The Medical Director of Orange County, Florida, has been put on leave for encouraging his staff to get vaccinated. Dr. Raul Pino, an epidemiologist, emailed his staff on January 6th, noting that only 77 of 568 employees had been fully vaccinated and boosted, and another 219 had received two shots:
“I am sorry but in the absence of reasonable and real reasons it is irresponsible not to be vaccinated. We have been at this for two years, we were the first to give vaccines to the masses, we have done more than 300,000 and we are not even at 50% pathetic. I have a hard time understanding how we can be in public health and not practice it.”
“Florida Department of Health confirms Dr. Raul Pino put on leave for encouraging Orange County Department of Health employees to get vaccinated,” Danielle Prieur, WMFE
“Florida health official placed on leave after encouraging employees to get vaccinated,” Timothy Bella, Washington Post
The ex-girlfiend of Florida Man and well-known congressional sleazebagMatt Gaetz (R, FL-1) testified to a federal grand jury investigating him on underage sex-trafficking and other charges. The young woman has been in talks for months with prosecutors about an immunity deal, NBC reports, hoping to avoid prosecution for obstruction of justice in return for testifying as to whether Gaetz paid a 17-year-old female for sex and violated a federal law prohibiting people for paying for prostitutes overseas. This testimony is seen as a sign that the grand jury is moving closer to indicting Trump idolator Gaetz.
More:
“Matt Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend testifies to grand jury in sex trafficking probe,” Marc Caputo, NBC News
Update:
“Matt Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend granted immunity before testifying in sex trafficking probe,” Michael Kaplan, CBS News
Days after anti-vax doctors met in Florida, seven of them came down with COVID-19. The fringe medicos met on November 6th at Ocala’s World Equestrian Center, so naturally they pushed ivermectin horse de-wormer as a coronavirus cure. As the Daily Beast points out, the Equestrian Center requires all participating ponies to be vaccinated against Equine Herpes Virus and Equine Influenza. Florida law prevents vaccine mandates for two-legged participants.
“Florida Summit on Covid” participants listened to the 9 panel “experts” and lunched together, and $250 VIP admission tickets included a private reception and photo opportunity, a likely virus incubator.
More:
“Seven doctors contract Covid after attending Florida anti-vaccine summit,” Maya Yang, The Guardian
Florida’s pro-virus governor Ron DeSantis has invited vaccination-resisting cops fleeing vaccine mandates in other states to come and infect his state’s surviving citizens. He’s offered to pay unvacinated officers a $5,000 signing bonus. 58,933 Floridians have died of COVID while Ron DeSantis has been in office. So far.
This year, the number one cause of police deaths is COVID-19, not firearms.
“As some police fight vaccine rules, DeSantis says Florida will pay them $5,000 to relocate: ‘We’ll treat you better,’” Andrea Salcedo, Washington Post
“Ron DeSantis Goes All In on Vaccine Skepticism,” Jonathan Chait, New York Magazine
“Covid has killed more active-duty police officers than 9/11 did,” Phillip Bump, Washington Post
Florida Republican governor Ron DeSantis’s pro-life beliefs don’t extend to his constiuients. He’s killed off 50,000 of them so far, forbidding the vaccine mandates and mask requirements that would keep them from dying of COVID-19.
Hospitals in the state are overwhelmed and 300+ people are dying each day, but the governor’s declaring victory, since even greater numbers were sick and dying a few weeks ago. 44% of Floridians still surviving are not fully vaccinated, so any lull in cases will be brief.
Dr. Ladapo, who has no public health administrative experience, will also lead the Florida Department of Health. He’s being paid $250,000 a year, 72 percent more than his predecessor.
More:
“Florida’s new surgeon general skeptical of vaccines, opposes masks,” Ruth mole, Ars Technica
“DeSantis places a ‘COVID crank’ in charge of its response,” Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times
“Florida’s new surgeon general, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, has ties to fringe group pushing bogus COVID cures,” Brett Bachman and Trish Rooney, Salon
“How a doctor who questioned vaccine safety became DeSantis’ surgeon general pick,” Arek Sarkissian, Politico
Congressman Gaetz wanted an Elvis imitator to officiate, but settled for former Rand Paul staffer and Trump fundraiser Sergio Gor, who has the power to marry people because he’s a Libertarian minister or something. It was a small ceremony on Catalina Island. In lieu of gifts, send weird conspiracy theories via Twitter, if you’re not banned.
More:
“Matt Gaetz, Republican in sex-trafficking investigation, marries in California,” AP via The Guardian
“’Trump Was an Inspiration for Me’: Matt Gaetz Tries to Shift the Focus With a MAGA Romance,” Abigail Tracy, Vanity Fair
Halpate, a short film by Adam Khalil and Adam Piron, explains how Florida’s exploitative tourist spectacle became a means of survival for Seminole and Miccosukee people.
According to the Palm Beach Town Attorney, Donald J. Trump is live-in help at the Mar-a-Lago Club.
In 1993 Mr. Trump signed a “Declaration of Use” agreement with the town, assuring that when he converted the historic Mar-a-Lago property into a private club, he wouldn’t live there permanently. In October of 2019, however, Donald Trump changed his official residence from New York to Florida, specifically 1100 South Ocean Boulevard, Mar-a-Lago.
Neighbors weren’t happy, even less so after Mr. Trump lost the 2020 election and fomented the Capitol insurgency. They cited the 1993 agreement, as if they could trust the word of a man who told 30,573 lies in the 4 years he was president.
The attorney for Palm Beach, John “Skip” Randolph, cited a loophole in the town’s zoning code allowing private clubs to provide living quarters to a “bona fide employee.”
He lives at the club, ergo Donald J. Trump is live-in help at Mar-a-Lago. with so many of his fellow employees out due to COVID-19, maybe he can bus tables or clean the pool in his free time.
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