Florida's penchant for the weird and strange — often manifested in new ways of criminal behavior (think chasing people through a store with a live alligator) — is so prevalent it's created a cottage industry of chroniclers and followers.
But like a contagion that has escaped a hermetically-sealed lab, the swamp fever of Florida weirdness appears to be spreading now to the politicians who represent the state's nearly 21 million residents.
Over the past week, a legislative candidate staged an elaborate scam to try to convince people she was a college graduate. Another candidate had to deny putting out a Facebook ad accusing an opponent of distributing tainted breast milk. And then there's the thing about, well, sphincter bleaching (More on that later.)
Even for long-time followers of the Florida experience (guns, gators, greed) this is a bit confounding.
"Florida politics has always been as weird as Florida in general, but this year has seen a Twilight Zone level of campaign screw-ups, oddball candidates, post Republican Trumpers in all their lunatic glory, edge cases, easily debunked fraudsters and a cavalcade of stupid," said Rick Wilson, a GOP consultant whose hostility toward the president he recently channeled into a best-selling book. "The political subspecies of 'Florida Man' is in full glory."
Ah yes, Florida man. The now revered meme and trope about bizarre incidents in the Sunshine State often spreads across the internet faster than a startled palmetto bug in the middle of the night.
It does not on most days refer to those men and women who have sought public office. (Although the record must reflect some notable incidents over the years including a fist fight in the Florida House, a parking lot brawl instigated by insults hurled on the radio, and a county commissioner who fled the country amid a tangled tale involving drugs and a stolen car.)
But consider these recent events:
A city commission candidate on Florida's east coast told The Daytona Beach News-Journal on Wednesday that his Facebook account was hacked and that the hacker put up an ad attacking his opponent for passing on genetically defective breast milk.
Melissa Howard, a candidate for the Florida Legislature, dropped out of her race this week after it was revealed that she had falsely claimed to have a college degree and posted a purported copy of her diploma online. Howard had previously posted a photo of herself with what looked like a Miami University diploma. But the Ohio university later sent reporters a statement saying she attended the school, but never graduated.
The Miami Herald reported that the mayor of Hallandale Beach in south Florida on Monday accused a city commissioner of making a living from "sphincter bleaching" after she questioned whether he made a living at all. Mayor Keith London was appointed to his job earlier this year after the previous mayor was arrested and charged with accepting illegal Russian campaign donations.
One veteran political observer in Florida isn't convinced that Floridians are witnessing a new trend. Instead Steve Schale, a Democratic strategist, contends the rise of social media has made it more likely that such incidents get attention.
"I don't think it's any more or less crazy," Schale said. "I think it's more out there ... For democracy to be representative, the public space is going to have its share of people who are nuts."
Ok, America, you have been warned.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Ukrainian court on Friday ordered the detention of the country’s farm minister in the latest high-profile corruption investigation, while Kyiv security officials assessed how they can recover lost battlefield momentum in the war against Russia.
Ukraine’s High Anti-Corruption Court ruled that Agriculture Minister Oleksandr Solskyi should be held in custody for 60 days, but he was released after paying bail of 75 million hryvnias ($1.77 million), a statement said.
Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau suspects Solskyi headed an organized crime group that between 2017 and 2021 unlawfully obtained land worth 291 million hryvnias ($6.85 million) and attempted to obtain other land worth 190 million hryvnias ($4.47 million).
Ukraine is trying to root out corruption that has long dogged the country. A dragnet over the past two years has seen Ukraine’s defense minister, top prosecutor, intelligence chief and other senior officials lose their jobs.
That has caused embarrassment and unease as Ukraine receives tens of billions of dollars in foreign aid to help fight Russia’s army, and the European Union and NATO have demanded widespread anti-graft measures before Kyiv can realize its ambition of joining the blocs.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was due to hold online talks Friday with the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which has been the key international organization coordinating the delivery of weapons and other aid to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said late Thursday that the meeting would discuss how to turn around Ukraine’s fortunes on the battlefield. The Kremlin’s forces have gained an edge over Kyiv’s army in recent months as Ukraine grappled with a shortage of ammunition and troops.
Russia, despite sustaining high losses, has been taking control of small settlements as part of its effort to drive deeper into eastern Ukraine after capturing the city of Avdiivka in February, the U.K. defense ministry said Friday.
It’s been slow going for the Kremlin’s troops in eastern Ukraine and is likely to stay that way, according to the Institute for the Study of War. However, the key hilltop town of Chasiv Yar is vulnerable to the Russian onslaught, which is using glide bombs — powerful Soviet-era weapons that were originally unguided but have been retrofitted with a navigational targeting system — that obliterate targets.
“Russian forces do pose a credible threat of seizing Chasiv Yar, although they may not be able to do so rapidly,” the Washington-based think tank said late Thursday.
It added that Russian commanders are likely seeking to advance as much as possible before the arrival in the coming weeks and months of new U.S. military aid, which was held up for six months by political differences in Congress.
While that U.S. help wasn’t forthcoming, Ukraine’s European partners didn’t pick up the slack, according to German’s Kiel Institute for the World Economy, which tracks Ukraine support.
“The European aid in recent months is nowhere near enough to fill the gap left by the lack of U.S. assistance, particularly in the area of ammunition and artillery shells,” it said in a report Thursday.
Ukraine is making a broad effort to take back the initiative in the war after more than two years of fighting. It plans to manufacture more of its own weapons in the future and is clamping down on young people avoiding conscription, though it will take time to process and train any new recruits.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Ukrainian young acting student Gleb Batonskiy plays piano in a public park in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, April 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
