Gov. Ron DeSantis has suspended another elected prosecutor. This time it’s Monique Worrell of the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court, in Orange and Osceola counties, a Democrat who was elected in November 2020 and is the second African American to hold the position.
Ron DeSantis
Such, Such Were the Joys of Plantations in DeSantis’s History of Florida
Gov. DeSantis and his crack education team are all about facts. In his Florida history version of plantation life, enslaved persons were treated like family, they learned invaluable skills, like cooking, and learned to make quality footwear. When you think about it, plantations should really be called “agricultural opportunity centers.”
Without Evidence, Florida’s Surgeon General Blames Covid Vaccine for Bronny James’s Cardiac Episode
Despite scientific evidence to th contrary from federal agencies, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo this week bolstered the link between the Covid-19 vaccine and cardiac arrests suffered by two University of Southern California basketball players. One of those players is Los Angeles Lakers player Lebron James’ son.
Why Are Florida Republicans So Scared of Higher Education?
Florida Republicans are scared of higher education. Colleges. Universities. Known hotbeds of wokery, Marxism, and foreign languages, they should instead focus on the one thing that matters to real Americans: training future cogs in the uber-capitalist machine and sports.
Brain Drain at New College? DeSantis Is ‘Good With That’
New College has been filling positions that account for nearly a third of the school’s faculty. DeSantis appointed a slate of conservative members to the school’s Board of Trustees early this year.
DeSantis ‘War on Woke’ Mirrors Whitewashing of History in Other Countries
Florida’s new law forbidding the teaching of systemic racism is the most extreme example in a series of recent U.S. state bills that critics call “educational gag orders.” The tactics that Gov. Ron DeSantis is using to censor the teaching of American history in Florida look a lot like those seen in the illiberal democracies of Israel, Turkey, Russia and Poland.
Now DeSantis Is Going After Bud Light Maker Over Transgender Promotion
Pointing to concerns about a hit to Florida’s pension fund, Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to know if the state can take legal action against beer company AB InBev, which has been embroiled in a controversy involving transgender social-media influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Florida’s Magical Negro History Standards
We now have the Magical Negro elevated to an entire curriculum. It’s Florida’s African American History standards. The standards are an excellent illustration of what American history looks like through white eyes, and how whites are the best thing that ever happened to Black people, who apparently should worship the Middle Passage down the chains of their ancestry.
State Approves Florida’s New Version of Black History Standards as Teachers Blister Half-Truths and Errors
Students at Florida public schools will now learn that Black people benefitted from slavery because it taught them skills. This change is part of the African American history standards the State Board of Education approved at a Wednesday meeting.
Judge Hears Arguments About Florida’s New Discriminatory Land Ownership Law Targeting Chinese
A federal judge listened to more than two hours of arguments Tuesday about whether he should block a new Florida law that restricts people from China from owning property in the state.
Ron DeSantis’ Very Gay Ad
Ron DeSantis wants you to know he’s a manly man, a manlier man than any manly man ever born, with mighty currents of 100-proof androgen surging through his sinews. He made a video about it. Diane Roberts asks: how could this steaming pile of bovine excrement (and lightning bolts shooting out of the governor’s eyes) get released by his campaign?
Disney’s Bob Iger Calls ‘Preposterous and Inaccurate’ DeSantis Claims of ‘Sexualizing’ Children
Disney CEO Bob Iger dismissed as “preposterous” arguments by Gov. Ron DeSantis that the company is “sexualizing children” or experiencing a drop in attendance at its Florida resorts because of a long-running fight with the governor.
The Apostle Ron DeSantis
Is anyone surprised Ron DeSantis said recently he wished he could have been one of the Apostles? Here’s the Good News, Ron. You don’t have to sigh moonily in a TV interview about what could’ve been.
Families Flee Florida and Other States Thwarting Transgender Care
Missouri, Florida, and Texas are among at least 20 states that have limited components of gender-affirming health care for trans youth. Those three states are also among the states that prevent Medicaid — the public health insurance for people with low incomes — from paying for key aspects of such care for patients of all ages.
Florida’s New College Board Seeks $2 Million to Counter ‘Cancel Culture’
The New College of Florida Board of Trustees on Thursday moved forward with a plan to request $2 million in funding from the state Legislature to set up a “Freedom Institute” aimed at combating “cancel culture” in higher education. The bulk of the $2 million request would go toward hiring “scholars to work and teach” on the New College campus.
We’re the Mommies for Liberty, and the Future Belongs to Us
I am a Mommy. A Mommy for Liberty. I will use my personal liberty to shield my precious children (and yours) from gays. And history. And Black people. And sex.
Citing Florida’s ‘Latest Assault on the Right to Vote,’ Judge Blocks Parts of Election Law
Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker, in a 58-page decision, issued a preliminary injunction against parts of the law that would prevent non-U.S. citizens from “collecting or handling” voter-registration applications and make it a felony for voter-registration group workers to keep personal information of voters.
