DeSantis goes his way on coronavirus response despite criticism — Coronavirus cases top 1,000 — Marco's moment on relief effort Presented by Facebook

Hello and welcome to Monday. As everyone adjusts to the new reality brought on by the coronavirus outbreak, Gov. Ron DeSantis is still trying to find his own balance.

Up to four digits now — DeSantis has moved at a measured pace when it comes to dealing with the outbreak that topped 1,000 cases on Sunday. He’s left some decisions to local officials. He’s taken half-steps in some areas, then imposed more dramatic restrictions as the situation worsened. The ally of President Donald Trump has also been sure to praise the president’s performance along the way, although in the last few days DeSantis has been more openly critical of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


Lack of urgency? — For some, this hasn’t gone over well. Democrats have called for more aggressive action as national media and editorial boards needle DeSantis for reacting slower than they believe the moment calls for. #FloridaLockDown became a top trending topic on Twitter. Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried blasted out a press release on Friday calling for the governor to issue a stay-at-home order for all Floridians. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell told a South Florida television station on Sunday that she was concerned “I’m not seeing that sense of urgency from the governor.”

Taking it in — DeSantis has tried to explain his position — sometimes succinctly, other times in a rambling stream-of-consciousness approach. He said he worries about people being on “edge” and suffering from “mitigation fatigue” if they are cooped up too long. On Saturday, he matter-of-factly expressed fear about anxiety and the mental health of Floridians. “I would urge people to take a deep breath,” he said. He has also said he isn’t paying attention those critics who “chirp” that he’s taking the wrong steps.

Pirouette — There’s an argument to be made that this is such an unprecedented crisis that maybe now isn’t the right time to do play-by-play criticism. But then if serious mistakes are being made there could be tragic consequences. It’s a balancing act for DeSantis, and for Democrats ready to find fault.

— WHERE'S RON? — Gov. DeSantis is scheduled to be in The Villages, where the state is opening another drive-through coronavirus testing site.

CORONAVIRUS UPDATES

GROWING — “Florida officials say at least 1,000 test positive for virus,” by Associated Press: "Gov. Ron DeSantis urged Floridians to stay home and not panic about the spread of the novel coronavirus, which had infected at least 1,000 people across the state as of Sunday. Twelve people have died, including the first fatality in Palm Beach County. Nearly half of the state’s positive cases are in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. But DeSantis stressed that the results should not cause undue concern. ‘The vast, vast majority of people are testing negative for this,’ DeSantis said."

NO THANKS — “Will spring breakers become super-spreaders?” by POLITICO’s Gary Fineout, Alexandra Glorioso and Ben Schreckinger: As Florida officials move to expel the hundreds of thousands of spring-breakers who ignored calls for social distancing, public-health specialists are nervously wondering what will happen once the party’s over. For much of this week, revelers continued to cram four or five to a hotel room, swarm beaches over hundreds of miles of coastline and then gather shoulder-to-shoulder in bars and clubs — almost a model process for spreading contagious diseases.

— “Students at multiple Florida colleges test positive for coronavirus,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Megan Reeves

THE FLORIDA WAY — “Florida lagged behind dozens of states on coronavirus restrictions,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Kathleen McGrory and Neil Bedi: "As the number of confirmed coronavirus cases ballooned over the last week, states across the country put aggressive restrictions on businesses designed to slow the virus’ spread. Florida has lagged behind dozens of them, a Tampa Bay Times analysis has found. Gov. Ron DeSantis was part of an early wave of state executives to order the closure of bars and nightclubs Tuesday, bringing the revelry to a halt on St. Patrick’s Day. But he was slower than at least 35 other governors to suspend in-person dining at restaurants and behind at least 22 in closing gyms and fitness studios.”

THE FIRST FAMILY — “DeSantis says Florida’s pregnant first lady is keeping safe amid coronavirus crisis,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Emily Mahoney: "Florida's first lady, Casey DeSantis, is pregnant with the couple's third child, which they announced in late September via a tweeted photo of their family holding an ultrasound image. It's unclear when her exact due date is, but she has not made a public appearance in weeks. Earlier this week, Gov. DeSantis said that she is 'doing great.'”

