Florida Lt. Gov. Jay Collins has jumped into the gubernatorial race to succeed second-term Gov. Ron DeSantis.
&#8220;I’m running for Governor because leadership is forged under pressure, not in soundbites,” Collins told <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/florida-lt-gov-jay-collins-jumps-sunshine-state-gubernatorial-race-succeed-ron-desantis">Fox News Digital</a>. “I served over 23 years in the United States military, mainly as a Green Beret, where accountability is real, decisions have consequences, and service comes before self. That experience shaped how I lead and why I believe public office is a public trust.&#8221;
&#8220;We chose to make Florida home for my family because it stands for freedom, opportunity, and personal responsibility. In the Legislature and as Lieutenant Governor, I’ve worked alongside Governor Ron DeSantis to deliver results and advance a bold, conservative agenda. I did not come to chase headlines. I came to deliver results. Standing with law enforcement. Protecting communities. And to keep Florida strong,&#8221; he added.
Last August, DeSantis appointed Jay Collins as Florida’s 21st Lieutenant Governor, filling the vacancy created by Jeanette Nuñez’s transition to the presidency of Florida International University. A former State Senator representing Tampa’s District 14, Collins has rapidly ascended the ranks of Florida leadership. During his swearing-in ceremony, Governor DeSantis underscored Collins&#8217; reputation for toughness and resilience, famously dubbing him the &#8220;Chuck Norris of Florida politics.&#8221;
While Collins has established himself as a formidable legislative presence, his identity is fundamentally rooted in his 23 years of military service. A highly-decorated Green Beret and Purple Heart recipient, Collins’ military career is defined by extreme grit. After being shot in the arm during a firefight in Afghanistan, Collins — a senior medic — famously assisted in performing surgery on his own limb, using a war surgery manual to save it.
His resilience was tested further after a mortar blast sent him falling 25 feet, causing severe spinal and internal injuries that led to years of chronic, ischemic pain. Despite his leg &#8220;dying&#8221; to the point of being blue and hairless, Collins continued to serve until the pain became unbearable. In 2014, he underwent a leg amputation; remarkably, he re-qualified for service within a year, returning to the Green Berets for five more years of active duty. This &#8220;never-quit&#8221; ethos, forged on a farm in Montana and hardened in combat, remains the cornerstone of his political brand.
In recent interviews, including an in-depth appearance on &#8220;Facing South Florida,&#8221; Collins has leaned into his military background to discuss international diplomacy and law enforcement. Collins maintains a warrior’s perspective: &#8220;Everything is earned &#8230; competition drives excellence.”
Whether discussing constitutional originalism or the capture of foreign dictators, Collins positions himself as a leader shaped by service, emphasizing that he is &#8220;owed nothing&#8221; and is prepared to fight for Florida’s future with the same intensity he brought to the battlefield.
Collins joins an already humming race, with Rep. Byron Donalds, investor James Fishback, and former House speaker Paul Renner also running. Currently, Donalds is the odds-on favorite, with <a href="https://floridapolitics.com/archives/772573-byron-donalds-in-dominant-position-in-gop-primary-for-governor-new-poll-shows/">polls</a> showing him holding a substantial lead among Republican candidates. The House rep also has the endorsement of President Donald Trump.

UFL Press Announcement

Florida Lt. Gov Jay Collins, Decorated Green Beret, Enters Race For Governor

Elections

Florida

governor

Jay Collins

Politics

Ron DeSantis

The New York Times rolled out another <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/28/us/new-college-ron-desantis-florida-conservative.html">installment</a> of its favorite genre — Ron DeSantis, Destroyer of All That Is Good™ — this time lamenting that New College of Florida, long a leftist sandbox where grades were optional, and gender theory reigned, has been rudely interrupted by a governor who thinks college should actually teach … well … college.
“At the state school, gender studies is out. ‘The Odyssey’ is required reading. A Charlie Kirk statue is coming. Has one ideological bubble replaced another?” the Times hyperventilated.
The Times paints the picture with a heavy brush: gender studies out, Homer’s “Odyssey” in, DEI dismantled, and conservative professors hired. Athletics are expanding, buildings are being repaired, enrollment is rising — but to the Times, the real scandal is that the ideological monopoly of the Left is no longer protected turf. The narrative is clear: New College used to be an enlightened paradise of “nonconformists,” until Florida Republican Gov. DeSantis staged a “conservative takeover” and imposed a curriculum centered on the Western canon.
The outlet breathlessly notes that some faculty and students bailed, others grumbled that freshmen are being forced to read a 3,000-year-old epic, and professors wonder whether there will still be “room for people like them.” The Times frames the reforms not as an attempt to restore academic rigor, but as a right-wing project creeping toward total control — repeatedly warning that the college is “moving toward the ideological right.”
Yet, <a href="https://x.com/DavidMBrowder/status/2005701914076254695">enrollment is up</a>. Faculty hiring is up. State investment is stabilizing the school. Buildings once covered in mold are now being brought back into use. In other words, the place was collapsing, and DeSantis did something about it.
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So DeSantis answered — bluntly — on X. Conservatives have complained about universities for years, he noted, but Florida actually acted. His overhaul “re-centered the college on merit, free speech, classical learning and the pursuit of truth,” ensuring New College becomes the premier public liberal arts college in America. No apologies. No hedging.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Conservatives have complained for years about leftist control of universities, but never actually did anything about it.
Our overhaul of New College in Sarasota re-centered the college on the solid intellectual foundations of merit, free speech, classical learning and the… <a href="https://t.co/6q6P7E2TCX">pic.twitter.com/6q6P7E2TCX</a>
&mdash; Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) <a href="https://twitter.com/RonDeSantis/status/2005683823850168614?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
This is part of a broader pattern. DeSantis, re-elected in a landslide, has systematically pushed back on woke orthodoxy in education, requiring civic literacy, mandating intellectual-freedom surveys, and refusing to let classrooms become indoctrination centers. New College even began accepting the Classic Learning Test, signaling that classical education is welcome again.
To the Times, this is dangerous. To DeSantis, it’s called doing his job.
And while critics cry “authoritarianism,” the numbers tell another story: students are enrolling, the faculty has grown, and parents now have a publicly-funded option that doesn’t sneer at Western civilization. The panic isn’t about academic decline — it’s about leftists losing their monopoly.
Homer replaces ideology. Debate replaces dogma. And that, apparently, is the crime.