Divine Right of DeSantis: Vengeful, Petty and Cruel
DeSantis is using taxpayer money to punish his enemies, a warning to those who cross him. Through the budget, he’s pushing his hate-fueled vision onto us, trying to transform Florida into a subtropical version of Massachusetts under the Puritans: intolerant, ignorant, repressive, and cruel.
$1.25 Million Book Deal Drives Up DeSantis’s Net Worth
Gov. Ron DeSantis likes to refer to his blue collar roots, growing up on the west coast of Florida, especially now that he has been campaigning for president. But a $1.25 million book deal helped drive up his net worth into the millionaires’ club in 2022.
DeSantis Vetoes EV Bill House Approved 115-1 and Senate 38-0
Gov. Ron DeSantis today vetoed a bill that could have made it easier for officials to choose electric cars when buying vehicles for government fleets. The measure was approved 115-1 in the House and 38-0 in the Senate.
School Vouchers, Teaching Muzzles, Diversity Bans, Looser Guns: 200 New Laws Take Effect Saturday
More than 200 laws passed during the 2023 legislative session, including a record $116.5 billion budget, will take effect Saturday, including a massive expansion of public money available for private schooling, permitless gun-carrying, and more restrictions or bans on what teachers may say or teach.
Florida Law Banning Kids at Drag Shows Blocked and Termed Unconstitutionally Vague
Operators of Orlando restaurant Hamburger Mary’s, which has run “family friendly” drag shows for 15 years, filed a legal challenge shortly after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the law restricting children from attending “adult live performances.”
Supreme Court Kills Lawsuit by State Attorney Andrew Warren, Whom DeSantis Suspended
The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday rejected an attempt by suspended Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren to get his job back, ruling that the twice-elected Democrat waited too long to bring the case. Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended Warren on Aug. 4, accusing the prosecutor of “incompetence” and “neglect of duty.”
$5 Million for Fire Station 22 Vetoed, But Palm Coast Still Nets Historic $55 Million Haul from Legislature
Palm Coast is focusing on the positive: scoring $54.6 million out of $59.6 million in legislative requests, not including more than $1 million to be earmarked for a new YMCA in the city.
Once a Model of Independence, Florida’s Judicial Nominating Process Is Now an Irrelevant Farce
Veteran prosecutor Victoria Avalon, a Florida Supreme Court candidate, warned that the judicial nominating process that once was a model of independence under Gov. Reubin Askew has been politicized to the point of irrelevance by Republican governors since Jeb Bush, with all picks pre-ordained.
Anti-Trans Politicians Take Pages from Nazi Playbook
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and other GOP leaders are following the Nazi playbook, substituting transgender youth for the Jews. They industriously promote hatred, fear, and physical revulsion of this small group — also barely 1 percent of the population — and pretend it’s out of concern for children.
Appeals Court Will Decide Whether DeSantis Violated Public Records Law in Migrant Flights Case
A state appeals court Tuesday will hear arguments in a dispute about whether Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration violated Florida’s public-records law by not properly providing documents about a controversial plan to fly migrants from Texas to Massachusetts last year.
DeSantis Lawyers Tell Court That Bill Targeting Drag Shows Doesn’t Target Drag Shows
State lawyers filed arguments Friday as U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell prepares to hold a hearing Tuesday on a motion by operators of the Orlando restaurant Hamburger Mary’s for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against the law, which DeSantis signed last month.
DeSantis Lifts Hold on Killing of Duane Owen as Attorneys Battle Over Competence
Gov. Ron DeSantis has lifted a temporary hold on the planned June 15 execution of convicted murderer Duane Owen, as attorneys for Owen and the state continue to battle at the Florida Supreme Court about whether he is mentally competent to be put to death.
Voters Approved an Amendment For Racial Equity in Districts. DeSantis Wants It Ignored.
A lawsuit filed by voting-rights groups focuses a Jacksonville-area district that helped elect Black Democrat Al Lawson until a DeSantis plan redrew it and installed two white Republicans instead. Now DeSantis is asking a court to ignore a 2010 constitutional amendment requiring “Fair Districts.”
A Memorial Month for Our Rights
Tuesday begins a month of memorial days as we watch our Supreme Court continue to roll back those very rights soldiers died for, trampling them more effectively than any enemy foreign or, for the most part, domestic, ever has.
A Trans Teen No Longer Feels Welcome in Florida. So She Left.
Josie moved more than a thousand miles from St. Augustine — and her parents — to start a new life in Rhode Island to escape a state where Gov. Ron DeSantis and the GOP Legislature politicized and passed policies that de-legitimize and demonize trans people.
DeSantis from Governor’s Mansion to Presidential Run
Now that Gov. Ron DeSantis has filled out the federal paperwork to officially become a 2024 candidate for president of the United States, here’s a chronicle of the trajectory of DeSantis’ tenure, from moving into the governor’s mansion on Jan. 8, 2019, to a presidential run, as compiled by the Florida Phoenix.
