DeSantis makes his move — Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony? — Amendment 4 spikes voter registration — SoFla beaches’ ‘poop’ problem

Good Friday morning. It looks like Ron DeSantis is going to be an exciting governor to cover. It’s Day 4 of his administration, and it feels as if we’re drinking water from a firehose. Today, he heads to Broward County, where he’s expected to suspend Sheriff Scott Israel and replace him with a political newcomer, former Coral Springs Police Sgt. Gregory Tony, who was recommended for the post by Andrew Pollack, father of Parkland murder victim Meadow Pollack. Tony would be Broward County's first African-American sheriff.

TRANSITIONS

WHAT NEXT? — “DeSantis expected to name Broward’s first African-American sheriff, replacing Israel,” by POLITICO Florida’s Marc Caputo and Andrew Atterbury: “The appointment of Broward’s first African-American sheriff could make it tougher for Democrats to unite in Israel’s defense. People close to DeSantis say the governor was impressed with Tony’s law enforcement experience, private business background and personal story. He’s a Philadelphia native who loved Florida State University football so much that he moved to Tallahassee, saved up to pay for school and became a starting fullback in 2002 as a walk-on.” Read more


RUNCIE NEXT? — There’s buzz about whether DeSantis will also suspend Broward Schools chief Robert Runcie, but there are more questions about the governor’s constitutional authority to do that with an appointed county official.

— “Broward School Board Members Defend Runcie’s Failures On Parkland Shooting, Other Mistakes,” by Broward Beat’s Buddy Nevins: Read more

CHANGES COMING — “DeSantis, Scott free, moves quickly to make his mark,” by POLITICO Florida’s Matt Dixon and Bruce Ritchie: On Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis started the day rolling out a sweeping set of environmental directives. He ended it trying to fire key water managers who had been hired by his predecessor, Rick Scott, and axing dozens of last-minute Scott appointees. Less than a week into the job, DeSantis is moving quickly to show that Florida’s new Republican administration will—in some important ways—bear little resemblance to the old one. “The second day of his administration—I’m not sure you can do much better than that,” said Julie Wraithmell, executive director of Audubon Florida, who called the governor’s plan “bold” and its swiftness “extraordinary.” Read more

FLYING HIGH — “Gov. Ron DeSantis uses seized drug plane to travel around Florida,” by News Service of Florida’s Jim Turner: “Gov. Ron DeSantis made his first trip out of Tallahassee aboard an upgraded King Air aircraft that law-enforcement officials had seized in a drug bust. Unlike his predecessor, former Gov. Rick Scott, a multimillionaire who could buzz around the state in his own plane, DeSantis entered the governor’s office Tuesday without a vast financial portfolio.” Read more

OUT? — “Gov. Ron DeSantis asks all SFWMD board members to resign over Florida Crystals lease,” by TCPalm’s Ali Schmitz: “Gov. Ron DeSantis, on his third day on the job, asked for the immediate resignations of all South Florida Water Management District board members during a news conference in Stuart. The Senate would have to remove any board members who refuse, such as Vice Chair Brandon Tucker of Palm City, who said he plans to serve the last two years of his term.” Read more

BIG QUESTION — “Is Florida’s Ron DeSantis really that pro-environment?” by Miami Herald’s David Smiley: Read more

EQUALITY WARS — “New Fla. guv excludes LGBT people from non-discrimination order,” by Washington Blade’s Chris Johnson: “Newly sworn-in after his victory over Andrew Gillum in the Florida gubernatorial race, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed on Wednesday an executive order ensuring non-discrimination in state employment and state contracting — but the directive notably excludes LGBT people. The order DeSantis signed, Executive Order No. 19-10, is titled ‘Reaffirming Commitment to Diversity in Government.’ Although the directive prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin, martial status and disability, it says nothing about sexual orientation or gender identity.” Read more

— State Rep. Carlos G Smith @CarlosGSmith: “I met with Governor @RonDeSantisFL entire legislative/policy team in my office within 24 hours of them issuing their ‘diversity’ EO. We are working together in good faith while they reassess their options....” https://bit.ly/2AEkckg

TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP

BOUGHT IN — “‘Voice of Hispanic America’ Salinas: Many Latinos ‘buying’ Trump’s arguments against illegal immigration,” by Breitbart’s Tony Lee: “Former longtime Univision anchor María Elena Salinas revealed on Tuesday evening that many Latinos are buying the arguments President Donald Trump is making about illegal immigration. Salinas, whom the New York Times once described as the ‘voice of Hispanic America,’ told CNN host Don Lemon after Trump’s Tuesday evening Oval Office address that she is saddened that Latinos ‘are buying some of these arguments against undocumented immigrants’ that Trump has been making.” Read more