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

NY Times Attacks DeSantis As Florida College Ditches Gender Studies For Classic Western Literature

Education

New York Times

A Democrat won the Miami mayoral race for the first time in nearly 30 years, beating the Trump-backed Republican by almost 20 points. 
Democrat Eileen Higgins defeated GOP challenger Emilio Gonzalez in a run-off election on Tuesday, <a href="https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/miami-mayoral-runoff-election-see-the-complete-results-here/3731997/">winning</a> 59% of the vote to her opponent’s 41%. Higgins, a 61-year-old former county commissioner, is the first Democrat to win the mayoral race in Miami since 1997 and the first woman ever elected to lead the city.
“Together, we turned the page on years of chaos and corruption and opened the door to a new era for our city — one defined by ethical, accountable leadership that delivers real results for the people,” she said.
Higgins said her victory was partly due to Miami residents being “done” with &#8220;dehumanizing and cruel” rhetoric against migrants. Throughout the campaign, she has been critical of Trump&#8217;s crackdown on illegal immigration. 
While officially a non-partisan election, Gonzalez was <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115562700432868071">endorsed</a> by President Donald Trump and Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis, while former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Rahm Emanuel, a former Obama chief of staff, campaigned in support of Higgins. 
Higgins&#8217; campaign page said that as mayor, she would address the “permitting process to get our government moving for small businesses and homeowners, protect tax dollars, and make City Hall work for us by building safer neighborhoods and a more affordable future.”
Gonzalez congratulated Higgins on Tuesday evening and wished her the best as she leads the city. 
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“Grateful beyond words for the thousands of Miami residents who stood with us for integrity, safety, and putting families first,” Gonzalez <a href="https://x.com/Emilioformiami/status/1998580897084252352">said</a>. “While this election didn’t end the way we hoped, our fight for accountability, transparency, and a city that works for residents, not insiders, continues. May God bless Miami and our future.”
Democrats said that Higgins’ victory was a positive sign for their party. 
“Mayor-elect Eileen Higgins’ win is a testament to what we can accomplish when we organize and compete everywhere,” Democrat National Committee Chair Ken Martin <a href="https://x.com/kenmartin73/status/1998549377405616146">said</a> on X. “Democrats have now flipped a seat that was in Republicans’ hands for nearly 30 years.”
Democrats have 8,000 more registered voters in the city, which backed former Vice President Kamala Harris over Trump during the 2024 presidential election. As a whole, the state of Florida has shifted to the right in recent years, with Trump defeating Harris by more than 13 points. 
The city’s current mayor, Republican Francis Suarez, was term-limited.

