Politics

Susie Wiles will share Florida Freedom Forum with top GOP levels in Orlando

Published

4 months ago

August 1, 2025

The top Republicans in Florida and Washington — a group that currently overlaps significantly —will convene in Orlando on Saturday.

The Florida Freedom Forum, a major fundraiser for the Republican Party of Florida, will kick off at 9 a.m. at the Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel, with events and speeches planned all day. The day will close with the Red Florida Dinner, headlined by White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles in a rare public appearance in the state where she long worked as a political consultant.

“This weekend Florida will showcase the best in Republican leadership,” said Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power. “Florida leads the way and this is just a preview of where our state and nation is headed.”

Wiles managed President Donald Trump’s successful 2024 campaign before being hired to the top staff job in his administration. She will be named the state party’s “Statesman of the Year.”

Republican Party of Florida Executive Director Bill Helmich said the high-attention event sold out even before Wiles was announced, largely thanks to the rest of the line-up of speakers taking the stage.

But beyond Wiles, many of Florida’s top political figures will also enjoy time on stage. Every statewide elected office holder will speak, including Gov. Ron DeSantis and U.S. Sens. Ashley Moody and Rick Scott.

Scott will speak at the 7 p.m. dinner, as will Power. Republican National Committee Co-Chair K.C. Crosbie, a Kentucky Republican who won her post in January, will also speak at the dinner. So will political consultant Chris LaCivita and pollster Tony Fabrizio, who worked on Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign with Wiles.

Other conservative leaders and some rising Republican figures are scheduled to take the stage during the day before 3 p.m. Attorney General James Uthmeier and Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia, recent appointments of DeSantis who stand for election in 2026, will speak at the event.

So will Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, the only sitting Cabinet member who won his position. He may seek re-election, but rumors still swirl he may run for Governor.

U.S. Reps. Byron Donalds, Randy Fine, Anna Paulina Luna, Aaron Bean and Daniel Webster will all trek to Orlando to speak at the event.

Donalds notably launched his own campaign for Governor earlier this year, and so far is the only major Republican candidate to officially file.

Several members of the Florida Legislature will also speak, including state Sens. Jay Collins, Joe Gruters and Keith Truenow and Reps. Hillary Cassel, Toby Overdorf and Michelle Salzman.

Gruters could be a big draw among the party regulars in attendance, as Trump recently endorsed him to become Republican National Committee Chair. The Sarasota Republican serves as the national party’s Treasurer now.

But many have discussed whether DeSantis will name Collins, a Tampa Republican, as Lieutenant Governor soon. Overdorf also recently announced his campaign for state Senate.

Outside elected officials, state Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas was listed among the major speakers.

So were former state House Speakers Richard Corcoran, now President of New College, and Paul Renner, a member of the State University System Board of Governors.

Conservative commentator Benny Johnson will also speak at the event.

Post Views: 0

Source link

Politics

Ron DeSantis says GOP must go on offense ahead of Midterms to bring back ‘complacent’ voters

Published

14 minutes ago

December 5, 2025

May Greene

Gov. Ron DeSantis is continuing to warn Republicans that next year’s Midterm contests may not go their way if the party doesn’t change course.

He recommends that Republicans make a strong case for what they will do if they somehow retain control of Congress next year, given that “in an off-year Midterm, the party in power’s voters tend to be more complacent.”

But DeSantis, who himself served nearly three terms in Congress before resigning to focus on his campaign for Governor in 2018, says House Republicans haven’t accomplished much, and they need to be proactive in the time that’s left.

“I just think you’ve got to be bold. I think you’ve got to be strong. And I think one of the frustrations with the Congress is, what have they done since August till now? They really haven’t done anything, right?” DeSantis explained on “Fox & Friends.”

“I’d be like, every day, coming out with something new and make the Democrats go on the record, show the contrast.”

The Governor said the economy and immigration are two issues that would resonate with voters.

On immigration, DeSantis believes his party should remind voters that President Donald Trump stopped the “influx” of illegal border crossers given passage when Joe Biden was in power.

After providing contrast to some of his policy wins through the end of 2023 in Florida, DeSantis suggested that the GOP needs to blame the opposition party regarding continued economic struggles.

“Democrats, they caused a lot of this with the inflation and now they’re acting like … they had nothing to do with it,” he said.

DeSantis’ latest comments come after Tuesday’s narrow GOP victory in deep-red Tennessee, in yet another election where a candidate for Congress underperformed President Donald Trump.

Republican Matt Van Epps defeated Democrat Aftyn Behn by roughly 9 points in the Nashville area seat. That’s less than half the margin by which Trump bested Kamala Harris in 2024. This is after U.S. Reps. Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis won by smaller margins than expected in Special Elections in Florida earlier this year.

