Free Republic

Drama continues about DeSantis' next move as the money moves away from him. Did Florida’s Governor fumble his shot to run the Pentagon? That’s what investors in a prominent prediction market seem to believe Saturday morning. Per Polymarket, Ron DeSantis has fallen back behind Pete Hegseth, who is the current Donald Trump nominee to be Defense Secretary. A DeSantis ‘Yes’ share is priced at 23 cents, with a Hegseth Yes at 43 cents. DeSantis led in the betting market until Friday evening, with speculation swirling that he might replace the embattled former Fox News host as Trump’s pick for the...

The family of a Missouri teen who fell over 200 feet to his death while riding a Florida amusement park thrill attraction was awarded $310 million for the 2022 freak accident, as the heartbroken parents blasted the ride maker for not showing up at the trial. Tyre Sampson’s grieving parents sat inside an Orlando courthouse Thursday as Austrian-based amusement ride manufacturer Funtime Handels was ordered to pay for the teen’s wrongful death. The family emotionally celebrated as the verdict marked the end of the nearly three-year court ordeal. “Today we got our day in court — this $310 million verdict...

Senate GOP hawks who receive large sums from the defense industry could be mobilizing to tank one of President-elect Donald Trump’s national security nominees. Former Democratic Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, nominated by Trump to helm the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, could face opposition from Senate Republicans with hawkish views on national security over her beliefs on Ukraine and government surveillance powers. Though a considerable number of Trump-aligned senators have endorsed Gabbard, citing her decades-long military service and commitment to reforming the country’s intelligence agencies that have been frequently weaponized against the president-elect, GOP senators whose national security...

The family of a man believed to have been piloting a Boeing 727 that mysteriously took off and disappeared from an Angolan runway last month told told of their angiush as international authorities fear the jetliner could be used for a terrorist act.In a baffling vanishing act, workers at the Luanda Airport in Angola watched dumbfounded on May 25 as the Boeing 727 taxied down the runway and took off- without permission.The plane -which ABC News has learned was refitted to haul diesel fuel tanks, making it a potential flying bomb-has not been seen since. The man the United States...

President-elect Donald Trump is set to attend the Army-Navy football game, which will take place on December 14 in Landover, Maryland, according to a source familiar with the plans. The highly anticipated game is a traditional rivalry between the United States Military Academy and the United States Naval Academy. Joining Trump at the game is expected to be Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who served in the United States Navy as a JAG officer. While it is not confirmed if their trips to the game are related, it is noteworthy that DeSantis is reportedly being considered as a potential replacement for...

Donald Trump may have mastered the art of the deal once again, with rumors he will replace Pete Hegseth with Ron DeSantis as his pick to head Defense in exchange for Trump's daughter-in-law Lara getting Florida's open Senate seat. The Florida governor and Trump have reportedly had one-on-one discussions about the move. A GOP source told The Bulwark: 'These discussions are real. It's serious. I can't say it's definitely going to happen, but the governor is receptive and Trump is serious, too.'

What happened inside a jail in South Florida made national headlines. Tonight for the first time we are hearing exclusively from both the mother and father. Investigative reporter Heather Walker is at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in West Miami-Dade. 7News broke this story back in January when the woman’s family wanted to know how this could happen here. The DNA results are in and the dad is another inmate. Daisy Link: “Hello.” For the first time, Daisy Link is talking about how she became pregnant in jail. In an exclusive interview with 7Investigates, the 29-year-old said even she...

A deadly fight between an alligator and a python has been filmed while the two reptiles fought to the death on a golf course. The giant reptiles were photographed by Dr Richard Nadler while they fought to the death on the 10th hole, the Mirror Online reports. He captioned the footage on Facebook: "Wild day on the 10th hole today! That's a an alligator and a Burmese python entwined. The alligator seems to have the upper hand. (sic)" "As far as I know the gator won. There was no evidence of either animal the next day. We all assume that...

Ahh … God bless the great state of Florida. If you’re not familiar: Every year, an event named the Florida Python Challenge pops off in the Sunshine State to help the removal of Burmese pythons that are invading the Florida Everglades and areas around the legendary wetlands. Here in 2024, things are no different and this year’s edition has been going on the last few weeks in South Florida. Well, while this has been going on, one python hunter was shocked when he found a snake taking a ride on an alligator. In the words of Bobby Ruiz, a Wink...