Miami To Elect New Mayor In Runoff Election Tuesday

Miami Falls To Democrats In Historic Mayoral Shift

Donald Trump

Miami

On Monday, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order designating the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Brotherhood as “Foreign Terrorist Organizations.”
DeSantis’s move comes after Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott declared the groups terrorist organizations last month, and President Donald Trump signed <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-signs-executive-order-targeting-the-muslim-brotherhood">an executive order</a> paving the way for his administration to designate chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist organizations. 
The Florida order says the Muslim Brotherhood’s ideology is “irreconcilable with foundational American principles of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” and notes the group has a history of supporting violence and terrorist attacks, including political assassinations and attacks on civilians, in pursuit of a global Islamic caliphate. It further notes that members of the Muslim Brotherhood created Hamas in 1987, a United States-designated foreign terrorist organization responsible for killing 46 American citizens in southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
The order then links the Muslim Brotherhood to groups in the United States, stating that the Palestine Committee — a group created to raise financial and moral support for Hamas — founded CAIR in 1994. It adds that CAIR was named an unindicted co-conspirator in the largest terror-financing case in American history and has been associated with individuals convicted of providing, or conspiring to provide, material support to designated terrorist organizations.
“CAIR was founded by persons connected to the Muslim Brotherhood and was created, in the words of persons affiliated with CAIR, as ‘an official U.S. cover representing the Islamic community’ to conceal ties to Islamic extremist groups,” the order says.
The order directs the Florida Highway Patrol to take all lawful measures to prevent unlawful activities by the designated groups and requires all executive and cabinet agencies to block any terrorist organization listed, or any person known to have provided material support or resources to such an organization, from receiving state contracts, employment, funding, or any other government benefits or privileges.
CAIR, which calls itself “the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization,” fired back, calling the order &#8220;defamatory and unconstitutional&#8221; and accusing DeSantis of being “Israel First.” 
“Like Greg Abbott in Texas, Ron DeSantis is an Israel First politician who wants to smear and silence Americans, especially American Muslims, critical of U.S. support for Israel&#8217;s war crimes,” CAIR National and CAIR-Florida said in a statement. “Governor DeSantis knows full well that CAIR-Florida is an American civil rights organization that has spent decades advancing free speech, religious freedom, and justice for all, including for the Palestinian people.”
The group added that they plan to defeat “Governor DeSantis&#8217; latest Israel First stunt” in court. 
Last week, Abbott <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/texas-governor-urges-trump-admin-to-strip-major-muslim-civil-rights-group-of-tax-exempt-status?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=2&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Texas+Governor+Urges+Trump+Admin+To+Strip+Major+Muslim+Civil+Rights+Group+of+Tax-Exempt+Status">called on the Trump Administration</a> to strip CAIR of its tax-exempt status for its alleged ties to foreign terrorist organizations. He argued that federal investigators and court filings have identified CAIR as “a direct subsidiary of the Muslim Brotherhood” and as a “front group” for Hamas in the United States. He also cited a recent report that claims CAIR awarded $1,000 cash grants to college students who disrupted classes and intimidated or harassed fellow students “while celebrating Hamas’s October 7th attack.” 
“Americans have generous hearts, and federal law wisely creates incentives to donate to nonprofit organizations that promote the public good,” Abbott wrote. “But charity must not become a backdoor to sponsor terrorism, endanger Americans, and subvert our democracy.”
According to Trump, the “final documents are being drawn” for the Muslim Brotherhood to receive a foreign terrorist organization designation, which will be “done in the strongest and most powerful terms.”

Governor DeSantis And ICE Announce Largest Joint Immigration Enforcement Operation In Florida History

DeSantis Joins Texas In Designating CAIR And Muslim Brotherhood As Terrorist Organizations

