While Trump rages about invading American cities, Florida's cabinet gives away millions in land to his favorite vanity project
News and Views for Florida's Left Coast
While President Donald Trump was bloviating before a hastily called assembly of military leaders today, a less publicized gathering of state leaders gave away $66 million in downtown Miami property to a foundation controlled by Trump’s family.
That’s right. Three acres of highly valuable land owned by Florida taxpayers just left the state’s ledger and became the asset of a foundation whose mission is to celebrate Trump’s legacy.
You had no say about that. It was a gift engineered by Trump’s acolytes to appease their master.
This transfer of wealth began in late September when Gov. Ron DeSantis asked the board of Miami-Dade College to “convey” the land to the state. Within days, that was done with little notice.
Today, DeSantis and three other state officials comprising his Cabinet approved the land’s transfer to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation Inc.
The three trustees running the foundation are family members or close associates of Trump: Eric Trump, Tiffany Trump’s husband Michael Boulos, and Trump lawyer James Kiley.
“It will be the greatest Presidential Library ever built, honoring the greatest president,” Eric Trump crowed on social media.
What it is, exactly, that will make it so grand has yet to be disclosed. While called a library, certainly three acres of land is hardly needed to house any books Trump might have read. I have a backpack they could use for that.
More likely, it will end up a gold-plated temple of worship for the MAGA faithful. And Florida taxpayers will have helped fill the collection plate.
The South Florida Sun Sentinel called it:
… the latest demonstration by top Florida Republicans of their loyalty to Trump, who has shifted the center of his political universe to his adopted home state.
And according to The Miami Herald:
There are still discussions of having multiple presidential library sites — including one in Palm Beach County. Trump’s team is also considering building a hotel on the Miami property, according to sources.
A hotel? But of course.
The downtown Miami site is bordered by glitzy condos on a stretch of palm-tree-lined Biscayne Boulevard near a waterfront park. It was being used as a parking lot.
As reported by the Sun Sentinel:
The site is also adjacent to Freedom Tower, the historic Spanish Revival building that housed one of Miami’s first newspapers before serving as a resource center for hundreds of thousands of Cubans who fled communism and sought asylum in the United States. Now operated as a museum by the college, it’s considered a symbol of the city’s vibrant immigrant heritage.
The landmark tower has also been a site of recent protests against Trump’s crackdown on migrants. Cuban Americans, who dominate politics in Miami, have voted overwhelmingly for Trump. But his mass deportation agenda is increasingly viewed as a betrayal, leaving many second-guessing their support.
Anticipating there might be pushback against the use of millions of state dollars for this vanity project, DeSantis signed a bill this year preempting local governments run by liberals from blocking development of a presidential library.
So, yeah, the City of Miami had no say. Neither did you.
What do you think? Share your views by clicking on the COMMENTS link at the end of this newsletter. Thanks!
Meanwhile, Trump tells military to fight the
’enemy within’
While Ron DeSantis was giving away the store, President Trump defended the use of U.S. troops in American cities, and he told top U.S. commanders that the military would be used against the “enemy within.”
“This is going to be a big thing for the people in this room, because it’s the enemy from within, and we have to handle it before it gets out of control,” Trump told those gathered for the highly unusual event at Quantico, Va. “It won’t get out of control once you’re involved at all.”
Check out this chilling report from NPR, recently defunded by Trump:
Cancel Culture, Left and Right
“The key difference (between the Right and the Left) is whether you are stepping on those below or tugging annoyingly on the tuxedo tails of those above.” Read this special report by Bob Brecha here:
Coming Tomorrow
We flip the calendar to a new month tomorrow and likely the start of a government shutdown, among other events, both concerning and comedic. Check out Wednesday’s edition of this newsletter for the complete guide to the month of October. Coming to your inbox first thing in the morning.
Happening Today
A lunar eclipse: A total lunar eclipse will occur today and will be visible across Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica. Sadly, not in Florida or the United States.
Thought for the day
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth inspired a gathering of generals and admirals under his command today with this riveting order:
“No more beardos.”
Florida factual
The state’s unique geology, with porous marine limestone, creates over 700 freshwater springs and is the basis for its extensive wetlands, like the Everglades. Also, sinkholes. Lots of them.
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J.C. Bruce, journalist and author, is the founder of Tropic Press. He holds dual citizenship in the United States of America and his native Florida. When he’s not blogging, he’s in training for the Florida Man Underwater Ping Pong Championships. Forward this email to your friends. They will love you for it.
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As a floridian taxpayer is there anything we can do to get those 3 acres back?
I hope Carl Hiaasen writes another great novel about this. Maybe "Squeeze Us in Miami"?