Author

Michael Moline
Michael Moline has covered politics and the legal system for more than 30 years. He is a former managing editor of the San Francisco Daily Journal and former assistant managing editor of The National Law Journal. He began his career covering the Florida Capitol for United Press International. More recently, he wrote for Florida Politics.
Mandatory-misgendering legislation for trans workers denounced by LGBTQ+ Dems
By: Michael Moline - November 27, 2023
A legislative proposal to bar state and local governments and contractors or nonprofits drawing state money from recognizing employees’ preferred gender pronouns if they differ from their biological sex has drawn criticism from LGBTQ+ Democrats as “a disturbing escalation of right-wing extremism in Florida.” The Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus issued a written statement on Friday […]
Federal judge in Florida blocks Biden administration from releasing some migrants
By: Jacob Fischler and Michael Moline - May 12, 2023
A federal judge in Florida in a late Thursday order granted the state’s emergency request to temporarily halt a new Biden administration policy to release from federal custody some immigrants who enter the country without prior authorization. The order from U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell II, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, came […]
VP Harris in Florida: ‘Can we truly be free if a woman cannot make decisions about her life?’
By: Michael Moline, Danielle J. Brown, Isaac Morgan and Diane Rado - January 23, 2023
In a direct challenge to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to his back yard Sunday to announce that President Joe Biden was ordering his administration to protect access to abortion-inducing medications. During a roughly 20-minute address in Tallahassee marking what would have been the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Harris […]
Asylum seekers sue Gov. DeSantis, others, over their airlift to Martha’s Vineyard
By: Michael Moline - September 21, 2022
Three of the roughly 50 Venezuelan asylum seekers airlifted by the DeSantis administration from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard last week have filed a federal class action alleging illegal seizure, false arrest, violation of due process and other federal offenses. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, names Gov. […]
Embattled Gaetz one of the ‘fake elector’ proponents who sought ‘broad’ pardon
By: Michael Moline - June 26, 2022
U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida featured heavily during the congressional Jan. 6 hearings Thursday as part of a video chorus of extremist Republican lawmakers threatening to throw out the results of the 2020 presidential election. Gaetz also figured in evidence that Trumpist members of Congress including himself sought broad pardons for their roles in […]
Florida tells parents not to vaccinate health kids against COVID-19
By: Michael Moline - March 8, 2022
The Florida Department of Health plans to recommend against COVID vaccinations for children, state Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo announced on Monday. He spoke during a virtual conference of doctors and researchers who disagree with COVID guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Gov. Ron DeSantis, who billed the event as “The Curtain […]
Florida wants to reboot a state militia, under governor’s control, not President’s
By: Michael Moline - December 3, 2021
Standing before a backdrop featuring a huge U.S. flag and a line of Florida National Guard troops in at-ease pose, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday that he wants to revive a state guard he can run without interference from the federal government. State law drafted during World War II already authorizes this Florida State Guard […]