| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard and Mia McCarthy | | | GOP PRIMARY RESULTS IN … Trump easily wins Florida although there were signs that he did not command complete loyalty over the state’s Republican voters, report POLITICO’S Gary Fineout and Kimberly Leonard. About a fifth of GOP primary voters chose a different candidate yesterday, compared to 2020 when Trump won Florida by 94 percent. Trump also got just over 900,000 votes this year, compared with more than 1.16 million in 2020. |  Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) speaks with reporters. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | Good morning and welcome to Wednesday. Latino Republicans in Florida are shrugging off Donald Trump’s heated comments over the weekend calling some immigrants “not people” and “animals,” showing the former president’s ability to remain popular even among certain communities he disparages. Florida’s Latino GOP lawmakers emphasized that Hispanic voters are also concerned about illegal immigration and crime, as well as the economy, which they say was better under Trump. And like many Republicans, they said Trump’s rhetoric may be offensive but they still supported his leadership. “I don't necessarily agree with everything that President Trump says, but I agree with just about everything that he does,” said U.S. Rep. Carlos Giménez (R-Fla.). U.S. Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-Fla.) echoed similar sentiments. “He has the ability to connect with people in saying things that people don't say in universities and in elite circles, but I think they understand him,” he said. “And not only that, he has a record to prove it.” Trump has promised to carry out mass deportation if he’s elected in November and to end a policy that gives citizenship to those born to undocumented immigrants in the U.S. Yet he also has made inroads and overtures to Latinos since he first ran in 2016, and they’re among the most influential constituencies in Florida. Florida Republicans with family ties to Cuba who backed Trump in the primary highlighted different parts of his message that they thought resonated. Miami commissioner Kevin Cabrera said immigrants want stability because they “come from countries that are broken” and “that don't have law and order.” Florida Rep. Alina Garcia, a Republican who’s running for supervisor of elections in Miami-Dade County, said Biden’s border policies were unfair to people trying to immigrate to the U.S. legally. Florida Rep. Juan Carlos Porras, a Gen Z Republican of Miami, said, “Hispanics truly value really picking people up from their bootstraps and working for what they believe in — the whole concept of living off of welfare for the government or just having government handouts is something that, at least my community, is not fully in tune with.” The Trump campaign stressed Trump’s comments over the weekend were intended to be narrow. Campaign senior adviser Brian Hughes said Trump was delineating between legal immigrants and people who arrive undocumented and with criminal histories. “‘Animals’ are people who come in illegally and bring with them criminal intent that they exercise all across the US, including in Florida,” he said. Several lawmakers raised the same observation. “I don't think that Hispanics are going to take offense to that because they know very well he’s not talking about Hispanics, he’s talking about very violent criminals that are gang members that were very violent in their own country now they're coming here,” Giménez said. But the comments follow others Trump made previously saying that immigrants are “poisoning the blood” of America. Trump also doubled down on his rhetoric in a Fox News interview with Howard Kurtz, saying his speech helped “stir debate” — even though he acknowledged “they’re not very nice words.” It’s already clear that Trump’s language will play into the general election. Marco Frieri, director of Hispanic media for the Democratic National Committee, called it “racist,” “dehumanizing” and “vile,” saying Trump was resorting to “bigotry and fear mongering.” The Biden campaign launched its Latino outreach program yesterday along with a $30 million bilingual spring media buy. “This latest attack should be a major warning sign to all immigrants who call America home,” Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said. “This dehumanizing rhetoric has the potential to lead to real violence — like it did on January 6 — and places a target on the back of every immigrant in America.” WHERE’S RON? Gov. DeSantis will be in Miami Beach this morning signing legislation on homelessness. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com
| | | | A message from the Florida Bankers Association: DON’T LET DURBIN-MARSHALL STEAL YOUR DATA: Senators Dick Durbin and Roger Marshall introduced legislation allowing corporate mega-stores, like Walmart and Target, to process credit card transactions based solely on what is cheapest for them, disregarding YOUR data security. The Durbin-Marshall Credit Card Bill would shift billions in consumer spending to higher-risk payment networks, weakening America’s payment system and jeopardizing the security of hardworking Floridians. Learn more: https://handsoffmyrewards.com/security/ | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | |  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis | Charlie Neibergall/AP |
MIGRANT FLIGHTS IV — DeSantis: Flying Haitian migrants to Martha’s Vineyard is on the table, reports POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury. Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested Tuesday that Florida could sponsor a new wave of migrant flights, this time using the controversial state-funded program to transport Haitians who enter the U.S. after fleeing the chaos unfolding in the island nation.
