A major polling aggregator announced Thursday that it has permanently barred data from political survey firm, The Public Sentiment Institute (TPSI), following allegations that the group altered survey responses and concealed its financial ties to Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/here-lie-the-groypers">James Fishback</a>.
The allegations come just a week after a fake polling firm, Median Strategies, admitted it disseminated <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/meet-the-fraud-pollster-who-boosted-socialist-with-fake-stats">fraudulent polling figures</a> to test how unverified political data spreads across social media.
“We are permanently removing from our website all polls released by The Public Sentiment Institute, after the company admitted it fabricated vote-choice data for select respondents,&#8221; FiftyPlusOne <a href="https://blog.fiftyplusone.news/p/suspending-two-pollsters-data-falsification-undisclosed-partisan-work">wrote</a>. &#8220;This fabrication appears to have boosted the poll numbers of the political candidate that paid TPSI for polling services.”
A final poll from TPSI released just before the election showed Fishback in second place, just behind Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL). Fishback came in third place in the primary, securing just over 10% of the vote and falling far behind Donalds at 48% and Lt. Governor Jay Collins at 25%.
“Late last week, FiftyPlusOne received a tip that TPSI had allegedly published campaign internals for the James Fishback campaign without disclosing that those polls were funded by a candidate. This is in explicit violation of our ethical standards for pollsters,” FiftyPlusOne added.
Fishback&#8217;s campaign paid TPSI $1,575 on June 9 under the memo &#8220;Polling/survey,&#8221; according to FiftyPlusOne. The group then released polls on June 10, June 30, and August 13 with no note on how it was funded by the Fishback campaign. In its August 13 poll, TPSI included the statement, &#8220;This survey was designed, funded, and conducted by The Public Sentiment Institute. No candidate, campaign, party committee or outside organization sponsored, commissioned or paid for this research.&#8221;
The June 10 <a href="https://archive.ph/9og7R">poll</a> showed Fishback in second place at 27%, and the June 30 <a href="https://archive.ph/8vRnT">poll</a> showed Fishback rapidly gaining ground and tying Donalds for first place at 32%. In its final <a href="https://archive.ph/Td8Ko">poll</a> before the election, TPSI showed Fishback at 29%, just five percentage points behind the first-place Donalds.
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After the primary election, TPSI released an accuracy review taking responsibility for omitting its funding source, but it strongly denied manipulating or fabricating raw data. The pollster claimed that its usual methodology accurately matched the final primary results within a small margin of error. But analysts altered the last forecast by using an experimental modeling framework called the &#8220;Coalition Expectation Overlay.&#8221; They assumed their panel was undercounting younger voters and suspected an issue with voters backing Collins.
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Austin Park, the co-founder and head of research at VoteHub, pointed out, “The American Association for Public Opinion Research just released a statement on fabricated polling following the Median Strategies issue. Disappointing to see TPSI effectively fabricate their data as well. TPSI has been excluded in VoteHub averages for several months already.”
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The American Association for Public Opinion Research just released a statement on fabricated polling following the Median Strategies issue. Disappointing to see TPSI effectively fabricate their data as well.
TPSI has been excluded in VoteHub averages for several months already. <a href="https://t.co/HGTbZDbx66">https://t.co/HGTbZDbx66</a>
&mdash; Austin Park (@austinjpark) <a href="https://x.com/austinjpark/status/2090189519085850664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
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FiftyPlusOne also placed data from Patriot Polling on temporary suspension because of concerns over undisclosed campaign sponsorships in the same primary.
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US-NEWS-FLAGOV-FISHBACK-OS

Pollster Funded By James Fishback Accused Of Manipulating Data Before Blowout Loss

