| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard and Kierra Frazier | | Presented by |  | | | |  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis delivers remarks and answers questions at a news conference Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. | John Raoux/AP Photo | Good morning from West Palm Beach and welcome to Tuesday. Gov. Ron DeSantis will be here this morning to unveil the next steps in the state-led investigation into the second apparent assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump this year. DeSantis announced his plans to launch the investigation soon after the arrest of the suspect, Ryan Routh, 58. On Monday, Routh was charged with gun crimes in connection with the incident that happened at Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course. The state investigation will be a joint effort between the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Florida Highway Patrol, the governor’s office said. DeSantis elaborated on his decision during a press conference in Orlando on Monday, but this morning’s event is expected to reveal even more. “I understand that the feds are involved, but we do believe that there were multiple violations of state law,” DeSantis said, per POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury. “We also believe that there’s a need to make sure that the truth about all of this comes out in a way that’s credible.” The governor said he thought the multiple federal criminal charges against Trump could taint the federal investigation, or at least perceptions around it. “I look to the federal government, with all due respect to them — those same agencies that are prosecuting Trump in that jurisdiction are now going to be investigating this? I just think that may not be the best thing for this country,” he said. DeSantis isn’t the only Florida Republican raising concerns about the federal investigation. GOP Rep. Mike Waltz, who’s a member of the congressional task force investigating the July assassination attempt, said federal investigators needed to share more information about the attempts. He told CNN that it was “unacceptable” to say little about it, per POLITICO’s Emmy Martin. “This is such a unique moment in American history and so dangerous,” he said, adding that in such cases he thought it would be appropriate to “break established protocols” on communication because otherwise false information might proliferate. Other Florida pols are snapping into action. Sen. Rick Scott in a post on X said he was working on a bill that would provide Trump with the same level of Secret Service protection that the president and vice president receive. On Sunday, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told reporters that security was not as high for Trump because he is not a sitting president. But on Monday he told reporters the current security level at Mar-a-Lago was "the highest it could possibly be" and Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe Jr. said the number of agents was similar to when Trump was president. The FBI still has a lot of unanswered questions about the suspect — including whether Routh had been in the area before — but Rowe maintains that the Secret Service's actions were "exemplary" because agents were able to stop anything from happening. Trump allies and security experts told POLITICO they were concerned about Trump’s safety when he’s golfing and those who’ve been to Mar-a-Lago a good deal appear to have noticed the vulnerabilities. “One of the reasons I think the shooter chose that location was that it's a known place for photographers, for paparazzi and for others to go to that fifth hole,” Waltz said on CNN. “It's kind of buttonholed into a tight space right there near the road.” Waltz said the task force will ask for another briefing this week. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget in the campaign reporting that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com.
| | | | A message from Uber: How does Uber expand transit access in Florida?
Every week, Uber helps over 3,000 people get to and from Brightline stations across Florida. On average, riders travel nearly 6 miles to connect to Brightline, extending their reach far beyond the tracks. Learn more about how Uber is working with transit agencies in Florida and across the country. | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | |  Mannika Hopkins talks with her fourth graders on the first day of school at Greenville Elementary in Greenville, Florida, on Aug. 14, 2024. | Kate Payne/AP | AMENDMENT 1 — “Florida Republicans have remade the state’s education system. The next step is partisan school boards,” reports POLITICO’s Andrew Atterbury. “Floridians will vote on a ballot measure this November that would add party labels to local school board races for the first time in decades, potentially supercharging what have already become contentious contests across the state. These offices have been under increasing scrutiny since the pandemic, when the lessons and content taught to students became a front and center issue that grabbed the attention of parents and policymakers. Gov. Ron DeSantis and his allies view winning control of school boards as key to reshaping the state’s education system, something GOP leaders have been chipping away at over the