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Caitlyn Jenners candidacy for governor of California is a political gift to the embattled incumbent she is trying to defeat, Gavin Newsom. Just askCaitlyn Jenner. Four days after announcing a long-shot Republican bid, the 71-year-old Olympic gold medalist and Kardashian stepmom posted a tweet congratulating Newsom on a Jenner-fueled $300,000 fundraising burst. Youre welcome, Gavin! Jenner, or one of her campaign staffers, wrote. I am glad I am such a fundraising asset to your team.

Even if the tweet was an attempt at sarcasm, it highlighted the fact that Jenners high-profile entry into an already-cartoonish field of challengers should do nothing but help Newsom survive a recall vote. Her first-time run for office will suck up media attention that might otherwise be focused on Newsoms record. And by enlisting Trumpworld advisers, including former campaign manager Brad Parscale; deploying email blasts with a Trumpian flavor; and coming down firmly on the conservative side of the culture wars, Jenners campaign is strengthening the case Newsoms team has been making for months: that the recall effort is a hard-right ploy to steal an office California Republicans cant win in a conventional election.

Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly two to one in California, with about a quarter of voters unaffiliated; in November, Joe Biden clobbered Donald Trump by 29 points. So Newsomwisely and obviouslyhas cast the effort to oust him in starkly partisan terms. Look at who we rolled out in our first announcement, says Nathan Click, the Newsom campaigns communications director. People like Stacey Abrams and Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. These are the leaders of our national Democratic Party. And more locally, Katie Porter and Alex Padilla. Democrats across the ideological and issue spectrum see this recall for what it is, and theyre backing Newsom. Jenners entry, in late April, almost seemed scriptedby her target. For months Newsom has been calling the recall a Republican power grab and trying to brand it as very Trumpy, says Michael Trujillo, a California Democratic political strategist. Which was smart. Now you have Caitlyn basically highlighting all their talking points by hiring a bunch of Trump aides. If youre Team Newsom, its the gift that keeps on giving.

The recall adds to what has been a turbulent year for the governor. Newsom, along with New Yorks Andrew Cuomo, was hailed as a pandemic star in early 2020 for shutting down the state early. Then Newsom eased restrictions in May, before tightening them again in July, only to see cases spike at the end of the year. Breakdowns in the states unemployment system led to huge delayswhile fraud by prison inmates and identity theft rings stole an estimated $11 billion to $30 billion. Newsom seemed unable to muscle or cajole the states teachers union into cooperating with school reopenings. And in November, just as the governor was pleading with the public to stay home, he went out to a birthday dinner celebrating one of Californias most powerful lobbyists at one of the countrys most expensive restaurants, the French Laundry. The recall drive gained traction.

Jenner is frequently compared to Arnold Schwarzenegger, another celebrity who jumped into a California gubernatorial recalland won. But the parallel is a poor fit. Its just an entirely different electorate from 2003, says Katie Merrill, a Democratic consultant based in Berkeley. And people hated Gray Davis at the time, mostly because of the energy crisis and the rolling blackouts. Newsom, despite the pandemic and all the challenges, remains very popular.

The support may not be out of love for Newsom, says Garry South, a Democratic strategist who advised Governor Davis. But it is out of a sense of disgust that Republicans are trying this because they cant beat us fair and square in a regularly scheduled election.

Newsom has also been savvy in trying to prevent a repeat of one key aspect of the 2003 recall: Davis was hurt by the candidacy of Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante, a fellow Democrat. Newsom has so far sealed off any intraparty challenge, aggressively campaigning throughout the state with local officials and pushing for COVID relief money to be distributed far and wide. The states other ambitious pols also remember that after the failed recall bid, Bustamante lost his only other bid for public office.

Newsom is in strong political shape, at least for the recall, which is still unscheduled but is expected to happen this fall. Yet the state has serious problems that predate the pandemic and will likely outlive it. Californias acute housing shortage has fueled its soaring rate of homelessness; the states largest public utility company, Pacific Gas & Electric, has only recently emerged from bankruptcy. Newsom is rightit is a Republican recall now, with national Republican money, a California Democratic strategist says. But they took over what had been a grassroots effort. So another way of reading this is that its the deplorables versus the elites, people who have just kind of had enough. I dont think Newsom is evil; I just think hes uninterested in the problems of the little people. And the people are revolting, folks.

