| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard | |  People gather outside the Florida Supreme Court, Feb. 7, 2024, in Tallahassee, Florida. | Brendan Farrington/AP |
Good morning and welcome to April.
The silence is almost over. The state Supreme Court postponed major decisions on abortion and cannabis for as long as they could, but now the justices are out of time. They’ve promised to release “out-of-calendar” opinions at 4 p.m. today — and those are expected to determine whether voters will be able to weigh in on making abortion broadly legal and whether to decriminalize cannabis for recreational adult use. The court has a state constitutional deadline of April 1 to issue decisions on ballot measures, although there has been some speculation about what happens if the court effectively ignores that and doesn’t rule. (Here’s where to hit the “refresh” button to find out what they decide, and where to follow POLITICO health care reporter Arek Sarkissian.) The groups pushing abortion rights and cannabis legalization have gotten enough signatures to qualify, but the state Supreme Court is deciding whether each initiative’s ballot language is clear and whether it sticks to a single topic. Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he expects the cannabis ballot language to go before voters (though he said he disapproves of the drug’s smell), but he hasn’t weighed in on the abortion ballot measure. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has urged the justices to reject both measures. Abortion rights and cannabis legalization have been popular topics when they’ve been put before voters in other states, even conservative ones, so there’s plenty of evidence that the same would be true in Florida. Sixty percent of voters would need to approve the referendums for them to pass. The bigger open question is whether the ballot measures — particularly abortion rights — would have any bearing on how Democrats do in Florida. The issues are expected to bring in more young voters, but a POLITICO analysis found that while voters support expanding access to the procedure when it’s on the ballot, it hasn’t always resulted in states subsequently electing more Democrats. After all, a $15 minimum wage was on the ballot the last time both Joe Biden and Donald Trump were at the top of the ticket in Florida together — in 2020 — yet the referendum passed and Trump won Florida by more than 3 points. Since then, Republicans have registered tons more voters. Should the court strike down both ballot referendums, or just one of them, then voters won’t have a chance to weigh in on the critical issues in November. Democrats are prepared in that scenario to argue that the only way to secure abortion rights is to elect more Democrats. Finally, the court will at some point weigh in on a separate abortion topic: A law that would make it illegal to have an abortion after 15 weeks into a pregnancy, including in cases of rape and incest. If the state Supreme Court upholds the ban, then it’ll trigger a second, more-restrictive six week limit. The justices do not face a similar time crunch here. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com
|  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | |
ANOTHER COURT MATTER — A federal trial pitting several civil and voting rights groups against the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis and local election officials will kick off this morning in a Tallahassee courtroom.
The trial, which could last up to two weeks, is yet another challenge to a Florida voting law. The legal battle this time centers primarily over new restrictions that were placed on third party groups that register voters, including copying information from voter registration forms and shortening the time in which the groups must turn over applications. The new law also increases fines on violators. The case — which consolidates a handful of related lawsuits — also challenges a provision that limits who can request a mail-in-ballot on behalf of a voter. There have already been several rulings in connection to the case. A federal judge has already struck down a part of the law that banned non-citizens from collecting or handling voter registration applications. Additionally, U.S. Chief District Judge Mark Walker upheld a portion of the law that said some people with felony convictions could not collect or handle applications. In a written opening statement filed last week, attorneys for Secretary of State Cord Byrd maintain the restrictions are reasonable and have come in the wake of some voter registration groups who “behaved badly” and been fined. Those challenging the law maintain that it intentionally discriminates against Black and Hispanic voters and places undue burdens on the right to vote. — Gary Fineout BIG PICTURE — “How stopping squatters became a hot conservative crusade,” by Semafor’s David Weigel. “In multiple states, including New York and Florida, viral stories about people seizing homes they don’t own have inspired legislation to stop it. There’s no organized partisan opposition to those bills. But Republicans have seized the initiative, warning of a squatter crisis inflamed by liberal crime policies and illegal immigration; a popular migrant TikTok influencer’s video urging people to ‘invade’ and ‘seize’ homes burned through conservative media just as the Florida bill was passing.”