The comments, made during an appearance on a podcast hosted by conservative radio host Dana Loesch, come as Florida braces for a potential influx of Haitian migrants entering the state, which has one of the largest populations of Haitians and Haitian-Americans in the U.S. COMING UP — State proposes to spend $122M for land, then lease it back for agriculture, reports POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie. Florida environmental officials are proposing that the state spend $122 million for 25,000 acres of agricultural land in Southwest Florida — and then lease it back to the landowners for free. The governor and Cabinet on March 26 will consider the proposal and four other conservation purchases totaling $219 million. — “Museum of Florida History closed till late 2026; state launches survey for exhibit ideas,” reports of the Tallahassee Democrat | | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | |
EVACUATION MISSIONS — “Florida missionary tells of ‘risky’ overnight rescue out of Haiti,” reports the Miami Herald’s Ana Ceballos and McClathy’s Michael Wilner. “U.S. citizens stranded in Haiti are increasingly resorting to private rescue missions – dangerous journeys without the support or often knowledge of the U.S. or Haitian governments – to leave the country as it devolves into a state of anarchy, with powerful gangs vying for control of the streets of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince.”
DOUBLE DUTY — “There’s a new supervisor of elections in town: Glen Gilzean preps for first elections in new role,” reports WMFE’s Danielle Prieur. “I am in both capacities until the board takes action, and the board is planning to take action,” Gilzean said. “I’ve been taking time off to focus solely on the elections. The Supervisor of Elections role is very important and I’ve been laser focused on this.” BUDGET BREAKDOWN — “New College of Florida to receive millions from state, but money comes with requirements,” reports News Service of Florida. “New College President Richard Corcoran and the school’s Board of Trustees would determine the way the money is spent. But $5 million would have to go toward providing scholarships to students … An additional $15 million would have to be spent for specific purposes laid out in the budget, with $10 million going to temporary student housing; $2 million to scholarships ‘to support student recruitment;’ $2 million to ‘technology upgrades and improvements, academic coaches, and library resources;’ and $1 million to improve campus security.” ‘I’M NOT GIVING UP’ — ‘Miami-Dade’s push to protect outdoor workers dies after state ban. What’s next?,” by the Miami Herald’s Ashley Miznazi. “Outdoor workers in Miami-Dade looking for water, breaks and shade from the sweltering South Florida sun went to their politicians for help. But after powerful pushback from agriculture and construction lobbyists, on Tuesday Miami-Dade County Commission put an end to a landmark bill that would’ve protected 80,000 outdoor workers. The County Commission withdrew the bill because they couldn’t legally pass it after Florida’s legislature passed a bill banning any local government from setting their own heat enforcement rules.” | | | | Easily connect with the right N.Y. State influencers and foster the right relationships to champion your policy priorities. POLITICO Pro. Inside New York. Learn more. | | | | | | | CAMPAIGN MODE | |
RESULTS IN — Maria Rodriguez of Pembroke Pines won the race for city commissioner for District 3 last night, making her the first Colombian-American to be elected to public office in Broward.
