| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard | |  Republican presidential candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a campaign event at Hudson's Smokehouse BBQ, Saturday, Jan. 20, 2024, in Lexington, S.C. | Sean Rayford/AP |
Good morning and welcome to Monday.
Gov. Ron DeSantis seems to be itching to make as much of a splash in the remaining 2 and ½ years of his second term as he did in his first. DeSantis and Florida first lady Casey DeSantis turned to his most loyal donors this weekend to get advice about how to do a better job getting the word out about Florida’s conservative winning streak. The feedback was sought during a gratitude-filled retreat at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. Guests said the governor seemed to be relaxed and having fun, and that — to the surprise of some — there was no talk about running for the White House again in 2028. Instead, donors said states like Florida had the power to lead on major policy issues, and that’s what the weekend was about. “It’s been very intensely all about Florida,” said DeSantis donor Evan Trestman of Louisiana. One person the weekend was definitely not about? Donald Trump. DeSantis didn’t talk about his ex-rival other than to say offhand on Saturday night that he would help Republicans raise money in 2024, including for the presidential, per two donors present. But even when he’s ignored, Trump still makes it difficult for DeSantis to regain the starpower he once had. A year ago, it seemed every move DeSantis made in Florida became national news, and some polls had him besting Trump in early voting states. Today, the political axis has shifted. For the first time in his life, DeSantis has lost a race. And as DeSantis showered donors with attention, Trump was gearing up for an eye-popping $50 million Palm Beach billionaire fundraiser just over an hour’s drive away. And even when DeSantis says little about Trump, the former president keeps inserting himself into Florida politics by endorsing candidates — not just for 2024 but for 2026, when DeSantis will be term-limited out. (One donor, asked for anonymity to relay private conversations, said he asked DeSantis about 2026 and the governor said it was too early to choose favorites for statewide offices, that the GOP has many strong options and that he’s focused on the work he’s doing now.) DeSantis has kept a busy schedule in Florida in recent months by signing bills into law, traveling the state to tout his agenda and resuming day-to-day activities. He also just recently came to a win-win deal with Walt Disney World that closed a two-year chapter on a bitter feud and promises to bring more jobs to the state. DeSantis donor Robert Salvador praised the governor for dropping “success story after success story.” “I think he can get there again,” Salvador said of DeSantis climbing back to the fame he reached last year. “It’s just that Trump is a mega star — but things can change real fast.” DeSantis still regularly gets asked about Trump’s chances in 2024, including by Fox Business Network's Maria Bartiromo on Sunday morning. “I am very, very confident that Florida is going to be a strong performance for Republicans up and down the ticket,” DeSantis said without naming Trump, before moving on to criticizing President Joe Biden. “I think people want to see a change, that’s what this country needs,” DeSantis added, again not naming Trump. “For Biden to get reelected with this record would be a disaster for the country.” And asked about whether he was planning to run in 2028, DeSantis replied: “I don’t have any plans for the future. We are focused a lot on all the great things we are doing in Florida.” SPOTTED: U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, U.S. Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, Lt. Gov. Jeanette Núñez, Central Florida Tourism Oversight District Administrator Stephanie Kopelousos, Secretary of State Cord Byrd, Education Commissioner Manny Diaz, Secretary of the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration Jason Weida and Chris Spencer, the official soon to oversee the state’s pension system. WHERE’s Ron? Gov. DeSantis is holding a press conference in Sanford, Florida, at 10 a.m. with Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo and Florida Department of Children and Families Secretary Shevaun Harris. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com | | | | Access New York bill updates and Congressional activity in areas that matter to you, and use our exclusive insights to see what’s on the Albany agenda. Learn more. | | | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | |  Florida’s pension plan supported 10 of the 12 directors put forward by Disney management. | AP | |
HELPING HANDS — Disney last week overwhelmingly won its proxy battle over a group of investors seeking to win seats on the company board of directors. One of the institutional investors that backed CEO Bob Iger was the state of Florida.
