Florida
DeSantis’ retaliation against Disney hurts Florida, former governors and lawmakers say
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Saying Gov. Ron DeSantis has followed the autocratic examples of governments in Russia and China, a group of mostly Republican former high-level government officials has called the Florida governor’s takeover of Disney World’s governing district “severely damaging to the political, social, and economic fabric of the State.”
The group of former governors, U.S. House members and presidential administration officials filed a “friend of the court” brief on Wednesday in Disney’s federal lawsuit against DeSantis and his appointees to the board of Disney World’s governing district. Disney’s lawsuit says the Republican governor violated the company’s free speech rights by taking over the district after Disney publicly opposed Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law, which banned classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades.
The group’s goal in filing the brief last week is to demonstrate “how the path the Governor has chosen is corrosive to the form of democracy envisioned by the Constitution, and to re-emphasize this Court’s critical constitutional role in curbing the excesses of governance by retaliation,” they said in a court filing.
Specifically, the group says that DeSantis’ actions harm Florida economically because firms are being dissuaded from doing business in Florida since they could be subject to the governor’s retaliatory whims if they ever voice disapproval over his policies. The group noted that Disney scrapped plans for a $1 billion campus in Orlando that would have relocated 2,000 employees from Southern California, following a year of attacks by DeSantis.
The group is made up of two former GOP governors, Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey and Arne Carlson of Minnesota; three former Republican U.S. House members, Tom Coleman of Missouri, Claudine Schneider of Rhode Island and Christopher Shays of Connecticut; and a host of attorneys, commissioners, chiefs of staff and other officials from previous Democratic and Republican presidential administrations.
DeSantis’ actions were retribution with a goal of discouraging Disney and others from opposing his policies in the future, said the officials who compared the takeover to autocratic actions taken in Russian and China.
“The fact that Governor DeSantis has taken these anti-democratic actions so blatantly and brazenly — that he is proud of them — only makes them all the more damaging to the political and social fabric of Florida and the country as a whole,” they said.
An email seeking comment was sent Sunday morning to a spokesperson for the governor’s office in Tallahassee. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press also has filed a brief in support of Disney, arguing that a win by the Florida governor would embolden other governments across the U.S. to take actions against journalists and other media when they exercise their First Amendment rights.
DeSantis, a candidate for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, is seeking a dismissal of Disney’s lawsuit in Tallahassee federal court. The governor argues Disney is barred from filing a lawsuit because of legislative immunity protecting officials involved in the process of making laws and that the company lacks standing since it can’t show that it has been injured.
DeSantis appointees took control of the Disney World district earlier this year following a yearlong feud between the company and DeSantis. The fight began last year after Disney, beset by significant pressure internally and externally, publicly opposed a state law banning classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades, a policy critics call “Don’t Say Gay.”
As punishment, Republican lawmakers passed legislation reconstituting the district and DeSantis appointed a new board of supervisors to oversee municipal services for the sprawling theme parks and hotels. Disney sued DeSantis and his five board appointees in federal court, saying the governor violated the company’s free speech rights by taking the retaliatory action.
Before the new board came in, Disney made agreements with previous oversight board members who were Disney supporters that stripped the new supervisors of their authority over design and development. The DeSantis-appointed members of the governing district have sued Disney in state court in a second lawsuit stemming from the district’s takeover, seeking to invalidate those agreements.
___
Follow Mike Schneider on Twitter at @MikeSchneiderAP
Florida
Florida man drunkenly steals school bus, drives 4 hours to Miami: police
A Florida man allegedly stole a school bus while drunk and drove to Miami in a wild Saturday night outing, police said.
Land O’ Lakes resident Daniel Saez, 32, was charged with grand theft auto on Sunday, according to FOX 13 Tampa Bay.
The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) told the outlet that the suspect stole the bus, which belonged to Hillsborough County Public Schools, near Tampa on Saturday night.
Saez then drove the vehicle to Miami, which is roughly 280 miles from Tampa. It’s about a four-hour drive.
FLORIDA MAN PRAISED BY POLICE FOR FATALLY STABBING INTRUDER WHO SHOT HIS WIFE
The suspect was stopped in Sarasota, the FHP said. He told authorities that he was on his way back to Tampa from Miami to return the stolen bus.
Sarasota is approximately 60 miles south of Tampa.