2026 midterm election

byron donalds

florida governor election

james fishback

politics

polling

TAMPA, FLORIDA — “Yeah, I have feelings about that flag over there,” the young campaign volunteer said to me.
He gestured toward the white and blue Star of David banner perched above the front of the sanctuary of Turning Point Church of God in Clewiston, Florida, where it hung a mere 20 feet from the ‘Fishback for Florida’ lectern. Somehow, despite the proximity, neither the sign nor the Israeli flag had burst into flame.
Sitting in the front row of the church, we were chatting about politics and the movement he had joined. Up until that point, not one attendee at James Fishback’s “closing argument” speech on the eve of the election had brought up Israel, or the Jews, without me raising it.
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<div id="attachment_1161793" style="width: 2058px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1161793" class="wp-image-1161793 size-full" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Israel-Fla.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1536" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Israel-Fla.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Israel-Fla-300x225.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Israel-Fla-768x576.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Israel-Fla-1536x1152.jpg 1536w" sizes=" (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" />Credit Dylan Housman</div>
“Israel is a broken record, though. We’ve made our point, it’s time to talk about other things,&#8221; the volunteer dismissively said to me, explaining that everyone who cared deeply about that hot button had already decided which camp they were in.
There were just over a hundred people there — good turnout for Clewiston, a rural town of just over 7,000 people about an hour and a half from Fort Lauderdale. I had flown to Orlando, and then made the nearly three-hour drive to Hendry County, to see for myself what the “groyper” movement — we’ll shorthand them as followers of Nick Fuentes and his “America First” faction — looked like in real life.
There have been other groyper-inspired candidates for public office, but Fishback is perhaps this new creature in its purest form. He launched his campaign with inflammatory Twitter tirades about Israel and AIPAC, he secured endorsements from both Tucker Carlson and Fuentes, he frequently lobbed racist attacks against his opponent Byron Donalds. But the critical difference from other groyper grifters was the act of running a real campaign. He made dozens of stops in the closing days of the campaign alone, had a strong digital operation, an organized group of real volunteers, and is a gifted communicator when he isn’t triggered into <a href="https://newrepublic.com/post/208610/republican-candidate-fishback-black-man-lynched">telling a black voter they should be lynched</a>.
What he lacked in fundraising he made up for in an army of young men shitposting their way into social media semi-relevance. The ancient Vulcan proverb tells us Twitter is not real life. I wanted to put that to the test, and not just by reading a vote tally from my office in D.C.
The volunteer next to me said his main priorities were “family values” and affordability. In his early 20s, he was about to enter college, and said he had learned about Fishback via Instagram. I asked what his media diet was. He said he listened to Fuentes and Carlson, but since he liked to hear all sides, he sprinkled in the streamer Destiny — a professional StarCraft player turned political commentator. We laughed at the career move.
Two other young men sat by me in jeans and ballcaps, sparking memories of my cousins from rural South Carolina. They didn’t have anything to say about Israel or the Jews either. Their concerns were Flock cameras, data centers, and reclaiming “the Florida I grew up in.”
The event, hosted by senior pastor Troy Ezell, opened with a group prayer before Fishback finally took the stage and spoke for roughly an hour. I had seen Fishback earlier in the parking lot when I arrived, looking somewhat distracted from afar. But he performed well on stage. It was a speech that the vast majority of Americans on the right could cheer for — small town Florida, the American dream, citrus, cattle, and sugar.
“The real test of the economy is if a 30-year-old can get married and buy a home,” he said, which made a lot of sense to me as a renting 28-year-old getting married next year. He touted affordability, DOGEing Florida, banning abortion, and clamping down on migrant workers taking people’s jobs.
Perhaps most shocking was a positive reference to Ronald Reagan, who is broadly loathed as a false boomer idol by the young far-right, and his &#8220;I&#8217;m from the government and I&#8217;m here to help&#8221; line.
There was one mention of AIPAC, which was put side by side with CAIR, in the entire speech. There was one veiled reference to Israel in a section about foreign aid, and that was it. Some groyper.
After the speech ended, Fishback approached me. He struck me as quite slender in person, wearing a black suit with round-framed glasses that gave the 31-year-old a more boyish appearance. He was cordial, and greeted me warmly, if skeptically: &#8220;You&#8217;re from the Daily Wire?&#8221;
I asked him why he was talking about Israel and AIPAC less now than at the start of his campaign. He had tweeted about Israel 22 times in the month of March alone, but only three times in the final month before election day. He seemed increasingly reticent to play the hits that made him vertical video famous.
He rejected the premise. He promised he still planned to divest from Israel if he became governor, but also implied that it wasn&#8217;t forefront in his supporters&#8217; minds: “This campaign is about the issues that matter to Floridians. I am still bothered by the fact that the Florida State Pension Fund lends the Israeli government $385 million a year, but the closing argument of this campaign is about the insurance crisis in our state, education, the development choices that we’re making, but I still stand by the fact that I think we need to divest from any foreign governments.”
I wondered if I had gotten my priors wrong. The people I had met were, by and large, not groypers. The speech was cookie-cutter populist. I came to Florida expecting the Mos Eisley cantina, not bespectacled blather. But I was reminded that I was dealing with the Jim Bakker of Right-wing politics.
During his speech, Fishback said it “wasn’t personal” with Byron Donalds, whom he had falsely accused of being under federal investigation for sex-trafficking two weeks prior. I asked how the repeated racist attacks and inflammatory social media conduct could be anything but personal.
“My wife and I trade jokes and jabs together, it’s nothing personal between she and I. I have tremendous respect for Congressman Donalds … I wish them all the best.”
It had only been a month since he publicly asked why Donalds’ father “never calls” in a post about black parenthood. It had only been three months since Fishback&#8217;s <a href="https://www.thebulwark.com/p/james-fishback-florida-governor-candidate-very-weird-groyper-wedding">curious wedding to his mystery wife</a>, but he was more than happy to invoke her on the campaign trail.
As soon as my interview with Fishback ended, an outside advisor to the campaign approached me and said “the Israel stuff is dead.” When I asked what he meant, he explained he had been helping Fishback during the home stretch of the campaign and advised him to soften his rhetoric on Israel and Jews, because it was wrong to “attack a group of people.”
The advisor explained that he himself is a devout supporter of Israel for theological reasons, and he wouldn&#8217;t back any candidate who was anti-Israel. He said Fishback had been “taken out of context” earlier in the campaign, and that in reality, the candidate wasn&#8217;t particularly anti-Israel at all, much less antisemitic.
It was hard for me to square that with the candidate who had referred to kids’ cafeteria meals as “goyslop” on the campaign trail. But it was a common theme. When I spoke to Rev. Ezell, who was introduced to Fishback by his Gen Z son, he said he wanted a candidate who would “shake things up.” That he cared about immigration, data centers, and taxes. He liked Trump, and really liked Ron DeSantis, but Donalds was too much of a politician for him. I asked about Israel, and he too said he was supportive of the Jewish state, and seemed either unbothered or unaware of Fishback’s rhetoric about it.
