already thrown out teaching about African American history and racially sensitive topics – YES! Already taken over Disney and installed his own puppet heads because Disney supported same sex rights… YES! Already ousted elected prosecutors who he didn’t like… YES! Already forced through legislation against anything supporting LGBT students in schools – YES! Now making bloggers and anyone wanting to report on his hitleresque administration officially “register” with the State. When is he going to decree that all LGBT citizens in Florida must start wearing pink armbands, cannot attend schools, must not be allowed to own property in his so-called “freedom state”???
Bill C says
The impossible remains impossible until it happens. Then everybody says ‘why didn’t we see this coming’?
S. Peters says
Straight up Fascism. It’s in all our world history books. Oh, can’t find a book in the library? Google it!
Laurel says
This is not the Grand Old Party.
Why are these pseudo-conservatives not going after Fox Entertainment? Dominion is proving in court that Fox commentators have been lying to their audience, and Rupert Murdoch knew about it. Murdoch stated “It’s not about red and blue, it’s about green.” Let me rephrase that. It’s not about red, white and blue, it’s about green. So, Fox viewers, are your influencers telling you this? Many of you remember Walter Cronkite, Chet Huntley, David Brinkley, Edward R. Morrow and other journalists we listened to and trusted, right? I can flippen guarantee you that not a single one of these journalists would ever join the likes of Fox *News,* ever. No, not ever.
These politicians, disguised as Republicans, are getting way out of hand. It is time for real Republican conservatives to take back the party before it’s too late. Let DeSantis, Trump, Cruz, Goetz, Green, Santos, Scott, et al, start their own Fascist Party. Then you can vote on book banning, governed genders, governed wombs, governed Christian schools, governed love, and governed speech. You can skip going after real pedophiles and head straight towards librarians and scientists. All in the name of “freedom.” But at least you won’t call yourselves Republicans.
Nephew Of Uncle Sam says
Let’s not forget their war on “drag shows”, an art form that could easily lead to bans on art that the State deems detrimental.
Steve says
It’s becoming obvious That Florida is no Woke. It’s Asleep and dreaming. I pray that our citizens wake up before It’s to0 late to fix the descent into facism that DeSanis is leading us down to.
Skibum says
Their feigned cry that they only wish to protect children and are not discriminating against LGBT or anyone involved in drag shows is so transparently full of crap just by the mere fact that had the protection of children been their sole concern they would have only needed to do what the motion picture industry did when they initiated the rating system for films. That was effective and prevented children from going to theaters to see certain adult-oriented films unless their parents approved and were with them. But no, it is obvious that the intent here certainly is to discriminate. Can you imagine using the FL gov’s logic for the motion picture industry? Deathsantis and the GOP legislature, instead of barring children from attending adult-oriented movies, would have instead BANNED THE MOVIES! That is exactly what they are doing here, banning the drag performances, NOT any children who may or may not have ever been in attendance with their parents, so it definitely is discrimination, regardless of their lying mouths flapping in the wind saying otherwise.
Denali says
Unfortunately he would survive this bill becoming law and its eventual tear down by the courts. He, and his ilk, do not care if it makes it through the courts – the important thing to them is that they put it out there, made a huge stink and gave their base more red meat. “He is standing up for us ! ! !” After all, it’s the thought that counts . . .
Atwp says
People say this bill will not pass, maybe true. They will probably make it smaller so small parts of the bill will pass. We should watch this carefully because they will pass it eventually. We are slowly becoming a communist Jim Crowe law state again. People of color get ready.
Pogo says
@Denali
Bullseye, as usual.
Before we let down the guard, remember this: no one was more shocked by trump’s election than trump.
And the Republican Party is smiling. Their money never runs out, and never gets tired. They lose most battles, and don’t give a shit. The war IS their reason for being.
Heathen lady says
👍
Chris says
Zzzzzzzzzzz fake news
Timothy Patrick Welch says
The pen is mightier than the sword…
S. Peters says
Did you bother to read the bill? Are you able to read? Wake up, smell the coffee and study some history. Fascism is a serious threat. You like your freedom? You better pay close attention to what fascism is and what freedoms it will strip from you.
mtnut says
you are going to love it on the new plantation