Politics
Here’s Brunch, a pop-up, weekend email about the 2025 Legislative Session — 3.30.25
Good Sunday morning and welcome back to “Brunch,” a pop-up newsletter about the 2025 Legislative Session.
Even this Nole had to cheer as the Gators rallied from nine points down late to beat Texas Tech 84-79 in the NCAA Tournament’s West Region final last night. Congrats to UF on its sixth Final Four appearance.
Speaking of winners, please check out our choices for the Winner and Loser of the Week in Florida Politics by clicking here.
Happy birthday to former U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, state Rep. Fabián Basabe and Trent Phillips.
Now, please enjoy Brunch.
– Hometown launch –
The official kickoff for U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds’ campaign for Governor drew crowds to the Sugarshack Downtown in Bonita Springs. He laid out his agenda, but it was also a time to gather with supporters who knew him the longest.
– Tea Party memories: Donalds and wife Erika Donalds recalled the Congressman’s entry into the political field not so long ago, at a Tea Party rally at Pine Ridge Road and U.S. 41.
– Sharing the stage: Political figures spoke at the event, including U.S. Reps. Kat Cammack and Cory Mills and state Rep. Lauren Melo. But Donalds interrupted his own speech to bring on Dianne Harris, a Naples activist who shared how Donalds calmed her nerves at that first Tea Party rally, advising that she speak from her heart.
– Messages from afar: Not every celebrity endorser made the event. Conservative commentators Benny Johnson and Donald Trump Jr. sent recorded videos to hype the crowd.
– Life story: Erika Donalds recalled moving to Collier County to be closer to her parents when Byron Donalds still worked at Cracker Barrel. “Many of you, I see you in the crowd,” Erika said, “and I’m so grateful. You knew us before politics.”
– Toastmasters in the House: The subject frequently came up that Donalds, a finance professional before he was a legislator, honed his public speaking at Toastmasters events in Naples.
– Key message: Donalds’ closing message: “Florida will continue to be the best state in America and show the other 49 how to get the job done.”
– What’s that sound? In one sign of the times, Donalds showed up onstage to the sounds of a hip-hop track. The choice of song? Wrestler John Cena’s “The Time is Now.”
– It’ll be Fine –
Democrat Josh Weil grabbed national attention for outraising Republican Randy Fine 10-to-1. Now, Election Day is just two days away.
– Landing Sanders: The Democrat picked up support from progressive champion U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. “Josh Weil is a working-class father of two and a middle school teacher who knows what it’s like to live paycheck to paycheck,” Sanders said. “Unlike his opponent, he does not have any billionaire-backed Super PACs supporting him.”
– DNC boost: New Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin came to Northeast Florida to campaign for Weil with Florida Democratic Chair Nikki Fried. Additionally, the Human Rights Campaign PAC endorsed Weil after Fine slammed the Democrat for being a “bisexual Muslim.”
– Is everything Fine? But Fine has Trump World turning up the heat. In addition to a tele-rally with President Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr. posted a video urging voters to support Fine on Tuesday. “Democrats are pouring millions into this race to stop our America First agenda,” Trump Jr. said. “We can’t let them win.”
– On the attack: Fine also has backed up his reputation for being pugnacious. Fine said the Sanders endorsement shows “socialist Josh Weil will do anything to grind President Trump’s agenda to a halt.“ On Facebook, he attacked Weil as a “drug addicted, bisexual, Muslim,” citing social media videos, including one where Weil shows a sobriety coin.
– Panhandlers to the polls –
The race in the redder Panhandle has earned less attention, but Democrat Gay Valimont has outraised Republican Jimmy Patronis 3-to-1.
– Gentler message or not: Florida’s Chief Financial Officer hasn’t been as personally provocative a Republican candidate as Fine. But he has put out ads slamming Valimont for involvement with the pro-gun control group Moms for Action and stoking resentment by saying liberals “hate us.”
– Off the chain: Valimont, meanwhile, has brought in some big names of her own, like rapper 2 Chainz, who held a free concert in Pensacola to attract Democrats to polls on the last day of early voting on Saturday.
– To the polls –
Three Miami-Dade County municipalities hold elections Tuesday; two are guaranteed to shake up government leadership.
