Author: opinionstogo

 

* This state has now gone from swing to red scare. But Scott, DeSantis, Gaetz, Trump etc., notwithstanding, legitimate hope will be on the ballot. But it will, of course, depend on turnout. And it greatly helps to have abortion, marijuana–and even Andrew Warren–on that ballot.

* “This is wrong—what’s happening to this guy.” That was Rick Scott, who attended the Trump trial. No, he wasn’t a surrogate for missing-in-action family members but an agenda-driven Trump defender and fellow fraudster.

* Wild card: No-party voters make up more than 25% of the state’s active registered voters.

* The DNC has launched a bilingual billboard campaign in Florida on abortion bans. They’re located at high-traffic sites in Tampa, Orlando, Miami and Gainesville.

* State public schools should be teaching the evils of authoritarianism, not communism. This isn’t the Cold War; it’s gubernatorial autocracy.

* According to Leapfrog Hospital Safety Guide, Florida hospitals ranked 13^th in the nation for patient safety.

* Amid the political jokes at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner was the brutal acknowledgment by Kelly O’Donnell, president of the association, that some 100 journalists have been killed so far in Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.

* “Nixon might have survived if there’d been a Fox News.”–John Dean.

* A recent alliterative Politico headline: “A Porn Star, a President and a Publisher Named Pecker.”

* Eight newspapers, including the Chicago Tribune, the Denver Post and the New York Daily News, are suing OpenAI and Microsoft over allegations that the tech companies have been “purloining millions” of copyrighted news articles without permission or payment.

 

* “Mission Accomplished” update: Iraq recently passed a law that imposes heavy prison sentences on gay and transgender people.

* Beyond ironic that Israel should find itself on the other side of genocidal condemnations.

 

* The Rays have unveiled their gray and neon City Connect uniforms. Speaking of connecting, too bad the Rays don’t put a premium on learning English. Community connections aren’t maximized when interpreters are needed. Just ask the Lightning.

* In 2028, Los Angeles will become the third city to host three Olympics. It previously hosted in 1984 and 1932. The other two with a three-peat: Paris (2024, 1924, 1900) and London (2012, 1948, 1908).

* The top-ranked University of Tampa baseball team is seeking its 9^th national championship.

* “The Snoop Dog Arizona Bowl.” You can’t make this up. Maybe there’s a “Kid Rock White Trash Bowl” coming.

* Donald Trump has taken over the Republican Party. Call it “The Art of the Steal.”

* “Screw Nikki Haley; we don’t need her endorsement.”–Steve Bannon.

* The question remains blatantly begged: Why does Putin prefer Trump as president? BTW, when word of Trump’s (Russia-aided) win in 2016 spread globally, Russia’s parliament, the Duma, was in session and broke into applause.

* Trump captured 13% of the vote in New York’s Manhattan borough in 2020. These are those who know him best.

* The RNC reported raising $87.2 million in 2023, its worst fundraising year since 2013.

* “A Gestapo administration.”–How Trump characterized the Biden Administration to GOP donors.

* “A con artist will never get control of this party.”–Marco Rubio. That was then: Feb. 2016.

* It’s been noted how court proceedings will limit Trump’s campaigning. But that is misleading. Trump, especially when he’s not sleeping or passing gas, is using the trial trappings as de facto campaigning—by reminding his cult base and spineless GOP enablers that he’s an anti-“witchhunt” crusader.

* It’s appropriate, as well as redundant, when the contemptible Trump is held in contempt.

* It’s his nightmare. He can’t control the script.”–Trump biographer Tim O’Brien on Trump’s criminal hush-money trial. Court rules require Trump to be present throughout the trial.

* “When stupidity is considered patriotism, it is unsafe to be intelligent.”–Isaac Asimov.

* “At least (Putin’s) a leader—unlike what we have in this country.”–Trump, in a skewering shot at President Barack Obama, in 2015.

* Glockwork Orange: Trump-supporting Arizona GOP Senate hopeful Kari Lake’s advice to supporters to prepare for the 2024 campaign: “Strap on a Glock.”

* “The eyes of the world are upon us, and history will judge what we do here and now.”–Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, on Congress’ passage of the foreign aid bill package that includes Ukraine and Israel.

* “Russia would struggle to sustain its assault on Ukraine without China’s support.”–Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who recently met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

* “I don’t know whether (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) is afraid of peace, incapable of peace or just doesn’t want peace. But he has been an obstacle to the two-state solution. … He should resign.”–Nancy Pelosi.

* “The only way we are going to keep our standard of living rising is to build a society that produces people who can keep inventing the future.”–Thomas Friedman, author of “The World Is Flat.”

* “Voters make decisions based on their lived experience.”–Mark Zuckerberg.

* “The left celebrates difference more than commonality.”–(Liberal) author Michael Tomasky.

* “Latinas remain the largest group of women of color in the nation impacted by current or likely abortion bans.”–NBC News.

* “Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else.”–Margaret Mead.

* “An optimist thinks that this is the best possible world. A pessimist fears that this is true.”–Robert Oppenheimer.

