Vacation rental marketing giant Airbnb began the year under a withering attack in Florida from newly seated Gov. Ron DeSantis for its ban on Israeli West Bank rentals.

But since rescinding that policy -- and receiving a nod of appreciation from DeSantis in Jerusalem in May -- Airbnb has been on a winning streak in the Sunshine State, especially in court.

The leading digital platform in Florida’s $31 billion short-term vacational rental industry, Airbnb won two major court victories this month.

Situated on the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve and overlooking the St. Johns River, the view from the Ribault Monument is one of Jacksonville’s hidden gems. From that point on St. Johns Bluff, you have a commanding view of the river with a nice panorama of human activity, marshlands, trees and the open sky.

Albuquerque is a long way from Apalachicola.

But when a federal judge in the New Mexico city hears arguments next week in a long-running water war between Florida and Georgia, the small Panhandle community will be at the center of the case.

Senior U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Paul J. Kelly, appointed as a special master by the U.S. Supreme Court, will weigh whether Georgia uses too much water from a river system that flows into Apalachicola Bay.

U.S. Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla. has co-sponsored a bill to make Puerto Rico the 51st state.

H.R. 4901, the Puerto Rico Statehood Admission Act, would require a "Statehood Yes-No" vote by both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate for the island. This is the same precedent established for the admission process of Alaska and Hawaii.

The legislation is sponsored by U.S. Reps. Jenniffer González Colón, R-P.R., and Jose Serrano, D-N.Y.