Politics
Oklahoma governor seeks larger event for Trump’s Tulsa rally
Published
4 years agoon
By
FNN NEWSOKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — So many people have expressed an interest in attending President Donald Trump’s rally Saturday in Tulsa, Oklahoma, that the governor said he’s asked the campaign to consider a larger, outdoor venue to accommodate them.
Gov. Kevin Stitt said Monday after talking with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence that nearly one million people have requested tickets to the event. Some Trump supporters have already started waiting in line outside the 19,000-seat BOK Center in downtown Tulsa.
“We’re excited we’re being recognized as one of the first states to safely and measurably reopen,” Stitt told reporters Monday. “I’m looking for a potential other venue that maybe we could move it outside. It’s still kind of in the works.”
Stitt, who plans to introduce Trump at Saturday’s rally, said he also asked Trump and Pence to join him on a tour of the city’s Greenwood District, once home to a prosperous African American community dubbed Black Wall Street that was burned to the ground during a racially motivated massacre in 1921 that left as many as 300 people dead.
The Trump campaign initially planned to hold the rally on Friday, which is Juneteenth, a celebration of the end of slavery in the United States, but agreed to move the date to Saturday at the request of Stitt and others.
The Trump campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on whether they’re considering moving the event to a larger venue, and the White House didn’t respond to a request for comment on accepting Stitt’s invitation to tour the Greenwood District.
Health officials, including Tulsa County Health Department Director Bruce Dart, have voiced concerns about having so many people in a confined space, noting both the state and Tulsa have seen daily highs in the number of positive cases in recent days.
Oklahoma County Republican Party Chairman David McLain said Monday that the Trump campaign intends to fill every one of the venue’s seats. He said the campaign also intends to provide masks to every person who attends, although he said there won’t be a requirement to wear one.
“I haven’t heard of any policy of mandatory mask wearing at this point,” McLain said, “but that’s fluid and could possibly change.”
Social distancing is still encouraged in Oklahoma but there’s no prohibition on large gatherings.
There have been more than 8,400 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 and 359 total deaths in Oklahoma from the disease, more than half of which have been residents of nursing homes or long-term care facilities.
Oklahoma began allowing some businesses, like hair salons, pet groomers and spas, to reopen on April 24 during its first phase of reopening. The state has since moved into its third phase of reopening, with virtually no restrictions on businesses.
While acknowledging the state has seen a recent surge in the number of people testing positive for the coronavirus, Stitt said much of that is due to an increase in testing. He also said only 150 people are currently hospitalized due to COVID-19 and that the state has plenty of hospital capacity.
“We need to continue to be vigilant and continue to take precautions,” Stitt said, “but we also have to learn how to deal with COVID, because it’s in the United States, it’s in Oklahoma, and we can’t let it dictate our lives.”
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Politics
Suspended Democratic State Attorney Andrew Warren Seeks Re-Election
Published
14 hours agoon
April 17, 2024By
FNN NEWSTAMPA, Fla. – In a video released Tuesday morning, State Attorney Andrew Warren announces he will seek re-election to a third term as State Attorney for Hillsborough County, Florida. Warren, a Democrat, points to his proven record of reduced crime, increased public safety, and improvements to the justice system as he declares his candidacy in the race, which will appear on the November 2024 general election ballot.
“Today, I’m running for election as State Attorney to serve the people—all the people—of Hillsborough County. I’m running to keep our neighborhoods safe. I’m running to fight for victims and to make our criminal justice system better,” Warren declares in the video.
Warren has twice been elected by Hillsborough County voters, in 2016 and 2020.
During his first 5 1/2 years in office, before he was illegally suspended by Gov. Ron DeSantis, Warren worked with prosecutors, law enforcement, and community partners to:
· Reduce crime in Hillsborough County by more than 30%
· Make Hillsborough the safest large county in Florida, according to state statistics
· Invest in safety through prevention and rehabilitation, and by addressing mental health and addiction
· Target child predators, convicting an average of one predator every four days the courthouse was open
· Create and expand civil citation programs, disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline
· Establish a Community Council and a Racial Justice Work Group
· Become a national leader in transparency, launching a groundbreaking public Data Dashboard
· Reduce the criminalization of poverty
· Pursue drunk drivers with aggressive sanctions to reduce repeat offenses
· Adopt the Disarming Domestic Abusers policy to protect victims of domestic violence
A native Floridian and former federal prosecutor, Warren and his wife Alex are parents of three children—their daughters Elliot and Lucy, and their late son Zack.
The announcement video is now live on Warren’s Facebook and X/Twitter pages. It encourages supporters to visit Warren’s website, AndrewWarrenFL.com, to sign up for updates or contribute to the campaign.
While outlining his successes in office, Warren also highlights the suspension that installed an unelected political appointee into his position last year—an appointment that is illegitimate, according to prominent Florida legal experts, including a former Attorney General and Supreme Court Justice.