PRESSURE — “FL Democrats want shelter in place. DeSantis advisers say he ‘looking at options,'” by Miami Herald’s Samantha J. Gross: “On a conference call Sunday evening, lawmakers pressed Gov. Ron DeSantis’ staff and agency heads on whether the governor would be issuing a shelter-in-place order to mitigate risk of their constituents contracting COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. ‘When are we actually doing a shelter-in-place order?’ asked Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, ‘Is that being discussed?’”

— “Broward County orders all non-essential businesses to close to stop spread of COVID-19,” by Miami Herald’s Alex Harris

‘PLAYING WITH DEATH’ — “Virus mutes happy hours in senior haven, but golf goes on,” by Associated Press’ Mike Schneider: “Even as many Americans isolated themselves against the coronavirus threat, residents of one of the largest concentrations of seniors in the U.S. at first blew off concerns, despite data showing the elderly are particularly susceptible to serious symptoms from COVID-19. But their attitude shifted this week as President Donald Trump, who earlier had downplayed the coronavirus threat, gave warnings to avoid crowds of more than 10 people, some residents of The Villages say. ‘This place is Republicanville and too many people believe what the president is saying, and they were out in the streets and out in the squares,’ said Alan Stone, as he sat in one of The Villages’ ever-present golf carts outside a supermarket, waiting for his wife. ‘They don’t realize that they’re playing with death.’”

SHUTTERED — “Florida DEP closing all state parks to the public,” by News Service of Florida: "The move, which came at the direction of Gov. Ron DeSantis, takes effect beginning on Monday. In a news release Sunday evening, the Department of Environmental Protection said it has tried taking steps to keep state parks open while also limiting public gatherings.”

‘TRICKY BUG’ — “’It’s pretty bad’: Diaz-Balart, McAdams detail their struggles with Covid-19,” by POLITICO’s Evan Semones: Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart spoke out Saturday about his battle with Covid-19 after testing positive for the coronavirus, saying he believes the 'worst part' has passed. "It’s a tricky bug because just when I thought I was over it or I was pretty close to getting over it, the fever will come back," the Florida Republican said during his first on-camera interview on NBC's 'Nightly News.'"

— “After 14 days, Miami-Dade mayor ready to end home quarantine from coronavirus scare,” by Miami Herald’s Douglas Hanks

HOT SPOT — “COVID-19 testing site to open at Marlins Park as tests and supplies arrive in Miami,” by Miami Herald’s Joey Flechas: "A new coronavirus testing site is expected to open at Marlins Park soon in a collaboration between multiple Miami public agencies. Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez announced the measure in a video posted to social media Sunday, saying people will be able to make appointments to for the drive-through site once it opens.”

— “New COVID-19 testing site location opens in stadium of Hard Rock Stadium,” by WSVN

STALLED — “Tampa got 900 coronavirus test kits. It’s not enough for a drive-through site, officials say,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Anastasia Dawson and Romy Ellenbogen: “Nearly eight weeks after the United States announced its first confirmed case of the COVID-19 disease, elected officials and health care leaders say Hillsborough County finally received sorely needed materials from the state’s Division of Emergency Management: 900 federally-approved coronavirus sample collection kits….And even with the new shipment of testing materials, it seemed unlikely Saturday evening that the county’s first mobile testing station — a drive-through clinic erected in the parking lot of Raymond James Stadium — would finally be able to open to the public the following morning.”

— “Tampa mayor readies for stay-at-home order, slams federal response to coronavirus epidemic,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Anastasia Dawson

— “If Tampa orders ‘stay at home,’ will St. Pete and Pinellas follow?” by Florida Politics’ Janelle Irwin Taylor

HOTEL FLORIDA — “Coronavirus Florida: State eyes hotels to house people with coronavirus,” by News Service of Florida’s Jim Saunders: “Gov. Ron DeSantis said over the weekend that state officials are looking at the possibility of putting people who test positive for the coronavirus in facilities such as hotels to help prevent them from spreading the virus to family members.”

KEEPING THE FAITH — “How Pensacola churches are coping with COVID-19,” by Pensacola News Journal’s Kevin Robinson: “In times of hardship and uncertainty, people often turn to their local church for comfort and guidance. So what happens when the church doors are closed? With health officials urging social distancing as a way to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, an increasing number of Pensacola-area churches are suspending Sunday services. However, they are keeping the faith alive by broadcasting sermons via livestream, communicating with the congregation by cellphone and recommending people find peace through home prayer.”

