Florida
Trump’s Apocalyptic Party
“Anybody ever hear of Hannibal Lecter?” former President Donald Trump asked last night. “He was a nice fellow. But that’s what’s coming into our country right now.”
The leader of the Republican Party—and quite likely the 2024 GOP nominee—was on an extended rant about mental institutions, prisons, and, to use his phrase, “empty insane asylums.” Speaking to thousands of die-hard supporters at a rally in South Florida, Trump lamented that, under President Joe Biden, the United States has become “the dumping ground of the world.” That he had casually praised one of the most infamous psychopathic serial killers in cinema history was but an aside, brushed over and forgotten.
This was a dystopian, at times gothic speech. It droned on for nearly 90 minutes. Trump attacked the “liars and leeches” who have been “sucking the life and blood” out of the country. Those unnamed people were similar to, yet different from, the “rotten, corrupt, and tyrannical establishment” of Washington, D.C.—a place Trump famously despises, and to which he nonetheless longs to return.
His candidacy is rife with a foreboding sense of inevitability. Trump senses it; we all do. Those 91 charges across four separate indictments? Mere inconveniences. Palm trees swayed as the 45th president peered out at the masses from atop a giant stage erected near the end zone of Ted Hendricks Stadium in Hialeah. He ceremoniously accepted an endorsement from Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, his former press secretary. He basked in stadium-size adulation and yet still seemed sort of pissed off. He wants the whole thing to be over already. Eleven miles away, in downtown Miami, Trump’s remaining rivals were fighting for relevance at the November GOP primary debate. “I was watching these guys, and they’re not watchable,” Trump said. His son Donald Jr. referred to the neighboring event as “the dog-catcher debate.”
Though not a single vote has been cast in this election, Trump’s 44-point lead and refusal to participate in debates has made a mockery of the primary. And though many try to be, no other Republican is quite like Trump. No other candidate has legions of fans who will bake in the Florida sun for hours before gates open. No one else can draw enough people to even hold a rally this size, let alone spawn a traveling rally-adjacent road show, with a pop-up midway of vendors hawking T-shirts and buttons and ball caps and doormats and Christmas ornaments. Voters don’t fan themselves with cardboard cutouts of Chris Christie’s head.
Multiple merchandise vendors told me that the shirts featuring Trump’s mug shot have become their best sellers. Some other tees bore slogans: Ultra MAGA, Ultra MAGA and Proud, CANCEL ME, Trump Rallies Matter, 4 Time Indictment Champ, Super Duper Ultra MAGA, Fuck Biden. “Thank you and have a MAGA day!” one vendor called out with glee. As attendees poured into the stadium, some of the pre-rally songs were a little too on the nose: “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” “Jailhouse Rock.” Kids darted up and down the aisles between the white folding chairs, popping out to the snack bar for ice cream and popcorn. The comedian Roseanne Barr, who a few years ago was forced out of her eponymous show’s reboot due to a racist tweet, took the stage early and thanked the MAGA faithful for welcoming her in. “You saved my life,” she said. Feet rumbled on the metal bleachers. People danced and embraced. In the hours before the night’s headliner, this felt less like a political event and more like a revival.
I saw the GOP operative Roger Stone and his small entourage saunter past the food trucks to modest applause. Onstage, Trump complimented Stone’s political acumen. (Stone, who is sort of the Forrest Gump of modern American politics, has played a role in seemingly every major scandal from Watergate to January 6, not to mention the Brooks Brothers riot that helped deliver Florida to George W. Bush in the 2000 election.)
That afternoon, seeking air-conditioning at a nearby Wendy’s, I met Kurt Jantz, who told me he’s been to more than 100 Trump rallies. Jantz had driven down to Hialeah from his home in Tampa. His pickup truck is massive, raised, and wrapped in Trump iconography. (He has an image of Trump as Rambo with a bald eagle perched on one shoulder, surrounded by a tank, a helicopter, the Statue of Liberty, and the White House, plus a background of exploding fireworks. That’s only one side of the truck.) Jantz has found a niche as a pro-MAGA rapper—he performs under the name Forgiato Blow. Tattoos cover much of his body, including a 1776 on the left side of his face. He rolled up his basketball shorts to show me Trump’s face tattooed on his right thigh. “Trump’s a boss. Trump’s a businessman. Trump has the cars. Trump has the females. Trump’s getting the money. He’s a damn near walking rapper to the life of a rapper, right? I want a Mar-a-Lago.” Jantz said he’s met and spoken with Trump “numerous times,” as recently as a couple of months ago at a GOP fundraiser. Trump, he said, was aware of the work Jantz was doing to spread the president’s message, not only through his music. “I mean, that truck itself could change a lot of people’s ways,” he said.
