GAINESVILLE, FL – Today, Congresswoman Kat Cammack announced this year’s Veteran of the Year as Mr. Duane Dewey, a Medal of Honor recipient, for his courageous actions during the Korean War in 1952.

Known as the “Man of Steel” in Florida’s Third Congressional District, Corporal Duane Edgar Dewey received the Medal of Honor in March 1953 from President Dwight D. Eisenhower following his heroic actions near Panmunjom, Korea with the machine gun platoon of Company E of the United States Marine Corps.

When an enemy grenade landed close to his position while he and his assistant gunner received medical attention for their wounds during a night attack, Corporal Dewey pulled his fellow corpsman to the ground, shouted a warning to the other Marines around him, and bravely smothered the deadly missile with his body, personally absorbing the full force of the explosion to save the lives of those around him. When accepting the Medal of Honor from President Eisenhower after significant months of recuperation, the president joked, “you must be made of steel,” and the nickname stuck. Continue reading →

OCALA, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis was joined by Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo to announce a new long-acting COVID-19 monoclonal antibody therapy from AstraZeneca will be available for moderately to severely immunocompromised individuals, such as cancer patients and transplant recipients, at numerous health care provider locations in Florida, upon allocation from the federal government.

“This monoclonal is a new tool for some of our most vulnerable Floridians and we are happy to make this available throughout the state,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Florida has been a leader in advocating for early treatment of COVID-19 and the availability of this new monoclonal is a continuation of the state’s efforts. Florida will continue to use a comprehensive approach to respond to COVID-19 and promote healthy living through Healthier You.”

Governor DeSantis also discussed Healthier You, the Florida Department of Health’s new initiative which serves as a one-stop shop for Floridians to access resources to promote a healthy lifestyle. Continue reading →

“Ronald Dion DeSantis was born on September 14, 1978, in Jacksonville, Florida, the son of Karen (née Rogers) and Ronald DeSantis.

[1] He is of Italian descent.

[2] His family moved to Orlando, Florida, before relocating to Dunedin, Florida, when he was six years old.

[3] In 1991, he was a member of the Little League team from Dunedin National that made it to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

[4] After graduating from Dunedin High School in 1997, DeSantis attended Yale University. He was captain of Yale’s varsity baseball team and joined the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.

[5] On the Yale baseball team, DeSantis was an outfielder; as a senior in 2001, he had the team’s best batting average at .336. Continue reading →

TAMPA, Fla. – First Lady Casey DeSantis announced Governor DeSantis is recommending $100 million for cancer research and care in his 2022-2023 budget, an increase of $37 million, or nearly 60%, over prior year funding. The funding will be used to forward cancer care and research at three cancer institutes in Florida — Moffitt Cancer Center, University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, and University of Florida Health Cancer Center. View the full roundtable HERE.

“Florida offers some of the best cancer care and research in the nation, and I’m proud that we are proposing historic investments in our leading cancer centers,” said First Lady Casey DeSantis. “The Governor and I are committed to helping every cancer patient that we can through innovative research and high-quality care. While we increase this important funding, I also urge Floridians to go through appropriate cancer screenings. Cancer is the second-leading cause of death in our state and now is not the time to delay care. I was honored to join experts in the cancer field today to discuss the urgency of cancer screening and to hear about the incredible innovative solutions our institutes are putting forward.” Continue reading →

The State of Florida will investigate its holdings in Chinese companies and retake control of its shareholder proxy voting from ideology-crazed investment funds

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Governor Ron DeSantis held a meeting of the State Board of Administration where he, CFO Jimmy Patronis, and Attorney General Ashley Moody moved to revoke all proxy voting authority that has been given to outside fund managers, to clarify the state’s expectation that all fund managers should act solely in the financial interest of the state’s funds, and to conduct a survey of all of the investments of the Florida Retirement System to determine how many assets the state has in Chinese companies.