– Miami Springs: Voters will pick new occupants for a trio of seats at City Hall, including Mayor, with Bob Best and Walter Fajet vying to succeed Maria Puente Mitchell as Miami Springs’ top official. Joseph Dion, Irma Matos and MaryJo Mejia-Ramos compete for the Council’s Group 2 seat. Tom Hutchings is again running for the Group 4 seat, with Fabián Perez-Crespo standing in his way.
– Bay Harbor Islands: Two seats on the Town Council are up for grabs in Bay Harbor Islands, but three people are running for them. Will voters again choose incumbents Stephanie Bruder and Molly Diallo in the at-large contest, or will they oust one in favor of political newcomer Dan Sanchez?
— Surfside: In a Special Election, voters will decide whether to amend the Town Charter to limit the floor area ratio for new detached single-family homes in the H30A and H30B districts to 0.05, or roughly half the size of the lot area. If approved, exceptions to that limit would require approval by the Town Commission and 60% of voters.
– Who will show up? Turnout varies for these local races, based on Miami-Dade Elections Department data. In March 2023, just 21% of the Miami Springs voters and 24% of voters in Bay Harbor Islands cast ballots, while 39% of Surfside voters did so in the town’s General and Special Elections the year prior.
Don’t tune out yet. On the Tuesday after April 8, Coral Gables and Miami Shores will hold elections, too.
– Miami spice –
The release of a video celebrating 30 years of Republican leadership in the House may have heated a simmering beef between Speaker Danny Perez and former Speaker José Oliva.
– Time lapse video: The video shared by Perez covers achievements in the three decades since Daniel Webster became Florida’s first GOP Speaker. The video includes sound bites from some of the more prominent Speakers like Marco Rubio in that period, but it doesn’t cover all 15 men to hold the gavel.
– Noticeable snub: Still, the video shouted out every other Speaker to preside over the chamber during the tenure of the current senior class in the House except one: Oliva. The Miami Republican served from 2018 to 2020, Perez’s first full term in the chamber.
– Rapid response: Oliva, in a comment on X, commented on the video by calling Perez a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.” “All you have done is support overriding spending cuts and obstruct the efforts of the country’s most conservative Governor,” Oliva wrote.
– Context clues: Oliva had disagreements with Ron DeSantis as Governor, particularly over E-Verify. But he never engaged in the feuding seen in Special Sessions this year between the Governor and Perez. Moreover, Oliva is widely considered a favorite whenever DeSantis names a new Lieutenant Governor.
– Senate side –
The Senate’s first proposed spending plan for Fiscal Year 2024-25 came in at $117.36 billion. That’s $1.3 billion below last year’s mark.
– Agriculture, environment and general government: Senate President Ben Albritton is focusing on a “Rural Renaissance” this Session. As for the budget aspect, the Senate is putting forward $10.4 billion to help the ag industry. The budget contains $3.5 billion for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Community Services, including $250 million for a Rural and Family Lands Protection Program and $37.7 million for the Department of Citrus.
– Transportation, tourism and economic development: Senate negotiators include $18 billion for transportation issues. A big bulk of that – $13 billion – would go to the transportation work program in the Florida Department of Transportation. FloridaCommerce secured $1.7 billion
– Higher ed: The state is spending $8.7 billion on higher education. That includes $4.25 billion for the State University System, $1.75 billion for the Florida College System, $1.07 billion for financial aid and just under $820 million in School District Workforce funds.
– House rules –
The overall House number came in even lower than the Senate’s, at just under $113 billion.
– Human services: The House is spending the most in this sphere, at nearly $47 billion. That includes $36.2 billion for the Agency for Health Care Administration, $4.75 billion for the Department of Children and Families and $4.03 billion for the Department of Health.
– Education: House appropriators are slotting $30.85 billion for education. Among those spending provisions are $19.48 billion for public schools, $4.55 billion for universities and $1.77 billion for colleges.
– Environment and transportation: This is the other significant spending pot, at $21.18 billion. The Department of Transportation would get $15.38 billion, with $2 billion going toward the Department of Environmental Protection.
– Vroom, vroom –
No-fault auto insurance is again nearing the chopping block in Tallahassee. Legislators on both sides of the political road voted in committee last week for a bill to replace Florida’s existing requirement for motorists to buy personal injury protection (PIP) with a fault-based arrangement that would increase their liability.
– Pay up: Under the proposed change, Florida would swap its existing mandate requiring drivers to carry PIP coverage of $10,000 per person and $20,000 per incident with one of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per incident. After an accident, the victim could sue the offending driver directly rather than their insurer.
