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| By Kimberly Leonard | |
 Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks at a campaign rally at First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, on Nov. 2, 2024. | Alex Brandon/AP |
Good morning and happy Friday. The next U.S. attorney general won’t be MATT GAETZ, but the job is still tee’d up for a Floridian. Eight days after President-elect DONALD TRUMP’s shock announcement that he would nominate Gaetz, the former Florida House member called it quits. By Thursday night, Trump announced he wanted former Florida Attorney General PAM BONDI as his AG. The news of Gaetz’s withdrawal stunned Capitol Hill and created a firestorm. Sen. RICK SCOTT (R-Fla.) told POLITICO’s Mia McCarthy that he was “disappointed” because he believed Gaetz would have changed “the way the DOJ is done.” He added: “I've had a very good working relationship with him. He's a hard worker. He's smart as hell.” Later, when Trump announced the Bondi pick, Scott posted that he was “thrilled” for his “great friend.” (Bondi was the state AG when Scott was governor.) Bondi has longstanding relationships with Florida lawmakers and staff. She was one of Trump’s lawyers during his first impeachment trial and led a pro-Trump super PAC. Most recently, she has been lobbying for Ballard Partners, including on behalf of the Florida Sheriffs Association this year, disclosures show. She's also on the pro-Trump think tank America First Policy Institute, which has been likened to a Trump administration in waiting. She’s co-chair of the law and justice division, focusing on human trafficking and drug-related crimes. Bondi could become the first Republican woman to be confirmed as attorney general. As for Gaetz, his withdrawal skips what would have been an intense and deeply personal hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, centering on an ethics report and Justice Department investigation into sexual misconduct whose allegations kept getting leaked to the media. Gaetz has repeatedly denied the allegations but cited the “distraction” from the new Trump administration as his reason for bowing out of the AG confirmation process. The decision leaves a lot of questions for the 1st District, his former congressional seat. Gov. RON DESANTIS hadn’t even set a special election date to replace Gaetz, though several people announced they planned to run given that Gaetz already resigned from Congress. It was not immediately clear whether Gaetz could return to his House seat for the new Congress (He definitely can't come back this year.) or even if he wanted to, and his spokesperson didn’t directly answer whether he planned to. It leaves the field to replace him unsettled. GOP state Rep. JOEL RUDMAN put out a press release this morning about his campaign for the FL-01 seat, promising to “stand in lockstep” with Trump. “It’s time to close the border, enforce mass deportations, and reignite the Trump-era economic policies that brought unparalleled prosperity to hard working Americans,” he said. But GOP state Rep. MICHELLE SALZMAN, who filed to run for the seat, told POLITICO after the AG news broke that she immediately reached out to Gaetz to tell him she would “fully support whatever he wants” and would “absolutely” withdraw from the race if Gaetz wanted to return to Congress. Some have openly wondered whether DeSantis should appoint Gaetz to the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. MARCO RUBIO, who is expected to be confirmed easily as secretary of state. Gaetz and DeSantis were once close, and Gaetz played a key role in the governor’s transition in 2018. But Gaetz’s loyalty in the presidential election fell to Trump in 2024 when DeSantis himself ran for the job, and he’s not considered a likely contender for the soon-to-be open seat. Gaetz could alternatively look further into the future, to a run for governor in 2026, when DeSantis is term-limited. Gaetz on Thursday night said only: “I look forward to continuing the fight to save our country. Just maybe from a different post.” — POLITICO’s Gary Fineout and Mia McCarthy contributed. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com.
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... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | TODAY — Florida Attorney General ASHLEY MOODY is holding a press conference in Bradenton Beach at 11 a.m. with Rep. VERN BUCHANAN (R-Fla.) to discuss how the state is trying to gather more evidence about anti-Trump discrimination from FEMA. The investigation launched after FEMA found some of its workers skipped over homes in Lake Placid, Florida, that were displaying pro-Trump signs or flags, as first reported by the conservative news site The Daily Wire. STORM CHARGES — “PSC staff recommends approving FPL's $1.2B hurricane charge,” reports POLITICO’s Bruce Ritchie. “Public Service Commission staff on Thursday recommended approving Florida Power & Light Co.'s request to charge customers nearly $1.2 billion for damage caused by three hurricanes this year. PSC staff is recommending the commission approve the interim storm restoration charge, subject to a later refund once costs are reviewed in the coming year.”