Though partisan maps protect the GOP in many cases, with just a seven-vote advantage over Democrats in Congress there is scant room for error.

Bettors seem to believe the House will flip, with Democratic odds of victory at 78% on Polymarket on Friday morning.

Source link

Politics

Ron DeSantis again downplays interest in a second presidential run

Published

45 minutes ago

December 5, 2025

May Greene

The question won’t go away.

Gov. Ron DeSantis may be out of state, just like he was when he ran for President in 2024, but that doesn’t mean he’s eyeing another run for the White House.

“I’ve got my hands full, man. I’m good,” he told Stuart Varney during an in-studio interview Friday in New York City, responding to a question about his intentions.

DeSantis added that it was “not the first time” he got that question, which persists amid expectations of a crowded field of candidates to succeed President Donald Trump.

“I’m not thinking about anything because I think we have a President now who’s not even been in for a year. We’ve got a lot that we’ve got to accomplish,” the term-limited Governor told Jake Tapper last month when asked about 2028.

It may be for the best that DeSantis isn’t actively running, given some recent polls.

DeSantis, who ran in 2024 before withdrawing after failing to win a single county in the Iowa caucuses, has just 2% support in the latest survey from Emerson College.

Recent polling from the University of New Hampshire says he’ll struggle again in what is historically the first-in-the-nation Primary state. The “Granite State Poll,” his worst showing in any state poll so far, shows the Florida Governor with 3% support overall.

In January 2024, DeSantis had different messaging after leaving the GOP Primary race.

“When I was in Iowa, a lot of these folks that stuck with the President were very supportive of what I’ve done in Florida. They thought I was a good candidate,” DeSantis said. “I even had people say they think that I would even do better as President, but they felt that they owed Trump another shot. And so I think we really made a strong impression.”

But that was then, this is now.

Source link

Politics

First place at stake for Jaguars vs. Colts

Published

1 hour ago

December 5, 2025

May Greene

How big is Sunday’s game for the Jaguars?

According to The Athletic, the Jaguars have an 83% chance of making the playoffs entering the weekend. That’s a pretty good bet. At 8-4, the Jaguars are currently in the third spot in the AFC.

However, Jacksonville stands a 42% chance of winning the division, slightly better than Sunday’s opponent, the Indianapolis Colts (8-4), who sit at 34% to win the AFC South.

With both games against the Colts still on the schedule and matchups with the struggling New York Jets, a trip to Denver to face the surging Broncos, and the season finale at home against the Tennessee Titans, the Jaguars need only to win the games they should win to make the playoffs.

Leaving the Colts games aside for the moment, if the Jaguars simply beat the Jets and Titans, they would have 10 wins. That is almost certainly enough to earn a postseason spot.

So, in a way, Sunday’s game against the Colts isn’t make-or-break. However, if the Jaguars want to win the division and host a playoff game, at least one win over the Colts is essential. Should the Jaguars win Sunday, they would hold a 1-game advantage over the Colts and, for the time being, hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over Indianapolis.

By one metric, the Jaguars can increase their playoff odds to 95% with a victory on Sunday. Even with a loss, they are a good bet to make the playoffs as a wild-card team. But the chance to start the postseason with a home game is a powerful advantage, one that division winners enjoy.

Health will be a major factor in Sunday’s game. The Jaguars hope to have wide receiver/kick returner Parker Washington and defensive end Travon Walker back in the lineup. Both missed some or all of last week’s game but practiced in a limited basis this week. Starting left tackle Walker Little and safety Andrew Wingard remained in the concussion protocol this week. Starting right guard Patrik Mekari returned from concussion protocol on Wednesday.

The Colts are also dealing with injuries. Cornerback Sauce Gardner did not practice this week, while quarterback Daniel Jones continues to play with a fracture in his leg.

The key matchup could be strength vs. strength. Indianapolis running back Jonathan Taylor leads the NFL in rushing with 1,282 yards, while the Jaguars are the league’s top rush defense, allowing opponents only 82.4 yards per contest. No running back has run for more than 90 yards against the Jaguars this season, and only one, Houston’s Woody Marks, has rushed for more than 70 yards in a game. Taylor averages nearly 107 yards per game this season.

The Jaguars last made the playoffs in 2022 in Doug Pederson’s first season as head coach. Liam Coen is trying to replicate the feat.

Interestingly, the game is one of three in the NFL this weekend with first place on the line.

The Baltimore Ravens host the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday. Both teams are 6-6, and the winner will lead the AFC North. The Chicago Bears (9-3) also travel to Green Bay to face the Packers (8-3-1), with the winner taking the top spot in the NFC North.

Source link