CAIR

Muslim Brotherhood

Terrorism

The Trump administration unveiled a new plan last week to ramp up offshore drilling off the coasts of Alaska, California, and Florida as the president seeks to usher in a U.S. energy boom. But some members of President Donald Trump&#8217;s party, including the Florida governor, aren&#8217;t thrilled about the administration&#8217;s goal to drill for oil near the Sunshine State&#8217;s beaches and military bases.
The U.S. Department of the Interior <a href="https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/interior-launches-expansive-11th-national-offshore-leasing-program-advance-us-energy">directed</a> the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management last Thursday to open up seven additional lease areas in the Eastern Gulf for offshore drilling, an area in the Gulf of America around 100 miles off of Florida&#8217;s coast. The Trump administration also plans to open up 21 areas for lease off the coast of Alaska and six areas off the Pacific coast.
Florida Republicans, including Governor Ron DeSantis, Sen. Rick Scott, and Sen. Ashley Moody, are urging the administration to pump the brakes on the new plan. The Florida leaders want the federal government to reconsider the policy President Trump enacted during his first term, which banned offshore oil leasing off the coasts of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina through 2032.
&#8220;President Trump’s 2020 memorandum protecting Florida’s eastern Gulf waters represents a thoughtful approach to the issue. The Interior Department should not depart from the 2020 policy,&#8221; DeSantis <a href="https://x.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1991648106254069903">said</a>. The governor&#8217;s office added that the Gulf coast of Florida does &#8220;not have the same oil and gas reserves as other states in the region&#8221; and that the state &#8220;has active sites where drilling occurs on land.&#8221;
Florida politicians argue that the new oil leases threaten Florida&#8217;s pristine beaches, which attract millions of tourists each year, while also interfering with &#8220;critical&#8221; U.S. military bases on the state&#8217;s coast.
Scott, Florida&#8217;s senior senator and former governor, echoed DeSantis, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/RickScottSenOffice/posts/floridas-beautiful-beaches-and-coastal-waters-are-so-important-to-our-states-eco/1386895662794430/">arguing</a>, &#8220;Florida’s beautiful beaches and coastal waters are so important to our state’s economy, environment, and military community, which is why I have fought for years to keep drilling off Florida’s coasts and worked closely with President Trump during his first term to extend the moratorium banning oil drilling off Florida’s coasts through 2032.&#8221;
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&#8220;I have been speaking to Secretary Burgum and made my expectations clear that this moratorium must remain in place, and that in any plan, Florida’s coasts must remain off the table for oil drilling to protect Florida’s tourism, environment, and military training opportunities,&#8221; Scott added.
Senator Moody said the Trump administration&#8217;s move was &#8220;HIGHLY concerning,&#8221; adding that she &#8220;will be engaging directly with the [Interior Department] on this issue.&#8221;
The Interior Department&#8217;s move to free up more areas for offshore drilling is a response to former President Joe Biden&#8217;s &#8220;restrictive&#8221; oil and gas policies, according to the Trump administration.
“Offshore oil and gas production does not happen overnight. It takes years of planning, investment, and hard work before barrels reach the market,” said Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. “The Biden administration slammed the brakes on offshore oil and gas leasing and crippled the long-term pipeline of America’s offshore production. By moving forward with the development of a robust, forward-thinking leasing plan, we are ensuring that America’s offshore industry stays strong, our workers stay employed, and our nation remains energy dominant for decades to come.”
Trump&#8217;s <a href="https://uk.practicallaw.thomsonreuters.com/w-027-8408?originationContext=knowHow&amp;transitionType=KnowHowItem&amp;contextData=(sc.Default)&amp;firstPage=true">2020 memorandum</a> prevented areas off the Florida coast from being considered for &#8220;leasing for purposes of exploration, development, or production&#8221; until 2032. After signing the memorandum in 2020, Trump was criticized by some people who believed the president was seeking to gain political favor among Floridians ahead of the 2020 election.
During his 2024 presidential campaign and after returning to the White House in early 2025, Trump vowed to ramp up American energy production and bring down energy costs for Americans. To accomplish this, Trump said it was time for the United States to &#8220;drill, baby, drill,&#8221; and on his first day back in the White House in January, Trump <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/declaring-a-national-energy-emergency/">declared</a> a national energy emergency.
&#8220;A major focus of our fight to reduce inflation is rapidly reducing the cost of energy. The previous administration cut the number of new oil and gas leases by 95%, slowed pipeline construction to a halt, and closed more than 100 power plants,&#8221; Trump said during his address to Congress in early March.
A group of Florida GOP representatives, including some of Trump&#8217;s most loyal supporters in Congress, also <a href="https://x.com/FBSaunders/status/1991623831610618051/photo/1">signed</a> a letter urging the president to reconsider the Interior Department&#8217;s latest directive.
&#8220;While we wholeheartedly support your push for American energy independence and expanded oil and gas production, the [Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range] is critical to advanced weapons development, flight testing, and joint exercises essential to maintaining America&#8217;s military superiority,&#8221; the letter states.

Florida Oil Drilling

Florida Republicans Aren’t Happy With Trump’s Offshore Drilling Plan

Florida Republicans Aren't Happy With Trump's Offshore Drilling Plan

Oil and Gas

Republicans

Rick Scott

With a strong possibility that New York City might elect anti-police candidate Zohran Mamdani as mayor, Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis made a pitch directly to NYPD officers, asking them, “Do you want to go out there and risk your life knowing that the mayor hates you?”
In 2020, Mamdani <a href="https://news.meaww.com/zohran-mamdani-slammed-as-old-defund-police-stance-resurfaces-after-ny-cop-killed-in-manhattan-shooting?utm_source=chatgpt.com">wrote</a> on social media, &#8220;No, we want to defund the police,&#8221; &#8220;Queer liberation means defund the police,&#8221; and accused the NYPD of being &#8220;racist, anti-queer &amp; a major threat to public safety.&#8221; He later wrote, &#8220;There is no negotiating with an institution this wicked and corrupt. Defund it. Dismantle it. End the cycle of violence.&#8221; In 2023, he declared that the “boot of the NYPD is on your neck.”
“If he’s elected, I think it’ll be an example of voters of New York City committing an act of ballistic podiatry because it is going to come back and bite the city,” DeSantis told Fox News’ Martha MacCallum. “He is so far Left and he mixes his leftism with Islamism. He’s going to make the (former NYC Democratic Mayor Bill) de Blasio years look like the golden age.”
“And I can tell you, in Florida we’re affected by this, just with the law enforcement alone,” he continued. “If you’re working in NYPD, do you want to go out there and risk your life knowing that the mayor hates you? No, a lot of them are not going to want to do that, and in Florida, we’ve established a $5,000 recruitment bonus. So if you are somebody that doesn’t want to serve under that guy as mayor, you come to Florida, any state or local law-enforcement agency, you get $5000 right at the top.”
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“I will tell you: If you say you’re going to disband the NYPD, if you put the criminals back on the street, if you engage in far-Left policies that would make George Soros blush, people do respond to that,” DeSantis said of the possibility that New Yorkers may leave the city if Mamdani is elected. “And of all the people that have migrated to Florida since I’ve been governor, I would say the number one reason they’ve left places — like New York City under De Blasio, like they’ve left Chicago under this mayor and the previous mayor, like leaving San Francisco and Los Angeles — is public safety. Those leftist politicians turn their backs on the police, turn their backs on the rule of law, and then the citizens were the ones that paid the price.”
“And I will tell you the disproportionate impact on those far-Left policies that do help the criminal element is actually not even the wealthy people — though they’re affected to a certain extent — it’s the working class people; it’s the middle class. Those are the folks that get affected the most. I do think that he will spark migration out of the city, particularly if he follows through on his far-left, anti-law enforcement policies,” he concluded.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Today, I joined Martha MacCallum on Fox News. <a href="https://t.co/shacUmwYDl">pic.twitter.com/shacUmwYDl</a>
&mdash; Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1983260202397769819?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