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<div id="attachment_1161795" style="width: 2058px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1161795" class="wp-image-1161795 size-full" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Turning-Point-Church.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1536" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Turning-Point-Church.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Turning-Point-Church-300x225.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Turning-Point-Church-768x576.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Turning-Point-Church-1536x1152.jpg 1536w" sizes=" (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" />Credit: Dylan Housman</div>
I began to wonder if the groypers had simply not survived contact with reality. Perhaps the necessities of primary politics had swept them aside as a vulnerability for a candidate who actually wanted to win instead of get nutpicked by the Daily Beast. Perhaps they really were all humble Pakistani bot farmers after all.
Actually, no. The next night, I was in Tampa at the airport Hilton for the Fishback election night party. There weren’t any signs or staff there to direct me where to go. I wandered deep into the bowels of the hotel, following scattered 20-somethings in suits and dresses like a trail of breadcrumbs through the Backrooms until I found the ballroom where the gathering was taking place.
There were a couple of staffers at a table that seemed to be checking people in. I had no credentials to speak of, so I simply walked past them. I spotted a bar cart and got into line for a beverage before I would start working the room. It turned out to be a cash bar. I was devastated.
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<div id="attachment_1161797" style="width: 1546px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1161797" class="wp-image-1161797 size-full" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Rally-1.jpg" alt="" width="1536" height="2048" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Rally-1.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Rally-1-225x300.jpg 225w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Rally-1-432x576.jpg 432w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Rally-1-768x1024.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/08/Fishback-Rally-1-1152x1536.jpg 1152w" sizes=" (max-width: 1536px) 100vw, 1536px" />Credit Dylan Housman</div>
I took my whiskey neat and began talking to the kids around me. A 16-year-old black girl who had phonebanked for the campaign said she was Christian and liked Fishback&#8217;s pro-life social media presence.
I asked if she thought he was racist.
“We all have our moments, but I don’t think he would talk to me so nicely if he were really racist,” she said.
Without realizing it, I had blasted back in time. The room had all the awkwardly sincere vibes of the Young Americans for Liberty and CPAC conferences I had attended as a college student a decade ago. Out of the 250 or so attendees there, the vast majority were under 30, and half would need their ID scanned if they wandered skittishly down to the hotel bar. Just like our graybeard forebears with the Ron Paul Revolution, most of these kids seemed to know Fishback wasn’t going to win. But they were sure the future would be “America First” in due course.
Here, there was more interest in Israel. Notably, it disproportionately came from kids who I had talked to from out of state, not the Floridians themselves. A cadre of true believers had made a pilgrimage to see their leader on his campaign&#8217;s night of nights. Their Mecca was the Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore.
Fuentes often stresses to his followers the importance of “hiding your power level,” and unlike the Clewiston event, I suspect I encountered this on election night. The young crowd did not seem particularly politically sophisticated, and yet they were savvy in a Gen Z, digital native type of way. One young man I spoke to very cordially asked me multiple times if I was recording (I was not), and kept glancing down at my hands until he settled into the conversation. He was no fan of Israel, but he also decried Islam and &#8220;third-world Duginism&#8221; while totally rejecting any notion of alliance with the far-Left, an idea bandied about by a number of podcasters in this world.
Fishback eventually spoke to the crowd that night, for a much shorter period of time. He conceded his loss, but said the movement he champions is just beginning. Unlike at Turning Point Church, the shots at AIPAC came earlier and more often this time around. The crowd erupted into a chant of “Christ is King.”
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<iframe style="aspect-ratio: 9/16; max-width: 400px; display: flex; justify-content: center; width: 100%; margin: 20px auto 5px; border: 0;" src="https://player.mux.com/MALiMV8tCt95qDWbxK02wzY6BesNqoq4c?metadata-video-content-type=embed_video&amp;metadata-video-id=ee94acfb-a853-42e9-8b3e-f69293822b6e&amp;metadata-video-stream-type=on-demand&amp;metadata-video-title=Christ%20Is%20King%20Chant%20Fishback%20Rally&amp;poster=https%3A%2F%2Fdailywireplus-v2.imgix.net%2Fimages%2Fembedded-videos%2F92023a27-7bcb-4d3d-aa1a-d365758fc518.jpg&amp;autoplay=false&amp;accent-color=%23DB3D3B&amp;primary-color=%23ffffff&amp;secondary-color=%23000000" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Credit: Dylan Housman
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It was around this moment, with Fishback netting just over 10% of the vote for a third-place showing, that I realized the groypers had survived contact with literal reality, but not political reality. They are like youngsters of the past voting independent in the 2016 election, palling around with the other kids at the libertarian club in college, having late-night discussions about how war and tariffs were bad, energized by every little bit of confirmation bias we could find that the movement was going “our way,” just not quite yet. I know this because I was one of those. But even for all that talk, there was the underlying feeling that the movement was not, in fact, going our way. And once we were hit with political reality, most of us grew up and moved on.
&#8220;The online thing is real in the sense that it&#8217;s loud,&#8221; Polk County GOP Chairman Sam Romain told me the next morning. &#8220;It&#8217;s just not attached to anything. It doesn&#8217;t produce a volunteer, it doesn&#8217;t produce a check that clears, and it definitely doesn&#8217;t produce a grandmother in Lake Wales who marks your name.&#8221;
Yes, there is a darker element to this generation of starry-eyed radical Right-wing youths. Our discussions of free trade and gun rights did not have the vile implications that the &#8220;Jewish Question&#8221; does. But the overall arc looks the same. Just like most of us Gary Johnson voters at the YAL conference ended up becoming conservatives once he crashed and burned, I imagine most of these kids will have their sharp edges whittled down by institutional conservatism as they are increasingly exposed to Big Boy Politics.
That&#8217;s not to say that some of the ideas may not last. But the dumbest, most extreme ones likely won&#8217;t, and the <a href="https://www.richardhanania.com/p/the-based-ritual">Based Rituals</a> in hotel lobbies at conferences will get replaced by 9-5 jobs and pragmatism in due course.
Fishback’s strength is his smooth-talking, chameleon-like charisma. He was anything to anybody during his campaign. A pro-life warrior to the young Christian girl, a God-fearing warrior for old Florida to the pastor, an anti-data center protector of farmland to the young blue-collar laborers, and a truth-teller about Jewish power to the antisemitic podcast listeners. The incongruence is a product of our evermore-siloed media environment.
Like Bakker, the televangelist superstar who was undone by allegations of sexual misconduct and a financial fraud conviction, the charm Fishback has in spades is undone by his erraticism. Just two years ago he was making staunchly <a href="https://x.com/ianmiles/status/2023202273678233659">pro-Israel arguments</a> against liberals and writing for the Free Press. Then he tried to grift his way onto DOGE and <a href="https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/floating-challenge-trumps-florida-governor-pick-james-fishback-127603333">join arms with the likes of Vivek Ramaswamy</a>. This year, he ran a campaign targeting Jews and Indian immigrants.
He is an empty vessel who will say or do whatever the whims of the moment call for. Pulling that off if you’re disciplined with a clean record can make you a president. Doing it when you are facing lawsuits, have unpaid legal bills, lied about working for DOGE, were credibly accused of dating a 17-year-old, and hurl racial epithets at your opponents by the dozen gets you 10% of the vote in a gubernatorial primary.
And probably a podcast on Rumble, too.
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Dylan Housman is the Managing Editor of the Daily Wire. <a href="https://x.com/Dylan_Housman">You can follow him on X here. </a>