Florida’s pension plan — which as of March 31 held about 2.3 million shares with a market value of $288 million — supported 10 of the 12 directors put forward by Disney management. The Florida State Board of Administration, which is overseen by three trustees including Gov. Ron DeSantis, withheld support for two of Disney’s nominees based on the state’s governance and proxy voting guidelines, including a concern that one nominee was serving on too many corporate boards. State Board of Administration voting disclosure records show that Florida recorded its position on the proxy fight in February. Steve Koncar, director of external affairs for the SBA, said the decision to back most of the management slate of directors was “in line with our fiduciary duty and our proxy voting guidelines.” Those guidelines state that dissident directors must prove change is preferable to the “status quo” and will add value to board deliberations. — Gary Fineout INCOMPLETE INFO — “Florida says undocumented immigrants' health care costs taxpayers. Does data back it up?” by Ana Goñi-Lessan of USA Today - Florida. “Florida officials blame undocumented immigrants for depleting over $500 million in taxpayer money for health care costs, but the state's own report doesn't exactly back up that claim. The state's financial estimate does not take into account how many undocumented immigrants actually pay their own medical bills and that they're not required to report their legal status to hospitals, meaning the true costs can't be quantified. While the report gives a figure of $566 million, it also says the real number could be anywhere between $0 and $2.6 billion.” JOB CHANGE — “Florida lawmaker tapped as next president of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota,” reports News Service of Florida. “Tommy Gregory, a lawyer and Air Force veteran who is chairperson of the state House Judiciary Committee, was named Friday as the next president of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota. Gregory, R-Lakewood Ranch, was chosen by the school’s Board of Trustees to succeed President Carol Probstfeld, who announced last year that she will retire July 1.” | | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | |  Taylor Swift performs during "The Eras Tour," Friday, May 5, 2023, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. | George Walker IV/File, AP | LOOK WHAT SHE MADE THEM DO — “Could Taylor Swift help Florida’s tourism? Visit Orlando bets $600,000 on it,” reports Florida Politics’ Gabrielle Russon. “That’s the amount that Visit Orlando spent on an advertisement running in the new Swift concert film debuting last month on Disney+.” STILL WAITING — “Despite promising transparency on 1,4-dioxane, Seminole stalls releasing water test results,” reports the Orlando Sentinel’s Martin E. Comas and Kevin Spear. “It’s been nine months since Seminole officials promised the county would be more transparent to its residents about the amount of 1,4-dioxane — a suspected carcinogen — in their drinking water. But in that time, they’ve done almost nothing to communicate what their regular tests of drinking water wells, some of which are known to have been previously tainted, have found.” INJUNCTION — “Judge slaps injunction on suspended Orlando commissioner Regina Hill,” reports the Orlando Sentinel’s Ryan Gillespie. “A judge Friday put a permanent injunction on suspended Orlando City Commissioner Regina Hill, preventing her from interacting with the elderly constituent she is accused of defrauding. Judge Heather Higbee’s ruling came after more than six hours of testimony on the matter Friday, which revealed ‘troubling’ new details of Hill’s spending of the 96-year-old woman’s money on vitamin infusions and a facelift.” IMPLEMENTATION — “New Florida law may force Gainesville to forbid sleeping and camping on public property,” reports Nora O'Neill of the Gainesville Sun. “Proponents of the legislation, including DeSantis, see it as a way to ensure homeless people have the resources needed to ‘get back on their feet,’ while creating cleaner and safer streets. Critics say the law, which goes into effect Oct. 1, unfairly targets and harms a vulnerable population.” | | CAMPAIGN MODE | |
GOOD NEWS — “Florida GOP officer George Riley found after going missing,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Justin Garcia. “George Riley, who was selected in March to return as executive director for the Florida Republican Party, was found by law enforcement after going missing for two days. Osceola County Sheriff’s Office posted on social media that Riley, 43, was reported missing on April 3 near Centerview Boulevard.”
