| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard and Kierra Frazier | | Presented by |  | | | |  Traffic is heavy as thousands evacuate ahead of Hurricane Milton as it churns in the Gulf of Mexico on October 07, 2024. | Spencer Platt/Getty Images | Good morning — our thoughts are with everyone facing Hurricane Milton in the days ahead. Pinellas County residents represented by Republican state Sen. Nick DiCeglie already got hit by Hurricane Helene less than two weeks ago. Now they're staring down Hurricane Milton. After urging his constituents to follow mandatory evacuation orders, DiCeglie did the same by heading to his apartment in Tallahassee to continue working on the storm response. “It’s very unsettling when you leave and know that your house might not be there when you get back,” he said. “This is that one storm where you really have to think about life and death, being with your family.” Milton is expected to make a cataclysmic landfall headed directly for the Tampa Bay area overnight. In an interview with Playbook, DiCeglie reflected on going through the experience as a resident, and how he views the response as a state lawmaker. On what it’s like to go through two storms in two weeks … On a personal level, DiCeglie said his home already got inundated by four feet of water during Helene, even though it sits on stilts. His family lost photos and mementos — “all of the things that you save forever in dozens of storage boxes.” Last week, Florida Senate President-designate Ben Albritton toured DiCeglie’s district with him, an area that includes Treasure Island and Shore Acres. By Saturday, DiCeglie learned Milton was forming. “It's just been a whirlwind of all different emotions and concerns,” he said. “But I've really tried to make sure that — for my constituents — that I've been present, that I've been listening.” On what his constituents have been asking for … After Helene, DiCeglie fielded calls from people who had questions about debris removal — the unsalvageable belongings that people piled into their front lawns to be disposed of in landfills. The state helped rush to move as much debris as possible ahead of Milton, given that it creates additional hazards. Florida will next ask FEMA for a waiver to change how they pay contractors for debris removal so that more help can come from faraway states, where workers otherwise wouldn’t have the incentive to come all the way to Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday. The fear and stress of facing Milton, DiCeglie said, is similar to Hurricane Charley in 2004 — which was forecast to hit Pinellas County but then made an eastward turn before landfall. The difference is that Helene just happened. “To throw this on top of it, at a time when people haven't had the time to recover, haven't had the time to do anything except get the their stuff out of there to prevent mold and mildew — and there were some older folks who didn't have the opportunity to do that — it just magnifies what people are feeling,” he said. On public response to mandatory evacuation orders … DiCeglie, who held a press conference about evacuation orders with other elected officials to “make sure that message was getting out loud and clear,” said that people appeared to be taking them seriously. With every storm some people will decide to ride it out, he said, but after Helene, when 911 fielded tons of calls as the storm surge flowed in, “a lot of these folks have learned that lesson.” On the possibility of a special session to help with the response … DiCeglie is one of the lawmakers who agrees with DeSantis that new condo regulations need to be addressed before the end of the year. As for the storm response, he said for now he’s focused on evacuations and then on getting people back into their homes. He added that he knows insurance affordability will be a looming question during the recovery. “I've always been of the view: If you know we need to go into a special session to make sure that our state is in a good, solid position financially and otherwise, I'm open to that,” he said. “But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. We're just not there right now.” On legislation to help against future storms … DiCeglie is envisioning policies that help elevate homes, saying he’s thinking about how to help people “recover and rebuild in a way that’s consistent with mitigation of flooding.” He’s worried about places like Shore Acres in Northeast St. Petersburg, which is facing its fourth flooding event in just over a year. If people leave, he fears, then the land will sell to investors and rental companies that will transform vibrant, multigenerational beachfront neighborhoods. “My concern is these folks are going to begin to throw their hands up in the air,” he said. “They're going to want to leave the area. And if enough people do that, it's going to start changing the character of these communities.” WHERE’S RON? Gov. DeSantis is holding a press conference about Hurricane Milton at the Emergency Operations Center at 9:30 a.m. 