Though people travel great distances to experience Trump in the flesh—I spoke with one supporter who had come down from Michigan—many attendees at last night’s event were local. Dalia Julia Gomez, 61, has lived in Hialeah for decades. She told me she fled Cuba in 1993 and supports Trump because she believes he loves “the American tradition.” Hialeah is more than 90 percent Hispanic and overwhelmingly Republican. Onstage last night, Trump warned that “Democrats are turning the United States into communist Cuba.” People booed. Some hooted. He quickly followed up, seemingly unsure of what to say next: “And you know, because we have a lot of great Cubans here!”
Trump won Florida in 2016 and 2020. His closest rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, has just been endorsed by Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, but has otherwise been struggling to connect with voters for months. Trump has already secured many key Florida endorsements, including from Senator Rick Scott. (Senator Marco Rubio has yet to endorse.)
The night was heavy on psychological projection. “We are here tonight to declare that Crooked Joe Biden’s banana republic ends on November 5, 2024,” Trump said. Later, he vowed to “start by exposing every last crime committed by Crooked Joe Biden. Because now that he indicted me, we’re allowed to look at him. But he did real bad things,” Trump said. “We will restore law and order to our communities. And I will direct a completely overhauled DOJ to investigate every Marxist prosecutor in America for their illegal, racist, and reverse enforcement of the law on day one.”
He seemed to tip-toe around the idea of January 6, though he did not mention the day, specifically. Instead, he said: “We inherit the legacy of generations of American patriots who gave their blood, sweat, and tears to defend our country and defend our freedom.” Earlier in the day, I spoke with Todd Gerhart, who was selling Trump-shaped bottles of honey, with a portion of the profits going to January 6 defendants. (“Give Donald a Squeeze!” $20 bucks a bottle.) Gerhart lives in Charleston, South Carolina, and is among the vendors who follow the Trump show around the country. He told me that Mike Lindell, the MyPillow guy, is a fan of his product, as is General Michael Flynn. He introduced me to a woman from Tennessee named Sarah McAbee, whose husband, Ronald, was convicted on five felony charges related to January 6 and is currently awaiting sentencing. She told me she’s able to speak with him by phone once a day. Yesterday she informed him she was going to the Trump rally. “It’s a one-day-at-a-time sort of thing,” she said.
About 100 yards away, people were lining up to meet Donald Trump Jr., who was scheduled to sign copies of his father’s photography book, Our Journey Together. Junior smiled and scribbled as his fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle, snapped selfies with fans. Walking around yesterday afternoon, I heard a rumor: Not only had Trump already picked his next vice president, but there was no one it could conceivably be besides his loyal namesake, Don Jr.
A little while later, I saw Jason Miller, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, milling about. I asked him about this rumor explicitly. He gave me an inquisitive look. “President Trump’s not ready to announce his VP pick yet,” he said. “Can you even have someone from the same family? I know you can’t have two people from the same state. So that rules it out right there.”
Family remains a confounding part of the Trump story. His daughter Ivanka spent the day in Manhattan testifying in the case that could demolish what’s left of the family’s real-estate empire. Trump himself had taken the witness stand on Monday. The occasion seemed to still be weighing on him, and at the rally, yielded a microscopic moment of familial self-reflection. “Can you believe—my father and mother are looking down: ‘Son, how did that happen?’” (For this he did an impression of a parental voice.) He quickly pivoted. “‘We’re so proud of you son,’” he said (in the voice again). It didn’t make much sense. He rambled his way to the end of the thought. “But every time I’m indicted, I consider it a great badge of honor, because I’m being indicted for you,” Trump told the crowd. “Thanks a lot, everybody.”
During my conversation with Miller, I asked him if the campaign had discussed the logistics—or practicalities—of Trump getting convicted and having to theoretically run the country from prison. “There’s nothing that the deep state can throw at us that we’re not going to be ready for,” he said. “We have a plane, we have a social-media following of over a hundred million people. We have the greatest candidate that’s ever lived. There’s nothing they can do. Nothing is going to stop Donald Trump.”
What about something like a house arrest at Mar-a-Lago?
“Nothing is going to stop Donald Trump.”