BOOO — “A little less alcohol will be flowing in Miami. Blame the government shutdown,” by Miami Herald’s Rob Wile: “Eddie Leon, co-founder of M.I.A. Beer Company in Doral, says he’s been working for months on a new sangria product. Yes, sangria. Leon says that the craft-brew wave that helped launched M.I.A in the first place is crashing against choosy millennials who are shifting away from beer to even craftier beverages. Last year’s best-selling item at M.I.A was a hard seltzer, Leon says.” Read more

WHAT’S OLD IS NEW — “‘She’ll smile as she’s cutting your throat’: Shalala takes on Democratic attack role,” by Miami Herald’s Alex Daugherty: “Prepare to see a lot of Donna Shalala on C-SPAN. As most House members await their committee assignments, Shalala has already been assigned to the Rules Committee, a role that cements her status as an attack dog for Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi and will require hours of sparring with Republicans on the House floor.” Read more

SORRY — “NASA contractors struggle without pay during government shutdown — and may never see the money,” by Orlando Sentinel’s Chabeli Herrera: “They filled nearly every seat in the room, a sea of union T-shirts, baseball caps and calloused hands. Where else were unionized Kennedy Space Center workers — the people who fixed the power grid or ran safety checks for launches — supposed to go on a Tuesday afternoon while a government shutdown persisted into its 18th day, keeping them from a paycheck and fraying their resistance?” Read more

WATCHDOG — “House Democrats pick Ted Deutch as ethics committee chairman,” by South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s Anthony Mann: U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, a Democrat who represents parts of Broward and Palm Beach counties, is the new chairman of the House Ethics Committee. The leadership role was expected. It was formally announced Wednesday by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi after the House Democratic Caucus approved the pick. Pelosi said in a statement Deutch’s “towering integrity and firm commitment to fairness and justice will be invaluable to our mission to restore transparency, ethics and accountability to the Congress.” Read more.

WALL WARS — “White House Aides Explore Alternative Ways to Pay for Border Wall,” by Wall Street Journal’s Michael C. Bender, Kristina Peterson and Peter Nicholas: “Under one option under consideration, the White House has asked the Army Corps of Engineers to look into projects approved in a February 2018 bill providing disaster relief for Puerto Rico, Texas, California and Florida to see whether funding could be diverted to build the wall, said a congressional aide familiar with the talks.” Read more

TERMINAL VELOCITY — CNN International @cnni: “Miami International Airport will close a terminal early for three days because of a shortage of TSA screeners, an airport spokesman says” https://bit.ly/2M5bDDF

— “The Government Shutdown Is Affecting Federal Workers in Every State,” by New York Times’ K.K. Rebecca Lai and Denise Lu: Read more

— “Federal employees rally in downtown Tallahassee to protest of government shutdown,” by Tallahassee Democrat: Read more

— NYT’S GLENN THRUSH (@GlennThrush): “Just got an email informing me that there will be a food bank at the Tampa Airport for federal workers, because that’s what’s going on in America.”

GUNSHINE STATE

SURE DID — “How Parkland created a rush to arm teachers and school staff across the country,” by Vice News’ Tess Owen: “Eleven months after a mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida, left 17 people dead, a state commission of grieving parents, law enforcement leaders, mental health experts, and state politicians arrived at a stark conclusion: Teachers should carry guns to protect students. The commission, established to investigate gaps in Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School’s security infrastructure, isn’t alone. Since Parkland, scores of American school districts across the country — including many in poor and rural areas — have quietly adopted new policies to arm teachers or school staff.” Read more

THE SLIME

WITH A ‘B’ — “A $3 billion problem: Miami-Dade’s septic tanks are already failing due to sea rise,” by Miami Herald’s Alex Harris: “Miami-Dade has tens of thousands of septic tanks, and a new report reveals most are already malfunctioning — the smelly and unhealthy evidence of which often ends up in people’s yards and homes. It’s a billion-dollar problem that climate change is making worse. As sea level rise encroaches on South Florida, the Miami-Dade County study shows that thousands more residents may be at risk — and soon.” Read more

OH? — “Two South Florida beaches have too much poop in the water, health department says,” by Miami Herald’s Carli Teproff and Howard Cohen: “After several months of being poop-free, it’s a new year at South Florida beaches and so more, well, you know. The beaches of Crandon Park South and North Shore are once again under a swimming advisory after failing to meet water quality standards, the health department announced Wednesday.” Read more

BILL WOULD BUT WILL IT? — “Bill would expedite Everglades restoration projects approved under CERP,” by TCPalm: Read more

... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ...

