First round of Florida ‘Doge’ audits
Florida DOGE is taking aim at local government spending.
DOGE stands for Department of Government Efficiency, and it’s the state’s version of a federal effort to slash spending and shrink the size of government.
The target is financial waste, fraud and abuse. Also in the crosshairs is any spending related to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Among the first targets of the state task force are the city of Gainesville, Broward County and Manatee County.
Guests:
- Harvey Ward, mayor of the city of Gainesville.
- Alexandra Glorioso, state capitol reporter for the Miami Herald.
DOJ questions Ghislaine Maxwell in Tallahassee
Deputy U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche was in Tallahassee this week to meet with Ghislaine Maxwell, former associate of Jeffrey Epstein.
We looked at how Florida has, once again, become the center of this case.
Guests:
- Holly Baltz, investigations editor for the Palm Beach Post.
Impacts of public funding cuts
Congress has voted to claw back more than a billion dollars in federal funds from public media.
The cuts are part of a rescissions package that also cut about $7 billion in foreign aid.
We look at how the defunding will affect the public media landscape in Florida.
Guests:
- Paul Grove, president and CEO of WEDU, and chair of Florida Public Media.
- Judith Smelser, president and general manager of Central Florida Public Media.
Weekly news briefing
The Florida immigrant detention center known as Alligator Alcatraz has been a magnet for scrutiny since opening earlier this month.
Those criticisms have been over its cage-cell conditions and potential threat to the environmentally sensitive Everglades.
But detainees are also now alleging controversial punishments they receive.
Faith leaders of various religious affiliations gathered outside the detention center over the weekend for a religious demonstration.
Hondurans and Nicaraguans are the latest nationalities to have their Temporary Protected Status revoked. TPS has allowed them to live and work in the U.S. legally for 26 years after a hurricane tore through their countries.
But the Trump Administration is ending that protection. Honduran immigrants in the greater Tampa Bay Region say this could upend their lives.