ORLANDO, Fla. - Visitors to Florida’s Everglades National Park were shocked to witness an alligator hauling a massive Burmese python. VIDEO AT LINK................ The snake, which was noticeably larger than the gator, was an unexpected sight for the onlookers. Alligators are carnivorous, "apex" predators that will eat just about anything, including other alligators, wildlife officials say. The Burmese python is an invasive species that has posed unique challenges to Florida's ecosystem. While rare, the snake has become more pervasive in the Everglades. To control the python population, the state launched the Florida Python Challenge in 2013, which allows residents to...

A South Florida TikTok influencer has been arrested again for stealing from her local Target - just 10 days after her first arrest for stealing from the same store. Marlena Velez, 22, who has nearly 300,000 followers on the video sharing app in which she posts videos about her life as a mom to two kids, was taken into custody on Saturday and charged with an additional count of petit theft in connection to a shoplifting incident at the Cape Coral Target on November 20, NBC 2 reports. Police say she entered the store, selected 16 household goods and clothing...

President-elect Donald Trump used a “forceful hand” to get his Drug Enforcement Agency pick to drop out on Tuesday after hearing “concerns” about the Floridian’s record, sources familiar told The Post — leading outgoing Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY) to make a bid for the position. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister issued a lengthy statement indicating he was withdrawing his name for the DEA slot — but did not reveal the specific reason he was dropping out of the confirmation process after just three days. “Everyone knows President Trump calls the shots,” a well-placed source spilled. “The president heard the concerns...

LaToya Ratlieff’s life was changed forever four and half years ago when Fort Lauderdale Police Department shot her with a rubber bullet during a peaceful protest over George Floyd’s murder. On Tuesday, after years of legal battles, a $1.9 million settlement was approved. The Fort Lauderdale City Commission finalized the approval of the $1,975,000 settlement Tuesday night during a public meeting.

Hillsborough County Sherrif Chad Chronister, a COVID-19 mandate enforcer, has withdrawn his name from nomination as head of the Drug Enforcement Agency. Chronister announces via Twitter:

Donald Trump’s recent announcement of Sheriff Chad Chronister as his nominee for Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator has sparked a fierce backlash among conservatives, who are raising serious concerns about Chronister’s record, particularly his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic and his perceived alignment with leftist policies. ... many conservative voices have condemned the pick, pointing to his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic and his alignment with liberal policies. Among the most controversial moments of Chronister’s career was the arrest of Tampa Bay Pastor Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne in March 2020. The pastor was charged with violating public health orders after keeping...

Sarah Boone, 47, was convicted of second-degree murder in October for the 2020 death of Jorge Torres The Florida woman convicted of zipping her boyfriend in a suitcase and leaving him to suffocate to death while trapped inside has been sentenced to life in prison. Sarah Boone, 47, learned her fate in an Orlando courtroom on Monday, Dec. 2, more than a month after she was found guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Jorge Torres, Jr., 42.

Daniel McCarthy is right that President-elect Donald Trump has rewritten the electoral map, but he is incorrect in saying that it was Trump who turned Florida into a reliably red bastion (“A New Political Map,” Post­Opinion, Nov. 26). In Trump’s first midterm, 2018, Republicans won the governorship by less than one percentage point. Four years later, in 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis was re-elected by about 20 points. That happened while Trump was out of office and MAGA candidates were losing elsewhere. It is DeSantis, the most effective and principled governor in America, who turned Florida reliably red. He did so...

President-elect Donald Trump announced Saturday that he is tapping Republican Florida sheriff Chad Chronister to serve as administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration. In a post to his Truth Social platform, Trump said Chronister will work with former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, Trump's pick to lead the Department of Justice, "to secure the Border, stop the flow of Fentanyl, and other Illegal Drugs, across the Southern Border." Bondi was chosen by Trump after his previous selection, former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, withdrew his nomination amid a House Ethics Committee investigation into allegations against him of sexual misconduct. Chronister...

Condo residents in Florida are in uproar after being served a huge $21 million special assessment bill for repairs - just 16 years after construction. Some residents of the two condo buildings in Brickell, Miami, face individual payments of more than $40,000, leaving them feeling blindsided and financially overwhelmed. Some are even considering selling up as a result. The condo board insists the repairs are urgent and required under law, and work is already underway on projects such as a roof replacement and a pool deck restoration. But residents are questioning why, after construction finished less than two decades ago,...

Dramatic footage from the overnight hours shows what appears to be an explosion rocking part of the Port of Miami, a major seaport located in Biscayne Bay at the mouth of the Miami River in Miami, Florida. "Numerous people have reported hearing and seeing a large explosion at the Port of Miami," X user RawAlerts said in the early morning hours. RawAlerts said, "Additional footage and According to one worker, a 20-foot container with a car inside reportedly blew up. Car brand unknown. Which reportedly caused the large explosion."