Here Lie The Groypers

florida

groyper

nick fuentes

Trump-backed Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) won the Republican nomination for governor Tuesday, clearing the way for a general election showdown to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) after a contentious primary that tested the future of Florida’s conservative movement.
With 90% of the vote counted, Donalds is cruising to victory with about 48%, well ahead of Lt. Gov. Jay Collins (R-FL) at 25% and businessman James Fishback (R-FL) at 10%. <a href="https://votes.decisiondeskhq.com/races/2026-08-18/florida-governor-republican-primary">Decision Desk HQ</a> called the race at 8 p.m. ET.
&#8220;I want to start by thanking God for all His blessings and protection over my family, and over my team,” Donalds said in a Tuesday night celebration speech. &#8220;Tonight, the primary is over. Tonight, we put aside our differences. Tonight, we are one united Republican Party.&#8221;
Donalds, like Trump, was born in New York City but has represented Florida’s 19th Congressional District — which covers Southwest Florida along the Gulf Coast — in Washington since 2021. Widely viewed as a rising star in the Republican Party, Donalds was even floated as a potential vice presidential pick during the 2024 election cycle, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/byron-donalds-on-vp-buzz-im-a-real-simple-dude-i-just-want-to-win">The Daily Wire</a> reported. 
“It’d be a great honor, but it’s his decision,” Donalds said in a Nashville interview with The Daily Wire at the time. “He’ll decide what he wants to do, and whatever his decision is, I’m going to support that. I just want to win,” he added. “I’m a real simple dude. I just want to win and be successful. That’s it.”
That attitude appeared to win over Trump, who jumped into the race in May, endorsing Donalds as a “highly respected” congressman who would help advance the “America First Agenda.”
“I know Byron well, have seen him tested at the highest and most difficult levels, and he is a TOTAL WINNER,” Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116642799421262985">said</a> on Truth Social. “Byron Donalds will be a truly Great and Powerful Governor for Florida, and has my Complete and Total Endorsement — HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!” 
On the campaign trail, Donalds<a href="https://byrondonalds.com/issues/"> ran</a> on advancing President Trump’s agenda, cracking down on illegal immigration, ending “woke ideology” in schools, and calling for an<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SR4qqMWegVs"> end</a> to Cuba’s communist regime in an effort to win over Florida’s large Latino electorate. 
The former Democrat has also spoken openly about his born-again Christian conversion, which he says happened in a<a href="https://www.axios.com/local/tampa-bay/2025/09/08/byron-donalds-cracker-barrel-parking-lot"> Cracker Barrel</a> parking lot. As a young man, Donalds faced charges at 18 for marijuana possession and again at 20 in connection with a bank fraud scheme involving a bad check. The marijuana charge was dismissed after Donalds completed a pretrial diversion program, and he later had the fraud record sealed and expunged.
Fishback, who has himself faced questions over <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/florida-school-gop-james-fishback-sexual-misconduct-allegations-rcna249963">sexual misconduct allegations</a>, <a href="https://floridapolitics.com/archives/811578-judge-orders-james-fishback-to-pay-his-former-hedge-fund-employer-1-3m/">financial disputes</a>, and <a href="https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/politics/decision/james-fishback-stays-on-ballot-florida-governors-race-residency-claims/3839164/">residency requirements</a>, sought to capitalize on Donalds’ past but faced backlash after calling the GOP front-runner a “DEI hire” and a <a href="https://x.com/Patriot_Clips/status/2075663909227253891?s=20">“slave”</a> to corporate interests.
“I will apologize for calling Byron Donalds a slave when he gives back the $81 million he has taken from AIPAC, hedge-fund billionaires, and special interests who are trying to pave over the state and turn us into a concrete jungle,” Fishback <a href="https://x.com/Patriot_Clips/status/2075663909227253891?s=20">told</a> reporters. 
The 31-year-old, who is closely <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vtjidiZRTg">aligned with Tucker Carlson</a>, ran a headline-grabbing, grievance-filled campaign built around issues he believed would resonate with the Gen Z right, including banning data centers, suspending aid to Israel, implementing a “sin” tax on OnlyFans, and ending what he called the H-1B visa &#8220;scam.&#8221;
DeSantis, barred from seeking a third term, largely stayed on the sidelines as the primary unfolded. He praised former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner while withholding an endorsement and took a pointed swipe at Donalds last year.
“We’ve achieved victories in Florida,” DeSantis <a href="https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/politics/elections/desantis-endorse-governor-candidates-florida-2026/67-d41d3df8-f85c-44e5-bbbc-82067c738590">said</a> during a press conference last year. “A guy like Byron, he just hasn’t been a part of any of the victories that we’ve had here over the Left over these last years.”
Donalds and DeSantis were once close allies, but their relationship fractured in 2023 after Donalds broke with the governor over controversial education standards. The standards said enslaved people developed skills that could later be “applied for their personal benefit,” according to the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/byron-donalds-donald-trump-florida-governor-desantis-7cf12bdb0899d0165c4cbd98e5b3abe3#">Associated Press</a>. 
Donalds pushed back publicly at the time, writing on social media: “The new African-American standards in FL are good, robust, &amp; accurate. That being said, the attempt to feature the personal benefits of slavery is wrong &amp; needs to be adjusted.”
Looking ahead, Donalds said <a href="https://floridapolitics.com/archives/814808-byron-donalds-still-expects-ron-desantis-to-back-him-after-primary/">he expects</a> to earn the governor’s support as he prepares to carry the DeSantis legacy forward. Donalds has vowed to continue Florida’s fight against “woke” ideology in schools and state government. 
Under DeSantis, Florida has become a national battleground over culture-war fights, including DEI, abortion, and transgender issues. The state recently scored a major legal victory in its <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/three-year-culture-war-fight-ends-with-major-win-for-desantis?author=Jacob+Wheeler&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=35&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Three-Year+Culture+War+Fight+Ends+With+Major+Win+For+DeSantis">three-year fight</a> over a law restricting minors from attending sexually explicit live performances, including drag shows.
November&#8217;s election will effectively mark the end of the DeSantis era, which transformed Florida from a purple swing state into a ruby-red bastion for conservatives nationwide. Florida’s Republican advantage has grown dramatically in recent years, holding a roughly <a href="https://dos.fl.gov/elections/data-statistics/voter-registration-statistics/voter-registration-reports/voter-registration-by-party-affiliation/?lv=true&amp;quot=&amp;utm_source=chatgpt.com">1.5 million-voter registration edge</a> over Democrats. To win statewide, the Democrats would need to overcome the GOP’s registration lead by winning back Hispanics and persuading a large bloc of conservative-leaning voters who have backed Republicans in statewide elections.
This fall, Donalds will face Democratic nominee David Jolly, a former Republican congressman turned Democrat who wants to repeal Florida’s abortion ban and is leaning into identity politics. 
“Culture wars divide and demonize. Florida should reject the politics of division and hate, and instead create a home where everyone is valued, respected, and welcomed,” Jolly’s <a href="https://davidjolly.com/issues/">campaign website</a> reads. “Florida should embrace our immigrant community and celebrate their contributions to our state&#8217;s culture and economy.”
The <a href="https://www.cookpolitical.com/governor/race/479481">Cook Political Report</a> rates the race as Solid Republican.

