Florida's Latest News

DeSantis denounces Biden policy on immigrants convicted of crimes

 Gov. Ron DeSantis announced steps to fight the Biden administration’s refusal to immediately deport convicted criminals who had been in the United States illegally.

The Biden administration rescinded the Trump policy of immediately deporting immigrants in the country illegally who had completed prison sentences for various crimes. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody sued the federal government last month over the change.

“We’re going to work hard to keep Florida communities safe,” DeSantis said at a news conference in Titusville, where he was joined by family members of people killed by released criminals who had been in the United States illegally. “These are convicted felons who are here illegally. If you can’t remove them, then what do you have, just a complete lawless system and a completely open border? I don’t think any of us want that.”

House joins Senate in passing civics education proposal

The House has passed the Senate’s Civics Education bill that would encourage civics engagement among high school students.

The House unanimously passed the Senate’s version (SB146) after amending it with a clarification during floor discussions Wednesday. The measure will head back to the Senate for senators to approve that amendment.

Rep. Ben Diamond, sponsored the House companion bill (HB 611).

“We do have our disagreements on policy sometimes, but I think we all agree on the importance of young people having an opportunity to learn how government works,” Diamond said. “Hopefully it can restore some of the problems we’re having now in our political discourse.”

Ashley Moody joins coalition urging CEOs to police fraudulent COVID-19 vaccine card sales

Attorney General Ashley Moody is calling on digital platforms to crack down on the online sale of fraudulent COVID-19 vaccine cards.

Joined by 44 other attorneys general, the bipartisan coalition sent a letter Thursday urging the CEOs of eBay, Twitter and Shopify to take action.

The letter calls on companies to monitor their websites, remove fraudulent postings and preserve relevant records.

“As the availability of COVID-19 vaccines increases, so do the number of scammers trying to exploit this health crisis for personal gain,” Moody said. “I am asking eBay, Shopify and Twitter to help us prevent fraud by taking action to stop the sale of fraudulent vaccination cards through their online platforms.”

Castor and Crist call for U.S. justice department to investigate Florida lead factory

Two U.S. representatives on Thursday called on the U.S. Department of Justice to open an investigation into Gopher Resource, a Tampa lead smelter where hundreds of workers have been exposed to extreme amounts of the neurotoxin and other toxic substances.

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, and U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, D-St. Petersburg, requested the Department of Justice focus on possible health and safety violations detailed in a Tampa Bay Times series.

The letter written to Jean Williams, the acting assistant attorney general who heads the environmental and natural resources division, came about 24 hours after the two lawmakers had urged the U.S. Department of Labor to review and inspect the Tampa factory.