Unemployment woes prompt DeSantis shakeup — State keeps coronavirus secrets — The state senator who wanted to resign — Layoffs at Trump resort

Hello and welcome to Thursday.

The daily rundown — Between Tuesday night and Wednesday night, the number of Florida coronavirus cases increased 4.1 percent, to 22,519; hospitalizations went up 6.5 percent, to 3,249; and deaths rose 7.5 percent, to 614.


Pulled from the starting lineup — Well, it’s come to this. After weeks where Florida residents loudly complained about the state’s overloaded and overwhelmed unemployment system, Gov. Ron DeSantis sort of kind of fired his own appointee who had been in charge of it. DeSantis didn’t terminate Ken Lawson as executive director of the Department of Economic Opportunity, but he did remove him from all coronavirus “response” activities. The governor acknowledged he was not happy with what was going on with the unemployment system, and how he was frustrated by his inability to get basic answers on its performance.

A message — Lawson, a former prosecutor and Marine who successfully transitioned from a role under Gov. Rick Scott to DeSantis, had already apologized for the failures of the system. But now he’s been sidelined in the first major shake-up of the administration since the coronavirus pandemic started. And even more unusual — a removal that didn’t get announced by a late afternoon press release but instead was publicly delivered by the state’s chief executive.

Anxious — As he deals with the fallout from the coronavirus, DeSantis on Wednesday also said he’s about to rev up his own task force (ala The White House) on when to reopen and reengage the state’s economy. As some elected officials in other parts of the nation remain much more cautious about the timeline, DeSantis says he wants to hear from those outside of government about when move to forward.

Ball of confusion? — We’ll be waiting eagerly to see who becomes part of this group and how it plays out. We’ll also be eagerly awaiting to see if a new boss can fix the unemployment mess — although there are already skeptics out there given Florida’s ugly track record at technology upgrades. And the band played on.

— WHERE'S RON? — Gov. DeSantis is scheduled to be in Tallahassee.





... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ...

CHANGES — “Florida’s broken unemployment system to get new boss, DeSantis says,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Lawrence Mower: “A month into Florida’s historic unemployment crisis, Gov. Ron DeSantis is replacing the man in charge of the state’s broken unemployment system. In a stunning admission, DeSantis said during a Wednesday news conference that he still doesn’t have basic information about how many unemployment applications have been processed or how many people have been paid — data that his counterparts in other states have been touting regularly.”

HOT TEMPER — “Tom Wright resigned from the Senate. Galvano talked him back,” by POLITICO’s Matt Dixon: In an April 6 email with the subject line “my resignation,” Wright said he was unhappy after being told by Senate Chief of Staff Lisa Vickers that he had no power to hire and fire his own staff, as he thought he had authority to do. “Unfortunately, my understanding from you…and what Lisa Vickers is telling me are two different issues,” Wright, a Republican, wrote to Senate President Bill Galvano. “In the past you have expressed that our staff is our responsibility and our decision as to who works for us as Senators.”

THE FIGHT — “New law used against recreational pot proposal,” by News Service of Florida’s Jim Saunders: “The Florida Senate is using a controversial new law to try to bolster arguments against a proposed constitutional amendment that seeks to allow people to use recreational marijuana. Lawyers for the Senate and other opponents have argued in recent months that the Florida Supreme Court should block the proposed amendment because it would conflict with federal laws that make marijuana illegal.”

CORONAVIRUS UPDATES

BAD TIMING — “As the coronavirus penetrates rural Florida, 2 hospitals will close,” by POLITICO’s Arek Sarkissian: As the coronavirus creeps into rural Florida, residents in two lower-income counties that rely heavily on agriculture and the state prison system for jobs soon will find themselves without hospitals. Health facilities in Suwannee and Bradford counties will shutter at the end of April, the latest victims of a wave of consolidations and closures that has swept across rural America. The trend began well before Covid-19 gripped the country, but the timing in Florida has drawn new attention to a growing national problem.

ANOTHER CRISIS — “10 years after BP oil spill, COVID-19 crisis feels like deja-vu,” by Pensacola News Journal’s Kevin Robinson: “On a warm, breezy spring afternoon, Pensacola Beach was quietly fighting for life. The beach should have been thrumming with the movement of cars and tourists and spring breakers and bartenders. Instead, there was stillness.”