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Gavin Newsoms Team Is Thrilled That Caitlyn Jenner Is Running for Governor - Vanity Fair

Republicans wrestling over the future of the party are debating whether to embrace the culture wars that helped former President TrumpDonald TrumpFacebook Oversight Board to rule on Trump ban Wednesday Rubio keeping door open on White House bid Lincoln Project taunts Trump, saying he lost to 'swamp,' McConnell MORE cement his popularity with the GOP base.

The internal rift, which involves congressional leaders and potential 2024 presidential contenders, comes as Republicans have struggled to dent President BidenJoe Biden1.6 million US air passengers fly in a day for first time since last March Biden administration eyeing long-term increase in food stamps: report Conspiracy against the poor MOREs popularity and as they plot their strategy to win back the House and Senate in the 2022 midterms.

While some in the GOP are eager to double down on Trumps brand of populism, others argue the party needs to return to its roots.

I think that the long-term future of the Republican Party requires it to be some version of the traditional Republican Party: strong on national security, low taxes, limited government, limited regulation and in the broadest sense of the word, pro-business, said Vin Weber, a Republican strategist, who espouses the more traditionalist party.

But he also acknowledged, Were at a moment when cultural issues are pushing everything else aside.

"There's no escaping that cultural issues are dominating," Weber said.

Issues that have dominated the conservative mediasphere in recent weeks include Major League Baseballs decision to pull the 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta because of Georgias new voting law; the guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial; a company halting publication of certain Dr. Seuss books due to racist imagery; and a false report that the Biden administration wouldlimit meat consumption as part of its fight against climate change.

The vanguard pushing the GOP to become more populist in Trumps image include Sens. Ted CruzRafael (Ted) Edward CruzGOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future Maher on Biden's trillion plans: 'Thank God we got Mexico to pay for that wall' Overnight Defense: Gillibrand makes new push for military sexual assault reform | US troops begin leaving Afghanistan | Biden budget delay pushes back annual defense policy bill MORE (R-Texas) and Josh HawleyJoshua (Josh) David HawleyGOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future Washingtonkeeps close eyeas Apple antitrust fight goes to court TikTok names new CEO MORE (R-Mo.) two potential 2024 presidential candidates who say they will no longer accept corporate PAC contributions.

Starting today, I no longer accept money from any corporate PAC. I urge my GOP colleagues to do the same. For too long, Republicans have allowed the left & their big-business allies to attack our values & ship jobs overseas with no response. No more,Cruz tweeted on Wednesday.

That prompted an enthusiastic response from Hawley, who retweeted Cruz the following day.

Yes! Corporate America has put Americans last. They ship our jobs to China, mock middle Americas way of life, try to control our speech and run our lives,Hawley wrote. Its time we stood up to them. I wont take corporate PAC donations & Ill fight to break up their monopoly power.

The bashing of corporations is striking a discordant tone with other Republicans at a time when theyre trying to marshal a unified defense against Bidens plan to raise the corporate tax rate to 28 percent, from 21 percent, to pay for his infrastructure agenda.

Its repudiating a segment of the American economy and the American electorate that has traditionally been very loyal to the Republicans. Its an amazing example of ideological shapeshifting to wage war along cultural lines, said Ross K. Baker, professor of political science at Rutgers University and a former Senate fellow.

Trump has yet to say whether he will run for president again in 2024, but on Thursday he said that if he did he would "certainly" consider Florida Gov. Ron DeSantisRon DeSantisGOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future Will DeSantis, Rubio and Scott torch each other to vault from Florida to the White House? Florida passes bill prohibiting social media companies from banning politicians MORE (R) as a running mate. DeSantis is a staunch conservative and longtime Trump ally.

The competing GOP approaches in the post-Trump era are also reflected in the starkly different styles of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellLincoln Project taunts Trump, saying he lost to 'swamp,' McConnell The Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Emergent BioSolutions - Biden sales pitch heads to Virginia and Louisiana Vaccine hesitancy among lawmakers slows return to normalcy on Capitol Hill MORE (R-Ky.), a strong defender of traditional Republicanism, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthyKevin McCarthyThe Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Emergent BioSolutions - Biden sales pitch heads to Virginia and Louisiana Vaccine hesitancy among lawmakers slows return to normalcy on Capitol Hill GOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future MORE (R-Calif.), who has tied himself more to Trumps brand of conservatism.

McConnell hasnt spoken to Trump since mid-December and denounced the former president's role in the Jan. 6 insurrection. Since then, he has rarely invoked Trump by name.

McCarthy, by contrast, visited Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort shortly after he left office and is now working closely with him ahead of the midterm elections.

Trump on Thursdayrenewed his call for Senate Republicans to replace McConnell as their leader, and promised to be a force in the midterms, citing his work with McCarthy.

