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What's Going on the Week of March 10

March 11, 2019 - 9:00am

Gov. Ron DeSantis could be on the verge of getting his first major legislative victory.

The House is expected during the coming week to approve a bill that would allow patients to smoke medical marijuana, a proposal that has already passed the Senate.

Voters in 2016 passed a constitutional amendment that broadly legalized medical marijuana. Lawmakers in 2017 approved a bill to carry out the constitutional amendment and included a ban on smokable marijuana.

Goliath

Henry Payne

March 9, 2019 - 8:15am

Hard-Left Democrats' Power Grab Gives Us a Telling Look at Debbie Mucarsel-Powell

Nancy Smith

March 9, 2019 - 7:45am

In case you didn't notice, U.S. House Democrats, including Florida's Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, voted Friday for their first major legislation of the new Congress.

The Democrats call it "For the People Act of 2019;" the Republicans call it "Democrat Politician Protection Act." Mucarsel-Powell, who unseated Republican Carlos Curbelo in the last election, was a bill co-sponsor.

So, what was the Democrats' top priority? Job creation? Veterans? The economy? Nope. The first major program passed by House Democrats primarily benefits ... House Democrats.

Attorney General Moody, Sen. Tom Lee Say Bill Is Needed to Prevent 'Chaos'

Ana Ceballos News Service of Florida

March 9, 2019 - 7:45am

Attorney General Ashley Moody is pushing legislation she says is needed to prevent chaos in Florida’s legal system after voters overwhelmingly approved a measure that could reduce existing sentences of thousands of people convicted of crimes.

More than 4 million Floridians in November approved Amendment 11, which got rid of an 1800s-era constitutional "Savings Clause" provision that banned the Legislature from applying criminal-justice and sentencing changes retroactively.

Florida Can Make History with ERA Ratification

Jim Bleyer

March 9, 2019 - 7:30am

Only 1,203 miles separate Seneca Falls, N.Y. from Tallahassee. Philosophically, the two cities have been light years apart -- until now.

Florida Delegation Wants to Sanction Iran as Bob Levinson has Been Missing for 12 Years

Kevin Derby

March 8, 2019 - 1:00pm

Members of the Florida delegation in both chambers on Capitol Hill are doubling down on their efforts to put more pressure on Iran for the disappearance of Robert Levinson, a Florida resident who has been missing in that Middle Eastern nation for 12 years.

Donald Trump, Vern Buchanan: VA Needs to Do More to Cut Down on Veteran Suicide

Kevin Derby

March 11, 2019 - 8:45am

Last week, President Donald Trump launched his efforts to crack down on veteran suicide and he has the support of a leading Republican in the Florida delegation.

Backroom Briefing: Democrats Offer a Different Take

Jim Turner News Service of Florida

March 8, 2019 - 10:30am

House Democrats have limited power to get priorities in the state budget, but they released a spending plan this week that they said focuses on working Floridians.

Called the “New Sunshine Deal,” the plan seeks a tax-rebate program for working families, expansion of Medicaid, a 13 percent pay raise for teachers and fully funded affordable-housing programs.

Democrats, who are far outnumbered by Republicans in the House, intend to introduce aspects of the plan as proposed amendments throughout the 60-day legislative session, which started Tuesday.

Brian Mast Co-Introducer on Legislation to End Deadly USDA Experiments on Kittens

Sunshine State News

March 8, 2019 - 10:30am

U.S. Congressmen Brian Mast, R-Fla. and Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif. introduced on Thursday the bipartisan Kittens in Traumatic Testing Ends Now Act of 2019, or KITTEN Act. The bill directs the Secretary of Agriculture to end the use of cats in experiments that cause pain or stress.

Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) performs parasite-related experiments on cats and kittens. This taxpayer-funded testing results in thousands of kittens bred, fed parasite-infected raw meat and then killed.

Justices Delve into Stand Your Ground Change

Jim Saunders News Service of Florida

March 8, 2019 - 10:30am

Two years after lawmakers approved a controversial change to the state’s “stand your ground” self-defense law, the Florida Supreme Court on Wednesday heard arguments about whether the change should apply to a woman charged in a shooting incident outside a Miami-Dade County nightclub.

The defendant, Tashara Love, was charged in 2015, but her case remained pending when lawmakers changed the “stand your ground” law in 2017. The issue before the Supreme Court centers on whether the revised law should apply to Love’s case --- and potentially other cases that began before 2017.

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