OPENING THE DOOR — “‘A delicate situation.’ Plans to reopen Florida begin as COVID-19 deaths top 600,” by Miami Herald’s David Smiley: “As South Florida’s hospitals continued to grapple with COVID-19-related hospitalizations and deaths, Florida’s politicians are plotting a path to reopen society without reigniting the outbreak that has forced schools, businesses and transit hubs into a prolonged lockdown. Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Wednesday that, with social distancing measures on track to prevent an overwhelming spike in cases, he would establish a task force to help map Florida’s return to normalcy.”

NICE GESTURE — “Fort Lauderdale pub removes $10,000 stapled to walls, donates to unemployed staff,” by Sun Sentinel’s Phillip Valys: “When South Florida restaurants shut down last month to halt the spread of the new coronavirus, Hott Leggz complied, laying off all but three of the pub’s 25 employees as they pivoted to takeout and delivery. Then (Juliana) Sodre struck on a way to help her now-unemployed staff. ‘We were like, there’s literally money on the walls, so let’s donate it all to the employees,’ Sodre says. ‘We always had a running joke that if something went wrong with the bar, at least we had worst-case-scenario money. Well, this is a worst-case scenario.’”

NO GO — “Miami superintendent: Return to school this year is 'not only unlikely but inprudent,'” by Miami Herald’s Colleen Wright: “The goalposts for when schools should shift from online classes back to in-person, brick-and-mortar learning have been moving almost weekly since all Florida schools shuttered March 13...Superintendents began publicly doubting the Florida Department of Education’s current timeline to return to schools May 1. And now they’re nearly condemning Gov. Ron DeSantis’ recent comments about having students return to schools for a few weeks if the conditions are right. On Wednesday, Miami Superintendent Alberto Carvalho took a clear stance, tweeting that reopening schools this school year is ‘not only unlikely but imprudent.’”

Hmm — Director Billy Corben tweeted his encouragement after Carvalho after took his stance including this: “This is leadership. Responsible and encouraging decisions that make our community safer. Not what we’ve seen from other local, state and federal officials: corruption, dysfunction and destruction. Alberto Carvalho for Miami-Dade mayor! #DraftCarvalho2020”

THAT WORKED OUT WELL — “WWE cuts wrestlers after Florida deems it ‘essential,’ by Associated Press: “WWE started releasing professional wrestlers on Wednesday in budget cuts related to the coronavirus pandemic. The moves came even with the company allowed to continue to run live TV shows in Florida after Gov. Ron DeSantis deemed WWE an essential business.”

TAKING AIM — “Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ coronavirus response ripped again at Biden event,” by Miami Herald’s David Smiley: "But the event began with an introduction by guest host Florida state Rep. Shevrin Jones that was heavy on criticism of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ decision-making during the crisis. ‘Florida, we’re not in good shape,’ said Jones, a Democrat and Biden campaign surrogate."

KEPT SECRET NEARLY A WEEK — “First Florida inmates die of COVID-19,” by News Service of Florida’s Ana Ceballos: “Two inmates at a Northwest Florida prison have died as a result of COVID-19, the local medical examiner’s office confirmed on Wednesday. Florida Department of Corrections officials have kept the inmate fatalities at Blackwater River Correctional Facility secret for nearly a week, despite numerous questions from The News Service of Florida about deaths at the Santa Rosa County prison.”

MORE STATE SECRETS — “State tight lipped about coronavirus testing for disabilities workers,” by News Service of Florida’s Christine Sexton: “While Governor Ron DeSantis announced this week the state would test nursing-home employees for COVID-19, his administration is being tight-lipped about whether it is testing workers at state-owned facilities for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities.”

MORE SECRETS — “ICE refuses to say if its contractors have COVID-19. A federal judge just ordered them to,” by Miami Herald’s Monique O. Madan: “A federal magistrate judge in Miami has ordered U.S. immigration officials to disclose how many of their detainees and third-party contractors at three South Florida detention centers have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.”

BACKLASH — “Lawsuits, petitions, online outrage follow Hillsborough’s nighttime curfew,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Anastasia Dawson, Divya Kumar and Charlie Frago: “Whether it’s called social distancing, a stay at home order, or a safer-at-home policy, Hillsborough County leaders say they’ve had the same intent all along. If you’re inside Hillsborough County lines, and you aren’t performing an essential duty like working in a nursing home or buying groceries for your family, you need to stay home. But the isolation was already making people restless. So for some, news of a new local restriction — a mandatory 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew approved Monday — was a step too far.”

