Bloggytown

A record number of manatees have arrived at Blue Spring State Park (and you can watch them live)

By Alex Galbraith on January 18, 2022 at 1:26PM

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Ex-girlfriend of Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz's granted immunity before testifying in sex trafficking probe

By Alex Galbraith on January 18, 2022 at 11:56AM

When reporters caught Matt Gaetz's ex-girlfriend walking into an Orlando courthouse last week, we speculated that she was there to testify against the Florida representative in an ongoing sex trafficking probe. Turns out it was exactly what it looked like.

Roger Stone calls Ron DeSantis 'Yale Harvard fat boy' after reports of rift between Florida Gov., Donald Trump

By Alex Galbraith on January 18, 2022 at 11:08AM

The shot from Stone comes after Axios reported Trump is displeased with his one-time golden boy in Florida. A source told the paper that Trump said the governor "has no personal charisma and has a dull personality." This after Trump took a veiled shot at DeSantis for not being straightforward with whether he had received a vaccine booster.

Middleman banks left millions of applicants without pandemic PPP loans after they were approved

By Lydia DePillis and Derek Willis, ProPublica on January 17, 2022 at 4:15PM

In May, June, and July, about 285,000 loans disappeared from the SBA’s loan database. The companies that originally processed the loans told ProPublica there were a number of reasons why so many ended up canceled after having been approved by the SBA.

Florida legislature considering bill that would overturn Orange County's ban on retail puppy sales

By Alex Galbraith on January 17, 2022 at 11:39AM

"The puppy mill to pet store pipeline would flourish under this Trojan horse proposal, and so would the practices we’ve exposed and campaigned against— the sale of sick puppies, the deception of consumers, and exorbitant financing rates and hidden fees,” Humane Society CEO Kitty Block shared in a statement. The bill is part of a continued push by the supposed party of small government to supersede local authority.

Florida's Capitol building in Tallahassee

Florida reps on House panel take up 15-week abortion ban

By News Service of Florida on January 17, 2022 at 10:13AM

The Florida bills would include exceptions to the 15-week limit to protect the lives of pregnant women or to “avert a serious risk of imminent substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman.” Also, they would include an exception for fetuses that have not reached viability and have fatal abnormalities. The bills do not include exceptions for rape or incest.

Florida had nearly half a million new COVID-19 cases last week

By News Service of Florida on January 17, 2022 at 10:08AM

With the highly contagious omicron variant of the coronavirus continuing to spread, Florida totaled more than 430,000 cases of COVID-19 during the week that ended Thursday, according to a report released Friday by the state Department of Health. The 430,297 cases brought the total for the past four weeks to a reported 1.252 million cases.

Florida COVID-19 hospitalizations near 12,000

By News Service of Florida on January 14, 2022 at 4:40PM

The number of Florida hospital inpatients with COVID-19 jumped to more than 11,500 during the past week, according to data posted Friday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The data showed that 11,552 inpatients had COVID-19, up from 8,914 reported a week earlier.

Decompress with this video of a manatee ripping a massive fart

By Colin Wolf on January 14, 2022 at 1:03PM

Hate to break it to you prudes, but everyone farts, especially the aquatic mammals that look the most like big ol' farters. In an Instagram video posted today by St. Petersburg-based See Through Canoe Company, a manatee can be seen performing a tremendously impressive bubbler for some lucky paddler.

Florida Senate floats proposal to shield churches from future emergency orders

By Jim Turner, NSF on January 14, 2022 at 12:18PM

The exemption came shortly after the pastor of a Tampa megachurch was arrested for holding two in-person church services in violation of a Hillsborough County ordinance prohibiting gatherings of more than 10 people. The charges were eventually dropped.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of a healthcare vaccine mandate while striking down a federal mandate on large employers.

SCOTUS rejects employer vaccine mandate, supports healthcare worker mandate

By Jim Saunders, NSF on January 14, 2022 at 10:54AM

“These cases are not about the efficacy or importance of COVID-19 vaccines,” Thomas wrote in one of the dissents. “They are only about whether CMS has the statutory authority to force health care workers, by coercing their employers, to undergo a medical procedure they do not want and cannot undo.

Orange County COVID-19 positivity rate crosses 40%

By Alex Galbraith on January 13, 2022 at 11:56AM

Due to the outbreak, Demings encouraged masking and social distancing, though laws passed by the state of Florida have turned such moves into mere suggestions. "Four out of 10 people in our community are testing positive," Demings said.

Donald Trump all but calls Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis a coward over coy response to COVID-19 booster questions

By Alex Galbraith on January 13, 2022 at 10:56AM

DeSantis spokesrep Christina Pushaw pointed out in a response to CNN that the former president didn't mention DeSantis by name. "President Trump did not mention Gov. DeSantis in that interview, so I wouldn't want to make assumptions.

Matt Gaetz's ex-girlfriend appears to be testifying in ongoing sex trafficking probe

By Alex Galbraith on January 13, 2022 at 10:25AM

Greenberg offered up a similar deal as part of his plea and his attorneys have successfully pushed back his sentencing date twice so that he might share more information with investigators and receive a lighter sentence. Gaetz has denied all accusations of wrongdoing, sometimes bizarrely.

Proposed Senate bill would allow businesses to block local ordinances

By Jim Turner, NSF on January 13, 2022 at 9:46AM

The measure is supported by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Associated Industries of Florida, the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association and the conservative group Americans for Prosperity-Florida. During an address Tuesday to help open the annual legislative session, Senate President Wilton Simpson, R-Trilby, acknowledged concerns by cities and counties about preemption bills.

Florida senators suggest creation of $1 billion emergency fund for Gov. DeSantis with no oversight

By Jim Turner, NSF on January 13, 2022 at 9:39AM

Senators revived a proposal Wednesday to create a $1 billion fund that Gov. Ron DeSantis could use at his discretion during emergencies he declares. The Senate Appropriations Committee backed a pair of bills (SB 96 and SB 98), sponsored by Sen. Danny Burgess, R-Zephyrhills, to set up an “Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund” so the governor wouldn’t have to wait for the Joint Legislative Budget Commission to convene to approve spending.

Florida Democrats, activists fire back at proposed 15-week abortion ban

By Ryan Dailey, NSF on January 12, 2022 at 4:31PM

DeSantis’ labeling the restriction as “reasonable” drew ire from Eskamani. “I saw a headline this morning that said, Governor DeSantis supports reasonable abortion ban.

Norwegian Cruise Line cancels more journeys from Florida amid COVID-19 surges

By Matthew Moyer on January 12, 2022 at 12:10PM

Norwegian Cruise Line has canceled more cruises this week, including a number sailing out of Florida, as the Omicron variant causes a massive uptick in COVID-19 cases all around the country. According to travel advisories posted on Norwegian Cruise Line's website this week, a number of Florida-originating cruises were impacted.

Universal announces vaccine mandate for all employees

By Alex Galbraith on January 12, 2022 at 11:42AM

Universal has announced a vaccine mandate for all of its employees. The theme park follows in the footsteps of Walt Disney World, which required all of its non-union employees to be vaccinated late last year.

Ron DeSantis addresses the Florida legislature during State of the State address.

Gov. Ron DeSantis' State of the State address focused little on Florida

By Jim Saunders and Jim Turner, News Service of Florida on January 12, 2022 at 10:17AM

“Freedom works. And while our economy is the envy of the nation and our state is well-prepared to guard against future economic turmoil, the truth is that our nation is facing economic problems stemming from reckless federal policies, especially the most sustained Inflation our country has witnessed in decades,” DeSantis said.

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