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. | | | |  | ...HURRICANE HOLE... | | |  Highway signage announces the impending arrival of Hurricane Milton and the evacuations zones on Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024, in Port Richey, Florida. | Mike Carlson/AP | FUELING UP — “Florida has fuel but more stations are running out ahead of Hurricane Milton,” by POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie. “Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday afternoon that gasoline and diesel fuel are available in Florida even as more stations were running out of supplies amid evacuations ahead of ‘ominous’ Hurricane Milton. Gasbuddy.com, a web site that usually tracks gasoline prices, said that as of 2 p.m. Tuesday more than 17 percent of the state's gas stations were without fuel, more than double the amount since Monday night. Earlier in the day, 43 percent of stations were without fuel in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area, where Milton appeared headed for landfall on Thursday as a major hurricane, according to Gas Buddy. With motorists lining up at the pumps along evacuation routes, ‘the gas stations run out of fuel,’ DeSantis said during a briefing in Ocala. ‘But the fuel supply is available.’” IN FLIGHT — “Maxwell Frost rides along with Hurricane Hunters into Milton,” by Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics. “The Orlando Democrat rode on an airplane surveying the strength of the storm, which at the time had sustained winds measured at 175 miles per hour. That made it one of the strongest hurricanes on record.” MORE TO THE STORY — “DeSantis’ story of a locked Pinellas landfill is missing context,” reports Tampa Bay Times’ Lawrence Mower. “Gov. Ron DeSantis has repeatedly accused Pinellas County of locking up its main dump over the weekend, requiring state troopers to open its gate by force during the frantic effort to clear debris ahead of Hurricane Milton. That’s an incomplete picture, according to the county. The site’s main entrance was open. The state workers had gone to a secondary entrance, a county spokesperson said. And the site was under state control at the time.” CHANGE OF PLANS — “Biden postpones Germany, Angola trip as Milton barrels toward Florida,” reports POLITICO’s Eli Stokols and Adam Cancryn. “It’s unclear if the trip, already somewhat unusually timed just four weeks before the presidential election, will be rescheduled. But Biden on Tuesday insisted he still planned to visit both Germany and the continent of Africa before he leaves office, saying he would ‘work those out later.’” RECORD BREAKING — “An unusual hurricane season goes from ultra quiet to record busy and spawns Helene and Milton,” reports The Associated Press’ Seth Borenstein. “From Aug. 20 — the traditional start of peak hurricane season — to Sept. 23 it was record quiet, said Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach. Then five hurricanes popped up between Sept. 26 and Oct. 6, more than double the old record of two. On Sunday and Monday, there were three hurricanes in October at the same time — something that never happened before — Klotzbach said.” STOCKING UP — “OneBlood needs blood donations as Florida preps for Hurricane Milton,” reports Central Florida Public Media’s Danielle Prieur. “OneBlood said it is especially in need of O negative, O positive and platelet donors ahead of the storm. Donations are used to stock hospitals for emergency patients, along with patients who are already receiving treatments for cancer and other conditions.”
| | TALLAHASSEE TOPLINE | | DAY IN COURT — “Justices challenge PSC, FPL on rate deal that includes solar expansion,” by POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie. “State Supreme Court justices on Tuesday hammered lawyers representing the Public Service Commission and Florida Power & Light Co. over a 2021 rate case settlement that expanded a utility solar program, which was challenged by some environmental activists and consumer groups. Bradley Marshall, a lawyer with the Earthjustice law firm, told the court that FPL's SolarTogether program pays its participants at the expense of the general body of ratepayers. The program's expansion is part of the $1.5-billion case settlement approved by the commission in 2021 that the court was hearing a challenge to for a second time.” DEFINING ‘RIOT’ — “Federal appeals court backs Florida on protest law, saying peaceful protesters are not threatened,” reports News Service of Florida’s Jim Saunders. “Uncertain about how to interpret the word ‘riot’ in the law, the federal appeals court last year asked for an opinion from the Florida Supreme Court — a relatively unusual move known as certifying a question to the state court. Justices in June issued an opinion saying peaceful protesters are not threatened by the law. Drawing from that opinion, the appeals court panel Monday overturned a preliminary injunction that Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker issued to block the law in 2021.”
| | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | | | 
A "for rent" sign is posted in front of a home on December 12, 2023 in Miami, Florida. | Joe Raedle/Getty Images | AFFORDING RENT — “Miamians are the most rent-burdened people in America — and they’re stressed about it,” reports Miami Herald’s Max Klaver. “More than three-quarters of South Floridians report difficulty paying for usual household expenses, according to the Census Bureau’s newest Household Pulse Survey released on Thursday. That makes greater Miami — which encompasses Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties — one of the most financially stretched metropolitan areas in the country, surpassing even notoriously costly cities like New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco.”
