Democrats are so worried about losing Florida that they appear to be resorting to financial measures to influence or induce someone to vote, which would be illegal in Florida. Democrat Michael Bloomberg had already pledged to spend $100 million in Florida. But he’s also now saying he will pay off the remaining debt of felons so they will be eligible to vote. The actions are questionable enough that Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is asking the FBI and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to investigate.
Politically what all this shows is that Democrats do not trust their ground game in Florida, or the enthusiasm of their voters. Nor should they. A Washington Post-ABC News poll released Wednesday shows likely Florida voters now favoring Trump over Biden 51% to 47%. That’s a big swing from two months ago.
You can read more here: https://www.orlandosentinel.com/politics/2020-election/fl-ne-trump-biden-florida-poll-september-post-abc-20200923-sqw7fydsovhnvfdcjb5bg7humu-story.html
Meanwhile, the Republican Party of Florida’s ground game is roaring along and the enthusiasm level for re-electing President Trump and Republicans is soaring. A Politico story out this morning reports: “…a concerted drive by President Donald Trump’s Florida campaign to register voters has helped cut the state’s long-standing Democratic advantage to fewer than 185,000 voters, a gap of just 1.3 percentage points.”
You can read more here: https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/24/florida-republicans-voter-registration-surge-420936
Saturday campaign walking and door-knocking in Polk and Seminole counties. RPOF Chairman Joe Gruters and Vice Chairman Christian Ziegler will be meeting at the Winter Haven Repubican Headquarters, 1800 6th St NW, Winter Haven at 9 a.m. At 11a.m., the Polk County Trump car parade starts at the Headquarters.
Then Gruters and Ziegler will head up to Sanford to walk and door-knock with Jason Brodeur and Republican volunteers in his Florida Senate race. They will meet at the Brodeur Campaign office at 1276 Upsala Road, Sanford, at noon.
NO on A3 Update: As media around the state begins to come out in favor of Amendment 3 — naturally — it becomes all the more important for all Republicans to vote No on Amendment 3 and to let everyone else know that it will ultimately limit their choices in a General Election and make Florida look more like California.
Amendment 3 is a pathway for more big PACs and backroom powerbrokers to squeeze grassroots Republicans out of the equation. Remember, it is the system California uses — a one-party state rapidly becoming a shell of its former greatness. No on Amendment 3.
CHECK OUT: @FloridaGOP and retweet and share. We need to share the Republican message around the state and you are an integral part of making that happen.
Governor Ron DeSantis Update
Governor DeSantis announced new legislation Tuesday to stop violent assemblies and protect law enforcement. The “Combating Violence, Disorder and Looting and Law Enforcement Protection Act” creates new criminal offenses and increases penalties for those who target law enforcement and participate in violent or disorderly assemblies.
“Our right to peacefully assemble is one of our most cherished as Americans, but throughout the country we’ve seen that right being taken advantage of by professional agitators, bent on sowing disorder and causing mayhem in our cities,” said Governor DeSantis. “I will not allow this kind of violence to occur here in Florida. The legislation announced today will not only combat rioting and looting, but also protect the men and women in law enforcement that wake up every day to keep us safe.”
“Peaceful protesting is a constitutional right, but looting and disorderly rioting are not,” said Senate President-Designate Wilton Simpson. “I commend Governor DeSantis for his commitment to public safety.”
“Violence and destruction are the tools of terrorists, not reformers,” said House Speaker-Designate Chris Sprowls. “I’m proud to stand with Governor DeSantis to say that in Florida we will respect the right of people to protest peacefully while defending the rule of law.”
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Florida will distribute $2 million in CARES Act funds for rural county school districts to bolster their mental health services during the COVID-19 pandemic.
First Lady Casey DeSantis announced the distribution during a roundtable this week with state health care and education officials, along with superintendents of rural county school districts. Districts will be able to submit applications to cover services including broadband access, telehealth and expanded counseling staff.
Of the 13,317 deaths among Florida residents with COVID-19, only 35 have been among people younger than 25, and of the 42,543 hospitalizations, 1,608 have been in that age group. But the pandemic has taken a toll on children in other ways, she said.
Read more here: https://floridapolitics.com/archives/368779-casey-desantis-announces-2m-in-mental-health-funding-for-rural-county-schools
President Donald Trump Update
The U.S. Justice Department has branded Portland, Seattle and New York City as “Anarchist Jurisdictions” that may lose federal funds.
“When state and local leaders impede their own law enforcement officers and agencies from doing their jobs, it endangers innocent citizens who deserve to be protected, including those who are trying to peacefully assemble and protest,” Attorney General William Barr said.
“We cannot allow federal tax dollars to be wasted when the safety of the citizenry hangs in the balance,’’ Barr said. “It is my hope that the cities identified by the Department of Justice today will reverse course and become serious about performing the basic function of government and start protecting their own citizens.”
Read more: https://nypost.com/2020/09/21/nyc-branded-an-anarchist-jurisdiction-targeted-for-defunding-doj/
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President Trump virtually addressed the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly, where he explained how America is leading the global fight against an invisible enemy that has claimed countless lives in 188 countries:
“In the United States, we launched the most aggressive mobilization since the Second World War. We rapidly produced a record supply of ventilators, creating a surplus that allowed us to share them with friends and partners all around the globe. We pioneered life-saving treatments, reducing our fatality rate 85 percent since April.
“Thanks to our efforts, three vaccines are in the final stage of clinical trials. We are mass-producing them in advance so they can be delivered immediately upon arrival. We will distribute a vaccine, we will defeat the virus, we will end the pandemic, and we will enter a new era of unprecedented prosperity, cooperation, and peace.
Further, the President told world leaders: “As we pursue this bright future, we must hold accountable the nation which unleashed this plague onto the world: China.”
Read more here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/1600daily/