NOT NOW — “Tampa Mayor Jane Castor says criticizing Gov. Ron DeSantis is a “waste of time,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Charlie Frago: "She’s been a regular on CNN and other national outlets since the coronavirus crisis began. But Tampa Mayor Jane Castor hasn’t taken the bait, offered by nearly all of them, to bash Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Castor, a Democrat, says she doesn’t see the point of bashing the Republican governor, even though they haven’t spoken since March 2. ‘That’s not my style,’ Castor told the Tampa Bay Times Wednesday. ‘Frankly, I think it’s just a waste of time to be critical of others.’”

SAD — “It was a regular poker game among eight friends. Within weeks, coronavirus killed three and infected all,” by Sun Sentinel’s Andrew Boryga: “A decade ago, eight retirees with ties to New York City became fast friends over their love of poker, running into each other over and over in South Florida casinos. Before long, they started their own poker game in the card room of an Aventura condominium that became something of a ritual….They all played together for the last time on March 12. In a matter of weeks, coronavirus claimed the lives of three members of that poker family and debilitated the other five.”

HELP ON THE WAY — “State sends team to Clay County to help at long-term care facilities,” by Florida Times-Union’s David Bauerlein: “A special state team will work with Clay County’s long-term care facilities to battle the spread of the coronavirus that has fueled 61 cases of COVID-19 among residents and staffs in the county. ‘We have a state incident management team that is now in Clay County,’ county emergency operations director John Ward said Wednesday during a media briefing.”

— “Seminole nursing home has dozens of coronavirus cases; patients taken to local hospitals,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Kavitha Surana and Mark Puente

BAD NEWS — “’They rot in the field.’ Florida farmers face destroying surplus crop,” by Orlando Sentinel’s Austin Fuller: "Fresh cucumbers are piled high in trucks at Long & Scott Farms, but a big chunk of this year’s harvest could be in jeopardy because of coronavirus. Nearly a third of the farm’s 400 acres of pickle-variety cucumbers go to places like restaurants, said president Hank Scott, and the virus has destroyed that demand across the state and the rest of the nation. Florida farmers such as Scott are facing challenges getting their products to customers as measures to combat the virus also harm one of the state’s biggest economic engines.”

REQUEST — “Coronavirus Florida: ACLU asks prosecutors and sheriffs to reduce jail populations,” by Herald-Tribune’s Timothy Fanning: “Inmate rights advocates are asking the state attorney and sheriffs to reduce the jail populations in Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties to help protect inmates from COVID-19. Among the requests, the area’s American Civil Liberties Union chapter is asking for a series of sweeping steps to help prevent the virus from entering jails and containing it if it erupts.”

— “Coronavirus spreads at Broward sheriff’s office,” by Sun Sentinel’s Eileen Kelley

— “Coronavirus Florida: The virus has put a freeze on python hunting, but not the way you think,” by Palm Beach Post’s Kimberly Miller

— “Bicycling gains favor at outlet amid coronavirus, some worry about safety,” by Naples Daily News’ Louis Berney

— “Treasure Coast lags in coronavirus testing, but Cleveland Clinic provides relief,” by Treasure Coast Newspapers’ Joshua Solomon

— “Sarasota, Manatee law enforcement choose to educate, not charge social distancing violations,” by Herald-Tribune’s Anna Bryson

— “Medical groups say classrooms should remain closed,” by News Service of Florida





TRAIL MIX

MARQUEE MATCHUP — “Debbie Mucarsel-Powell outraises Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez in Florida 26 race,” by Miami Herald’s Alex Daugherty: “The first head-to-head fundraising quarter in Miami’s most competitive congressional race has a clear winner: Democratic Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell. Mucarsel-Powell, a first-term lawmaker elected in 2018, raised $742,000 from January through March. Her total is close to double the haul of Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, her likely Republican opponent in the November election.”

SPENDING IT DOWN — “Legal fees continue to gobble up money from Andrew Gillum’s political committee,” by USA Today Network-Florida Capital Bureau’s James Call: "Legal fees continue to eat up the originally $3 million nest egg left over from a 2018 gubernatorial campaign that former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum had planned to use to fund future political initiatives.”