Florida Will Publish Annual Index of Books Banned or Challenged in Schools
The State Board of Education on Wednesday approved a new rule that will lead to Florida officials publishing an annual list of library books and instructional materials that have drawn public objections, in a move that the board’s chairman said will “provide transparency for our families.”
DeSantis Names Meredith Sasso, Another Federalist Society Apostle, to Supreme Court
Continuing to mold a conservative Florida Supreme Court, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday named Meredith Sasso, another Federalist Society faithful, to succeed former Justice Ricky Polston, who stepped down in March.
Joe Jacquot Latest DeSantis Acolyte Appointed to New College Board
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday appointed Joe Jacquot to the New College of Florida Board of Trustees, after the Florida Senate failed to confirm a previous trustee tapped by the governor.
DeSantis Will Announce His Presidential Bid From Dunedin
Gov. Ron DeSantis expects to announce his candidacy for president after Memorial Day and from his hometown of Dunedin, the more conservative part of what has been considered a politically moderate county.
Nearing Presidential Run, DeSantis Signs Series of Anti-LGBTQ Bills Critics Call ‘Slate of Hate’
With LGBTQ advocates decrying it as a “slate of hate,” Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday signed a suite of bills that will prohibit or limit medical care for transgender people, prevent minors from attending drag shows and impose restrictions on which bathrooms trans people can use.
At Charter School, DeSantis Signs Bills Against Teacher Unions and For School Board Term Limits
The bill (SB 256) bars public sector unions, including those for teachers but not for police or firefighters that tend to support the governor, from deducting dues from members’ paychecks, requiring employees to write checks instead. Furthermore, unions’ membership would have to constitute 60% of a bargaining unit, an increase from the old threshold of 50%.
DeSantis, On a Death Run, Signs 4th Execution Warrant in Less Than 4 Months
Duane Owen, 62, is scheduled to die by lethal injection June 15 in the murder of Georgianna Worden, who was bludgeoned with a hammer and sexually assaulted in her Boca Raton home in May 1984, according to the death warrant and court records.
Later Start Time for Middle and High School Students in Flagler Means Earlier Start for Younger Ones
A bill awaiting the governor’s signature would ban school start times before 8:30 a.m. for high schools and 8 a.m. for middle schools, starting in the 2026-27 school year. The Flagler County School Board had been reconsidering its own start times–but in the other direction. Now, it may be faced with making tough choices regarding elementary-school start times, which would go from latest to earliest starting times in the county.
Imagining life in DeSantistan
In Caseytown, Desantistan, it’s Jan. 6, 2028, a year since Ron DeSantis declared himself President for Life, making this country the freest America in America, if not the world. Let’s recap.
Andrew Gillum Acquitted on Lying Charge, Mistrial Declared on Conspiracy and Fraud Charges
After five days of rocky deliberations, jurors on Thursday acquitted former Democratic gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum on charges of lying to federal investigators but were unable to reach a verdict on conspiracy and fraud charges.
Bill Banning Books During Challenges and Banning Preferred Pronouns Ready for DeSantis Signature
The bill restricts the way teachers and students can use their preferred pronouns in schools, expands last year’s “don’t say gay” prohibitions to eighth grade, and makes banning books and instructional materials easier, with simpler forms and a requirement that challenged materials to be removed from schools within five days of the objection, until the challenge is resolved.
Bill Prohibiting College and University Decisions Based on Diversity Criteria Heads to DeSantis
Colleges and universities could soon be prohibited from requiring “political loyalty” tests for students and employees as a condition of admission or employment, under a measure passed Tuesday by the Senate.
Ron DeSantis Is in a War With Disney He Cannot Win
DeSantis is on an utterly pointless crusade, revealing a petty, petulant personality motivated by revenge and a pathological need to prove he is correct. It can’t even be disguised as a matter of principle when it’s so clearly ego run amok.
Disney Monorail Is Next on DeSantis Hit List
The Republican-controlled Senate Fiscal Policy Committee, chaired by Travis Hutson, who represents Flagler County, on Tuesday amended a transportation bill (SB 1250) to apply Department of Transportation safety standards to monorail lines that connect Walt Disney World resorts and parks.
On Paul Renner’s Request, House Will Subpoena Trans Treatment Information
The decision to issue the subpoenas is among a series of moves by lawmakers and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration targeting transgender people and the LGBTQ community. A lawmaker criticized the move as reminiscent of the Johns Committee, a Florida legislative investigative panel that sought to expose communists and gay people at state universities in the 1950s and 1960s.
In Florida, We Are All Child Abusers Now
The Florida Legislature is legalizing a Jim Crow-like system of punishing, demonizing and denying the existence of LGBTQ children. Few sessions of the Florida Legislature provided the legal framework for as much state-sponsored and citizen-empowered terrorism against children as this one.
Vote to End Diversity Programs in Florida Colleges and Universities Set Before Senate
A measure that seeks to prevent colleges and universities from spending money on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives is ready to go before the full Senate amid strong objections from Democrats, with one Black senator calling the proposal “racist at its core.”