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| PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | |
SEARCH IS ON — Florida Atlantic University is officially advertising for a new president, but the list of requirements for the job doesn’t include a college degree, reports Scott Travis of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Travis writes: “Instead, it lists two options. One is a ‘terminal degree,’ which is generally considered a doctorate, law degree or medical degree. But candidates without such a degree will be considered if they have ‘significant professional achievement, recognition and prestige.’ “The description says administration and academic experience at a research university and experience in Division 1 athletics are preferred, but candidates ‘with the requisite leadership experience in education, industry, government, the military or other sectors and whose experience will further the mission of Florida Atlantic University will be given full consideration.’” DESANTIS OVERHAULED COLLEGE — “New College signals changes with new courses, mission statement,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Ian Hodgson. “Faculty and students at New College of Florida criticized changes adopted this week to the school’s mission statement and core curriculum, saying they were made with little input from the academic community and threaten its reputation as the state’s honors college. … New College president Richard Corcoran defended the changes, saying they represented the culmination of years of work and planning, with many opportunities for community input.” The new statement reads: “As part of man’s long struggle to defeat ignorance by pursuing truth, New College educates its students in the great traditions and moral disciplines of our civilization so that they can lead principled lives of consequence.” — “Black Democrats express disappointment with the party’s South Florida outreach,” reports the Miami Herald’s Michael Butler.
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TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP | | |
Susie Wiles watches as former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Lititz, Pennsylvania, on Nov. 3, 2024. | Evan Vucci/AP | ABOUT SUSIE WILES — “Inside the lobbying career of Trump’s new chief of staff,” by The New York Times’ Kate Kelly and Kenneth P. Vogel. “A longtime strategist and lobbyist for business interests and political campaigns, Wiles ran Mr. Trump’s campaign, and her trusted role in the new administration is already evident. She has been deeply involved in assembling Trump’s new executive office. Last week, she addressed an influential group of donors in Las Vegas, saying, among other things, that Mr. Trump planned to reinstate some of his prior executive orders that President Biden had revoked.
“Wiles, 67, was registered as a lobbyist until early this year. She did not sever ties with Mercury Public Affairs, where she began working in 2022, until after she was named chief of staff on Nov. 7, said two people familiar with the timing who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private matters.” CASE NOT CLOSED? — House Democrats still want to force a vote to have the Ethics Committee release its report on Gaetz, even though he dropped out of the running for attorney general, reports POLITICO’s Nicholas Wu and Daniella Diaz. BEHIND THE SCENES — “How Gaetz crashed and burned,” by POLITICO’s Meridith McGraw, Natalie Allison, Mia McCarthy and Ursula Perano. “The eight-day rollercoaster provided a sample of what might be in store as Trump takes office in January for his second term. Just when the political establishment thought it had seen it all, the president-elect found a new way to shock — with a choice that seemed beyond the pale to almost everyone but him. And this was not a one-off: A pair of other Cabinet decisions, vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead HHS and Fox personality Pete Hegseth to run DOD were almost as stunning.” — “Pam Bondi has been quietly by Donald Trump’s side this whole time,” reports POLITICO’s Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney. ATTN: DESANTIS — LARA TRUMP was again asked about the possibility of serving in the Senate, during The Washington Post’s 2024 Global Women’s Summit on Thursday. “If I am appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and he feels that I’m the right fit to take over the U.S. Senate seat for Marco Rubio, those are big shoes to fill, but I would take it very seriously,” she said, per Florida Politics’ A.G. Gancarski. She added that she and DeSantis have not talked about it. SPOTTED: At Mar-a-Lago on Thursday night: Attorney general pick PAM BONDI, incoming Senate Majority Leader JOHN THUNE, co-head of the Department of Government Efficiency VIVEK RAMASWAMY, Rep. BYRON DONALDS (R-Fla.), director of national intelligence pick TULSI GABBARD (h/t POLITICO’s Meridith McGraw).
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TRANSITION TIME | | — Once Republicans take over the Senate, Sen. RICK SCOTT (R-Fla.) will become chair of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging. Scott is tapping MCKINLEY LEWIS, his current communications director, as staff director of the committee, his office confirmed. Lewis first went to work for Scott in 2016 when he was Florida’s governor. Lewis joined his Senate office in 2021.
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| ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN | | |
— STEPHEN P. LYNCH, a Miami-based investor, wants to buy the Nord Stream Pipeline 2, according to The Wall Street Journal. IN MEMORIAM — “Jim Apthorp dies: Tallahassee native, governor's chief of staff, open government ally,” by James Call of USA Today Network-Florida. “Jim Apthorp — a Tallahassee native who served three governors and helped draft Florida’s open government law — died Tuesday. He was 86. Born James W. Apthorp, he was a fixture around the Capitol for nearly a half century, starting as a 30-year-old staff member for the Secretary of State's Office. Republican Gov. Claude Kirk later named him executive director of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund.” BIRTHDAYS: Lauren Reamy of Sen. Marco Rubio’s office … (Saturday) Former State Sen. Linda Stewart … Miami-Dade County Commissioner Kionne McGhee … Screven Watson of Screven Watson & Associates … (Sunday) Former Florida Supreme Court Justice Ricky Polston … Chris Finkbeiner, vice president with Rubin, Turnbull & Associates … author and Florida State University professor Mark Winegardner. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