Florida Gubernatorial Candidate Byron Donalds Campaigns Ahead Of Primary Election

Byron Donalds Cruises To Victory In Fight To Succeed DeSantis As Florida Governor

donald trump

ron desantis

After President Joe Biden outraged millions of Christians by declaring Easter Sunday as the “Transgender Day of Visibility,” former Republican representative David Jolly stood by him. 
Jolly, now running for governor in Florida as a Democrat, did a media tour to defend Biden and lecture conservatives about their theology. Now, Democrats are running him to replace Ron DeSantis as governor of Florida as he attempts to sweep culture war issues under the rug. 
Many Democrats have been quiet on the transgender issues this election cycle after polling showed that the issue hampered Kamala Harris in 2024. Jolly was vocal about the topic during his post-Republican days, attacking his former party for passing laws banning transgender procedures on kids and keeping gender-confused boys off of girls&#8217; sports teams.
Jolly even vigorously defended Biden after he called in March 2024 for Americans on Easter Sunday to “join us in lifting up the lives and voices of transgender people throughout our Nation.” Biden’s decision prompted significant pushback from prominent Republicans like House Speaker Mike Johnson and the Trump campaign. Jolly said their politics and theology were wrong. 
“The Jesus they celebrate today would be inclusive of the transgender community, and would be supportive of the transgender community,” he said while <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaAJMq4_gdg">appearing</a> on MSNBC, adding that “all Christians, including Donald Trump, Mike Johnson, and others who celebrate today, that, in fact, they should love the transgender community as they love their own God. I am not sure the theology upon which they rely to criticize Joe Biden.”
“I think it&#8217;s wrong theologically, it&#8217;s wrong morally, and it&#8217;s absolutely stupid politically,” he added. 
In another appearance on the Stephanie Miller Happy Hour podcast, he said conservatives turned Biden’s proclamation into the latest “culture war” flash point. 
“First, theologically and doctrinally, I think the Right is wrong when it comes to biblical theology. I think they&#8217;re a long ways from what Jesus would do, the bracelets they used to wear,” he said. “ The reality is Jesus is a loving God who would support the trans community and be proud of their bravery and the struggle that they have gone through for recognition and equity.”
In other media appearances reviewed by The Daily Wire, Jolly attacked a law shielding kids from transgender procedures and claimed that kids would be ripped away from their parents if they obtained transgender medications from outside of Florida. 
“That&#8217;s the real consequence of this war on gender-affirming care and the trans community,” he said on the Joe Walsh <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0HXaFr8uaE">podcast</a>. “I don&#8217;t have a personal appreciation or understanding of what all that is like. But I know what it would feel like if the state stepped in and say, ‘Hey, Jolly, you&#8217;re not allowed to make decisions for your kid?’”
Jolly also said he was fine with biological boys competing on girls’ sports teams during an interview with radio host Charlie Sykes. 
“I think it&#8217;s been pretty disgusting what we&#8217;ve seen from Republicans in the past several years on this. Look, I don&#8217;t think we need to knock down that youth soccer player who is working with their family and their doctor on whatever their current, you know, crisis is personally,” he said. “I think it can be supportive of them to allow them to play in youth sports.”
Ultimately he said he thought that the case should be decided by the Supreme Court.
&#8220;I think some latitude among the sports leagues to make decisions, but ultimately, it&#8217;s a constitutional question that the courts are going to have to decide,&#8221; he said. 
Jolly, whose issues page on his website does not mention &#8220;transgender&#8221; or LGBTQ, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weY8ycv-6dc">recently predicted</a> that he would be criticized by Republicans for being pro-transgender.
The Democrat is expected to face off against Rep. Byron Donalds, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump. Donalds has a large lead against GOP rivals including <a href="https://floridapolitics.com/archives/768484-woman-says-james-fishback-dated-her-while-she-was-underage-then-harassed-her-after-breakup/">James Fishback</a>, Lt. Governor Jay Collins, and former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner.

Key Speakers At National Action Network Convention

Dems’ ‘Ex-Republican’ Governor Hopeful Is A True Believer In Gender Radicalism

David Jolly

transgender

House Republicans held the debut press conference of the Sharia Free America Caucus on Tuesday, warning that Islamic law is incompatible with the U.S. Constitution, and that its influence poses a growing threat to American law and culture.
The caucus, co-chaired by Representatives Keith Self (R-TX) and Chip Roy (R-TX), levels sharp criticism at what lawmakers described as the spread of Sharia-based practices through immigration and cultural accommodation. Supporters say the group will focus on preventing Sharia law from gaining any foothold in U.S. governance, while critics have condemned the effort as discriminatory toward Muslims.
At the press conference, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) described “radical Islam” as a “cult that has taken over every second of every day,” framing the caucus’s work as a defense of the American way of life. Co-chair Roy emphasized the constitutional implications, stating, “Sharia is a direct threat to our Constitution and Western values and seeks to replace our legal system and erode our basic freedoms.”
Self highlighted the growth of Muslim communities in Texas, pointing to 20 new mosques in North Texas over the past two years. “First of all, it would be simply, ‘We want a community.’ Then the police can’t come in. And the contracts, the covenants of the area say that you may buy if you’re the right kind of person, you may sell to the right kind of person,” he said, describing what he called a creeping influence of Sharia principles.
The caucus also supports legislative measures, including “No Sharia Legislation,” designed to prevent special immigration benefits for individuals advocating Sharia law, and backing Texas’s Proposition 10, a March ballot measure aimed at restricting Sharia influence in the state. Self noted the Trump administration’s recent designation of Muslim Brotherhood branches as terrorist organizations as a milestone for the caucus’s objectives.
Prominent members, including Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) and Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL), emphasized the caucus’s mission as a defense of constitutional governance rather than a target against religious communities. Donalds declared, “Sharia has no place in America. We will not surrender our freedoms,” while Miller said she would “stand firmly against this radical ideology that seeks to uproot the constitutional principles and Christian values on which our nation was founded.”
While the caucus’s rhetoric is fiery, its leaders acknowledge that translating concern into law will be key. By focusing on policies grounded in historical American jurisprudence, Republicans aim to ensure their legislative efforts align with constitutional authority while addressing what they see as an ideological threat.
As debates over immigration, national security, and religious freedom intensify, the Sharia Free America Caucus positions Republicans to proactively safeguard constitutional governance and protect American legal and cultural norms. How the caucus addresses the issue at hand will dictate its success in that mission.