– Disputed charges: Opponents of the legislation, including insurance lobbyists and representatives from the health care industry, contend that the bill (HB 1181) will increase costs and drive some motorists to forgo auto coverage altogether. Proponents, including Hillsborough Republican Rep. Danny Alvarez, the bill’s sponsor, say the change will bring about more parity and cut costs instead.
– Street legal: More than a hundred motorcyclists traveled to the Capitol on Thursday wearing shirts that read “Trump Bikers” and “Insurance Reform” to support Alvarez’s proposal. Joshua Lipton, a personal injury lawyer from the Tampa Bay area, noted that the current PIP law applies only to vehicles with four or more wheels, which excludes bikers and puts them at financial risk disproportionate to their car-driving counterparts.
– Dead end? The bill cleared its first of three committee stops 13-2, with Democrats joining Republicans in voting up the bill. But there may be a rocky road ahead; DeSantis vetoed a similar proposal lawmakers passed in 2021 and signaled he’s keen on doing it to this year’s bill if it reaches his desk.
– Final Four-bound Gators –
A furious second-half comeback on Saturday sent Florida to the Final Four for the first time in 11 years.
– Clayton stars: Trailing Texas Tech by as many as 10 points in the second half, Florida closed the game on an 18-4 run led by Walter Clayton Jr., who scored 30 points. Clayton, the first Gator to earn first-team All-American honors, did not score until the 8:47 mark of the first half.
– Final 4 for 6: The Gators (34-4) advanced to the Final Four for the sixth time in program history. The last time Florida earned a spot in the national semifinals, they were a No. 1 seed, as they are this year. This time, Florida knocked off the third-seeded Red Raiders to earn a spot in San Antonio. It is the first Final Four appearance for head coach Todd Golden.
– Who’s Next? The Gators will face the winner of Auburn and Michigan State. The top two seeds in the South Region face one another this evening at 5:05 p.m. ET in Atlanta. The Gators beat Auburn in SEC play, topping the Tigers 90-81 when Auburn was ranked No. 1 in the country. Florida has won 10 straight games overall.
If Florida wins two more games and clinches the program’s third national championship, it would be the 49th team national championship in school history. If the Gators cut down the nets, they would tie Villanova for eighth on the all-time list with three men’s basketball national titles.
– Heat, Magic in playoff run –
With weeks left until the postseason, the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat face very different paths to the playoffs.
– Orlando: The Magic trails the Milwaukee Bucks by five games for the final automatic spot in the playoffs. The Magic have six games remaining in the regular season, including Monday’s matchup with the Clippers at the Kia Center. If Orlando does not close the gap and finish as high as sixth, they will have to earn a spot in the playoffs in the play-in round. Orlando currently holds the seventh spot in the Eastern Conference.
– Miami: The Heat sit six games ahead of 11th place Toronto with nine games to play. They are most likely in the play-in round and could surpass the Chicago Bulls for ninth place. Miami is hitting its stride at just the right time. After losing 10 straight games between March 5-21, Miami has won four consecutive games, including Saturday night’s 118-95 victory at Philadelphia.
– Health a factor: Both teams are dealing with some health issues. Orlando lost both center Moritz Wagner and shooting guard Jalen Suggs for the year; point guard Cole Anthony has been sidelined with a toe injury. Miami played without forward Andrew Wiggins on Saturday, and the team does not expect him to play in road games in Washington and Boston this week.
The possibility exists that Miami and Orlando could meet in the play-in round, with only one of the Florida teams advancing to the main playoff bracket.
– Talk of the town –
The Filibuster, a members-only club in Tallahassee, is living up to its name by offering a new lunch menu that gives members plenty to discuss.
– Details: The special selection runs throughout Session from Tuesday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
– Grab a bite: The club, located in the old Andrew’s basement, is offering neo-Neapolitan pizzas named after Florida leaders, as well as Italian salads and tapas for those looking for a quick bite between committee hearings.
– That’s not all: While Session is still ending at a reasonable hour, you can head over to The Filibuster for evenings from Tuesday through Saturday when doors are open from 5 p.m. until someone invokes cloture.
– Brunching out –
Midtown & 3rd is an ambitious new restaurant and lounge just north of downtown Tallahassee. It offers food and beverage options on three levels: Sunday brunch, lunch, dinner, a lounge, nightlife, a full bar, and outdoor seating.