MixCollage-29-Oct-2025-09-50-AM-4819

DeSantis To NYPD: Don’t Risk Your Life For A Mayor Who Hates You

Defund The Police

New York City

NYPD

Police

Zohran Mamdani

Florida officials promised Thursday to discipline teachers who celebrate the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
Florida Commissioner of Education Anastasios Kamoutsas sent a memo to school superintendents saying that there would be consequences for employees who celebrate or mock the killing of Kirk, who was gunned down on Wednesday while holding an event at Utah Valley University.
“It has been brought to my attention that some Florida educators have posted despicable comments on social media regarding the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk. These few are not a reflection of the great, high-quality teachers who make up the vast majority of Florida&#8217;s educators,” he wrote in the memo. “Nevertheless, I will be conducting an investigation of every educator who engages in this vile, sanctionable behavior.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Teachers are held to a higher standard as public servants and must ensure their conduct does not undermine the trust of the students and families they serve. We will hold teachers who choose to make disgusting comments about the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk accountable.… <a href="https://t.co/KzXCCGkvZm">pic.twitter.com/KzXCCGkvZm</a>
— Anastasios Kamoutsas (@StasiKamoutsas) <a href="https://twitter.com/StasiKamoutsas/status/1966194627578384748?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
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While tributes for Kirk poured in following news of his death, many leftists responded by mocking Kirk or celebrating his death. A dean of students at Middle Tennessee State University was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tennessee-university-dean-fired-after-saying-she-had-no-sympathy-for-charlie-kirk?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=Tennessee+University+Dean+Fired+After+Saying+She+Had+%E2%80%98No+Sympathy%E2%80%99+For+Charlie+Kirk">fired</a> Wednesday after she said she had “zero sympathy” for Kirk.
Kamoutsas noted that while teachers have First Amendment rights, comments they make could violate professional codes of conduct that they are required to follow.
“Although educators have First Amendment rights, these rights do not extend without limit into their professional duties,” he wrote in the memo. “An educator&#8217;s personal views that are made public may undermine the trust of the students and families that they serve.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis praised Kamoutsas for the memo.
“Celebrating the assassination of a 31-year-old father of two young kids is disturbing; that teachers would be among those who do so is completely unacceptable,” he <a href="https://x.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1966210462011576409">said</a>. “Glad [Kamoutsas] is bringing accountability. It is sad that we’ve seen a number of teachers across America celebrate Charlie Kirk’s murder.”
Other individuals across the country have also lost their jobs over posts made about Kirk’s death, including at the University of Mississippi.
&#8220;Yesterday, a University of Mississippi staff member re-shared hurtful, insensitive comments on social media regarding the tragic murder of Charlie Kirk,” University of Mississippi Chancellor Glenn Boyce <a href="https://x.com/OleMiss/status/1966202655706865785">said</a> Thursday. &#8220;These comments run completely counter to our institutional values of civility, fairness, and respecting the dignity of each person. We condemn these actions, and this staff member is no longer employed by the university.”

Governor DeSantis Hold News Conference On Border Security

Florida Pledges To Hold Teachers ‘Accountable’ Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Death