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The Cinderella Castle inside Magic Kingdom Park is pictured on June 30, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. | Olga Thompson/Walt Disney World Resort via Getty Images | A WHOLE NEW WORLD — “Are Disney and DeSantis making up? Both look ready to work together,” reports Skyler Swisher of the Orlando Sentinel. “Lawsuits have been settled, and now, both sides are striking a collaborative tone. A lot of money is at stake. Disney is planning to invest billions of dollars into its theme parks over the next decade. Florida stands to benefit with new jobs, more tourists and huge economic investments. Disney needs to compete with Universal Studios’ fourth theme park, Epic Universe, opening in 2025. Working with Florida politicians will be key to success.” CULTURE WARS — “In federal court, a question for Florida: What pronouns can teachers use?” by Dara Kam of News Service of Florida. “A federal judge on Friday heard arguments in a court battle over a law restricting educators’ use of personal pronouns and titles in schools, in one of a series of challenges to Florida policies targeting LGBTQ people. Plaintiffs Katie Wood, a transgender Hillsborough County teacher, and AV Schwandes, a nonbinary teacher fired last year by Florida Virtual School, are seeking preliminary injunctions as part of a lawsuit challenging the 2023 law, passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.” IMPLEMENTATION QUESTIONS — “Florida's new social media law is raising some concerns about whether it will actually work,” reports Adrian Andrews of WFSU. “There are still many unanswered questions, like how can social media companies verify someone's age? How will the state even know if sites are checking for that sort of thing? And what about the First Amendment?” DESANTIS FOCUS — “DeSantis is passing bills all over the place after his failed presidential campaign. They have a common theme,” reports Madison Hall of Business Insider. “In the two months since he's returned to Florida full-time, DeSantis has been busy, signing several bills and orders, each marked with a common theme: safety and security.” YOU BET — “March Madness fuels Florida’s newest sports betting craze: online gambling,” reports the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Shira Moolten. “The legalization of sports betting has taken an annual event already steeped in gambling even further. For bettors, it’s the perfect time of year: so many teams are competing at once that if you lose money, you can always bet on another one, or just bet on multiple games at the same time. The Seminole Tribe’s sports betting app, the only legal app in Florida, is offering daily deals through a March Madness-centered marketing campaign coupled with relentless ads on social media.” BOOMERANG — “They came for Florida’s sun and sand. They got soaring costs and a culture war,” reports NBC News’ Shannon Pettypiece. “While hundreds of thousands of new residents have flocked to the state on the promise of beautiful weather, no income tax and lower costs, nearly 500,000 left in 2022, according to the most recent census data. Contributing to their move was a perfect storm of soaring insurance costs, a hostile political environment, worsening traffic and extreme weather, according to interviews with more than a dozen recent transplants and longtime residents who left the state in the past two years.”
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HUMANITARIAN CRISIS — “‘Countdown to death’: Haiti’s health crisis grows as gangs destroy hospitals, pharmacies,” reports Jacqueline Charles of the Miami Herald. “As an alliance of criminal gangs continue to sow chaos and turn Port-au-Prince into a war zone, Haitians are being forced to suspend treatment for illnesses like kidney disease, cancer and common infectious killers like HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. Paralyzed by fear and a sense of helplessness, they have few options.”
LOCAL LOOK — “DeSantis praised a Miami Beach homeless law. Is it as ‘compassionate’ as the mayor says?” by the Miami Herald’s Aaron Leibowitz. “Police reports from nearly two dozen camping arrests made since the revised ordinance took effect, as well as body-worn camera footage from several of those arrests, show Miami Beach officers asking only vague questions about whether homeless people want shelter or other assistance before detaining them. Officers do not appear to discuss the availability of beds in specific shelters, offer transportation to the shelters or explain that declining services will result in their immediate arrest.” TAX TAB — “onePulse won’t provide records for $6.5 million in spending, Orange County says,” reports the Orlando Sentinel’s Tayeba Hussein. “Orange County is accusing the now-defunct onePulse Foundation of obstructing its efforts to understand exactly how the group spent millions in tourist tax funds — and the dispute may be headed to the courts.” MAYORAL RACE — “St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch says he’ll run for reelection in 2026,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Colleen Wright. “Welch, 59, told the Tampa Bay Times that he ‘definitely’ plans to seek another term, but that isn’t his current focus. He said his administration is locked in on finalizing documents with the Tampa Bay Rays and their development partner Hines for a new stadium and surrounding redevelopment and getting enough votes to make it happen.” — “Inside the elder-abuse case against Orlando commissioner Regina Hill,” by the Orlando Sentinel’s Annie Martin and Ryan Gillespie.