– Backstory: Eric McKinnon and Apryl Lynn officially opened Midtown & 3rd on Jan. 17. The last spot there was the Chinese restaurant, The Joy Luck Place. McKinnon and Lynn are betting they can turn this location into a popular gathering spot. McKinnon is already well-known in Tallahassee because of his long-standing Leola’s Crab Shack, which opened in 2007. McKinnon closed Leola’s restaurant but is still operating a food truck.
– Setting: The venue features tables and TVs on its outdoor decks, which vary in size to accommodate a group of friends or a larger event. There’s a more formal bar and lounge on the top level and a restaurant on the ground level.
– The Menu: Leola’s fans will find many of their favorites here – crab and seafood boils and platters with homey sides such as corn on the cob, fries and coleslaw. We ordered breakfast staples for a recent breakfast there, including eggs, cheesy grits, hash browns, bacon, sausage, biscuits and pancakes. It’s easy to feast. The menu adds lunch-type choices such as breaded and fried catfish or salmon bites. The full bar prepares signature cocktails such as a Midtown Margarita and Peach Porch Punch.
– Details: Midtown & 3rd is located at 1002 Monroe St.; 448-230-2590. Hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday brunch.
The Gators are officially hunting their third men’s basketball national championship.
With a win over Auburn Saturday night, their second victory over the Tigers this season, the University of Florida (UF) is heading to the championship game in San Antonio.
The Gators won 79-73 Saturday night, a much lower scoring game than their 90-81 win over the Tigers in early February.
UF overcame an 8-point halftime deficit and pulled away late in the second half thanks to a stellar performance from Walter Clayton Jr., who finished the game with 34 points. The Gators held Auburn’s top player, Johni Broome, to just 15 points.
The Gators are looking to revive their 2006-07 golden era, when they won back-to-back national championships with a historically great roster featuring Al Horford, Joakim Noah, Corey Brewer and Taurean Green.
Fans complained about how chalky March Madness has been this year. And we love upsets as much as the next guy. But every once in a while, it’s fun seeing the nation’s best teams duke it out with everything on the line. And from the Elite Eight onward, we got the most talent-packed matchups we’ve seen in recent memory.
Now, the Gators will have a chance to etch their names in the history books. It should be a fun one.
Now, it’s onto our weekly game of winners and losers.
Winners
Honorable mention: Tom Leek, Shevrin Jones, Ben Albritton. The Process can be frustrating at times, both for partisans who don’t get their way and for everyday Floridians who at times feel left behind by the back-and-forth in Tallahassee.
But this week, we saw a pitch perfect example of The Process working the right way.
Sen. Leek, an Ormond Beach Republican, was pushing legislation creating harsher penalties for manslaughter cases where a police officer is killed after a controversial case from a few years back. But that pro-law enforcement bill also contained language removing a requirement that police officers act in “good faith.”
Republican backers said the move was necessary to avoid confusion by a jury and further guarantee bad actors are punished if an interaction leads to a cop being killed. But several Black Senators, led by Jones, raised serious concerns about axing that provision and its repercussions, leading to a heated exchange followed by Leek pulling the bill from being voted on.
This week, all was resolved. The “good faith” language was inserted back into the bill, per an amendment posed by Jones, along with definitional language, and the legislation passed unanimously in the Senate. Senate President Albritton and Senate leadership were key to allowing the amendment to go through.
A lot of us who just want to see this state be the best version it can are really tired of the culture war hysteria and fatigued by fights in the Capitol over these issues. This easily could have been another example if Leek and other Republicans demanded to stay firm. After all, Republicans have a supermajority in both chambers. They can do whatever they want.
Instead, Leek listened. The bill got better for it. And what could have served as a legislative food fight instead is an example of lawmakers putting aside their partisan hats and working together to come to consensus.
This is where most Floridians are, no matter how loud the fringes get. And this week shows that if you stop, listen and take up suggested language to make a bill better (even from a Democrat), you can get unanimous support. Thank you to all of these Senators for showing how it’s done.
Almost (but not quite) the biggest winner: Byron Donalds. Donalds does it again.
This week continued to show Donalds building his case to be the front-runner in the 2026 Governor’s race.
First, he announced raising $12 million in his first month as a candidate. That’s a massive haul and a sign that Donalds has tapped into a network to heavily fund his campaign into next August, when the GOP Primary will take place.