Charlie Kirk

Fresh off a major legal victory, the Department of Homeland Security is touting the wide variety of illegal aliens convicted on charges related to violence, drugs, and sex crimes currently held in “Alligator Alcatraz.&#8221;
Last week, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ca11.92709/gov.uscourts.ca11.92709.42.1.pdf">struck down</a> a federal judge’s order saying that Alligator Alcatraz needed to be shut down. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis celebrated the ruling over the weekend, saying he was working to open up similar illegal detention centers across the state, including one he dubbed he “Panhandle Pokey.” 
In the meantime, Alligator Alcatraz will remain home to illegal immigrants convicted of drug trafficking, murder, and sexual offenses targeting children. Since its opening, the detention center has been the focus of protests from leftist activists and a lawsuit arguing that Florida and the Trump administration violated federal environmental laws. 
“Despite repeated hoaxes peddled by the media and activist judges, Alligator Alcatraz is still open and housing some of the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens, including murderers, pedophiles, weapon traffickers, and drug dealers until they are swiftly removed from our country,” Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told The Daily Wire. 
According to the Department of Homeland Security, those currently detained at Alligator Alcatraz include the following: 
<ul>
<li>Abelardo Ocampo, an illegal from Mexico convicted of attempted homicide/second-degree murder and possession of a weapon with intent to harm.  </li>
<li>Eraldo Ariel Perez Perez, an illegal from Guatemala, convicted of sexual battery of a victim (12 years or older) physically helpless to resist.</li>
<li>Efrain Mez-Choc, another illegal from Guatemala convicted of engaging in sex with a child and two counts of lewd and lascivious molestation of a child 12-16 years old. </li>
<li>Alexis Moreda Gallardo, an illegal from Cuba convicted of larceny, fraud impersonation, aggravated assault, and indecent exposure.  </li>
<li>Gustavo Cruz Garcia, an illegal alien from Mexico convicted of prostitution and sex offenses.  </li>
<li>Gersain Lerma Lasprilla, an illegal from Colombia convicted in his home country for the manufacture and trafficking of firearms and ammunition.  </li>
<li>Thallys Roberto Cassimiro DeSouza, an illegal from Brazil convicted of robbery. </li>
<li>David Mota Castillo, an illegal from the Dominican Republic convicted of drug trafficking. </li>
<li>Simeon De La Cruz Paredes, an illegal from the Dominican Republic convicted of smuggling aliens.</li>
<li>Diego Puentes, an illegal from Guatemala convicted of second-degree murder. </li>
</ul>
The Trump administration plans to open similar facilities in other states.
“Innovative state partnerships like Alligator Alcatraz, Louisiana Lock-up, Speedway Slammer, and Cornhusker Clink are expanding detention capability to lock up criminal illegal aliens and turbo charging our efforts to get criminal illegal aliens out of our country,” McLaughlin said. “Fire up the deportation planes.”

MixCollage-10-Sep-2025-11-54-AM-724

EXCLUSIVE: DHS Reveals The ‘Worst Of The Worst’ Illegals In Alligator Alcatraz

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President Donald Trump on Friday evening pushed back on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/first-in-the-nation-florida-to-end-all-vaccine-mandates">Florida&#8217;s plan</a> to eliminate all vaccine mandates, including school requirements.
Trump said Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo&#8217;s plan was a &#8220;tough stance&#8221; and emphasized that some vaccines are &#8220;not controversial&#8221; and should generally be taken to protect children.
&#8220;I think we have to be very careful,&#8221; he told the press from the Oval Office. &#8220;You have some vaccines that are so amazing: the polio vaccine, I happen to think is amazing. A lot of people think that COVID [vaccine] is amazing. You know, there are many people that believe strongly in that.&#8221;
&#8220;You have some vaccines that are so incredible, and I think you have to be very careful when you say that some people don&#8217;t have to be vaccinated,&#8221; the president reiterated. &#8220;It&#8217;s a very tough position.&#8221;
&#8220;Initially, I heard about it yesterday,&#8221; Trump said of the Florida vaccine initiative. &#8220;And it&#8217;s a tough stance. You have vaccines that work &#8212; just pure and simple, they work, they&#8217;re not controversial at all. And I think those vaccines should be used, otherwise some people are going to catch it and they endanger other people. And when you don&#8217;t have controversy at all, I think people should take it.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
🚨 BREAKING: President Trump pushes back on Florida removing all vaccine mandates, including for schoolchildren. He says some vaccines are a must.
&#8220;I think we have to be careful. You have some vaccines that are so amazing. The Polio vaccine I think is amazing. A lot of people… <a href="https://t.co/PsTGMIBaWl">pic.twitter.com/PsTGMIBaWl</a>
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) <a href="https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1964084178720608711?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
Dr. Ladapo, alongside Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, announced on Wednesday that the Sunshine State will end all vaccination mandates, including requirements for schools.
“The Florida Department of Health, in partnership with the government, is working to end all vaccine mandates in Florida law — all of them,” Ladapo said. “Every last one of them.”
Ladapo said the government has no right to tell parents what to put in their children’s bodies, or their own bodies.
“Every last [mandate] is wrong and drips with disdain — and slavery,” he argued. “Who am I, or anyone else … to tell you what you should put in your body? Who am I to tell you what your child should put in [their] body?”
“I don’t have that right,” he continued. “Your body is a gift from God. What you put into your body is because of your relationship with your body and your God. I don’t have that right. Government does not have that right.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
🚨 MAJOR BREAKING: The Surgeon General of Florida just announced ALL VACCINE MANDATES IN FLORIDA will be ENDED, and the room erupted.
All. Not just COVID. ALL.
JOSEPH LADAPO: &#8220;Every last one is wrong and DRIPS with disdain and slavery! Who am I, or anyone else, to tell YOU what… <a href="https://t.co/Kah5LscGTo">pic.twitter.com/Kah5LscGTo</a>
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) <a href="https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1963254999204442607?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 3, 2025</a></blockquote>
Ending vaccine requirements for schoolchildren would be a seismic change — every state in the nation currently has school vaccine requirements. Additionally, liberal states have increasingly nixed religious exemptions for families looking to opt their children out of some requirements.
Gov. DeSantis on Friday seemed to reiterate his support for the plan. During remarks at the second annual State Freedom Caucus Summit, the governor boosted the right to medical freedom and said he didn’t believe the government should coerce people into certain treatment, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/desantis-reveals-what-battles-he-wants-to-tackle-next-as-governor?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=Original&amp;elementPosition=2&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=DeSantis+Reveals+What+Battles+He+Wants+To+Tackle+Next+As+Governor">The Daily Wire</a> reported.
Gov. DeSantis has led the charge on the issue of <a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/12/desantis-medical-freedom-laws?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">medical freedom</a> in the wake of aggressive COVID policies. In 2023, for example, he signed a set of medical freedom measures into law, which banned mask and vaccine mandates and added new conscience protections for health care providers.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/first-in-the-nation-florida-to-end-all-vaccine-mandates">First In The Nation: Florida To End All Vaccine Mandates</a>