* “It’s surreal to drive by stores that are selling cannabis. A lot of people laughed at us, saying ‘This will never happen.’”–Vivian McPeak, a co-founder of Seattle’s Hempfest more than 30 years ago.

* “If we are going to call for peace, let’s do it peacefully.”–Florida Democratic Chairperson Nikki Fried.

* “You can’t go back. That’s gone. But I’m glad that I was in public life for 20 years, yesterday, and not today.”–Former Tampa Mayor and Florida Governor Bob Martinez, 89, on the political era he served in—and its comparison to today’s bitter contentiousness.

* “I think (Andrew Warren’s) got an awful lot of support.”–Former Tampa Mayor Sandy Freedman.

* “I’m excited by the progress that’s being made to bring Brightline to Tampa.”–Mayor Jane Castor.

* “Build on the vibrant atmosphere at Amalie Arena by providing a complementary and unique experience.”–Josh Taube, CEO of Strategic Property Partners, on announcing plans to add an office complex, a mixed-use entertainment destination and a condo tower to the Water Street neighborhood.

Any country’s borders are a matter of sovereign priority. The U.S. is no exception. But Mexico is not Canada. It still enables a migrant mess. The solution, as has been made obvious, is not a Mexican-subsidized wall or inhumane border practices.

What the migrant surge requires is an approach that directly impacts the motivation of those migrating up from Central America to the U.S.-Mexico border. We know the poverty, cartel-gang terrorism and corruption they are escaping from in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. That’s why it’s imperative that America help address the root cause—not merely implement an ad hoc policy that guarantees bumper-sticker nativism and border chaos.

That’s why we need what amounts to a Marshall Plan for Central America. One that helps law enforcement; addresses governments’ susceptibility to corruption; stimulates economic development with hemispheric trade partners; and prioritizes diplomatic relations. In short, a program that incentivizes locals to stay and grow sustainable communities rather than opt out and flee north. In sum, a program that is not some Yanqui giveaway, but one that is a pragmatic, prime example of enlightened self-interest—not unlike the original Marshall Plan in post World War II Europe.

“If we want to solve the immigration issue, we need to go to the root of the cause—and that is that people can’t find safety and opportunity in Central America,” bluntly underscored Julian Castro, a former HUD secretary, San Antonio mayor and presidential candidate.

Utah Republican Gov. Spencer Cox, chairman of the National Governors Association, leads an initiative called Disagree Better that aims to reduce political divisiveness. He recently met with President Biden in a rare moment of cordiality and bipartisanship. No, it’s not exactly an updated version of Democratic Speaker Tip O’Neill and Republican President Ronald Reagan sharing beers, but anything that lessens democracy-threatening, America-diminishing, zero-sum political pandering and brawling can certainly help.

 

Finally. A crackdown on Tampa scooter abandonment. Or is it? Riders now have to park rented e-vehicles in city-approved designated areas. If not, a penalty fee of $5 will be imposed. $5! Up those fees into serious fines or start seeing scooters in dumpsters instead of on sidewalks.

* “(Republicans have) no clue about the power of women … (but they’re) about to find out.” –President Joe Biden, after signing an executive order aimed at advancing the study of women’s health.

* “I’m not backing down.”–President Biden on his plans to forgive billions of dollars in student loans.

* A Biden fundraiser at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall raised more than $25 million. Yes, it helped that Barack Obama and Bill Clinton joined Biden.

* Harry Sloan: We’ll be seeing that name again. He’s the former chairman of MGM and a backer of Nikki Haley. He has now agreed to help raise money for Biden’s re-election campaign. Among his outreach plans: recruiting old-school “business Republicans” to support Biden and hosting a major Biden fundraiser later this year.

*”The Florida Supreme Court puts abortion on the ballot—and hands Trump a serious problem.”–USA Today: A reminder that abortion rights will be front and center in Florida.

* The Biden campaign, in an appeal to Nikki Haley voters, has released a 30-second “Save America, Join Us” ad that will run across a wide array of digital platforms.

* “Out for Biden-Harris”: A national program to mobilize LGBTQ+ voters, communities and leaders across the country.

* The U.S.-Israel relationship is looking increasingly fraught over the Hamas war and the tragic Gaza mess. That includes, according to the UN, the killing of at least 190 aid workers in Gaza through March. And it hardly helps that President Biden and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu don’t get along.

* History—and common-sense, political reality—has shown that a third party candidate is much more of a “spoiler” than a viable candidate. In 2024, a third party choice (say, “No Labels”) can become an ironic, de-facto stalking horse for Trump, and that, of course, includes Robert Kennedy Jr. Recall that Ross Perot hardly helped President George H.W. Bush in 1992, anymore than Ralph Nader helped Al Gore in 2000. Spoilers spoil. No alert needed.

* “A healthy relationship (with China) must provide a level playing field for firms and workers in both countries.” That was Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, in her visit to China. You can bet that China joining the WTO in 2001 was brought up. That’s because Beijing had agreed to follow the same global rules governing imports, exports and foreign investments that most countries in the world were following. In short, China had agreed to make its own playing field as level as the rest of the world. In truth, it hasn’t.