Still have concerns he may not have enough resources? Well, Donalds later in the week added U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson’s endorsement. That’s a direct line into the national GOP donor network.
All of this doesn’t lock anything up 16 months away from any votes being cast.
But it does serve as example after example that more big moves — endorsements, major donations, etc. — are coming Donalds’ way down the line.
Meanwhile, Gov. Ron DeSantis says that if First Lady Casey DeSantis announces her own bid for Governor, she will wait until after this year’s Legislative Session — another month-plus away — to do so.
Great idea. Waiting until after Session to announce a campaign while a rival candidate freely builds up massive momentum has never hurt the DeSantises before.
The biggest winner: Randy Fine, Jimmy Patronis. Scoreboard.
They were outspent big time. Democrats honed in on these seats to show their anger at the Donald Trump administration. Critics — even Florida’s Republican Governor, in Fine’s case — hammered them over residency questions.
And none of it mattered. Both won by 14 percentage points.
Now of course, margins matter. These districts were both Trump +30 districts in November. The fact that Democrats cut the margins by at least half shows something — maybe just the weirdness of Special Elections, or maybe a sign, combined with the Wisconsin results, that Democrats have some successes ahead in more competitive districts.
So down the line, maybe Democrats in other states can build on these results.
But for now? They got nothing. No cutting into the GOP’s thin House advantage. No shocking the world and dunking on Trump.
Fine and Patronis will now likely be able to serve in Congress for as long as they like.
We hate to say we told you so.
Losers
Dishonorable mention: Donna Deegan. Deegan faced an admittedly tough decision this week regarding a Jacksonville law looking to crack down on illegal immigrants by requiring jail time: sign a law she vocally disapproves of, or veto it and invite the wrath of the DeSantis administration, which warned her and others not to interfere with the state’s push on this issue.
And with that choice ahead of her, Deegan made the tough decision … to do neither.
She instead just let the measure become law without her signature.
Talk about a cop out.
Deegan couldn’t sign the bill and invite the wrath of her supporters. But make no mistake: just letting this thing become law without a signature is the same exact thing. Yes, she could put on a performative display by refusing to sign it, but it changed absolutely nothing here.
If she was so opposed, and if she thought she was on firm legal ground in her opposition, she could have vetoed it. Yes, there would have been a backlash, but if that’s her position, then isn’t it incumbent on her to use every means necessary to resist?
And if she knew she was boxed into a corner legally and was essentially forced to accept this at law, then just sign it and explain to her supporters that her hands were tied.
Instead, Deegan tried to thread a needle and ended up taking the squishiest path possible. That’s not leadership.
Almost (but not quite) the biggest loser: Tampa Bay. It appears the Tampa Bay area is getting the short end of the stick in some significant ways when it comes to federal and state budgeting priorities.
Congress appears to be the big villain here. After Representatives from the area pushed for millions to fund water projects to help recover from devastating storms last year, Republicans in the House voted to cancel every single project. That includes pushes from Republican U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, as well as Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor.
“Some of these were pretty modest congressional appropriations, but they fill huge needs back home,” Castor said.
There’s more. An op-ed in the Tampa Bay Times from Rick Garrity, who used to lead Hillsborough’s Environmental Protection Commission, argued that cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency are going to harm the region’s water quality.
And food banks are warning that a funding slash targeting the U.S. Department of Agriculture will hammer food purchasing programs in Tampa Bay and the ability to distribute food to those in need.
On that latter point, the Florida Senate budget appears to make up some of the difference in the loss of federal funds. But so far, the Florida House isn’t going along.
Things like the Department of Government Efficiency cuts and Trump’s tariff program may lead to some long-term gain. Some believe they are absolutely necessary, even with the short-term pain they bring.
But these potential benefits only come if our leaders execute these plans, well, efficiently. And so far, the massive screw-ups we’ve seen in these areas the first few months of Trump’s administration are making a lot of people worry.
And in the meantime, these various silos in Tampa Bay are getting left behind.
The biggest loser: Jackson McMillan. This guy …
“Unethical.” “Hard to justify.” “Donor abuse.” Those were just a few of the phrases from Democratic consultants used to describe the fundraising strategy for the two Democratic congressional candidates who got blown out by Fine and Patronis Tuesday.
