Donald Trump lives there….
Ron DeSantis, the Republican Governor of the state, is now traveling around the county running for President….
AP does a piece on the place itself……..
“Don’t say gay.” Regulation of books and classroom discussion. Teachers, parents and school librarians all navigating new and uncertain ground. LGBTQ+ rights under attack. A very public spat between state government and Disney. And at the center of it all is a governor who has emerged as a rival of former President Donald Trump and likely has his eyes set on the White House.
This is Florida at this moment in history, in mid-2023.
For many of those who live in Florida, recent months have brought some changes — many linked to Gov. Ron DeSantis. Here, longtime Florida-based Associated Press journalist Brendan Farrington, who has covered the state’s politics since 1997, reflects on the changes for different groups and puts them into the context of the cultural and political landscape.
YOUR AVERAGE FLORIDIAN:
For your average Floridian, cost of living concerns have become an issueand really are not being addressed as vocally as most folks would have hoped.
Rents are going sky-high. Property insurance, whether you live near the coast or not, is becoming less available and less affordable.
Inflation obviously has played a role, but a lot of the discussion has been steered away from those issues affecting everyday Floridians into more of an “us against them” on cultural issues or abortion and discussions of race.
Guns are another thing. Under a new law, anyone who can legally own a gun can also carry it concealed without a permit. Now you need a permit in order to carry a gun and go through training and a background check to carry a concealed weapon. That will no longer have to happen beginning July 1.
There also seems to be an uptick in hate-related incidents. Somebody projected anti-Semitic messages on the Jacksonville Jaguars’ stadium last season and there have been self-proclaimed Nazis waving flags and signs at events.
And, again, abortion. In April 2022, Florida passed a law setting a ban on abortion after 15 weeks, two months before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and passed a stricter one enforcing that ban after six weeks this year. It’s clear reproductive rights are taking a hit in Florida…..