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Kevin O’Leary counts Florida as a winning state thanks to business environment

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Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary has no problem calling some states winners and others losers. And he says Florida is on a winning streak.

“There’s a reason that everybody moves from Massachusetts to Florida,” he said. “There’s a reason that happens. It’s the competition of states, which is a very healthy dynamic. You’re pro-business, that’s very important.”

A recent transplant from Boston to Miami Beach himself, it’s little surprise he sees Florida as a better place to do business. But he said in some parts of the country, individuals can move their residencies or businesses a few miles and be in a much better tax climate.

O’Leary, an international investor and successful entrepreneur, offered his praise of the Sunshine State during a “fireside chat” with U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, part of the Rescuing the American Dream summit headlined by the Senator in Washington.

Scott said the business environment produced benefits for states beyond the entrepreneurs themselves.

“We get a lot of retirees in Florida,” he said. “They go make their money in some other state, and they come down to Florida and invest all their money afterward. They give it to our charities.”

The event sought to establish how conservatives can best advance President Donald Trump’s agenda over the first 100 days of his presidency. But O’Leary, an outspoken fiscal conservative, made clear he supports policies, not politicians.

Scott, a health care executive before his time in elected office, spoke to O’Leary about a range of topics from cryptocurrency to economic growth. O’Leary endorsed the STABLE Act and GENIUS Act, two pieces of legislation that would establish a consistent regulatory framework around digital currency and ensure their value remains backed by the U.S. dollar.

Scott also asked O’Leary about a Trump proposal to allow wealthy individuals to buy citizenship for $5 million. O’Leary, a native of Canada, said other countries have similar systems already, but the U.S. would need safeguards so criminals and ill-intended people with large sums of money couldn’t skirt any vetting.

But he also said the U.S. should work to allow some foreign nationals who acquire an education in the U.S. to stay here with less hassle. As a Harvard business instructor, he said it frustrated him when strong students are told they will be kicked out of the country.

“I mean, it’s nuts. That’s crazy, you have to admit,” he said to Scott.

“Okay, I agree,” Scott said.

O’Leary said he feels hopeful that the U.S. and Canada can find a mutually beneficial alliance to unify their economies. He said that doesn’t have to include making Canada part of the U.S. But he said a conservative victory in Canada would ease that, and a surge in the Liberal Party polling in recent days could complicate that. The biggest obstacle to a deal, he said, is the animus between Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who leaves office in weeks regardless.

In the end, he said all policies crafted in Congress should keep in mind an outcome very much in keeping with the summit’s name.

“What is America’s No. 1 export? Is it energy? Is it technology? Is it grain?” O’Leary said. “No it’s that.” He pointed at the words “American Dream” on the summit signage.

“There’s a reason everybody kills themselves to get here, or goes over the river or barbed wire or breaks anything legally,” he said. “They want to be part of the American Dream.”


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Clay Yarborough bill checks wayward teachers and the school districts that hire them

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Yarborough’s bill has three committee stops before a full Senate hearing. Similar legislation has been filed in the House. 

Sen. Clay Yarborough’s proposal for new requirements on teachers accused of crimes and the school districts that hire them is the fulfillment of a promise made last year.

SB 1374 would impose reporting requirements and mandate the removal of teachers accused of a wide variety of crimes detailed in Florida Statute. These include grooming behaviors.

Teachers and administrators would be required to self-report the accusations within 48 hours of arrest, and would also be compelled to report convictions and rulings for any offense except a minor traffic violation in the same timeframe.

Districts would have to remove the teachers from classrooms within 24 hours of the notification.

Yarborough was inspired to file this bill by a series of incidents in his native Jacksonville, where the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts had a number of teachers who flouted laws and community standards.

In a letter last year to Acting Superintendent Dana Krisnar, the School Board and Jacksonville General Counsel Michael Fackler, he expressed “serious concerns about the immediate safety” of students at Douglas Anderson in the wake of an arrest of a teacher over a “sexual incident” covered in the local press.

“The fact that the district was aware of this and allowed the teacher to remain in direct proximity with students and chose not to inform parents until last week is beyond comprehension,” Yarborough wrote.

This legislative proposal is an attempt to get state guardrails on a situation neglected by locals.

The bill notes that the “self-report is not considered an admission of guilt and is not admissible for any purpose in any proceeding, civil or criminal, administrative or judicial, investigatory or adjudicatory.” So it’s not a presumption of guilt. But it’s a recognition of the gravity of the charges.

Yarborough’s bill has three committee stops before a full Senate hearing. Similar legislation has been filed in the House.


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John Rutherford wants more ‘detail’ on DOGE cuts amid constituent concern

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A Jacksonville Republican member of the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus says he and his constituents want to know more about what’s being cut amid the Elon Musk group’s breakneck pace.

“I have constituents sort of concerned about the cuts as well. But I think part of what’s going on is DOGE is moving so fast that it’s got people’s heads spinning,” said Rep. John Rutherford. “In fact, I want more information about what’s going to happen before it happens. They’re moving so fast.

Rutherford is among the Congressional Republicans who have resisted calls to hold town halls, saying they present “an opportunity for a mob to act out in front of media.” So his constituent concerns are coming from smaller group settings.

Yet it’s notable that his comments, made Friday on C-SPAN’sWashington Journal,” stop short of previous full-throated endorsements of the DOGE mission.

“Musk is not acting on his own, nor does he have complete authority over anything, including the Department of Government Efficiency. Musk is carrying out the orders given to him from President Donald Trump to clean up the waste, fraud, and abuse that have plagued the federal government for far too long,” Rutherford said last month.

During the same C-SPAN hit Friday, Rutherford acknowledged that Trump has the ultimate authority to cut executive branch functions, and defended those moves to reduce “bloat” in the government, particularly given that previous President Joe Biden hired people in what the Congressman called a “willy-nilly” way.

“He has the duty and the power … and the responsibility,” he argued.

As First Coast News reports, DOGE cuts look likely to impact Rutherford’s district with some notable cuts.

The Charles E. Bennett Federal Building, which is considered an “anchor institution” by Downtown Vision, was listed among 440 structures that could be sold. Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor, and Housing and Urban Development functions are among those that could be removed from the city as a result.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District is also vacating its offices on the Southbank.


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Griff Griffitts bill would give election supervisors, clerks of court budget appeal authority

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More constitutional officers may have a chance to fight back against budget constraints with help of statewide elected officials, if a bill filed Friday passes.

Rep. Griff Griffits’ HB 7007 would let elections supervisors and clerks of courts appeal budgets to the state Administration Commission, which is made up of the Governor and the Cabinet.

If the Panama City Beach Republican’s bill becomes law, that would given them the same latitude sheriffs have had for decades. The appellants would have to give their reasons for appeal in their filings with the Governor’s Office.

From there, the local lawmakers would have five days to respond to the grievance.

After the response, the Governor’s Office would set up a timely hearing of the Administration Commission.

From there, the proposal would give 30 days to determine a resolution. That could include accepting one side’s proposed resolution or a combination of line items that could be a state-brokered compromise.

This law would take effect in July, potentially leaving a tight window for local budgets that take effect October 1 and are often passed just before the beginning of the new fiscal year.


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