ENTERING HOUSE RACE — Liz Dahan has joined the Democratic primary to unseat U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a Republican whose district includes Pinellas County. Dahan previously was a partner leading environmental, social, and governance advisory for the Brunswick firm. She also previously worked for former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s advisory group. VOTE IN — “Trump doubles down on controversial Jewish voters' comments after casting primary ballot,” reports the Palm Beach Post’s Antonio Fins. “Trump cast a vote for himself in Tuesday's Florida primary, then doubled down on his recent controversial comments about Jewish voters. Earlier this week, Trump … said any Jewish voter who backs Democratic Party candidates ‘hates Israel’ and ‘hates their religion.’ He stuck by those comments after voting, in person, with former first lady Melania Trump at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center in his town of Palm Beach just after 4 p.m.” PURPLE TO RED — “A battleground no more? Florida's growing GOP dominance dims presidential fight in state,” reports John Kennedy of USA Today Network - Florida. “Florida’s reputation as the nation’s biggest battleground state has faded: Republicans now hold the biggest advantage in voter registration either major party has held in almost four decades … The gulf could make Florida an afterthought in this year’s presidential contest.” | | | | A message from the Florida Bankers Association:   | | | | | DATELINE D.C. | |
‘FAILED TO COOPERATE’ — More federal scrutiny of Citizens after DeSantis remarks, reports POLITICO’s Gary Fineout. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), chair of the Senate Budget Committee, wrote Monday to Citizens Property Insurance demanding for a second time that the carrier turn over information and documents regarding how it would handle losses related to natural disasters such as hurricanes. Whitehouse made a similar request back in November which brought firm pushback from the CEO who oversees Citizens.
Whitehouse sent his latest request on the heels of DeSantis making a comment on national cable television that Citizens was “not solvent” even though the carrier has a roughly $5 billion surplus ahead of the upcoming storm season. |  Peter Navarro speaks to reporters before he heads to prison, March 19, 2024, in Miami, Florida. | Adriana Gomez Licon/AP |
‘I’m PISSED’ — Ex-Trump aide Peter Navarro blasts justice system before heading to federal prison, reports POLITICO’s Kimberly Leonard and Kyle Cheney. The ex-trade adviser to former President Donald Trump spent his last moments before reporting to federal prison railing against Democrats and the justice system, claiming they conspired to lock him up for refusing to comply with a congressional subpoena.
In a meandering 20-minute press conference at a strip mall parking lot a block away from the prison, Navarro — who repeatedly urged reporters to “fact-check me” — argued that his refusal to cooperate with congressional investigators investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol was really a high-minded effort to protect the separation of powers. DOJ ASK — “The feds want to hear from Miami victims of a potential $25 million Ponzi scheme,” by the Miami Herald’s David J. Neal. “Fraud charges have been filed against Siddharth Jawahar, who was arrested in Miami in January. But now, in March, federal prosecutors want to hear from more people in Miami, Kansas City or elsewhere who might have invested in Jawahar’s company.” | | TRANSITION TIME | | | | | | JOIN US ON 3/21 FOR A TALK ON FINANCIAL LITERACY: Americans from all communities should be able to save, build wealth, and escape generational poverty, but doing so requires financial literacy. How can government and industry ensure access to digital financial tools to help all Americans achieve this? Join POLITICO on March 21 as we explore how Congress, regulators, financial institutions and nonprofits are working to improve financial literacy education for all. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | Jon Levin is now comms director for the Kentucky Democratic Party. He previously was press secretary/digital director for Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.). | | | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | | |
BIRTHDAYS: Aakash Patel, member of Hillsborough Community College Board of Trustees ... Bill Helmich of Helmich Consulting
| | | | A message from the Florida Bankers Association: CONGRESS: OPPOSE THE DURBIN-MARSHALL CREDIT CARD BILL:
Cyber-attacks are on the rise, with large retailers like Target falling victim to breaches that expose customer information to hackers and foreign countries. Now, mega-retailers like Walmart and Home Depot want to leave you even more vulnerable to credit card cyber-attacks so they can pocket billions of dollars in additional profits. After Senator Dick Durbin passed similar routing mandates for debit cards in 2010, the fraud rate for debit cards increased by NEARLY 60%. A similar outcome for credit cards would likely cost OVER $6 BILLION in additional fraud and likely require passing much of the bill onto consumers. Congress must protect consumers, preserve the integrity of the payment ecosystem, and reject this detrimental and unnecessary government intervention into the U.S. payment system. Learn more: https://handsoffmyrewards.com/security/ | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
