Politics

Gov. DeSantis kills pilot program that would have installed air conditioners at Miami-Dade prisons

Published

5 months ago

July 1, 2025

It seemed a noble, compassionate pursuit: a pilot program to install small air conditioning units in the dorms of three Miami-Dade correctional facilities as a test for a broader initiative across the state.

Senate and House lawmakers agreed, earmarking $300,000 to see the program through, the exact sum Doral Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez and Islamorada Rep. Jim Mooney sought in twin appropriation requests.

Then came Gov. Ron DeSantis’ veto pen.

On Monday, he eliminated all state funding for the program in the upcoming state budget as part of a $567 million reduction.

Orlando-based prison rights advocate Connie Edson, who has spent half a decade trying to deliver inmates some relief from the heat and spearheaded the effort to fund and roll out the program, is at a loss for why.

“I’m floored. I can’t believe he turned it down,” she told Florida Politics. “We’re talking about what’s humane and what’s inhumane, and this is the most inhumane thing ever.”

Edson said that in online forums she frequents for people with family members behind bars, she hears the same concerns all the time.

“They’re roasting in there,” she said. “They’re suffocating. And there’s no reason for it.”

Of the more than 130 correctional facilities operated by the Florida Department of Corrections (FDC), only 25% have air conditioning.

Those dismal conditions are the subject of a class-action lawsuit. FDC officials attempted, but failed, to have it dismissed in late May. The complaint contends that forcing inmates to endure scorching temperatures at Dade Correctional Institution, the result of a lack of air conditioning and “insufficient ventilation systems,” violates 8th Amendment protections against cruel and unusual punishment, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs — three incarcerated individuals who are on medication for conditions experts say make them more susceptible to heat-related maladies — alleged that at least four inmates have died from heat-related causes in Miami-Dade since 2021.

Dade Correctional, along with Everglades Correctional Institution and Homestead Correctional Institution, were to have received the air conditioners through the now-canceled $300,000 set-aside.

The money would have gone to Horizon Communities Corp., a faith-based nonprofit whose goal is to “empower incarcerated individuals with the skills, support, and mindset crucial for successful reintegration into society.

In turn, Horizon would have outfitted the dorm rooms where it offers its programming with mini split air conditioners, ductless, wall-mounted HVAC systems that provide cooling and/or heating without using ductwork.

The program would have benefited more than 1,000 people, including inmates, Horizon volunteers, and staff, according to Rodriguez’s funding request.

The plan was built on efforts that began with a successful but short-lived pilot program, which Edson initiated in 2022 with Gainesville Democratic Rep. Yvonne Hinson at Lowell Correctional Institution, a women’s prison in Marion County.

That year, Edson tested swamp coolers, also known as evaporative coolers, which reduce air temperatures by evaporating water. They proved somewhat effective, but weren’t especially well-received, Edson said, in large part because they made the already-dense air in the prison even more humid.

A big, noisy swamp cooler. Image via Connie Edson.

They were also quite noisy, FDC Secretary Ricky Dixon told members of a Senate committee in October 2023. Edson told the panel at the time that while the swamp coolers were not the solution to Florida’s prison heat problem, “a solution is out there (and) with your funding, we can find the solution.”

Edson soon found an alternative. She met the owner of an air conditioning company, who, after hearing about her work, donated a mini-split unit. She got approval from FDC to install it in a room at Lowell used for the Women Offering Obedience and Friendship (WOOF) program, where inmates train service dogs for veterans.

FDC wouldn’t pay to install the unit. So, Julie Drexel, WOOF’s program manager, covered the $700 cost.

“And boom, they had air conditioning,” Edson said.

*The mini split air conditioner at Lowell Correctional Institution’s WOOF area. Image via Connie Edson.*

Confident she’d found the right solution, Edson lobbied lawmakers to sponsor legislation to effectuate a broader pilot program last year. She was unsuccessful, but undeterred.

She changed tack and joined forces with Horizon Executive Director Nathan Schaidt to seek a local appropriation in Miami-Dade instead.

Horizon depends on volunteers, many of whom are older than 60, the Florida Phoenix reported. Shaidt said this in April. When Summer arrives with temperatures frequently exceeding 100 degrees, he said, “A lot of our volunteers, they have to bow out. They can’t go and sit for two hours in that heat trying to teach these classes.”

Edson contacted Rodriguez and Mooney, who quickly got onboard with the idea and submitted requests in mid-February. While numerous impasses led to protracted budget talks between the two chambers this year, Senate and House lawmakers appeared to have little trouble seeing the proposal’s merits.

Nor should they have, Edson said.

“Those people in prison, even though they’re incarcerated, they are still constituents,” she said. And this is something that’s innovative, that could really turn Florida around. This was a major breakthrough.”

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Politics

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

Published

11 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.

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Politics

Ron DeSantis again downplays interest in a second presidential run

Published

42 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.

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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.

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