Leftists know that a complacent, dependent electorate is necessary to subjugate the masses. That’s why they push for destructive policies like legalizing marijuana and baby murder. When they can’t do it through the normal legislative process, they try other means like ballot referenda to amend the state constitution. These year we’re facing two such attacks:
Amendment 3 – legalizes recreational marijuana. In a 2014 paper, Australian economists Jan C. van Ours and Jenny Williams found heavy users of cannabis are more susceptible to mental health problems. They also said early cannabis use reduces educational attainment, so even those who aren’t arrested are hurting their future prospects. Anyone who visits Colorado can see the negative impacts legalizing marijuana. For the libertarian-minded who think all drugs should be legal, remember that we have an existing welfare system that will have to pick up the burden for people’s poor decisions.
Amendment 4 – overturns the Heartbeat Protection Act (no abortion once a heartbeat is detected) and the previous 15-week abortion ban. It also eliminates parental consent for minors. Frederic Bastiat said that the purpose of government is to protect life, liberty, and property. If it refuses to protect life for the most helpless, you can bet it will fail in other areas.
Each amendment needs 60% approval to pass, so hopefully these attempts to Colorado our Florida will fail.
Governor DeSantis is speaking out against both of these measures. He spoke against them in a Faith and Community Initiative call he held on June 27. Read about it here.
There’s also a PAC set up to fight against Amendment 4: https://votenoon4florida.com/
Speaking of abortion, there are rumors that the national Republican Party may remove its pro-life position from the party platform. This would have to be voted on by the delegates at the Republican National Convention. Here’s a link that makes it simple to write to the state Republican Party chairs, who play a key role in appointing delegates: https://frc.quorum.us/campaign/61447/
Freedom Month Sales Tax Holiday
If you’re sick of being told to “pay your fair share” and want to feel like a rebellious “sovereign citizen” avoiding sales taxes, July is your month. From the governor’s press release:
“The Freedom Month Sales Tax Holiday will take place the entire month of July and will make items such as fishing supplies, outdoor recreation equipment, admissions to state parks and, museums sales tax free.”
Details here.
More Bill Signing
June 28
CS/HB 1347 – Consumer Finance Loans
CS/SB 1600 – Interstate Mobility
CS/SB 7040 – Ratification of the Department of Environmental Protection’s Rules Relating to Stormwater
CS/CS/SB 736 – Services Provided by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles or Its Agents
CS/CS/SB 770 – Improvements to Real Property
June 27
HB 91 – Transportation Facility Designations
CS/CS/HB 389 – Transportation Facility Designations
CS/CS/HB 403 – Specialty License Plates
CS/CS/HB 619 – Sovereign Immunity for Professional Firms
June 26
HB 799 – Easements Affecting Real Property Owned by the Same Owner
CS/CS/HB 1063 – Chiropractic Medicine
SB 674 – United States-produced Iron and Steel in Public Works Projects
Vetoes:
CS/SB 1082 – Housing for Legally Verified Agricultural Workers. Read about it here.
CS/SB 280 – Vacation Rentals. Read about it here.
CS/HB 133 – Professional Licensing Requirements for Barbers and Cosmetologists. Read about it here.
CS/CS/HB 473 – Cybersecurity Incident Liability. Read about it here.
CS/CS/SB 165 – Sampling of beach Waters and Public Bathing Spaces. Read about it here.SB 1078 – Public Records/Cellular Telephone Numbers Held by the Department of Financial Services. Read about it here.
What’s After DeSantis?
It’s sad to think of what might happen after DeSantis leaves office. There’s no telling if he’ll actively campaign and choose a worthy successor or if the voters will have to wade through an electoral minefield littered with RINOs. Daniel now calls them Democrats In All But Name Only, but I prefer to use “label” instead of “name” so it’s Democrats In All But Label Only… DIABLOs. That’s what we end up with when the Republican majority is so great that Democrats run with the R knowing that it’s easy to fool casual voters.
That whole rant is to say you can meet one of the potential future candidates to replace DeSantis. Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis will be the speaker at the Alachua County Republican Party fundraiser on Sept 20. (This isn’t an endorsement for Patronis… or against.) If it helps you decide, I’ll also be there.