— “Rick Scott adapts his governor’s playbook to Washington’s coronavirus response,” by National Journal’s Zach Cohen

— “Democrats urge preparations for huge increase in mail-in voting,” by Florida Politics’ Scott Powers

— “Naples plans vote on Ethics Naples referendum for August primary,” by Naples Daily News’ Brittany Carloni

TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP

HELP WANTED — “Small business fund runs dry as program fails to reach hardest hit,” by New York Times’ Jim Tankersley, Emily Cochrane and Emily Flitter: “‘We always knew we would have to come back and replenish it — we thought we were going to have an outreach problem, letting people know that this program existed,” said Mr. Rubio, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. ‘It’s an ironic situation, because everyone’s in favor of it,’ he said of the program. ‘I just want to see action.’”

FALLOUT — “Trump resort in Doral lays off or furloughs 560 workers during coronavirus shutdown,” by Miami Herald’s David J. Neal and Rob Wile: “The Trump National Doral resort has laid off 560 workers in reaction to the business drought from the tourism industry shutdown. The multi-course golf resort and hotel closed March 23 under orders that closed all Miami-Dade County hotels and motels because of the coronavirus crisis.”

BIG ASK — “Vern Buchanan pushes for bailout money to support local media,” by Florida Politics’ Jacob Ogles: "U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan wants to make sure local media have access to federal bailout dollars. “Due to the unprecedented public health crisis and the resulting economic challenges facing our country, many news organizations are on the brink of collapse,” he wrote in a letter to congressional leadership.

REMEMBER THIS? — “Trial for Giuliani associates slips until after election,” by POLITICO’s Josh Gerstein and Betsy Woodruff Swan: A criminal trial for several associates of President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani has been postponed until well after the November election. A federal judge in New York on Wednesday ordered that the trial of Lev Parnas, Igor Fruman and two other men on campaign-finance-related charges be postponed from this October to February of next year.

— “Marco Rubio says country must prepare to go back to work and expect more virus deaths,” by Florida Politics’ Scott Powers

— “President Trump is putting his name on stimulus checks. Sen. Marco Rubio says he ‘probably wouldn’t have done that,’” by Sun Sentinel’s Skyler Swisher

PENINSULA AND BEYOND

REVERSAL — “Corps flip-flops on damage from hunt for oil in Big Cypress. ‘Suspicious,’ environmentalists say,” by Miami Herald’s Adriana Brasileiro: “The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has abruptly changed its mind about the damage a Texas-based oil exploration company has done in the Big Cypress National Preserve. The reversal came just a month after the agency found Burnett Oil Company’s seismic testing had caused 'channelization' and done extensive damage to 'high quality wet prairie and dwarf cypress' — work the agency said violated federal environmental law.”

FINDINGS — “Report: Halladay on drugs, doing stunts when plane crashed,” by Associated Press’ Terry Spencer: “Baseball Hall of Famer Roy Halladay had high levels of amphetamines in his system and was doing extreme acrobatics when he lost control of his small plane and nosedived into the Gulf of Mexico in 2017, killing him, a National Transportation Safety Board report issued Wednesday said.”

WINNING? — “Haiti declares early victory over coronavirus, plans to reopen factories,” by Miami Herald’s Jacqueline Charles: “Haiti’s prime minister declared an early victory Wednesday over COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus, and announced that the country will be reopening textile factories next week.”

ODDS, ENDS, AND FLORIDA MEN

— “Florida man charged with threatening to shoot up Publix,” by CBS 12’s Gary Detman: “Investigators say a man threatened a mass shooting at a Publix store in Florida, all because he didn't think enough people wore face masks while out and about during the coronavirus pandemic.”

— “Man exposes himself to woman at TJ Maxx in Fort Walton Beach,” by WEAR staff: “An enlisted Air Force Airman was arrested Friday in Fort Walton Beach after exposing himself to a woman shopping at TJ Maxx, deputies report. Michael Leary, 20, of Colorado, is charged with indecent exposure. According to an Okaloosa County Sheriff's report, he is a member of the Air Force at Hurlburt Field.”

— “Erin Andrews donates Beyond Meat burgers to Tampa General Hospital staff,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Gabrielle Calise

BIRTHDAYS: Florida Senate President Bill Galvano … former Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) is 79



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