The Point

The Point, June 9, 2020: Val Demings Of Florida As Possible Pick For Biden's VP?

WUFT | By Gabriella Paul

Published June 9, 2020 at 12:00 PM EDT

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The top stories near you

• Gainesville Sun ($): School Board to discuss name change for J.J. Finley school. "Nationwide protests over racism have spurred a group of nine Alachua County high school seniors who attended J.J. Finley Elementary School to renew an effort to change the school’s name, which pays tribute to a Confederate brigadier general."

• Ocala Star-Banner ($): Marion high schools to allow limited activities on campus."The School District will slowly begin bringing back students for sports, band, cheering and and other activities on Wednesday, although with new rules to avoid coronavirus infection."

• Ocala Star-Banner ($): Sinkhole re-routes Baseline Road traffic."After a large ground collapse at a busy intersection Sunday left one person injured, another sinkhole opened up in Silver Springs Shores."

• Citrus County Chronicle: Committee forms to create COVID-19 guide for school boards reopening campuses."Created by the Florida School Board Association, the unnamed committee has until June 30 to publish the “School Board Pandemic Response Reference Guide.”

• Citrus County Chronicle: County keeps COVID-19 emergency in place. "Mission accomplished? Not quite yet."

• Suwannee Democrat: Runoff election set for tomorrow."The winner of the election will take office in July alongside David Burch and Don Allen, who were unopposed in seeking re-election from (Live Oak City Council) Districts 3 and 5, respectively."

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Around the state today

• Politico: ‘Extraordinary times’ shake up Biden VP search."In the last week alone, two prospects who were initially not considered among the top tier contenders have suddenly burst into contention: Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and Florida Rep. Val Demings."

• Florida-Times Union ($): Religious leaders call for establishment of Citizens Review Board, cultural sensitivity training."Several black ministers came together Monday to advocate for changes in local government, the school system, neighborhoods and the business community to ensure all Duval County residents are treated fairly and have equal opportunities for success in Jacksonville."

• WTSP: Publix says it will donate $1 million to civil rights organization. "Today, it’s evident that our support and compassion are required on an even deeper level...At Publix, we reject racism and discrimination of any kind."

• Tampa Bay Times ($): St. Petersburg police add duty-to-intervene policy."The addition marks the first concrete policy change since hundreds of people in St. Petersburg joined groups across the country protesting racism and policy brutality."

• Florida Today: Florida police union president apologizes for posts recruiting disciplined police officers. "After two days of enduring widespread public outrage and attacks on social media, the President of the Brevard chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police apologized Monday for his now-deleted Facebook posts inviting officers linked to violent incidents in Buffalo, NY and Atlanta, GA, to seek jobs in Florida."

• News Service of Florida: Gov. DeSantis Dismisses Call For Federal Unemployment Probe. "'Well, I've never heard of partisan politics in Washington D.C. before. Oh, my goodness. Can you imagine that?' (Gov. Ron) DeSantis, a former congressman, derisively replied..."

• WUSF: State Fast-Tracking Pharmacy Rules Amid COVID-19."In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration wants to fast-track rules that expand the health-care services pharmacists are authorized to provide, a move that worries some members of a board that licenses physicians."

• Florida Politics: Six days of 1K-plus cases: Ron DeSantis attributes COVID growth to expanded testing."State health officials are identifying as many, if not more, daily coronavirus cases in recent days as they did during the peak of the pandemic in April."

• Bay News 9: Senator Tom Lee Says He Won’t Run for Hillsborough County Clerk of Court."The announcement comes ten days after he announced that he would step down from his Senate seat this year, although his term doesn’t end until 2022."

From NPR News

• Politics: In A Polarized Election, 'Guardian Women' Could Be Key Swing Voters

• Politics: Biden Opposes Defunding Police, Campaign Says

• National: Judge Sets $1 Million Bail For Derek Chauvin In George Floyd's Death

• World: Afro-Caribbean Artist Paints George Floyd's Portrait On The Berlin Wall

• Business: It's Official: U.S. Economy Is In A Recession

• Books: #PublishingPaidMe: Authors Share Their Advances To Expose Racial Disparities