That money was essentially lit on fire here isn’t solely the fault of McMillan and his firm, Key Lime Strategies. Democrats nationwide were eager to see a sign of hope, and these were the first two congressional Special Elections in the country since Trump took office. Many donors probably didn’t realize how ruby red they were; they just wanted a place to vent. So money poured in.
But as Gay Valimont and Josh Weil raised around $16 million as of March 12, McMillan pocketed around $4.7 million during that time span.
Not bad for two elections where your candidates lost by nearly 30 points combined.
McMillan told Florida Politics that everything he charged, he displayed upfront.
Fair enough. But let’s pull back for one second.
As hype as these fundraising numbers were for Democrats, the chances they were ever winning these seats was always near zero, despite some of the breathless media coverage from outlets looking to gin up drama.
So without a win, what could Democrats realistically get from hauling in all of this money? They could have used it to build up infrastructure. They could have transferred some of it to a larger party apparatus that could use it for more competitive races.
You know what doesn’t help the Democratic Party? A consultant pocketing about a third of this massive haul for, again, delivering two 14-point losses.
So far, no one’s alleging anything illegal here. McMillan in his defense argued, in part, that this is just how the game is played. And to some degree, he is correct.
But as he pointed to other consultants hauling in big paychecks, we’d like to point out one thing: Many of those firms have actually won a lot of big races. That’s why Democrats hire them.
McMillan did nothing here and siphoned money that could have been spent better elsewhere. That’s great for him, and everyone should get a bag where they can.
But for Democrats actually looking to compete in this increasingly red state, we’re just not sure what McMillan is offering going forward.
The game is tonight.
Florida Gators (34-4, 17-4 SEC) vs. Auburn Tigers (32-5, 16-4 SEC)
San Antonio; Saturday, 6:09 p.m. EDT
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Gators -2.5; over/under is 159.5
BOTTOM LINE: No. 4 Auburn and No. 3 Florida meet in the NCAA Tournament Final Four.
The Tigers’ record in SEC play is 16-4, and their record is 16-1 against non-conference opponents. Auburn scores 83.2 points while outscoring opponents by 14.0 points per game.
The Gators’ record in SEC action is 17-4. Florida has a 2-1 record in games decided by 3 points or fewer.
Auburn averages 9.1 made 3-pointers per game, 2.4 more made shots than the 6.7 per game Florida gives up. Florida has shot at a 47.3% rate from the field this season, 6.7 percentage points above the 40.6% shooting opponents of Auburn have averaged.
The teams meet for the second time this season. The Gators won 90-81 in the last matchup on Feb. 8.
___
Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Not even 24 hours after his party lost a key Wisconsin race and underperformed in Florida, President Donald Trump followed the playbook that has defined his political career: He doubled down.
Trump’s move on Wednesday to place stiff new tariffs on imports from nearly all U.S. trading partners marks an all-in bet by the Republican that his once-fringe economic vision will pay off for Americans. It was the realization of his four decades of advocacy for a protectionist foreign policy and the belief that free trade was forcing the United States into decline as its economy shifted from manufacturing to services.
The tariff announcement was the latest and perhaps boldest manifestation of Trump’s second-term freedom to lead with his instincts after feeling his first turn in the Oval Office was restrained by aides who did not share his worldview. How it shakes out will be a defining judgment on his presidency.
The early reviews have been worrisome.
Financial markets had their worst week since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, foreign trade partners retaliated and economists warned that the import taxes may boost inflation and potentially send the U.S. into a recession. It’s now Republican lawmakers who are fretting about their party’s future while Democrats feel newly buoyant over what they see as Trump’s overreach.
He has promised that the taxes on imports will bring about a domestic manufacturing renaissance and help fund an extension of his 2017 tax cuts. He insisted on Thursday as the Dow Jones fell by 1,600 points that things were “going very well” and the economy would “boom,” then spent Friday at the golf course as the index plunged 2,200 more points.
In his first term, Trump’s tariff threats brought world leaders to his door to cut deals. This time, his actions so far have led to steep retaliation from China and promises from European allies to push back.
As Trump struggles with the economy, Democrats are beginning to emerge from the cloud of doom that has consumed their party ever since their election drubbing in November.
They scored a decisive victory in Wisconsin’s high-profile state Supreme Court election on Tuesday, even after Elon Musk and his affiliated groups poured more than $20 million into the contest. New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker then breathed new life into the Democratic resistance by delivering a record 25-hour-long speech on the Senate floor that centered on a call for his party to find its resolve.
___
Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
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