Sir Keir Starmer visit to Washington DC

Trump Pushes Back On Florida Plan To End All School Vax Mandates

Health

U.S.

Vaccine Mandate

Vaccines

IRVING, Texas — Republican Governor Ron DeSantis said Friday night that he planned to remain on “offense” in Florida as he pressed conservative lawmakers gathered from across the country to govern boldly. 
DeSantis, whose time as governor has been punctuated by major conservative victories from education to illegal immigration, said he hopes to push Florida to have greater medical freedom and to eliminate property taxes. He made the remarks during a keynote address at the second annual State Freedom Caucus Summit at the Omni Las Colinas Hotel just outside Dallas.
“I didn&#8217;t get in there to be mushy on policy,” DeSantis said. “I knew what I believed.  I told people what I was going to do. And my view was, I&#8217;m sitting at the desk the first day I was governor, I looked around the office, no decorations yet, it was empty, and I said, you know, I don&#8217;t know what SOB’s going to succeed me in this office, but they are not going to have anything to do.”
DeSantis was a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, a coalition of House Republicans who have fought to reign in federal spending and to advance conservative policies at the federal level. The State Freedom Caucus Network was founded in 2021 with the goal of creating state level organizations of conservative lawmakers and equipping them with “the high-level staff, strategy, and community conservatives need to take ground across the country.”
On the lines of medical freedom, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo announced that the state would seek to end all vaccine mandates, including requirements for schools. DeSantis said Friday that he didn&#8217;t believe government should coerce people into certain treatment. He also said people couldn&#8217;t truly have private property if they effectively had to pay &#8220;rent&#8221; to the government for it.
During his speech, DeSantis highlighted his record on fighting lockdowns during COVID, battles to protect parental rights in education, elimination of DEI at public universities, and fights with Disney.
“ I think woke ideology is toxic whether it&#8217;s being imposed by a government agency, or whether it&#8217;s being imposed by a multinational corporation. I think it&#8217;s wrong,” DeSantis said.
The Florida governor also celebrated the Thursday <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/court-allows-floridas-alligator-alcatraz-to-remain-open-for-business?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Court+Allows+Florida’s+Alligator+Alcatraz+To+Remain+‘Open+For+Business’">decision</a> from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals that blocked a lower court’s order to shut down the Everglades-based illegal alien detention center known as Alligator Alcatraz.
“Every time I get out of bed in the morning, I get sued by the Left,” DeSantis said. “You can&#8217;t be worried about getting sued, you know that&#8217;s what they&#8217;re gonna do, and they go to liberal judges, and we know based on the judge, we have no chance at the trial court, and so we know we&#8217;ll just win on appeal.”
He said that Florida would be partnering with the Trump administration to establish other illegal alien detention centers.
DeSantis said that Florida’s massive shift to the Right under his leadership showed the impact of governing conservatively, saying that “people respond to results.”
“It&#8217;s not always easy,” he said. “None of this is cost free, but it&#8217;s worth it. And what we are doing in these states by showing that conservative policies that built this country, that our Founding Fathers believed in, we show that those work, that people vote with their feet &#8212; that is the best possible evidence we can produce to show people this is the way forward, not just us, for our kids and our grandkids.”