The suspect allegedly admitted to stealing the bus and was reportedly both drunk and high when the crime took place.
FLORIDA MAN LEARNS HE’S NOT A CITIZEN AFTER LIVING, VOTING IN US FOR DECADES: REPORT
After being arrested, Saez was placed in a county jail.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Fox News Digital reached out to FHP for additional information but did not immediately hear back.
Florida
South Florida’s scorching temps make for a weekend record-breaker. Here’s what’s ahead.
A record-breaking heat wave has most of South Florida wilting — and wondering when it will end.
There’s no major cooldown ahead just yet, but temperatures will drop a touch on Monday, said George Rizzuto, a meteorologist at the Miami office of the National Weather Service.
Monday’s heat index will hit around 100 degrees, down from Sunday’s “feels-like” temps of 105 to 110 degrees.
“It will still be hot, but not as oppressively hot as it has been this weekend,” Rizzuto said. “For Tuesday and Wednesday you can expect indices in the upper 90s.”
Next Saturday, the heat index will rise back up to 100 degrees, according to the forecast.
“Not too much of a break in the heat,” Rizzuto said.
Hot and humid conditions continued Sunday, with temperatures hitting to the low- to mid-90s and the peak heat index ranging from 105 to 110 degrees.
Both Broward and Miami-Dade counties were under a heat advisory until 6 p.m. Sunday.
The maximum heat index forecast for Sunday afternoon was 105 degrees in Fort Lauderdale; 106 degrees in West Palm Beach; and 109 degrees in Miami and Homestead.
The heat index is a measure of how hot it really feels when relative humidity is factored in with the actual air temperature.
“If you’re spending any time outside (Sunday), it is imperative that you are hydrating nearly constantly and take breaks from the direct sun,” the National Weather Service warned on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Saturday’s blistering heat was a record-breaker.
“West Palm Beach set a new record with a temp of 97,” Rizzuto said. “Their old record was 94, set in 1922. It beat it by 3 degrees. Fort Lauderdale tied their maximum temperature record of 96. That was set back in 2008.”
The region’s nightly lows did not drop much below 80 degrees Friday night into Saturday morning, Rizzuto said.
So now we have new records for minimum lows.
The new record low for West Palm Beach is now 80 degrees. That beat an old record of 78 degrees set back in 2003.
Fort Lauderdale set a new record low of 80 degrees. The previous record low was 77 degrees, set in 2015.
Miami set a new minimum low of 81 degrees. The old record of 79 degrees was set back in 1935.
Strong to severe storms were possible Sunday afternoon, according to meteorologists in Miami.
“Primary hazards will be large hail and damaging wind gusts but a tornado or two can’t be ruled out,” the National Weather Service’s Miami office said in its Sunday advisory.
Showers and thunderstorms might roll into Broward’s eastern metro areas late afternoon Sunday and into the evening, Rizzuto said.
But Palm Beach County’s eastern metro areas and Lake Okeechobee region are at a higher risk for thunderstorms Sunday afternoon and evening.
“I can’t rule out a strong cell for Miami-Dade County and its eastern metro areas,” Rizzuto said.
An isolated tornado might also be in the cards, he added.
“We can’t rule out hail either,” Rizzuto said. “The hail risk is more maximized toward northern Palm Beach County and the Lake Okeechobee area. We have a low pressure system pushing toward the east. That could allow raindrops to stay frozen in the upper atmosphere. But sometimes the hail melts before it gets to the ground.”
Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan
Florida
This website is unavailable in your location. – Action News Jax
-
News1 week ago
Skeletal remains found almost 40 years ago identified as woman who disappeared in 1968
-
World1 week ago
India Lok Sabha election 2024 Phase 4: Who votes and what’s at stake?
-
Politics1 week ago
Tales from the trail: The blue states Trump eyes to turn red in November
-
World1 week ago
Borrell: Spain, Ireland and others could recognise Palestine on 21 May
-
World1 week ago
Catalans vote in crucial regional election for the separatist movement
-
Politics1 week ago
North Dakota gov, former presidential candidate Doug Burgum front and center at Trump New Jersey rally
-
Movie Reviews1 week ago
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”: Disney's New Kingdom is Far From Magical (Movie Review)
-
World1 week ago
Ukraine’s military chief admits ‘difficult situation’ in Kharkiv region