THIS HOW HONESTY WORKS? — “Rep. Kim Daniels willing to say she filed false financial disclosures,” by Times-Union’s Andrew Pantazi: “Once again, state Rep. Kimberly Daniels is willing to admit she broke the law. Daniels, a Jacksonville Democrat who has repeatedly faced ethics and elections complaints during her eight years in politics, filed an agreement recently with the state that she would confess to filing false financial disclosures. In return, the agreement says, the commission should refer the case to House Speaker Jose Oliva for any further action.” Read more

SPIKE — “Amendment 4 leads to massive daily registration numbers of a non-election year,” by Langston Taylor: “Tampa retreated Tuesday like a voting rights holiday. Or, more accurately, Tampa Bay treated like it was a business day in September or October just weeks before a presidential election. Hillsborough and Pinellas counties a combined 872 applicants to register to vote on the day, the first day Amendment 4 expanded voting rights access to most felons who had completed their sentences.” Read more

PENINSULA AND BEYOND

AN APOLOGY — “To the community and the families of the Groveland Four: We’re sorry,” by Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board: “Two years ago, the Florida Legislature issued a ‘heartfelt apology’ to the four black men wrongly accused of raping a Lake County woman in 1949. Now it’s our turn. We’re sorry for the Orlando Sentinel’s role in this injustice. We’re sorry that the newspaper at the time did between little and nothing to seek the truth. We’re sorry that our coverage of the event and its aftermath lent credibility to the cover-up and the official, racist narrative.” Read more

GET IT TOGETHER — “State audit shows FSU needs tighter control over access to data,” by Tallahassee Democrat’s Byron Dobson: “Florida State University needs to establish stronger controls over employee access to sensitive information such as student Social Security numbers and strengthen its protocol of assessing if security risks exist within its IT units, a state audit has revealed. The Florida Auditor General’s Office also said tighter controls are needed over cash-collection sites on campus and that receipts and deposits should be made in a timely fashion.” Read more

DIRTY PROBLEM — “The Bahamas has a problem: It’s running out of queen conchs,” by Miami Herald’s Alecia Richards: “The Bahamas queen conch, a flamboyant slug whose sunset shell has come to be as much of a calling card for the islands’ easy breezy charm as a staple in its economy, is in deep trouble. In a new study based on a decade of surveys, researchers at Community Conch, a Bahamian nonprofit, and Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium found that in just 10 to 15 years, rapidly shrinking numbers may no longer be able to support commercial fishing in the Bahamas.” Read more

GOD’S WAITING ROOM — “Florida ranks last for senior safety, study finds,” by Orlando Sentinel’s Lisa Cianci: “Florida ranks as the least-safe state for seniors citizens, a new study shows. The study, by TheSeniorList.com, looked at the 50 states and the District of Columbia to determine the risk for people age 65 and over in five categories: fraud, monthly housing costs, the percentage living in poverty, violent injury death rate and the number living alone.” Read more

TRAIL MIX

— “Florida Democrats must like losing — they do it so well,” by Mike Abrams in The Miami Herald: “In early 2018, underfunded and under-resourced, the Florida Democratic Party abdicated the responsibility of organizing the large urban counties to these parallel field organizations. The state party limited itself to organizing the smaller suburban and rural counties. However, the party and candidates are not allowed to coordinate with these outside groups. Consequently, Democratic nominees weren’t able to count on a singular coherent field organization that is deeply rooted in the communities they are responsible for. It was not surprising that many African-American and Hispanic community leaders in the larger counties felt ignored, and Democratic turnout suffered as a result.” Read more

TAKING A LOOK — “Florida Governor Ron DeSantis spends first full day in office in Mexico Beach surveying Hurricane Michael damage,” by News Herald's Collin Breaux: “Newly sworn-in Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis surveyed Hurricane Michael damage in Mexico Beach on his first full day in office. DeSantis got a firsthand look at the debris, destroyed buildings and closed businesses still there three months later while accompanied by local and state officials Wednesday." Read more

ODDS, ENDS, AND FLORIDA MEN

TRANSITION — Adam Wolf has been named director of government affairs at KPMG. He most recently was COS for former Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Calif.) and is also a John Boehner, Pete Sessions and Dave Joyce alum.

— “Norovirus outbreak forces one of the world’s biggest cruise ships to cut trip short,” by FLKeysNews: Read more

— “These are the most stressed out cities in America,” by Zippia’s Chris Kolmar and Heidi Cope: Read more

— “How a Miami tech whiz groomed and molested exchange students — and evaded cops for years,” by Miami Herald’s David Ovalle: Read more

— “As Democrats mull location for 2020 convention, Miami leaders are confident,” by Miami Herald’s Joey Flechas and Kyra Gurney: Read more

— “Surgeon will pay $3k fine for accidentally removing a kidney,” by Palm Beach Post’s Hannah Winston: Read more

— “Florida History: Here are Florida’s top 25 stories of all time,” by Palm Beach Post's Eliot Kleinberg: Read more

— “Second smoke shop hit in Melbourne smash and grab,” by Florida Today’s J.D. Gallop: Read more

JAKE IS A GOOD BOY — “Police dog given Narcan to reverse overdose in Florida,” by AP: “A police dog working at a Florida port was given medication used to reverse an overdose after he suffered a reaction from sniffing drugs on a passenger. The Brevard County Sheriff’s Office says the golden retriever, Jake, had seizure-like symptoms and lost motor skills after detecting drugs on a passenger about to board the Norwegian Epic cruise ship in Port Canaveral, Florida Wednesday.” Read more

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