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | | | | 
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump embraces Rep. Byron Donalds, (R-Fla.), left, after speaking at the Black Conservative Federation's Annual BCF Honors Gala at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center in Columbia, South Carolina, Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. | Andrew Harnik/AP | FORMER CRITIC— “Byron Donalds, potential VP pick, once attacked Trump and praised outsourcing, privatizing entitlements,’ reports CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski and Em Steck. “CNN’s KFile unearthed numerous examples of Donalds directly criticizing Trump in social media posts and interviews in 2011 and 2012, when he was an outspoken tea party activist running — unsuccessfully, then — for a seat in Congress. He attacked Trump’s protectionist stances on trade and called out Trump for his birtherism comments about Obama.” SPEAKING OF WHICH — “Inside Donald Trump’s ‘Apprentice-style’ search for a running mate,” by Meridith McGraw, Natalie Allison and Burgess Everett. “Trump’s aides are vetting potential vice presidential candidates at Mar-a-Lago as the former president floats an expansive list of names in private conversations. Susie Wiles, a top adviser to Trump, is leading a close-to-the-vest process of narrowing a list of around a dozen lawmakers and other Republican personalities under consideration, according to multiple people familiar with the process.” EXCLUSIVE — “Biden campaign announces leadership team for Florida,” reports POLITICO’s Gary Fineout. “The campaign is tapping Jasmine Burney-Clark as state director and Phillip Jerez and Jackie Lee as senior advisers. Burney-Clark is the founder and former director of Equal Ground Education Fund and Action Fund, which works to expand Black political power in the state … Jerez is currently executive director of the Florida Democratic Party and has been involved in statewide campaigns previously, including when he worked as political director for Charlie Crist’s 2022 campaign for governor. Lee is the founding partner of JLee Strategies and was the state director for the Biden campaign in Florida in 2020.” PRIMARY WATCH — “‘As nasty as I wanna be’: Bad boy rapper Luther Campbell eyes Florida Congressional seat,” reports The Bulwark’s Marc Caputo. Campbell is “promising a raw and unfiltered celebrity-based campaign with a reality show twist: It is to be filmed as a documentary … Campbell tells The Bulwark he hopes some of those players, musicians, and celebrities [he has worked with] will help finance his campaign if he decides to run for Florida’s 20th Congressional District in a primary bid against incumbent Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick.” ‘24 WATCH — “Hillsborough Democrat Pat Kemp to challenge Laurel Lee for Congress,” reports William March of the Tampa Bay Times. “Hillsborough County Commissioner Pat Kemp … said she was heavily recruited for the run by national and state-level Democratic organizations and considers the seat winnable ... She said the current sparring over the Republican primary, with Donald Trump calling for a Republican opponent to run in a primary against Lee, is part of her motivation to run.”
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POLITICAL LIABILITY? — “Biden is unlikely to reimpose oil sanctions on Venezuela,” reports the Wall Street Journal’s Kejal Vyas, Patricia Garip and Juan Forero. “The Biden administration is leaning away from reimposing sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry despite President Nicolás Maduro’s moves to bar leading opposition candidates from the country’s July elections, said people familiar with the matter. U.S. officials are concerned that reverting to Trump-era sanctions that accelerated the decline of Venezuela’s oil production would raise the price of gas at U.S. pumps and prompt more migration from Venezuela as President Joe Biden campaigns for re-election in November.”
| | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | |
BIRTHDAY: Former U.S. Rep. Peter Deutsch
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