Andrew Tate said he was disappointed in Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday while speaking on a podcast several days after he and his brother, Tristan, who are charged with human trafficking in Romania, returned to the U.S.

Andrew Tate appeared on the PBD Podcast, hosted by Patrick Bet-David, and said DeSantis likely caved to media pressure last week when he told reporters that the Tates weren’t welcome in Florida, after they landed in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday. DeSantis said Florida’s Attorney General was examining whether the state may have any jurisdiction over the brothers’ alleged crimes, and if so, how to hold them accountable. In court documents, the Tates have said they are not and have never been Florida residents.

“I don’t know why Ron’s answer wasn’t, ‘He has an American passport. The judicial system in Romania, which I know absolutely nothing about, decided to let him fly, and he’s flown to his home country. As far as we’re concerned, he’s broken no laws,’” Tate said. “Instead, what he did was say: ‘We’re going to get our Attorney General to try and find some laws he’s broken and wreck this man who’s done nothing inside of the United States ever.’”

In contrast, Tate described U.S. President Donald Trump as “such a boss” in his response to reporters about the Tate brothers. A reporter asked Trump if his administration had pressured the Romanian government to release the brothers, and Trump said, “I know nothing about that.”

Andrew Tate, 38, is a former professional kickboxer and self-described misogynist who has amassed more than 10 million followers on the social platform X. He and his brother Tristan Tate, 36, are vocal supporters of Trump.

Andrew reiterated on Monday that he has not been convicted of any crimes.

“Isn’t the whole point of democracy, innocent until proven guilty?” Tate said. “I’ve yet to even have a trial, let alone a conviction. I’ve never even been tried after three years. I’ve never been to trial.”

Andrew Tate is a hugely successful social media figure, attracting millions of followers, many of them young men and schoolchildren drawn in by the luxurious lifestyle the influencer projects online.

He previously was banned from TikTok, YouTube and Facebook for hate speech and his misogynistic comments, including that women should bear responsibility for getting sexually assaulted.

The Tates, who are dual U.S.-British citizens, were arrested in late 2022 and formally indicted last year on charges they participated in a criminal ring that lured women to Romania, where they were sexually exploited. Andrew Tate was also charged with rape. They deny the allegations.

The Tates’ departure came after Romanian Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu said this month that a Trump administration official expressed interest in the brothers’ case at the recent Munich Security Conference.

Just weeks ago, Andrew Tate posted on X: “The Tates will be free, Trump is the President. The good old days are back. And they will be better than ever. Hold on.”

DeSantis’ office didn’t immediately reply to an email seeking comment about Monday’s podcast with Tate.

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The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) of Florida has selected Kelvin Enfinger as its 2025 Board Chair.

Enfinger is the Vice President and Partner of Greenhut Construction Company in Pensacola.

A native of Northwest Florida, Enfinger has worked in construction and as a tradesman his entire career, working his way up to leadership at Greenhut, where he is part of a management team overseeing more than $650 million in construction in a variety of sectors, including retail, health care, aviation and education.

ABC of Florida represents more than 2,000 member companies and has five chapters across the state. It is the largest commercial construction association in Florida, and serves as the “voice of commercial construction” in Tallahassee.

In addition to his new role as Chair of the ABC of Florida Board, Enfinger is also a member of the group’s National Tech and Innovation Committee and its National Free Enterprise Alliance Committee. He also serves on boards for the NAIOP Northwest Florida, FloridaWest EDA and BRACE in Escambia County.

Additionally, Enfinger is also a member of the University of West Florida Construction Management Advisory Council and is a past Chair of the ABC North Florida Board (2024) and is a past member of the ABC National Board (2024).

ABC of Florida employs a full-time team of lobbyists to advocate in Tallahassee for the interests of the organization and its members, and for legislation that benefits the broader construction industry.

Each year, members of the group participate in one of several “Capitol Days” in which various groups, organizations and businesses share with lawmakers and other members of the legislative process what they do and why. ABC of Florida members wear hardhats and discuss real-life impacts of government regulations affecting construction.

The industry is one of the top five economic drivers in Florida’s economy, according to the group.

Its chapters include Central Florida, the East Coast, the First Coast, the Gulf Coast and North Florida.

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Outnumbered Democrats acknowledge that bills to expand Medicaid, raise teacher pay, and protect unions are long shots to pass this Legislative Session, but they are still trying to push their agenda in hopes it catches Republicans’ attention.

“No one is more keenly aware of the numbers in Tallahassee than us, and we know that these bills are not likely to move,” House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell told journalists while outlining some of the Democrats’ priorities before the Session begins Tuesday.

“It’s important to push the conversation, and that’s what we’re doing. Besides, Democratic ideas get poached all the time, so you never know when one of the concepts in these pieces of legislation might show up in a bill that gets heard on the floor.”

Rep. Dotie Joseph filed a bill (HB 1507) to expand Medicaid that would provide health care to low-income Floridians and children.

“Florida is one of about a dozen states that has refused to expand Medicaid, and because of that over 2.4 million Floridians … are uninsured,” the North Miami Democrat said. “That’s the fourth-highest rate in the nation. “

HB 1177 would strengthen unions and add heat safety protection for outdoor workers.

“Unions are what has brought us to the place where we are today,” said Rep. Michael Gottlieb of Davie, the bill’s sponsor. “In terms of workers’ protections, we need to safeguard their ability to remain a stalwart protection for workers.”

HB 1019, filed by Rep. Christine Hunschofsky, would require background checks on gun sales and transfers as well as add new restrictions on “ghost guns,” which are weapons without serial numbers that are assembled together in a kit or pieces.

Among the changes proposed by Rep. Jervonte Edmonds’ legislation (HB 1045) are overriding the current minimum teacher base of $47,500 to make it either the national average for a full-time teacher or 10% higher than the minimum base pay was for the previous year — whichever of the two is higher.

And Rep. Rita Harris of Orlando sponsored a measure (HB 1471) to add more protections for renters, including requiring renters to get three months advance notice if rent is increasing by more than 5%.

With Democrats up against a GOP supermajority in both chambers, they will need significant cross-party support to get any of these measures onto Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk.

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