From a Seminole County, Florida school board meeting: Based on what he says here, Michael Beck should be pro-choice on abortion, but something tells me he is not. Here is his entire speech. It picks up at the 1:48:10 mark:
Florida
Florida history teacher: “I do not teach critical race theory”
Jessica Morey teaches African-American history, Advanced Placement U.S. history, A.P. U.S. government, and economics at St. Francis Catholic High School in Gainesville, Florida. She says she does not teach critical race theory. In a recent piece at The Gainesville Sun, […]
Val Demings (D-Fla.) is planning a run against Marco Rubio
Demings was a House manager in Donald Trump’s first impeachment trial and was on Joe Biden’s vice-presidential shortlist. Political scientists Ashley Daniels and Pearl Dowe think Demings has a chance of taking Rubio’s Senate seat if she can mobilize Black […]
“You can repeal Obamacare from the comfort of your own home”: When the GOP encouraged its members to vote by mail
I found Amy Gardner’s piece at The Washington Post through Tom Sullivan’s post at Hullabaloo. There was once a time when the GOP loved mail-in voting. No more. Here is Gardner: Republican operatives worth their salt remember well the Sunshine […]
Video of the Day
Cocoa Beach, Florida:
Is Florida congressman Matt Gaetz going to Newsmax?
I’ve always thought he was more suited to be an opinion host on right-wing cable than a congressman. Here is Axios: Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) has privately told confidants he’s seriously considering not seeking re-election and possibly leaving Congress early […]
The worst moment of Election Day violence in American history
It happened 100 years ago today in Ocoee, Florida. Here is Gillian Brockell at The Washington Post: There are at least 129 accounts of what happened that day in Ocoee, and they vary wildly. Some said the attack was a […]
Are you serious Marco Rubio?
I used to think this was the worst Marco Rubio video: But did you see this clip from a Rubio pro-Trump speech on Sunday night?:
Lara Trump and the court evangelicals try to win voters in Florida
Last night Lara Trump, the wife of Donald Trump’s son Eric, spoke to an “Evangelicals for Trump” rally in Pensacola, Florida. The event was followed by a “town hall event” that included court evangelicals Paula White, Jentezen Franklin, Tony Suarez, […]
Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida Cuts the Positions of 34 Professors
It’s happening. Small colleges, many of them Christian colleges, are making significant cuts in order to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Southeastern University is the largest Assembly of God educational institution in the United States. According to the school’s Wikipedia […]
Trump’s Choice of Church for His “Evangelicals for Trump” Rally Today
As we have discussed a few times already here at the blog, Trump will be speaking at a big “Evangelicals for Trump” rally later today in Miami. The event will take place at the King Jesus Ministry Church, evangelical megachurch. […]
Why a Florida County Public Library Will Not Be Subscribing to *The New York Times*
The librarians of Citrus County, Florida wanted to buy a digital subscription to The New York Times, but the country commission will not let them do it because, as everyone knows, The New York Times is “fake news.” Yes, this is a […]
The *Orlando Sentinel* on Court Evangelical Paula White
The editorial board chides the court evangelical for “weaponizing faith for politics.” Here is a taste of the editorial: We’re particularly appalled — though not surprised — by Paula White. Not because she’s a conservative but because of her naked […]
The Slave Societies Digital Archive
Over at The Conversation, Vanderbilt historian Jane Landers writes about her work on the Slave Societies Digital Archive. Here is a taste: This archive, which I launched in 2003, now holds approximately 600,000 images dating from the 16th to the […]
Why Did So Many Hispanics in Florida Pull the Lever for DeSantis Instead of Gillum?
The pundits seemed baffled by the 2018 Florida gubernatorial race between Rep. Rick DeSantis (R) and Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum (D). Here is a taste of an article at the Atlanta Black Star: Initial Election Day results showed that a significant […]
Chris King: “the case study of whether faith is a deal killer in the modern Democratic Party.”
Andrew Gillum, the African-American progressive mayor of Tallahassee who recently became the Democratic nominee in the upcoming Florida gubernatorial race, has chosen a running mate. His name is Chris King. He is a thirty-eight-year-old white evangelical Christian who was raised […]
Don’t Forget About Episode 27: “From Mount Vernon to Mar-a-Lago”
We dropped it on Sunday: Here at The Way of Improvement Leads Home, we have traveled to both Mount Vernon and Monticello in our explorations of presidential history. Today, we explore a much more recent addition to the world of presidential […]
The Meaning of Trump’s “Winter White House” in the Wake of Irma
Rollins College historian Julian Chambliss puts Mar-a-Lago in some historical context. He argues that the winter White House is part of a “Florida dream” that is unsustainable. Here is a taste of Chambliss piece at Boston Review: Donald Trump calls his […]
The Way of Improvement Leads Home Podcast Mug in Post-Irma Florida
I am glad to learn from Nicole, a The Way of Improvement Leads Home Podcast patron suffering through the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, that our coffee mug is helping her get through the day. Nicole writes: The generator is running […]
The Author's Corner With Laurel Shire
Laurel Clark Shire teaches history at Western University in London, Ontario. This interview is based on her new book, The Threshold of Manifest Destiny: Gender and National Expansion in Florida ( University of Pennsylvania Press, 2016) JF: What led you to write […]