NEW NORMAL — “Coronavirus in Jacksonville: the week everything changed,” by Florida Times-Union’s Mark Woods: "Sun-Ray Cinema would have been busy Friday night, with people passing under the marquee touting the opening of a new movie, “A Quiet Place, Part II.” The patrons would have bought popcorn and beer, settled into their seats in the historic Five Points theater — the first place in Florida to show talking pictures — and watched the 2020 horror movie sequel with the tagline: 'Silence is survival.'”

‘BANANA REPUBLIC’ — “Coronavirus Florida: Lake Worth Beach meeting gets ugly and heated about emergency powers,” by Palm Beach Post’s Jorge Milian: “The coronavirus isn’t just causing anxiety and frustration among residents. Thursday night’s Lake Worth Beach city commission meeting turned into a screaming, name-calling, finger-pointing affair between Commissioner Omari Hardy on one side and Mayor Pam Triolo and City Manager Michael Bornstein on the other…Hardy accused Bornstein of 'turning off people’s lights during a global health pandemic' and said Triolo was complicit because she declined to call an emergency meeting last week to discuss issues related to the coronavirus crisis. Instead, Hardy said, Triolo gave Bornstein emergency powers to run the city even though Lake Worth Beach has not declared a state of emergency. 'This is a banana republic is what you’re turning this place into with your so-called leadership,' Hardy yelled at Triolo after she called a recess.”

DON’T SPEAK — “Okeechobee county commissioner suggests ways to combat COVID-19 virus,” by Lake Okeechobee News: “At the March 20 meeting of the Okeechobee County Commissioners, Commissioner Bryant Culpepper referenced a program he said he saw on One American News Network about the coronavirus… ’I said how would you get the temperature up to 136 degrees? The answer was you use a blow dryer. You hold a blow dryer up to your face and you inhale through your nose and it kills all the viruses in your nose.’ … According to the World Health Organization website, hair dryers are not effective in killing the COVID-19 virus.”

WON’T STAY AWAY — “Volusia beach ramps closed for coronavirus precaution, but crowds still come,” by Daytona Beach News Journal: “On the first day Volusia County closed all beach access ramps to vehicles, crowds still flocked to the sand on Saturday to sunbathe, swim or just get out of the house. ‘I wasn’t going to let (the coronavirus) worry me and stop me from having a nice day,’ said Savannah Morgan, a Leesburg resident who said she was tired of being stuck at home.”

— “Tallahassee business awarded Florida’s first emergency ‘bridge’ loans,” by Tallahassee Democrat

— “Coronavirus is crushing Florida’s tourism industry, and hotels are trying to hang on,” by Sun Sentinel’s David Lyons

— “Miami-Dade will shut down hotels, Miami Beach to set a curfew amid coronavirus spread,” by Miami Herald’s Martin Vassolo and Douglas Hanks

— “Indian River County, Hobe Sound beaches closing,” by Treasure Coast Newspapers Lamaur Stancil

— “Ocala golf club open amid COVID-19 pandemic,” by Ocala Star-Banner

— “Florida Keys set to close to visitors beginning Sunday night,” by USA Today’s Jayme Deerwester

— “Coronavirus Florida: County closes all ramps, marinas to recreational boating,” by Palm Beach Post’s Lulu Ramadan

TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP

MARCO’S MOMENT? — Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has been playing a big role in the Senate’s attempt to cobble together a funding response to coronavirus. The Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship he chairs has moved into the spotlight as it prepares a small business relief package, including cash-flow assistance, and he was a key negotiator on the Senate’s one-trillion coronavirus stimulus plan. He has also been in the room as a bipartisan group — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin — works to hash out a deal. In general, the foreign policy-focused Rubio has been out front on coronavirus much more than normal.

AND THERE’S THIS — “Rubio blasts China for hiding coronavirus data, allowing spread: ‘They covered it up,” by Fox News Ronn Blitzer: "Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., called out Chinese government leaders Sunday, blaming them for the severity of the global coronavirus pandemic due to hiding key information early on and pressuring other countries into not taking action. Rubio, one of the lead senators working on the relief package currently before the Senate, told Fox News’ 'Sunday Morning Futures' that rather than taking appropriate steps to alert the world that there was a problem, they did the opposite."