“On August 4, 2022, Ron DeSantis threw out your vote. He illegally forced me from office under armed guard,” Warren says in the video. “My late son. My beautiful daughters. My strong wife. They inspire me to serve others—to do good. That’s why I took DeSantis to court.”
As an image in the video quotes federal Judge Robert Hinkle’s January 20, 2023 ruling that Warren “was diligently and competently performing the job he was elected to perform,” Warren says, “The judge ruled that I did my job and the suspension was unconstitutional. But our fight is not over”—referring to Judge Hinkle’s conclusion that he lacked the authority to reinstate Warren. On January 11, 2024, the appellate court affirmed Judge Hinkle’s findings regarding the constitutional violation while clearly stating that Judge Hinkle has the authority to reinstate Warren.
Even as Warren awaits reinstatement, his announcement Tuesday affirms that in addition to winning in court, Warren intends to be back on the ballot so voters can emphatically make it clear that they decide who represents them—not a governor who broke the law and abused his power for a political stunt.
“I’m running to protect our values, for a woman’s right to choose, for a fair and just system, and—above all—for freedom and democracy,” Warren says. “I’m running to do what’s right. It’s what I’ve always done, as a former federal prosecutor, as a father, and as your State Attorney. I’m Andrew Warren, and together, it’s time we reclaim the future of this community—our community. Join us in this fight.”
Politics
State Rep. Bruce Antone’s Tuskegee Airmen Commemoration Day Bill Signed Into Law By The Governor
Published
5 days agoon
April 12, 2024By
FNN NEWSORLANDO, Fla. – Yesterday, Governor DeSantis signed into law HB 1227, Tuskegee Airmen Commemoration Day. House Bill 1227 creates the 22nd state designated holiday in the State of Florida, which is the 4th Thursday in March.
The bill recognizes the Tuskegee Airmen, African American fighter pilots, who trained near Tuskegee Institute now known as Tuskegee University. The pilots formed part of the 332nd Fighter Group which was comprised of four squadrons of African American pilots in the 15th Air Force during World War II. The Airmen were also known as the “Red Tails,” a nickname acquired from the painted tails of 332nd fighter planes, which flew over 200 missions in the performance of defending heavy bombers from enemy interceptors.
“I’m pleased, and the Tuskegee Airmen are pleased, that Governor DeSantis signed HB 1227 into law which commemorates and honors the Tuskegee Airmen,” said Representative Antone.
Florida has become one of at least 10 other states to recognize a day designating the “Tuskegee Airmen Commemoration Day” on the fourth Thursday in March of each year as a legal holiday. This special day honors the Tuskegee Airmen, who were the first Black military pilots in the United States armed forces.
Politics
Governor DeSantis Signs 5 Pieces of Legislation to Protect Children from Predatory Grooming and Other Sexual Offenses
Published
1 week agoon
April 10, 2024By
Willie David- HB 1545, which protects children from grooming activities and other sexual offenses.
- HB 1131, which establishes a grant program within the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to create online sting operations to target sexual predators.
- HB 1235, which creates stricter guidelines for sex offender registration.
- SB 1224, which strengthens the role of the Statewide Guardian ad Litem Office and implements new training requirements to ensure law enforcement properly assesses a domestic violence situation.
- HB 305, which expands the evidence that can be presented to a jury in sex-abuse cases where the victim is a minor and increases penalties on those who take part in sex trafficking of minors.
- Prohibits an adult from engaging in a pattern of communication to a minor that includes explicit and detailed verbal descriptions of sexual activity.
- Increases penalties for child exploitation crimes such as promoting sexual performances or possessing child pornography.
- Establishes this conduct as a third-degree felony, strengthening the punishments associated with child exploitation and making them more severe.
- Requires FDLE to award grant funding on an annual basis for sting operations.
- Allocates funding to be used on computers, electronics, software, and other digital assets to conduct online child predator sting operations.
- Prevents sex offenders from using a temporary residence to avoid registration.
- Requires sex offenders to register vehicles and vessels used as living quarters with the state.
- Requires international travel to be reported ahead of time.
- Makes it more difficult to qualify for registration removal.
- Creates a new role within the Guardian ad Litem Office to assist children aging out of foster care to successful independent living.
- Establishes the Fostering Prosperity grant program for youth and young adults aging out of foster care to facilitate trade school opportunities and financial literacy instruction and to provide college preparation tools.
- Creates a lethality assessment that requires responding law enforcement officers to a domestic violence incident to determine if a domestic violence victim is at risk of death or serious injury and respond appropriately. This was inspired by Gabby Petito who was tragically murdered by her fiancé Brian Laundrie.
- Allows a hearsay statement made by a minor, regardless of age, to be admitted as evidence.
- It also requires offenders convicted of human trafficking minors to be registered sex offenders on the first offense.
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