Rep. Chip Roy

Republicans Take Stand Against Sharia Law With New House Caucus

Chip Roy

congress

Muslims

sharia law

tommy tuberville

School choice advocate Erika Donalds said that students will be better off when parents have better access to what their kids are learning and when schools are held accountable for veering away from what should be taught.
Donalds, the wife of Congressman Byron Donalds (R-FL), sat down with The Daily Wire&#8217;s Tim Rice and Mary Margaret Olohan for an interview at Turning Point USA&#8217;s 2025 AmFest, the first one held without the group&#8217;s late founder, Charlie Kirk.
Donalds began by saying that she was excited to see so many people of all ages attending breakout sessions at the conference that were devoted to reforming education — and how fixing what was wrong with education in the United States played into saving the republic as well.
&#8220;President Trump is doing exactly what he promised the American people,&#8221; Donalds said of President Donald Trump&#8217;s plan to first dismantle the Department of Education as a federal entity and then return power to the schools and the states. &#8220;He&#8217;s going to return that power not just to the states, but expand school choice and give power to the parents to make decisions on behalf of their children.&#8221;
Donalds praised Education Secretary Linda McMahon, saying that she had been instrumental in delivering on Trump&#8217;s promises.
The conversation turned to charter schools — several of which Donalds has had a hand in founding — and she said that they can serve as valuable school choice options, especially in areas where private schools are too expensive or otherwise inaccessible. She said that even with advances in school choice, she saw a major role for charter schools to partner with Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) and to offer more &#8220;modular style&#8221; classes.
In her home state, Donalds noted, charter schools were already adapting to the changing educational landscape by offering &#8220;individual courses and extracurricular activities that families can access using their ESA dollars.&#8221;
Responding to a question from Olohan, who noted she was homeschooled for a time herself, Donalds said that the number of families homeschooling in the United States was higher than it had ever been — and that even more families indicated that they&#8217;d like to homeschool if they could. Donald made it clear that one of her goals was to help families remove as many of the barriers preventing potential homeschoolers from moving forward as possible.
Rice then raised the issue of artificial intelligence — and how the knee-jerk reaction is often to keep AI out of schools because students will obviously use it to cheat — but Donalds argued that she believed there was certainly room for AI in education.
There should certainly be guard rails in place, Donalds argued, but AI could be used to find gaps in education and help children to succeed who might otherwise fall through the cracks.
&#8220;We need guardrails and we need parents to have visibility into what&#8217;s going on in the AI used in their classrooms,&#8221; she said. &#8220;Once those guardrails are in place, I believe AI can absolutely help with the abysmal academic results in this country.&#8221;
She went on to explain that AI could help a child struggling with reading by identifying the particular concept that was causing the hang-up and tailoring a curriculum to the child&#8217;s needs. The same could be done with other subjects, she said, giving the example of a child having difficulty with algebra and saying that AI could identify where they were going wrong — even if it was a skill they should have picked up in elementary school.
The remainder of the interview focused on ideological and cultural issues seeping into the education system and how expanding parental rights and access to resources and curriculum were the best guard against that.
&#8220;We want to make sure that when students are graduating 12th grade that they are civically literate,&#8221; Donalds said, arguing that if America&#8217;s young people did not understand how the founders had built the country or why the government had been set up the way that it had, they would be unable to defend it in the future.

Erika Donalds

Erika Donalds Talks Trump, School Choice, And Why AI Is Good For Classrooms

Charter Schools

daily wire

education

media

Parental Rights in Education

House Republicans are calling for arrests following bombshell allegations that former President Barack Obama and his team sought to gin up intelligence to create a narrative of Russian interference in the 2016 election.
On &#8220;Sunday Morning Futures,&#8221; Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) outlined just what crime may have been committed in response to what Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/years-long-coup-gabbard-teases-release-of-more-details-on-obama-russia-intel-controversy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dubbed</a> a &#8220;treasonous conspiracy&#8221; by high-level officials to undermine President Donald Trump&#8217;s first term.
&#8220;There needs to be criminal prosecution and arrests,&#8221; Luna <a href="https://x.com/MarioNawfal/status/1946957017920540711" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Fox News host Maria Bartiromo. &#8220;Lying under oath, putting out a false intelligence report — that’s a violation of 18 U.S. Code 1001.&#8221;
Convictions could lead to several years in prison and financial penalties, Luna noted.
After calling for FISA reform, the congresswoman added, &#8220;There needs to be arrests. This is not partisan. This is simply illegal, what they did, and we’re simply upholding the law.&#8221;
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), who is running to become Florida governor in the 2026 election, agreed with Luna during their joint appearance.
&#8220;There need to be arrests on this matter. People need to go to jail on this because this is about the republic,&#8221; Donalds said. &#8220;This is not about one president — it is about the presidency and the continuation of our country.&#8221;
Gabbard said uncovered documents linked to the controversy were part a criminal referral being sent to the Department of Justice and FBI, but it will be up to federal prosecutors to open up a case.
&#8220;There&#8217;s no question in my mind that this intelligence community assessment that President Obama ordered be published which contained a manufactured intelligence document — it&#8217;s worse than even politicization of intelligence,&#8221; Gabbard said during a &#8220;Sunday Morning Futures&#8221; <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6375881194112" target="_blank" rel="noopener">interview</a> of her own.
She continued, &#8220;It was manufactured intelligence that sought to achieve President Obama and his team&#8217;s objective, which was undermining President Trump&#8217;s presidency and subverting the will of the American people.&#8221;
Democrats have shrugged off the controversy.
&#8220;I actually hope that DOJ takes this to court. They won’t, because they know that the howls of laughter from that court will be heard in four time zones,&#8221; Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, <a href="https://x.com/jahimes/status/1946741445861474718" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on X. &#8220;Watch for DOJ action. Not gonna happen. And when it doesn’t, I hope all the MAGA very online people ask why.&#8221;

Former President Barack Obama

‘This Is Simply Illegal’: House Republicans Demand Obama Russia Hoax Arrests

2016 Election

barack obama

russia

U.S.

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) made it clear on Monday that he was not going to simply step into the trap laid for him by NBC News host Kristen Welker when she asked about a conversation she&#8217;d had with President Donald Trump on Sunday&#8217;s broadcast of &#8220;Meet the Press.&#8221;
Welker took an exchange from Sunday&#8217;s show regarding whether or not illegal immigrants were entitled to due process simply because they were physically in the United States — a question Trump had said he was not sure about — and asked Donalds how he would respond to the same question. Donalds, instead of answering the question directly, gave a response that exposed the framing of the question as an attempt to force him into suggesting that Trump&#8217;s answer had been out of line.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨NEW: Byron Donalds TURNS TABLES on Kristen Welker after she presses him on &#8220;due process&#8221; for illegal immigrants🚨
DONALDS: &#8220;When the framers wrote our Constitution, they never envisioned that there would be an executive that would allow millions of people to come into the… <a href="https://t.co/OIUn4VqKto">pic.twitter.com/OIUn4VqKto</a>
— Jason Cohen 🇺🇸 (@JasonJournoDC) <a href="https://twitter.com/JasonJournoDC/status/1919508253928783900?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Welker read the text of the Fifth Amendment and then pressed Donalds for a response: &#8220;The Constitution says any person, not citizen and therein lies the debate and the root of my question. I mean, does &#8216;any person&#8217; just apply to citizens in your mind or does it apply to citizens and non-citizens? Secretary of State Marco Rubio says it applies to citizens and non-citizens.&#8221;
&#8220;Let&#8217;s be very clear,&#8221; Donalds began, taking a jab at former President Joe Biden and his administration&#8217;s open borders policies. &#8220;First and foremost, when the framers wrote our Constitution, they never envisioned that there would be an executive that would allow millions of people to come into the country illegally.&#8221;
&#8220;Number two, more importantly, you have a situation right now — is it okay for any administration to not follow the law, abuse border security laws, let millions of people in, and then hide behind a court system to say, &#8216;Well, now they’re here, so now we have to go through a lengthy process&#8217;?&#8221; he asked.