NO CURE? — “Americans see Trump’s virus response through partisan lens,” by Associated Press’ Claire Galofaro and Tamara Lush: “As restaurants across the country stacked chairs on tables and shut their doors to try to contain the deadly coronavirus, what would be the final visitors streamed into the Conservative Grounds coffee shop in Largo, Florida… Inside, customers gave Trump an A-plus on his response to the spreading pandemic. 'He’s doing great things,' the owner said Wednesday.”

BIG PICTURE? — Short-term thinking plagues Trump’s coronavirus response,” by POLITICO’s Dan Diamond: After months of minimizing the threat to the United States, President Donald Trump jumped feet-first into the coronavirus fight this week with vows of quick fixes to the testing problem, claims about potential cures, and efforts to rope in agencies that had inexplicably been excluded, like FEMA.

OOPS — “Trump’s ambassador to South Africa was at Mar-a-Lago dinner with infected Brazilian,” by Washington Post’s Anne Gearan and Carol Morello: "The U.S. ambassador to South Africa attended a dinner at President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club with Brazilian officials who later tested positive for the novel coronavirus. But she told her State Department employees that she did not consider herself at risk because the dinner was outside and she believed the virus could not withstand the Florida heat, according people familiar with the matter."

— “Vern Buchanan billboard offers tips for avoiding coronavirus,” by Florida Politics’ Jacob Ogles

... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ...

EDUCATED GUESS — “Coronavirus: Grades? Report cards? Teacher evaluations? DOE has some answers,” by Daytona Beach News Journal’s Ryan McKinnon: "The coronavirus has raised countless questions among students, teachers, parents and administrators about the pandemic’s impact on education. As students remain home during the state-mandated closure and school leaders scramble to adapt to the ever-shifting virus, the state Department of Education sought to provide some clarity on some of the most pressing questions."

THE COMING TRAIN — “Coronavirus impact in Florida: DeSantis, state face grim financial picture,” by USA Today Network-Florida Capital Bureau’s John Kennedy: “With Florida’s tourist-powered economy in a tailspin, Gov. Ron DeSantis has been forced to the frontlines of the fight against the coronavirus, desperately seeking to stop a looming massive loss of jobs and tax collections that fuel state programs. Time is a factor — and he’s already hearing from industries staggered by the widespread shutdowns.”

FAREWELL — “From school teacher to elected leader: Sen. Bill Montford time in Legislature draws to a close,” by Tallahassee Democrat’s James Call: "After Democratic state Sen. Bill Montford delivered a 15-minute farewell address to the Florida Senate recently, his colleagues spent an hour telling stories of his 10-year legislative career. It’s a traditional send-off the Senate provides when a member is term-limited. Montford’s term officially is over the day of the November general election, but it practically ended with his vote Thursday on the annual state budget, his last legislative act as the 2020 session came to a close."

ODDS, ENDS, AND FLORIDA MEN

— “Hulk Hogan sex tape lawsuit vs. Cox and Mike Calta reaches confidential settlement,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Christopher Spata: “If Hulk Hogan really does return for action at Wrestlemania 36 in two weeks, it may be with a little more pep in his step depending on the details of a confidential settlement in his sex tape lawsuit. The pro wrestler whose real name is Terry Bollea has settled a lawsuit against Cox Radio Inc., talk host Mike Calta and others he’d accused of taking part in leaking video of him having sex and using racist language.”

— “Before finally closing its casino, the Miccosukee tribe jails a bartender over $36,” by Miami Herald’s David Ovalle

— “Martin County firefighter accused of beating police officer on St. Patrick’s Day,” by Treasure Coast Newspapers Will Greenlee

TYING THE KNOT — Alexandra Marie Glorioso, 32, and Lawrence Nelson Mower III, 37, were wed on Friday at small chapel attached to the Leon County Clerk’s office between coronavirus assignments. Glorioso is a Florida health correspondent for POLITICO and Mower is a reporter for the Tampa Bay Times. Pic

BIRTHDAYS: State Sen. Kelli Stargel … (Was Sunday) Former Gov. Buddy MacKay … Former State Rep. Alan Williams … Paul Mitchell with The Southern Group … Jeffrey Vinik, investor and owner of Tampa Bay Lightning … (Was Saturday) State Rep. Paul Renner … Julie Hauserman, author and former journalist … Bev DeMello

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