Ironically, lawmakers want to repeal Parkland gun law
 
The inevitable barrage of “thoughts and prayers” is coming.
A mass shooting Thursday at Florida State University in Tallahassee ended with the death of two people and the injury of five others. Phoenix Ikner, a 20-year-old political science student, was taken into custody. The son of a former sheriff’s deputy reportedly used his mother’s service gun. CNN reported that other students said he had expressed extreme right, anti-diversity views on campus.
That hasn’t been independently confirmed and there are certainly going to be other factors involved. There are still details being learned today.
But what we do know is that this is the sixth mass shooting in Florida just since January, according to Wikipedia.
And yet, about a mile from the FSU campus at the state capital, the Republican-led Florida Legislature is actually considering a repeal of the gun control law that was passed weeks after the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, in which 17 people were gunned down by a 19-year-old with a semi-automatic rifle, which basically stopped most people under 21 from purchasing certain types of guns and rifles. They can still get one as a gift, which should also be illegal.
Read related: Florida Republican aims to undo post Parkland gun laws
In fact, the repeal passed the Florida House last month in a 78-34 vote mostly along party lines. It could die in the Senate, where similar bills have died in 2023 — when lawmakers did pass the open carry law — and 2024 . But why is it even being considered?
On Thursday, as the events took place at FSU, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis posted the same ol’, same ol’ on his social media.
“Our prayers are with our FSU family and state law enforcement is actively responding,” DeSantis said. Like a robot. Like on cue.
It’s the state legislature that has to respond — with real action and gun reform that makes senses, not by taking us backwards with just words and thoughts and prayers.
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Florida State Rep. and House Speaker Daniel “Danny” Perez attended some of the inauguration festivities in Washington D.C. last month, as did many other South Florida electeds who were there. But Perez flew to DC in a private jet with fundraiser Brian Goldmeier and several political influencers, including John Ruiz, the University of Miami booster who wanted to build a stadium at Tropical Park and who is under federal investigation for fraud.
Perez would not comment on the flight and refused to answer any questions about the passengers and whether or not he was provided the air transportation via an in-kind donation or gift. He referred all inquiries from Political Cortadito to his deputy chief of staff, Amelia Angleton, who also did not return phone calls and text messages. Ladra has given her lots of time told Ladra Friday morning that the Speaker paid for his flight. She said that “there was no legislative business” on the trip so the office has no further information on who was paid and how much. It was a personal flight and he paid personally, she told Political Cortadito.
Maybe Perez has been too busy fighting with Gov. Ron DeSantis on the immigration bill that is likely to be vetoed. Perez, who didn’t even agree with having a special session, went on Jim DeFede’s Facing South Florida show last weekend to defend the bill that the legislature passed to “disincentivize” illegal immigration and blast DeSantis and his own version of the bill, which was rejected.

“The problem is he has two years left and unfortunately he is trying to stay in a place of relevance,” Perez said about DeSantis, reminding viewers that DeSantis lost in the primary to Donald Trump, “one of the greatest presidents this country has ever had.
Read related: Rep. Danny Perez enters Miami-Dade politics — as precursor to mayoral run?
“At this point, there’s no time for pride and ego. We just have to find a solution that gets us to the end point, and the governor is getting in the way of stopping illegal immigration in the state of Florida,” Perez said, also blasting the guv’s idea to appoint an immigration czar. “He wants to appoint some bureaucrat inside his office, not elected by the people, so he has all the power.
“This is about Ron DeSantis wanting to be the deporter in chief and the legislature wanting it to be President Trump.”
Perez sounds like he’s still high from the trip to the capitol.
There are rules about accepting gifts that are valued at more than $100 as an elected Florida official. Perez may have would have had to report the flights as a gift if he didn’t pay for it — or if it wasn’t his plane. Ruiz has a private jet, a Boeing. Ladra is still waiting to hear from Angleton who the Speaker paid for the flight and how much it cost.
Ladra doesn’t recognize all the people aboard on the flight, but Ruiz is the guy on the left in gray. He is a University of Miami booster whose Coral Gables based company, LifeWallet, is being investigated by federal authorities, according to the firm’s recent filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last year. It has been characterized as a Ponzi scheme. Federal civil and criminal subpoenas have sought corporate documents about the company’s data analytics as well as its stock price decline, marketing materials and agreements offered to potential investors.
Goldmeier’s wife, LSN Partners Chief Operating Officer Nicole Gomez Goldmeier, was also on the flight, which served as a gender reveal party for their impending parenthood. It’s a boy, by the way. ¡Felicidades!

Also on the private jet ride was Mexican actor and “Catholic” activist Eduardo Varestegui, who is MAGA’s man in Mexico, even though he could not gather the signatures necessary to run for president (he tried).
Varestegui was a member of the boy band Kairo before going solo and embarking on an acting career and then political life.
One of Ladra’s followers on the platform formerly known as Twitter identified the two flanking in front as Sean and Ana Wolfington. Sean Wolfington is a technology entrepreneur with businesses in the automotive, ad-tech and film industries. He is founder and chairman of CarSaver, a mobile auto buying platform that is Walmart’s exclusive partner for auto sales, finance and insurance. The person identifying them said they are good people and probably don’t know how dirty Ruiz is.
But Perez should. He willingly went on this private jet with Ruiz knowing the trouble he’s been in.
And then, he didn’t want to talk about it.
The post Florida Speaker Danny Perez takes private jet with insiders to inauguration appeared first on Political Cortadito.

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August 10th came and went and there were no campaign finance reports filed in Florida for state candidates. Or for county candidates. Or for city candidates.

Did anybody else notice this had happened?

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The Ron DeSantis for President campaign is scheduled to convene Tuesday in Tallahassee when the Florida State Legislature begins its 2023 session.

DeSantis has already been campaigning incognito — traveling to fundraisers in Texas and California. He published a book that is subtitled “Florida’s blueprint for America’s revival.” That’s not a hint?

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Gov. Ron DeSantis stood at Bill Baggs State Park in Key Biscayne earlier this month to announce that the state would give $22.7 million to support water quality improvements through the Biscayne Bay Grant program.

Of that, $14.5 million goes to Miami-Dade County to fight pollution and another $8 mil plus goes to municipalities — including Key Biscayne, Coral Gables, Miami Springs and North Miami — for their own water quality projects. Cutler Bay, for example, gets $700,000 for wetland restoration.

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Gov. Ron DeSantis stood at Bill Baggs State Park in Key Biscayne earlier this month to announce that the state would give $22.7 million to support water quality improvements through the Biscayne Bay Grant program.

Of that, $14.5 million goes to Miami-Dade County to fight pollution and another $8 mil plus goes to municipalities — including Key Biscayne, Coral Gables, Miami Springs and North Miami — for their own water quality projects. Cutler Bay, for example, gets $700,000 for wetland restoration.

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