JUMPING IN — “Primary challengers start to emerge for Florida Rep. Laurel Lee,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ William March. “One is public relations consultant James Judge, who has filed against U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor, but said Friday he is ‘answering President Trump’s call for a true conservative’ to challenge Lee. In 2022, Judge, of Dade City, ran against Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, and received 43 percent of the vote. Another Lee challenger is Brian Perras of Port Richey. He has run for Congress in Florida and California and got 4 percent of the primary vote against Bilirakis in 2022.” BUCKING THE TREND? — “Abortion rights advocates are on a ballot initiative winning streak. 2024 could change that,” reports CNN’s Arit John and Steve Contorno. “Even if Democrats make gains in the state, Florida presents a unique challenge for abortion rights advocates. Unlike other states, where a simple majority determined the outcome of referendums, ballot measures need to eclipse 60 percent of the vote total to pass. It’s also an incredibly expensive state to launch persuasion campaigns.” RECORD SET — Trump campaign says it raised more than $50 million at Saturday fundraiser, reports POLITICO’s Alex Isenstadt. Former President Donald Trump raised more than $50 million at a Saturday evening fundraiser, where he once again pressed President Joe Biden to debate him, according to a campaign aide. Trump spoke for about 45 minutes before 117 seated guests.
|  Former President Donald Trump, right, arrives with Melania Trump for a GOP fundraiser, Saturday, April 6, 2024, in Palm Beach, Florida. | Lynne Sladky/AP | RETURN OF EX-FLOTUS — Melania Trump is back, set to hold event for Log Cabin Republicans, reports POLITICO’s Alex Isenstadt. Melania Trump, who has been largely absent from the campaign trail during her husband’s presidential run, is back on the GOP fundraising circuit. The former first lady is set to hold her first major political event of the year — a fundraiser for the Log Cabin Republicans on April 20 at Mar-a-Lago, according to an invitation obtained by POLITICO. RE-ELECT BID LAUNCHED — “Facing controversy, Amesty kicks off reelection bid with Donald Trump Jr.,” reports the Orlando Sentinel’s Annie Martin. “Under a cloud of controversy, state Rep. Carolina Amesty is touting a campaign fundraiser next week featuring an appearance from Donald Trump Jr. as she kicks off her bid for reelection. The endorsement from the former president’s oldest son — a boost for the freshman lawmaker — comes just weeks after the Orlando Sentinel published an investigation showing that five individuals listed in licensing documents as professors at her family university never actually worked there.” MULLING IT — “‘People will be a whole lot better off.’ Uncle Luke to consider running for Congress,” reports the Miami Herald’s C. Isaiah Smalls II. “The 63-year-old former 2 Live Crew frontman is still considering whether to run to unseat incumbent Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick in Florida’s 20th Congressional District. First reported by The Bulwark, Campbell even created a political committee named Don’t Stop Get It Get It and informally met with political consultants to further explore the possibility of a campaign, which he said was inspired by the Republican party’s consistent attacks on Black Americans.”
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DEADLINE AHEAD — “U.S. government’s charter flights out of Haiti to end soon,” reports the Miami Herald’s Jacqueline Charles and Michael Wilner. “If you’re a U.S. citizen in Haiti and still looking to escape the violence in Port-au-Prince, there are only a few days left to do so with assistance from the U.S. government. Potential travelers in Haiti have been notified that U.S. government charter flights are not expected to continue after Friday, April 12, the State Department said.”
TROLLING — “Democrats introduce bill to rename Miami prison after Trump,” reports Axios’ Andrew Solender. “It's a response to a bill proposed by several House Republicans to rename Dulles Airport in D.C. after the ex-president and presumptive GOP presidential nominee … The two-page measure would redesignate the Miami Federal Correctional Institution in Florida as the ‘Donald J. Trump Federal Correctional Institution.’” WORKPLACE HAZARD — “OSHA investigating construction companies tied to fatal Fort Lauderdale crane incident,” reports the Miami Herald’s Raisa Habersham and Devoun Cetoute. “The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation into the West Palm Beach-based company Kast Construction, plus Phoenix Rigging & Erecting LLC of Mableton, Georgia, and Maxim Crane Works LP of Wilder, Kentucky, after a portion of a crane fell onto the Southeast Third Avenue bridge in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday. A construction worker was killed, and three others were injured. Prior to Thursday, Kast had been cited with two OSHA violations at other job sites in Florida.” | | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | |
— Here are the best times to watch the solar eclipse today, per the Miami Herald
— Florida’s first family is talking about getting a second dog for the governor’s mansion to accompany the rescue they brought in earlier this year, donors who attended the retreat in Hollywood this weekend relayed to Playbook BIRTHDAYS: Former Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater …. Elizabeth Eggert Lovell, former associate vice president for university relations at Florida State University | | | | 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 | | | | |