Inside Florida’s affordable housing crisis
FOX 13’s Chief Political Investigator Craig Patrick reports on Florida’s ongoing affordable housing problems, and how the state plans to combat the growing crisis in the near future.
TAMPA, Fla. – Brad Butler works long hours as a carpenter and home remodeler. He and his work partner spent three weeks and $6,000 of their own money updating a house in Dade City. But instead of getting paid for their work, they accepted a deal to rent the house at a discounted price of $1,400 per month for a year—because they could not find other options they could afford. After a year when the rent increases, they’ll look for other options.
“I’m a very honest hard-working person, but it just doesn’t seem that the economy has it in it to make hard-working people successful right now,” said Butler. “Prices have skyrocketed three times, I think. And just in this area.”
People who recently moved to the Tampa Bay area may not believe what houses used to cost. For example, in 1998, a three-bedroom waterfront home in St. Peterburg sold for $133,000. That was near the start of the tech boom, which helped ignite the housing crisis.
Two years later, the tech boom crashed. Investors moved what was left of their fortunes into real estate, snatching up houses everywhere—but especially Central Florida. Real estate in our area had flown under the radar until the age of the internet revealed comparatively cheap homes (on or near the water) for the whole world to see.
At the same time, banks lowered their standards—approving high-risk adjustable mortgages to high-risk buyers with lower credit scores— while investors flipped one home after another. Many starter homes got demolished and replaced by larger, more expensive homes—further reducing the supply of homes working class families could afford.
Then, by 2008, those high-risk buyers stopped paying the soaring costs of the high-risk mortgages. Banks failed, the economy tanked and real estate dipped—but in the Tampa Bay area, houses still cost much more than they did ten years before. For example, the same house that sold for $133,000 in 1998, sold for $275k in 2009 at the end of the downturn.
The Great Recession and glut of foreclosures crushed home builders, reducing the supply of new homes as the economy recovered.
“We did have a, a shortage of building for a while, especially in Florida after the market crash. You know, we were ground zero for the market crash. It took a long time for builders to get back online. A lot of builders went bust as well when that happened,” said St. Petersburg City Councilman Richie Floyd.
Builders who kept going started building larger, more expensive homes for larger profits—increasing the shortage of starter homes.
As millennials moved out on their own, they preferred urban living, which drove a movement from the suburbs to the spiraling costs of living in cities like Tampa, St. Pete, Clearwater, and Sarasota.
Meanwhile, the government offered new tax credits for home buyers, and interest rates dropped. Warren Buffett advised his fellow mega investors to snatch up homes—saying he’d buy a couple hundred thousand himself if he could. They followed his lead by purchasing more houses, condos, and apartments across the nation—and Florida in particular. Large investors and corporations replaced small landlords and homeowners, and they charged soaring rents (especially in urban areas).
Then President Trump signed new tax cuts on investment profits- fueling the real estate frenzy.
Then the pandemic hit. Florida stood out for lifting lockdowns and restrictions before other states. That drove a flood of relatively wealthy newcomers eager to buy.
“Post pandemic and during the pandemic, we saw this shift from high tax states to states like Florida, where people can work here and get the benefits of living here and that has only accelerated that challenge,” said Florida Policy Project and former Florida State Senator Jeff Brandes.
A wave of hurricanes, a property insurance crisis, and a trend of millennials migrating south combined to burn working-class people who can’t find an affordable place to live- unless they really scrimp and live a long way from work.
We don’t yet know the long-term impact of the Hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton. But studies like this one in Science Direct show hurricanes tend to drive Florida home prices up in the short term.
“750 people are moving to Florida every single day. And there just isn’t enough housing being built to support that,” said Brandes. “And that’s kind of created the supply and demand challenge.”
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What’s the difference between a tornado watch and a tornado warning?
On a day when there’s severe weather in your area, you may find yourself under a tornado watch or even a tornado warning. What’s the difference?
Accuweather
Thanksgiving is next week, although Florida temperatures are making it hard to get into the holiday spirit.
Expect that to change very soon, as temperatures whipsaw close to 20 degrees down in some locations this week.
➤ Weather alerts via text: Sign up to get updates about current storms and weather events by location
➤ Tropics watch, Nov. 18: Remnants of former Tropical Storm Sara could impact Florida
That’s right. A cold front is approaching and, depending on where you live in Florida, temperatures could drop more than 15 degrees this week overall and drop close to 20 degrees between daytime highs and nighttime lows.
Don’t expect freezing temperatures, though. The lowest temps in the state are expected across the Panhandle and North Florida and those are forecast to stay above 40.