last few years.” … POLITICO Florida will have a story on every amendment on the November ballot this week. Pro subscribers receive the reporting first, but stay tuned here in Playbook for each day’s story. CHILD VAX RATES — “Florida pediatricians concerned and 'exhausted' as kids' vaccination rate drops,” reports USA Today Network — Florida’s Ana Goñi-Lessan. “The vaccination rate of Florida kindergarteners has fallen to 90.6 percent, the lowest in over a decade, and concerned pediatricians say they are exhausted trying to combat anti-vax information – including from the state government.” FLORIDA GUN LAWS — “Federal court to hear NRA challenge to rifle-purchasing age,” reports News Service of Florida’s Jim Saunders. “The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last week scheduled an Oct. 22 hearing in Atlanta, as it considers a law that passed in the aftermath of the February 2018 mass shooting at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that killed 17 people… As the Florida lawsuit has played out, the U.S. Supreme Court has issued closely watched opinions in other gun-related cases. That has resulted in attorneys for Florida and the NRA debating how the Supreme Court opinions should apply to the dispute about the constitutionality of the age restriction.” A ‘SMALL FRACTION’ — “Florida looks to clamp down on noncitizen voters despite outcry that it's a non-issue,” reports USA Today Network — Florida’s Gray Rohrer. “[Deputy Secretary of State Brad] McVay also noted 144 people on Florida voter rolls were found to be noncitizens last month. In footnotes, he also cited the arrests of two noncitizens for voting illegally in the last two years. Florida has one of the largest noncitizen populations, with more than 2.16 million residents who don’t have U.S. citizenship, according to a U.S. Census Bureau survey. At the same time, critics of DeSantis say that his and other Republicans' alarm over foreign nationals possibly casting ballots in U.S. elections is scaremongering.” ALTERING ROUTINES — “Central Florida Transgender clinic pivots treatments after federal appeals court enforces ban,” reports Central Florida Public Media’s Joe Mario Pedersen. “Spektrum Health uses an advanced nursing practice model of primary care, meaning registered nurse practitioners are the primary healthcare providers for patients at the clinic. Florida’s ban attacked this model by requiring transgender adults to receive [hormone replacement therapy] from a physician. Nursing practitioners were the most accessible way for transgender patients to receive their medication. So Spektrum slightly changed its model and hired an MD physician.” EDUCATION FUNDS — “Refunds available for families invested in prepaid college program,” reports Florida Phoenix’s Jay Waagmeester. “More than $130 million in refunds remain for Florida Prepaid College Plan families following years of unchanged in-state higher education tuition, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Monday. According to DeSantis, the government has issued $850 million in refunds, and more than $130 million remain unclaimed.”
| | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | TODAY — “Miami-Dade County prepares to vote on controversial incinerator site proposal,” reports Chris Hush of NBC 6 South Florida. “Miami Dade County Commissioners could vote on a controversial incinerator proposal on Tuesday — a year and a half after the Covanta plant burned down in Doral. A massive showing of opposition is expected at Tuesday’s commission meeting at the Miami-Dade Government Center including more than 20 organizations, most environmental activists, who plan to protest the vote. Since the Miami-Dade incinerator burned down in February 2023, the county has been seeking a location to build a new waste-to-energy plant.” … Twenty-four organizations and businesses, including the Sierra Club, sent a letter to Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava on Monday urging her to reject all proposed sites, warning they’d emit toxins into the air that would harm people and pollute conservation areas. TRANSPARENT ELECTIONS — “After years of attacks on voting, can new elections offices in Broward and Palm Beach counties increase voter confidence?” reports South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Anthony Man. “Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link said she hopes the greater public transparency in the new location will reduce the influence of election deniers. … The philosophical and operational pillars of both facilities, which were designed independently, are greatly enhanced transparency and extensive security, both for elections workers and the ballots.” TODAY — “Miami-Dade’s choice: Spare 150 seniors homelessness or save taxpayers $14 million,” reports the Florida Bulldog’s Noreen Marcus. “The county’s Homeless Trust is about to buy and retrofit for seniors the La Quinta Inn, a 105-room motel in Cutler Bay, a town in South Miami-Dade. It’s one of the first efforts in Florida to respond to the new state law by considering the purchase of a motel to house the homeless. If approved Tuesday, the $14-million purchase, capping a bitter commission fight, will mark a change in the county’s focus from makeshift shelters to rent-controlled, permanent housing for individuals and families.”