“If you look at how these major companies behave when faced with Chinese disapproval, they censor what the CCP tells them to censor and we see groveling apologies,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Go back a generation, and the idea of the American elites was, ‘If we allow China into the WTO and give them most favored nation status, that will make China more like us.’ This experiment has failed and it has endangered our nation’s national and economic security.  Continue reading →

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody today issued a warning to Floridians who are holiday shopping online to be wary of phishing websites designed to look like a company’s legitimate website. According to a Threat Report by Webroot, traffic to fake websites spikes during the holiday season—increasing by more than 20% on some of the most popular shopping days. A cybersecurity report, released in August, also shows that over the past six years, the impact of phishing attacks quadrupled, now costing companies $14.8 million per year. With many signs pointing to a continued increase in online sales during the holiday shopping season, Attorney General Moody encourages Floridians to stay on the lookout for websites that are not what they seem to be.

Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “Last year, online shopping saw record-breaking numbers, and there is a good chance that this year will be similar. With millions of people searching online for holiday gifts, it is no wonder that scammers are creating fake websites to steal their money. All it takes is a simple letter change, extra space or a wrong click for a consumer to visit a fraudulent website. Be extra cautious this holiday season of the websites you visit and make sure to only give financial information to trusted sites.” Continue reading →

The Consumer Protection Division took on a travel company that left thousands stranded without travel arrangements.

Attorney General Ashley Moody announced Tuesday Florida has recovered more than $11 million lost by consumers in pandemic-related fraud, scams and cancellations.

Moody said her Consumer Protection Division is spearheading the ongoing recovery effort. To date, the division has addressed thousands of consumer complaints including reports of price gouging and wrongful cancellations, among others.

“We have secured millions of dollars in relief for consumers nationwide following reports to my office about cancellations, purchases and scams related to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Moody said. “My Rapid Response Team worked with a sense of urgency to quickly address reports of price gouging and other unfair trade practices in real time to reduce harm to consumers and increase awareness about potential price gouging and other financial matters arising from the pandemic.” Continue reading →

Along with the Florida Retail Federation and law enforcement leaders, I announced the launch of Florida’s first statewide task force to combat large-scale retail theft, as well as a new tool designed to help better coordinate prevention and prosecutorial efforts.

The new tool called FORCE, or Florida Organized Retail Crime Exchange, is an interactive database that will help law enforcement and retailers spot trends, identify suspects and take down massive, organized retail theft rings.

Videos from major cities across the country show mobs of criminals ransacking department stores—burglars smashing display cases and running away with ill-gotten gains.

A recent study by the National Retail Federation showed that nearly 70% of store owners nationwide reported an increase in crime over the past year—most alarmingly, retailers report gangs are more aggressive and violent than in years past. About 65% of respondents noted an increase in violence. Continue reading →

Dear Friends,

It’s a great day to live in the Free State of Florida! As of this writing, we have just concluded the 2021 Special Session to combat the federal government’s unconstitutional vaccine mandates and it is a pleasure to bring you a brief report on all that we accomplished.

In October, Governor Ron DeSantis called for a special session to provide protections for Floridians who have lost their jobs or are having their employment threatened due to vaccine mandates. In response to that call, the Florida Legislature promptly drafted four bills for consideration. All four have passed through the legislature and were signed by the Governor in Brandon, FL with legislative leaders by his side. Continue reading →

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – In yet another victory for parents’ rights, the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings dismissed a case filed by six school districts who have disregarded the will of parents to make decisions for their children. In a landmark case, the Administrative Law Judge ruled that the Florida Department of Health had the legal authority to issue Emergency Rule 64DER21-15, which empowers parents to decide if their children should wear masks at school and ensures healthy students can remain in school.

“There is no strong evidence of health benefits for children as a result of mask mandates in schools. The rights of parents continue to be protected in Florida, as we can see by this tremendous decision,” said State Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo. “Florida will not make decisions out of fear, but rather out of close analysis of the data.”

“When you break the law there are consequences,” said Commissioner Richard Corcoran. “If these districts continue to break the law, we plan to fully hold them accountable.” Continue reading →