Florida weather forecast: Temperatures dropping this week as cold front moves through
Timing: See what, when to expect as cold front moves through Florida
Western Panhandle: The cold front will clear the area Wednesday morning but as it approaches and moves through, expect:
- Rain: Expect the bulk of the rain after 3 a.m. Tuesday. While the heaviest rain is forecast to remain over the Gulf, “we still expect a fire hose of water to stream into the area Tuesday morning, with heavy rain prevailing through the afternoon hours. Widespread rainfall totals of 3-5 inches are possible with the higher amounts possible across our southeast Mississippi and coastal Alabama counties,” according to the National Weather Service Mobile. Tuesday “will likely be one of the wettest days we have experienced in the past few months.”
- Wind: winds may get a little gusty at times Monday afternoon. Expect 20-25 mph gusts this afternoon over land.
- Small craft: Seas 7-plus feet as winds increase to 20-plus knots.
- Rip currents: Surf will build to 3-4 feet Monday, with 5-7 foot breakers Monday night and Tuesday.
Panhandle, Tallahassee, Big Bend: A few light showers through Monday afternoon, but the majority of the rain will arrive Tuesday morning as remnants of Tropical Storm Sara move north and interact with a cold front. “This appears to be our first taste of Florida fall weather.” Expect:
- Rain: 2-2.3 inches starting Tuesday, with a flash flood risk Tuesday through Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service Tallahassee. Locally higher amounts possible, especially across coastal counties. Across Big Bend, 1-2 inches most likely. A couple of severe storms, particularly across the Florida Panhandle and southeast Alabama counties, possible.
- Wind: Strong to severe wind gusts appear to be the main threat at this time.
- Tornadoes: A tornado or two cannot be ruled out along the Florida Panhandle coast.
Northeast Florida: Temperatures Monday are above normal for this time of year. The cold front is expected to move across Northeast Florida Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning, according to the National Weather Service Jacksonville. Expect:
- Rain: Rain chances increase after 1 a.m. Tuesday and continue until early Wednesday afternoon.
- Wind: Winds could gust as high as 16 mph Wednesday
Florida East Coast: Near to above normal high temperatures expected through mid week, with much cooler air expected late week behind the cold front. The front will move east-southeast over east central Florida mid week, according to the National Weather Service, Melbourne.
- Rain: Scattered to numerous showers capable of heavy rainfall. Rain chances increase late Tuesday night and Wednesday. Rain totals are expected to be .40-1 inch.
- Wind: Gusty winds up to 25 mph are forecast late Tuesday night into Wednesday.
- Boating: Boating conditions will deteriorate as the front approaches the local Atlantic waters Wednesday and will remain poor to hazardous into late week behind the front.
- Wind chill: Minimum wind chill values in the upper 30s to mid 40s are forecast each morning north of Martin and southeastern St. Lucie counties west of I-95.
South Florida: Moisture from the remnants of Sara will “likely congeal,” bringing a line of showers and isolated thunderstorms Wednesday evening into early Thursday morning, according to the National Weather Service Miami. Expect:
- Rain: Gusty squalls, brief heavy downpours.
- Boating: Atlantic waters 2-4 feet; Gulf waters 1-3 feet.
- Rip currents: A high risk for rip currents continues for the Palm Beaches.
- Coastal flooding: Minor coastal flooding is possible during high tide along the Atlantic coast.
West Coast: Monday and Tuesday are forecast to be warm and rain-free, with temperatures running a handful ofdegrees above normal, according to the National Weather Service Tampa Bay. The coldest temperatures look to be Saturday and Sunday mornings after the cold front moves through. Expect:
- Thunderstorms: Chances of thunderstorms will increase toward the middle of the week. Scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms and perhaps a few strong storms are possible.
- Rip currents: The Gulf Coast could see rip current risk increase by mid-week.
- Coastal flooding: Minor coastal flooding is possible during high tide along the Gulf coast.
Florida cold front: How low will temperatures drop?
Use the slider bar on the right side of the map to compare low temperatures expected Tuesday, Nov. 19, to temps on Saturday, Nov. 23.
Florida weather: Daily high temperatures will drop as cold front arrives
Use the slider bar on the right side of the map to compare high temperatures expected Tuesday, Nov. 19, to temps on Saturday, Nov. 23.
Weather alerts issued in Florida
Watches and advisories:
- Coastal flood advisory from 6 p.m. Monday to 6 a.m. CST Tuesday.
