The Florida Roundup

With less than six weeks until Election Day, Gov. Ron DeSantis has proposed new legislation outlining stiffer penalties for violent protests.

Four months’ worth of rain fell in just four hours in Pensacola on Wednesday as Hurricane Sally hit the far western portions of Florida. The Category 2 storm resulted in rescue efforts to save Floridians from storm surge and floodwaters. Tens of thousands in the Panhandle remain without power as more rain threatens the area this weekend.

On Friday’s program, we discussed how Florida is preparing to vote in the presidential election during the pandemic. One of the areas we focused on was vote-by-mail.

Thursday night, the Republican National Convention concluded with President Donald Trump accepting the GOP presidential nomination for a second term.

Coronavirus cases are surging in Florida, with more than 89,000 cases and 3,104 reported at the time of this story's publication. 

The U.S. Department of Labor reported Friday that Florida’s unemployment rate in April was 12.9%, higher than during the Great Recession. 

Governor Ron DeSantis has resisted pressure to shut down the state. Critics say he’s being too timid in the face of the coronavirus crisis.

Health officials in Florida fear the virus is present in nearly two dozen long-term care facilities.

Florida’s COVID-19, Coronavirus, cases are growing, and Floridians are receiving guidance from state public health officials that is sometimes confusing.

The coronavirus is spreading in Florida, with the latest presumptive case reported in Santa Rosa County. Governor Ron DeSantis has declared a public health state of emergency.  On this week’s Roundup we discussed COVID-19 in the Sunshine State and also looked at how the race for the Democratic presidential nomination is shaping up in Florida now that early voting is underway.

This week, the Florida Democratic Party disavowed some controversial comments made by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, their party’s current frontrunner in the presidential race.

Sanders praised Castro’s literacy and health care programs in Cuba, sparking outrage among Cuban exiles here in Florida. Also, recently there has been outrage after young children around the state have been Baker Acted or even arrested.

Florida health officials say they can’t release information about how many people have been tested for COVID-19, the coronavirus, but have confirmed there have been no confirmed cases in the state. On this week's roundup we looked at what listeners need to know about the virus, and the flu this year along with the ongoing fight over Amendment 4.

On Friday's Roundup, we looked at the use of single-use plastics in Florida and the friction between state and local governments over banning single-use items. Also, we covered Floridians who have had their driver’s license suspended due to fines and fees.

On Friday's Roundup we looked at the gun reform issue in Florida. We also discussed how people here in Florida took part in the Iowa caucus remotely.

On Friday's Roundup we discussed the decision by Wells Fargo and Fifth Third Bank to no longer donate to Florida’s school voucher program after learning some of the state-funded schools have policies that discriminate. We also looked at how this Sunday's Super Bowl in Miami is going green.

On Friday's Roundup, we discussed the parental consent bill that requires parents of minor girls seeking an abortion to approve of the abortion before a doctor can perform it. Also, lawmakers in Tallahassee are considering a bill that would establish a statewide Office of Resiliency, along with a statewide Sea Level Rise Task Force.

On Friday's Roundup, we discussed the Florida Supreme Court ruling that former felons have to first finish paying any fines and fees they still owe before they can vote. Also, voters will not get to decide the fate of recreational marijuana, but state lawmakers might.

On today's progrm we looked at how Florida lawmakers reacted to this week’s impeachment vote with Rep. Donna Shalala (D-FL 27).

We spent the full hour taking a closer look at the growth of the charter school movement in Florida with:

Florida’s heat set record highs last month. The Union of Concerned Scientists says in less than 20 years, Florida will be so hot for so much of the year that it could literally be life threatening. The scientists in a new report say the world must reduce carbon emissions now or face extreme heat that will take lives within decades. 

On Friday, Labor Secretary Alex Acosta resigned due to the role he played in the Jeffrey Epstein case while serving as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. Back in 2008, Acosta approved a plea deal for Epstein, a convicted sex trafficker. The deal offered very little jail time, even though a 53-page indictment detailed all of Epstein’s alleged crimes.

Our guests for the discussion were:

The first Democratic presidential debates took place in Miami Wednesday and Thursday nights at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade.

Later this month, the Supreme Court is expected to decide a brewing fight over the 2020 Census. It has to do with a proposed citizenship question the Trump administration wants to place on the Census.

We spent the full hour taking a closer look at what this might mean for Florida. Our guests for the discussion were:

When Bill Galvano became the leader of the Florida Senate, he made it clear that his top priority was building new roads.

In January, weeks before the start of the legislative session, Galvano called for three new roads. He called them corridors. Lawmakers and Governor Ron DeSantis agreed with Galvano and now the state’s biggest road project in 50 years is moving forward.

With the expansion comes concerns about the potential environmental impact, along with the additional stress motorists will endure during construction.

An expert on the impact of climate change on financial markets says no one should get 30-year mortgages anymore in the state of Florida.

This week we learned not one but two Florida counties had their voting databases hacked, but we didn’t learn which two.

This week, we discussed President Trump’s visit to the Panhandle - which is still recovering from Hurricane Michael - with Jessica Foster of WJHG News, NPR Correspondent Greg Allen and Arek Sarkissian of POLITICO Florida.

We took a closer look at the final moves of the Florida Legislature - particularly those surrounding school vouchers and the implementation of Amendment Four.  

Our guests were:

State lawmakers are poised to expand a school security program allowing teachers to carry guns in the classroom. However, some school districts are lobbying against it.

On Friday’s Florida Roundup, we devoted the full hour to the debate over immigration and sanctuary cities in the Sunshine State.