| | | | A message from Uber:   | | | | | CAMPAIGN MODE | | BIG FINE FOR DEM$ — The Florida Democratic Party has agreed to pay a $70,000 civil penalty to the Federal Election Commission for a series of campaign finance law violations, including the party failing to promptly report nearly $1 million in donations and $1 million in spending during the 2022 campaign cycle. The party was also dinged for accepting excessive contributions in the run-up to the midterms. The violations took place before former Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried became the party chair. In its agreement with the FEC the party contends that the problems occurred because of “internal miscommunications” between the party’s former executive director and a compliance consultant, including omitting reports of activity with a new bank account. In a statement, a spokesperson for Florida Democrats said, “Fried took the gavel in February 2023 and since then has been working to rebuild the party's infrastructure from the ground up, including quickly coming to an agreement with the Federal Elections Commission once we learned of unreported campaign finance activity from 2022.” — Gary Fineout NYT/SIENA COLLEGE — “Poll finds support for Florida’s abortion ballot measure is falling short,” by The New York Times’ Kate Zernike. “Conducted between Sept. 29 and Oct. 6, the poll found that 46 percent of likely voters said they would vote for the abortion rights amendment, 38 percent would vote against, and 16 percent said they did not know or refused to answer. Voters in the last category were twice as likely to support former President Donald J. Trump for president as they were to support Vice President Kamala Harris.” ‘EASY DECISION’ — “Former Florida GOP chair backs Harris after Helene ‘trolling,’” reports The Hill’s Tara Suter. “[Al] Cárdenas said in his appearance on ‘Morning Joe’ that he believes ‘Harris and [Tim] Walz may not necessarily be my ideal ticket, but they’re not gonna put America in harm’s way.’ ‘And so I made an easy decision for me,’ the former Sunshine State GOP head said.”
| | DATELINE D.C. | | BIDEN ADMIN WEIGHS IN — “Florida threatens to prosecute TV stations over abortion ad. FCC head calls it ‘dangerous,’” by the Miami Herald’s Claire Healy and Ana Ceballos. “The head of the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday also issued a statement calling the state’s efforts ‘dangerous’ and said TV stations’ right to air political ads are ‘rooted in the First Amendment … Threats against broadcast stations for airing content that conflicts with the government’s views are dangerous and undermine the fundamental principle of free speech,’ FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement.”
| | | | 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 | | |  Former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate is seen on June 08, 2023 in Palm Beach, Florida. | Joe Raedle/Getty Images | IN MILTON’S PATH — “Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, golf resorts are outside Milton’s path. But Truth Social’s offices are at risk,” reports CNBC’s Rebecca Picciotto. “The Truth Social offices are located directly within the zone where Milton is expected to make landfall on the Gulf Coast late Wednesday. Trump is the largest shareholder of Trump Media, a publicly traded company that mainly operates the Truth Social platform. … [Trump Media’s] most recent disclosure, filed Oct. 4, listed the Sarasota address and an area telephone number as the company’s principal executive offices.” WHICH JUDGE? — “Man threatened to kill Fort Pierce judge, possibly targeting Trump jurist,” reports the Palm Beach Post’s Hannah Phillips. “A federal grand jury indicted Eric James Rennert, 65, on Thursday for allegedly threatening to assault, kidnap and kill a judge and the jurist's family. Prosecutors identified the target of Rennert's threats only as a federal judge in St. Lucie County, making [Judge Aileen] Cannon one of two possible candidates. The second, Shaniek Mills Maynard, is a magistrate judge whose primary role is to issue warrants and oversee initial appearances and arraignments.” CLASSIFIED DOCS — “Trump took ‘British naval secrets’ to Mar-a-Lago, says Christopher Steele,” reports The Guardian’s Martin Pengelly. “Steele does not say what the secrets concerned. In a statement sent to the Guardian after this story was published on Tuesday, a spokesperson for the British Ministry of Defence said of Steele’s comments about naval secrets taken to Mar-a-Lago: ‘These claims are untrue.’”
| | ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | | BIRTHDAYS: Mike Grissom with Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney … Keyna Cory, president of Public Affairs Consultants … Diane Rado, editor-in-chief of Florida Phoenix … Former state Senate President Joe Negron. | | | | 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 | | | | |