IMG_20250905_220456

DeSantis Reveals What Battles He Wants To Tackle Next As Governor

Freedom Caucus

General

Texas

A federal appeals court issued a ruling on Thursday allowing an illegal alien detention center in Florida dubbed Alligator Alcatraz to remain “open for business” while a lawsuit against the state and the Trump administration makes its way through court.
An Obama-appointed federal district court judge <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/obama-appointed-judge-orders-alligator-alcatraz-to-shut-down-within-60-days">issued</a> a temporary restraining order last month ordering Florida and the Trump administration to stop placing illegal aliens in the facility. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked that judge’s order in a 2-1 decision on Thursday.
The judges <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ca11.92709/gov.uscourts.ca11.92709.42.1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruled</a> that a lawsuit brought by environmental groups and an American Indian tribe “failed to state a viable claim” that Florida and the Department of Homeland Security violated federal environmental laws.
“Given that the federal government has an undisputed and wide-reaching interest in combatting illegal immigration, and that illegal immigration is a matter of national security and public safety, we think the injunction issued below goes against the public interest,” the majority wrote in the court’s decision.
Both the Department of Homeland Security and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis celebrated the ruling.
“Today’s order is a win for the American people, the rule of law and common sense,” the Department of Homeland Security posted on X. “This lawsuit was never about the environmental impacts of turning a developed airport into a detention facility. It has and will always be about open-borders activists and judges trying to keep law enforcement from removing dangerous criminal aliens from our communities, full stop.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
HUGE VICTORY FOR ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ. Today’s order is a win for the American people, the rule of law and common sense. This lawsuit was never about the environmental impacts of turning a developed airport into a detention facility. It has and will always be about open-borders…
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) <a href="https://twitter.com/DHSgov/status/1963695670923026455?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 4, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“The mission continues on immigration enforcement. The media was giddy that somehow Alligator Alcatraz was ‘shutting down.’ And we told them that wasn’t true,” DeSantis <a href="https://x.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1963688691542401406">said</a> in a video message. “There have been illegal aliens continuing to be there and being removed and returned to their home country. But they ran with the narrative because some leftist judge ruled, implausibly, that somehow Florida wasn’t allowed to use our own property to help the federal government in this important mission.”
“So Alligator Alcatraz is, in fact, like we’ve always said, open for business. The mission continues and we’re going to continue leading the way when it comes to immigration enforcement,” DeSantis added.
The Trump administration has partnered with states across the country to open up similar detention centers with names like the Cornhusker Clink in Nebraska and the Speedway Slammer in Indiana.

Protesters rally against “Alligator Alcatraz” in Florida, Everglades

Court Allows Florida’s Alligator Alcatraz To Remain ‘Open For Business’

Courts

Illegal Immigration

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Florida’s surgeon general, alongside GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis, announced on Wednesday that the Sunshine State will end all vaccination mandates, including requirements for schools.
“The Florida Department of Health, in partnership with the government, is working to end all vaccine mandates in Florida law — all of them,” Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo told a room of supporters. “Every last one of them.”
Ladapo went on to say that the government has no right to tell parents what to put in their children’s bodies, or their own bodies, sparking loud applause.
“Every last [mandate] is wrong and drips with disdain — and slavery,” he argued. “Who am I, or anyone else … to tell you what you should put in your body? Who am I to tell you what your child should put in [their] body?”
“I don’t have that right,” he continued. “Your body is a gift from God. What you put into your body is because of your relationship with your body and your God. I don’t have that right. Government does not have that right.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
🚨 MAJOR BREAKING: The Surgeon General of Florida just announced ALL VACCINE MANDATES IN FLORIDA will be ENDED, and the room erupted.
All. Not just COVID. ALL.
JOSEPH LADAPO: &#8220;Every last one is wrong and DRIPS with disdain and slavery! Who am I, or anyone else, to tell YOU what… <a href="https://t.co/Kah5LscGTo">pic.twitter.com/Kah5LscGTo</a>
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) <a href="https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1963254999204442607?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 3, 2025</a></blockquote>
Ending vaccine requirements for schoolchildren would be a seismic change — every state in the nation currently has school vaccine requirements. Additionally, liberal states have increasingly nixed religious exemptions for families looking to opt their children out of some requirements.
An attorney from New York, who recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/teen-takes-on-new-york-over-vax-mandate-and-wins">won a major vaccine case</a> in the state, told The Daily Wire that since the state did away with religious exemptions, it has also largely eliminated medical exemptions, despite the government’s claims to still accept them.
“The problem really is these New York State Department of Health regulations that were issued in 2019, that led to hundreds of children who had longstanding medical exemptions suddenly getting them revoked,” attorney Sujata Gibson <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/teen-takes-on-new-york-over-vax-mandate-and-wins">said</a>. “Many, many families have had to move out of town, get vaccinated against medical advice — some children have been severely harmed by that.”
It’s unclear how vaccine requirements will be peeled back in the state, but Ladapo does oversee the Florida Department of Health. He also noted that this vision will be possible with the help of state lawmakers, who Ladapo said will “have to make decisions” on these matters.
Gov. DeSantis has led the charge on the issue of <a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/12/desantis-medical-freedom-laws?utm_source=chatgpt.com">medical freedom</a> in the wake of the aggressive COVID policies. In 2023, for example, he signed a set of medical freedom measures into law, which banned mask and vaccine mandates and added new conscience protections for health care providers. He flanked Ladapo during the announcement to end all vaccination requirements on Wednesday.
Federally, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has moved to effectively make COVID vaccine mandates illegal by ending “emergency use authorization” for the vaccines.
“We saw the heavy-handed government with the vaccine mandates with the COVID vaccine, no longer is that possible given the landscape that we’ve created,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary <a href="https://x.com/SecKennedy/status/1962895599835009184">said</a>. 
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/desantis-removes-woke-crosswalk-sparks-backlash-from-the-left?author=Hank+Berrien&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=DeSantis+Removes+Woke+Crosswalk%2C+Sparks+Backlash+From+The+Left">DeSantis Removes Woke Crosswalk, Sparks Backlash From The Left</a>

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First In The Nation: Florida To End All Vaccine Mandates

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