House GOP Sept 18

NBC Host Lays Trap For Byron Donalds. He’s Not Taking The Bait.

NBC Host Lays Trap For Byron Donalds. He's Not Taking The Bait.

Constitution

Due Process

illegal immigration

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and first lady Casey DeSantis played golf and had lunch with President Donald Trump on Saturday amid speculation that she is preparing to launch a bid to become the state&#8217;s next governor.
The three spent the time together at Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach, an administration official told Daily Wire White House Correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan.
When asked by reporters on Friday about running for governor, Casey DeSantis said, “To quote the late and great Yogi Berra: ‘When you come to a fork in the road, take it.’”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and his wife Casey DeSantis had lunch and golfed with President Donald Trump at Trump International Golf Club today, a White House administration official confirms to <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDailyWire</a>.
“Well, I would say one thing,” Florida’s First Lady told…
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMargOlohan/status/1895937192759083398?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2025</a></blockquote>
The news comes after Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) announced this week that he was running to become the state&#8217;s next governor, a choice he made after Trump encouraged him to run in a social media post where he said that Donalds had his support.
DeSantis touted Casey as his potential replacement, and poured water on electing Donalds, when asked last week about Trump&#8217;s endorsement.
“We have such a narrow majority that to be trying to campaign other places and missing these votes, I think, is not something that’s advisable at all,” he said. “And so the reality is we’ve achieved victories in Florida. We need to start achieving those victories up there.”
DeSantis said that Donalds “hasn’t been a part of any of the victories that we’ve had here over the Left, over these last years.”
“He’s just not been a part of it,” he said. “He’s been in other states campaigning, doing that, and that’s fine, but okay, well then deliver results up there. You know, that’s what I want to see. I want to see them delivering results for the people of Florida. We deliver it here all the time for the people of Florida, and that’s what we need to be doing.”
He warned that the state could easily revert back to being a swing state if it was not managed effectively, despite the massive surge in Republican registration there in recent years.
“People ask me all the time about our wonderful first lady, who has done a fantastic job as first lady of Florida,” DeSantis later added.
“I will tell you this — you’re talking about somebody like her — I won by the biggest margin that any Republican’s ever won a governor’s race here in Florida, she would do better than me, like there’s no question about that, that would happen,” he said. “And she’s somebody that has, I think, the intestinal fortitude and the dedication to conservative principles that, you know, anything we’ve accomplished, she’d be able to take to the next level.”
DeSantis said that former conservative icon Rush Limbaugh had once told him that the only other person he would rather see run Florida other than him was Casey.
“His eyes are lighting up because Rush would always say the spouses are more liberal, and it pulls the office holder to the left,” he said. “And on this case, he’s saying, like, that is not true. And so at the end of the dinner, he put his finger in my chest. He’s like, the only person I would rather have as my governor than you is her. And he pointed to her, and I was like, that’s a pretty good endorsement there.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) says that First Lady Casey DeSantis would win by even larger margins than he did during his 20-point victory in 2022 and that she would be able to take the state to the &#8220;next level.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/7DMKcGbSdd">pic.twitter.com/7DMKcGbSdd</a>
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealSaavedra/status/1894190514192171285?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 25, 2025</a></blockquote>
Mary Margaret Olohan contributed to this report.

Ron DeSantis Holds Election Night Event In Tampa

Ron And Casey DeSantis Golf, Eat With Trump Amid Speculation She Is Preparing Bid For Governor

Casey DeSantis

Elections

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis touted his wife Casey DeSantis this week when asked at a press conference about who may replace him as the state&#8217;s governor in the 2026 elections.
The matter came up when a reporter asked DeSantis about President Donald Trump endorsing Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) to be the state&#8217;s next governor.
&#8220;We have such a narrow majority that to be trying to campaign other places and missing these votes, I think, is not something that&#8217;s advisable at all,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And so the reality is we&#8217;ve achieved victories in Florida. We need to start achieving those victories up there.&#8221;
DeSantis said that Donalds &#8220;hasn&#8217;t been a part of any of the victories that we&#8217;ve had here over the Left, over these last years.&#8221;
&#8220;He&#8217;s just not been a part of it,&#8221; he said. &#8220;He&#8217;s been in other states campaigning, doing that, and that&#8217;s fine, but okay, well then deliver results up there. You know that&#8217;s what I want to see. I want to see them delivering results for the people of Florida. We deliver it here all the time for the people of Florida, and that&#8217;s what we need to be doing.&#8221;
DeSantis said that he wants to back someone who is going to &#8220;be able to continue and build off the success that we&#8217;ve had here in Florida.&#8221;
He warned that the state could easily revert back to being a swing state if it was not managed effectively, despite the massive surge in Republican registration there in recent years.
&#8220;People ask me all the time about our wonderful first lady, who has done a fantastic job as first lady of Florida,&#8221; DeSantis later added.
&#8220;I will tell you this — you&#8217;re talking about somebody like her — I won by the biggest margin that any Republican&#8217;s ever won a governor&#8217;s race here in Florida, she would do better than me, like there&#8217;s no question about that, that would happen,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And she&#8217;s somebody that has, I think, the intestinal fortitude and the dedication to conservative principles that, you know, anything we&#8217;ve accomplished, she&#8217;d be able to take to the next level.&#8221;
DeSantis said that former conservative icon Rush Limbaugh had once told him that the only other person he would rather see run Florida other than him was Casey.
&#8220;His eyes are lighting up because Rush would always say the spouses are more liberal, and it pulls the office holder to the left,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And on this case, he&#8217;s saying, like, that is not true. And so at the end of the dinner, he put his finger in my chest. He&#8217;s like, the only person I would rather have as my governor than you is her. And he pointed to her, and I was like, that&#8217;s a pretty good endorsement there.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) says that First Lady Casey DeSantis would win by even larger margins than he did during his 20-point victory in 2022 and that she would be able to take the state to the &#8220;next level.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/7DMKcGbSdd">pic.twitter.com/7DMKcGbSdd</a>
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealSaavedra/status/1894190514192171285?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 25, 2025</a></blockquote>