- High rip current risk through Wednesday afternoon.
- High surf advisory from 9 p.m. Monday to 6 a.m. CST Wednesday.
Forecast:
- Monday: High 78
- Tuesday: High 76; low 66
- Wednesday: High 72; low 50
- Thursday: High 63; low 49
- Friday: High 62; low 48
- Saturday: High 63; low 51
Follow National Weather Service Mobile on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 78
- Tuesday: High 77; low 68
- Wednesday: High 77; low 47
- Thursday: High 62; low 43
- Friday: High 62; low 48
- Saturday: High 64; low 44
Follow the National Weather Service Tallahassee on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 77
- Tuesday: High 80; low 67
- Wednesday: High 77; low 50
- Thursday: High 64; low 47
- Friday: High 63; low 45
- Saturday: High 65; low 46
Follow the National Weather Service Jacksonville on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 76
- Tuesday: High 81; low 69
- Wednesday: High 79; low 53
- Thursday: High 67; low 47
- Friday: High 66; low 46
- Saturday: High 66; low 49
Follow the National Weather Service Melbourne on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 79
- Tuesday: High 84; low 71
- Wednesday: High 81; low 59
- Thursday: High 71; low 49
- Friday: High 70; low 49
- Saturday: High 70; low 51
Follow the National Weather Service Melbourne on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 79
- Tuesday: High 84; low 69
- Wednesday: High 81; low 60
- Thursday: High 72; low 49
- Friday: High 70; low 48
- Saturday: High 71; low 50
Follow the National Weather Service Melbourne on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 78
- Tuesday: High 79; low 75
- Wednesday: High 80; low 68
- Thursday: High 72; low 59
- Friday: High 71; low 58
- Saturday: High 71; low 61
Follow the National Weather Service Miami on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 83
- Tuesday: High 83; low 71
- Wednesday: High 81; low 63
- Thursday: High 74; low 57
- Friday: High 74; low 56
- Saturday: High 73; low 55
Follow the National Weather Service Miami on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 83
- Tuesday: High 85; low 70
- Wednesday: High 79; low 62
- Thursday: High 72; low 53
- Friday: High 73; low 51
- Saturday: High 73; low 52
Follow the National Weather Service Tampa Bay on X, formerly known as Twitter
Forecast:
- Monday: High 82
- Tuesday: High 82; low 72
- Wednesday: High 79; low 62
- Thursday: High 70; low 60
- Friday: High 72; low 56
- Saturday: High 70; low 55
Follow the National Weather Service Tampa Bay on X, formerly known as Twitter
Stay informed. Get weather alerts via text
Excessive rainfall forecast
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Florida
Florida man arrested after pretending to be undercover police officer to avoid background check
A Florida man was arrested last week after state police said he pretended to be an undercover officer in order to avoid a background check.
William Dennis Milstead, 64, was charged with falsely impersonating a police officer, making a false statement to obtain property and using a two-way communication device to commit a felony, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Milstead was arrested after a real estate agency reported to the FDLE that he was attempting to lease a residential property without undergoing a background check.
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William Milstead was arrested last week after pretending to be an undercover officer in order to avoid a background check with a real estate agency, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. (St. Lucie County Jail)
Milstead submitted a falsified letter to the agency claiming that he was an undercover FDLE agent working “off-grid,” which is why he could not participate in a background check.
The fake letter, which had numerous grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors, was supposedly written by an assistant captain of the FDLE’s “Off Grid Command Unit” explaining why Milstead should be an exception to the real estate agency’s background check requirement.
GEORGIA MAN IMPERSONATING POLICE OFFICER PULLS OUT FAKE BADGE, ATTEMPTS TO ARREST REAL COPS
“We ask that you make an exception to limit the background/credit check on William Dennis Milstead due to the security needed to protect our agent safety and rely solely on this letter of recommendation from the FDLE and State of Florida,” the letter reads in part.
It claimed Milstead’s employment began with the FDLE in October 2006 and said he is “three years shy of reaching his 20th year retirement.”
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The FDLE said Milstead has 13 prior felony arrests and was charged with impersonating an officer in 2002 and 2016.
William Milstead, 64, was also arrested for impersonating an officer in 2002 and 2016. (Florida Department of Law Enforcement)
Milstead was booked into the St. Lucie County Jail on Nov. 13 and was released on Nov. 15 after posting his $11,000 bond, jail records show.
The case is being investigated by FDLE’s Orlando office.
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