Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics — 9.13.21

By Peter Schorsch    

Good Monday morning.

The Seminoles had arguably the worst weekend in program history. On Saturday, fans watched Jasonville State University QB Zerrick Cooper lob a walk-off touchdown pass to hand FSU its first-ever loss to an FCS team.

FSU could rationalize game one’s narrow defeat as a “quality loss” — if there is such a thing. There’s no way to spin losing to JSU, though. Worse yet, Seminole fans can’t even make fun of the Gators for losing to Georgia Southern anymore.

Speaking of the Gators, they had a good weekend besting the USF bulls 42-20. They moved up a couple of spots to No. 11 in the AP Poll and are still a top-10 team in the USA Today Sports AFCA Coaches Poll.

Hopefully, fans enjoy it while it lasts because it’s unlikely they’ll improve to 3-0 when the Crimson Tide rolls through Gainesville next week. The reigning champs did show a couple of cracks Saturday, but opening odds still have them as the 14-point favorite.

The Hurricanes weren’t exactly impressive in their game against Appalachian State on Saturday. They managed a two-point win in game two after losing to Alabama by 31 points in their opener. Keyshawn Smith was technically the leading receiver, catching four passes for 70 yards.

But UM facilities manager Craig Cromer and his wife, Kimberly Cromer, had the best catch of the day.

For seven years, the couple have had season tix, and they’ve hanged an American flag over the railing at every game. It came in handy when a stray cat slipped from the upper deck. Here’s the amazing moment, complete with play-by-play from the broadcast suite.

Of course, Buccaneers fans had a good weekend, too. Tom Brady threw for 371 yards and four scores in the season opener, leading the team to a 31-29 win over the Cowboys. And the biggest data nerds in the business say they’ve got the best chance (13%) to win it all this season, followed by the Chiefs (12%)

We couldn’t be happier that football season is back. It’s a minor, but welcome, distraction from the reality that this weekend marked the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Americans chose to mark the anniversary in many ways — name readings, days of service, moments of silence. It was a defining moment in American history. Over the years, it has both united and divided, saddened and angered us.

There have been many weekends since then, but we’ll never forget.

___

LSN Partners announced another major expansion this week.

The bipartisan, full-service consulting firm announced nine additions to the team, including a trio of hires at its Washington D.C. office and several others who will bolster its presence in South Florida.

“We don’t just advise our clients; we become a part of their team and work to achieve objectives together. Our 2021 expansion exemplifies LSN’s commitment to offering more expertise as we seek to continuously improve,” LSN Founder and Managing Partner Alex Heckler.

The hires include new Senior Adviser of Transportation and Infrastructure Elliot “Lee” Sander, who has served as a chief executive at several transportation companies.

Jose Fuentes is being promoted to Partner at the Washington office, and the firm is welcoming Tom Quinn as a new one. Neil Ohlhausen is also joining the firm’s Washington office as a Senior Associate.

In South Florida, LSN named Adele Valencia as a new partner in its Miami-Dade practice. Meanwhile, the Broward practice is bringing on Pratima Raju and Joshua Freeman as associates and Lisa Castillo as Chief of Staff.

Finally, the firm touted the recent addition of communications vet Mike Hernández, a messaging and PR guru who specializes in corporate and political messaging, crisis message management and company communications.

“This addition of stellar individuals to our current extraordinary team will enable LSN to continue to provide clients a global reach with a local perspective and optimistically successful results,” said Marcelo Llorente, Managing Partner at LSN.

— SITUATIONAL AWARENESS —

—@RepJoseOliva: I would respectfully advise my pro-life former colleagues of the House (of whom I count myself among) to defend the unborn but not through legal contraptions as seen in the current Texas law. We do not strengthen public interest by weakening its institutions. Similarly, I respectfully advise my democrat friends (whom I proudly call friends) to seek public safety (vaccines) but not through sweeping mandates that set precedents for future abuse. Both sides must preserve the institutions that curtail anxious acts. A momentary win, at any cost, will lead to a cost no defender of the long-term public interest should advocate. Break-downs beget break-downs. Our form of representative gov’t is cumbersome, but it is the only form that guarantees freedom.

Tweet, tweet:

— @MikeStucka: Florida reported 1 of 26 COVID-19 deaths reported in the world on Friday, @JohnsHopkins data shows. It’s more than 1 of every 5 deaths in the United States, and is at a level similar to all of Africa.

Florida 2,448

United States 11,413 (21.4%)

World 62,559 (3.9%)

—@DrTomFrieden: If you live in Florida or Mississippi, you’re 10x more likely to be killed by COVID today than if you live in a state with sensible protection policies. Political interference with public health action kills.

—@allison__news: Former President (George W.) Bush, “So much of our politics has become a naked appeal to anger, fear and resentment … On America’s day of trial and grief, I saw millions of people instinctively grab for a neighbor’s hand and rally to the cause of one another. That is the America I know.”

Tweet, tweet:

Tweet, tweet:

—@svdate: NEW — Florida kids have to get 16 — count ’em — 16 separate shots to go school. Dress codes tell them what they can and can’t wear, down to the width of tank top straps. But COVID shot mandates? Masks? Absolutely not, says Ron DeSantis.