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, holds a press conference to speak

DeSantis Touts Wife Casey When Pressed About Who Will Replace Him In 2026

In response to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-fema-official-ordered-relief-workers-to-skip-houses-with-trump-signs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire&#8217;s reporting</a> that a supervisor at <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/fema" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FEMA</a> ordered relief workers to skip houses with signs supporting President-elect <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/florida" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Florida</a>, Rep. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/byron-donalds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Byron Donalds</a> (R-FL) said the agency should be torn out of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and report directly to the White House.
FEMA has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-fema-fires-official-who-told-hurricane-relief-workers-to-skip-trump-homes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fired the official</a>, identified as Marn’i Washington, after The Daily Wire revealed through messages and whistleblowers that she told federal employees under her supervision to “avoid homes advertising Trump” as they canvassed Lake Placid, Florida, to identify residents who could qualify for federal aid during a of the damage <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/major-hurricane-milton-makes-landfall-over-florida" target="_blank" rel="noopener">caused by Hurricane Milton</a> last month.
&#8220;I want to make sure I ask you about something reported by The Daily Wire,&#8221; &#8220;Fox News Sunday&#8221; anchor Shannon Bream said during an interview with Donalds that aired on Sunday. &#8220;They broke a story a couple of days ago about FEMA. My home state, as well as where you serve — Florida — and your district has been hit very hard by numerous big storms the last couple of years. Daily Wire [was] reporting that people were told when they&#8217;re out canvassing in central Florida looking for people who may need help, that FEMA workers were told to avoid homes that had Trump symbols or Trump flags.&#8221;
Bream noted that FEMA responded to The Daily Wire&#8217;s reporting, saying, &#8220;We are horrified that this took place and therefore have taken extreme actions to correct the situation&#8230;&#8221; Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis &#8220;says he&#8217;s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-desantis-warns-biden-to-preserve-all-evidence-on-fema-scandal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">launching an investigation there</a>,&#8221; she added. &#8220;What extreme actions do you think should be taken? Is that something Congress gets involved with?&#8221; Bream asked.
&#8220;Anybody involved with that should be fired immediately, not asked to resign, not brought in front of a congressional hearing, they should be fired immediately,&#8221; Donalds exclaimed. &#8220;We are not going to have a country where we&#8217;re going to decide who gets help and &#8230; who doesn&#8217;t based upon who you support politically or what you look like or anything else.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
WATCH: <a href="https://twitter.com/ByronDonalds?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ByronDonalds</a> lays out the Republican agenda, as President-elect Trump prepares for his return to the White House. <a href="https://t.co/1wRqGuVpbg">pic.twitter.com/1wRqGuVpbg</a>
&mdash; Fox News Sunday (@FoxNewsSunday) <a href="https://twitter.com/FoxNewsSunday/status/1855631513108590991?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 10, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Then-President Jimmy Carter <a href="https://www.fema.gov/about/strategic-plan/about-fema#:~:text=On%20April%201%2C%201979%2C%20President,civil%20defense%20and%20emergency%20management." target="_blank" rel="noopener">established</a> FEMA in 1979 to assist with civil defense and emergency management. More than two decades later, the agency was brought under DHS upon its creation after the 9-11 terrorist attacks in 2001. But now, according to Donalds, that needs to change.
&#8220;When it comes to FEMA, my recommendation for the Trump transition team is that FEMA becomes a standalone agency that directly reports to the White House. You have to get it out of Homeland Security. That agency is a massive labyrinth with a bunch of different departments,&#8221; he said. &#8220;FEMA should be a direct report agency to the White House because when disaster recovery needs to take place, we need quick answers out of FEMA, not bureaucratic ones that go through the labyrinth of federal departments.&#8221;
Donalds added: &#8220;My district dealt with this firsthand a couple years ago during Hurricane Ian. It was very hard to get answers out of FEMA, still somewhat hard to get answers out of FEMA. I think if you talk to any governor, they would agree with this. FEMA needs to be a direct-report agency to the White House. That way, the people of America, when disaster strikes, they know that this has the first priority of the president. The president has eyes on it, and they&#8217;re going to get the help that they need immediately.&#8221;

Rep. Byron Donalds

Byron Donalds Says FEMA Should Be Ripped Out Of DHS, Report Directly To White House

fema

U.S. House of Representatives

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) slammed former President Barack Obama over the weekend for his recent claim that he left former President Donald Trump an amazing economy when he left office.
Donalds made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CNN&#8217;s &#8220;State of the Union&#8221; with Dana Bash when asked to respond to Obama&#8217;s remarks.
&#8220;Yes, it was pretty good, because it was my economy,&#8221; Obama claimed. &#8220;It wasn&#8217;t something he did. I spent eight years cleaning up the mess that the Republicans had left me the last time.&#8221;
Donalds responded: &#8220;I was working in finance during Barack Obama&#8217;s administration. Let me tell you, the economy under his last &#8212; especially the last five years was growing at about 1 to 1.5 percent per year.&#8221;
&#8220;I think, at the time, President Obama was saying that this era of large economic growth is something of the past. We&#8217;re going to have a more consistent economy,&#8221; he said. &#8220;In his words, a consistent economy meant one that barely grew.&#8221;
&#8220;So, when Donald Trump came in, he brought his tax cut policy in, which cut taxes across the board for everybody in our country. Couple the fact that he did cut massive regulations from the Obama administration, and what did we see?&#8221; he continued. &#8220;Economic growth in the United States went from 1-1.5 percent under Barack Obama to 3-3.5 percent under Donald Trump. Wages adjusted for inflation, like I said, because it&#8217;s the truth, increased for every subgroup of Americans in our country.&#8221;
&#8220;The wealth gap was closing. We were actually booming economically far more than we did under Barack Obama,&#8221; he noted. &#8220;So that&#8217;s a cool statement he made on the stump, but it&#8217;s not true.&#8221;
Bash was unable to argue with any points that Donalds made.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
I was working in finance during Obama.
Obama&#8217;s economy grew VERY SLOWLY (under 2%).
Trump&#8217;s economy grew at nearly 2X THE PACE, wages adjusted for inflation were up, &amp; the wealth gap was closing.
Why?
Successful tax-cuts. 
Successful regulation-cuts. 
Successful energy policy. <a href="https://t.co/hCt7iago2L">pic.twitter.com/hCt7iago2L</a>
— Byron Donalds (@ByronDonalds) <a href="https://twitter.com/ByronDonalds/status/1845499139636756862?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2024</a></blockquote>

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Byron Donalds Rips Obama Over His Economic Claims

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