| | | | A message from Uber:   | | | | | CAMPAIGN MODE | | NEW INVESTMENT — “Democrats put up $25 million to reach voters in 10 states in fierce fight for Senate majority,” reports Bill Barrow of The Associated Press. “Trying to defend their narrow Senate majority with a challenging slate of contests on Republican-leaning turf, [the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is] pumping $25 million into expanded voter outreach across 10 states … The latest investment will be distributed across Arizona, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin.” NEW AD — Sen. Rick Scott’s latest TV, radio and digital ad will run in Spanish across the state, as part of the seven-figure buy his campaign announced a few days ago. Scott introduces himself in Spanish at the start of the ad and then a voice-over criticizes the record of his Democratic opponent, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, as “socialism.” FLIPPING SEATS — “Central Florida races key to Democrats’ strategy to break GOP [legislative] supermajority,” reports Orlando Sentinel’s Jeffrey Schweers. “While other Republican seats are in play, mainly in South Florida, Democrats are most confident they can makes gains among six House districts in Central Florida that form a ring around the Democratic stronghold of Orlando. They represent some of the bluest regions of the state now represented by Republicans and past presidential election results suggest they are winnable.” ANTI-AMENDMENTS 3 and 4 PUSH — “Ron DeSantis-tied committee spends big on Georgia Ritz-Carlton retreat as it fights pot, abortion initiatives in Florida,” reports Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics. “The Florida Freedom Fund, a committee opposing initiatives to legalize recreational marijuana and restore abortion access, blew through nearly $116,000 between Aug. 31 and Sept. 6, even though it raised just over $41,000 in the same time. Nearly all of that spending covered lodging and event space at The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee, in Greensboro, Georgia. That spend, reported on Sept. 5, constitutes nearly $115,000 in campaign expenditures, more than a third of the total campaign expenses since the committee launched in May.” CLASHES OVER AMENDMENT 4 — “Door knocking, TV ads, websites: The abortion battle heats up in Florida and it’s getting ugly,” reports South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Cindy Krischer Goodman. “Campaigns for and against an amendment enshrining abortion rights in Florida’s constitution are heating up, with election day less than two months away. Organizations are holding news conferences, volunteers are going door-to-door, church leaders are denouncing the amendment from their pulpits, groups are slamming the airwaves with advertisements, and phone banks are reaching out to voters.” CROSSING THE AISLE — “Cory Mills’ GOP Primary opponent endorses Democrat Jennifer Adams,” reports Florida Politics’ Jacob Ogles. “A Republican who launched a Primary challenge to U.S. Rep. Cory Mills will now support Mills’ Democratic opponent. Mike Johnson, a conservative activist, said he will vote for Jennifer Adams this November in Florida’s 7th Congressional District.”
| | DATELINE D.C. | | PROPERTY INSURANCE WOES — “Florida’s property insurance crisis is Rick Scott’s fault, Dems say. Is it?” reports Tampa Bay Times’ Kirby Wilson and Lawrence Mower. “Lawmakers and industry experts say [Rick] Scott’s policies as governor did not help create a stable insurance market, but other factors outside his control have had a bigger effect on consumers. A June survey conducted by Florida Atlantic University found that the greatest share of surveyed voters blamed Gov. Ron DeSantis for the insurance crisis — not Scott.” ‘NECESSARY TO SAVE LIVES’ — “Bilirakis Declares Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) Imperfect but Necessary, Open to Change,” reports The Floridian’s Grayson Bakich. “Rep. [Gus] Bilirakis reiterated his openness to revising the bill in his recent comments to The Floridian. He suggested that states' Attorney Generals could be given more authority within the bill and touched upon parental rights. ‘The bottom line is, we need to pass legislation, okay? Powerful [emphasis his] legislation that will make a difference because these kids are dying, and these big cat companies are not doing a damn thing about it.’”
| | | | A message from Uber: Expanding transit access in Florida
Did you know that every week, Uber helps over 3,000 people get to and from Brightline stations across Florida?
Key stat: On average, riders travel nearly 6 miles to reach these stations—extending Brightline’s reach far beyond the tracks.
From MiamiCentral to Aventura, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, Uber is making it easier for Floridians to access public transit.
Learn more about how Uber partners with transit agencies to improve access to public transportation. | | | | | TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP | | |  Law enforcement officials work outside of the Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. | Lynne Sladky/AP Photo | ANOTHER THREAT — “Evacuate everyone ‘except for Trump.’ Mom admits bomb threat at his West Palm golf course,” reports Hannah Phillips of the Palm Beach Post. “Days before a man hid in the bushes at Trump International Golf Club and aimed a rifle toward the former president, a 60-year-old woman from Boca Raton told a judge she threatened to detonate a bomb there three months earlier.”
| | | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | | | — “Hurricane Ivan still haunts Escambia, Santa Rosa counties after 20 years,” reports Pensacola News Journal’s Troy Moon. — “Hot queen conch seeks cool mates: Florida’s new ‘speed dating’ service to save endangered shellfish,” reports The Guardian’s Richard Luscombe. BIRTHDAYS: Orlando Sentinel’s Jeffrey Schweers … Mary Beth Tyson, photographer. | | | | 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 | | | | |