But the lines in the internal debate over culture wars are fluid. McConnell joined in the tough talk directed at corporate America last month when he warned CEOs to stay out of politics. He later backpedaled after being pressed on his longtime advocacy of allowing companies to spend freely on political campaigns.

More recently, McConnell led more than three dozen Senate Republicans incalling for the Education Department to abandon plans of offering grants to schools that include The New York Times's "1619 Project," which reframes U.S. history around the arrival of the first slave ship, in their curriculum.

This is a time to strengthen the teaching of civics and American history in our schools. Instead, your Proposed Priorities double down on divisive, radical, and historically-dubious buzzwords and propaganda, the GOP senators wrote last week in a letter to Education Secretary Miguel CardonaMiguel CardonaGOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future McConnell wants '1619 Project' removed from federal grant programs Biden faces mounting pressure on forgiving student loan debt MORE.

Baker said Republicans see cultural hot-button issues as more effective in generating attention than attacking Biden, who has maintained strong approval ratings since taking office.

A Gallup poll released in April showed Bidens approval at 57 percent 16 percentage points higher than Trumps numbers at the same point in his presidency.

They realize that Biden himself isnt a very good target. But the one thing they can get the blood boiling with are cultural issues: the 1619 Project, Black history, Black Lives Matter, Baker said of Republicans.

Some Republicans want their party to focus less on those topics and more on the issues that unified Republicans before Trump: lower taxes, smaller government, deregulation and a strong national defense.

I know there are these cultural issues ... that get people very worked up and exercised but I think that theres plenty on the policy agenda, lots of ammunition to debate and a lot of contrasts to draw, said Senate Republican Whip John ThuneJohn Randolph ThuneGOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future Trump drama divides GOP, muddling message Schumer warns Democrats willing to go it alone on infrastructure MORE (S.D.). You can get distracted.

Thune called the false claims about Biden planning to ban Fourth of July burgers and similar blowups a distraction.

With Biden looking to spend $4.1 trillion on infrastructure, raise taxes and pull troops out of Afghanistan, Thune sees a prime opportunity for Republicans to get back to what had long been their bread-and-butter issues.

The public historically, at least, has trusted us on national security issues, I think with good reason. And I think that will continue to be a strong issue for us, said Thune. The economic cluster of issues, taxes and spending will also be grist for a very robust debate about the future of the country.

Meanwhile, some GOP lawmakers are worried that even the partys base isnt concerned about increased government spending and the price tags on Bidens infrastructure proposals, which are shaping up to cost $4.1 trillion.

The U.S. added nearly $8 trillion to the federal debt during Trumps four years in office and the Republican Partys base is now less concerned about the deficit than it was during former President Obamas first two years in office, when the Tea Party was on the ascent.

Sen. Mitt RomneyWillard (Mitt) Mitt RomneyExclusive Cruz, Rubio ramp up criticisms of big business GOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future Collins: Republican Party is not led by one person MORE (R-Utah), who was the GOP presidential nominee in 2012, indicated he would prefer Republicans return to what he considered their traditional strengths.

Im not going to criticize other Republicans [and] the issues they tend to focus on. For me, the amount of our debt has been a concern and continues to be and Im going to continue battling on that front, he said when asked about the recent penchant for fellow Republicans to focus on the culture wars.

Romney said traditional Republican positions on taxes, fiscal responsibility and foreign policy are right for our economy and right for our future and will return, hopefully, to the centerpiece of our party.

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GOP wrestles with role of culture wars in party's future | TheHill - The Hill

I find the debate around the term woke progressively ridiculous. The irony that I am now writing an article about it all has not been lost on me.

The imaginary woke vegan who marches for BLM and Extinction Rebellion has taken over from the black, one-legged, single mother who summed up political correctness gone mad. However, the woke vegan is polarising society to a far greater extent than political correctness ever did.

I agree with the woke direction of travel. Not many people think it is a good idea to connect peoples life chances with their skin colour, place of birth, religion, or sexual orientation. If I am being truthful, I sit in a highly privileged position, as a white male living in the shires of England. Effectively I have hit the jackpot, thanks to the happy incidence of who, what, where and when I was born. This proves, to me, we live in a society which is far away from the meritocracy towards which, in my view, we should be aspiring.

So far, so woke.

My issue is not with the prognosis but the cure. What the woke fail to consider is a viable alternative. On the Hollywood end of the scale, there is hand wringing do as I say, not do as I do; on the radical end there is the wholesale destruction of the institutions and liberties we have constructed and fought for since the end of the dark ages. The movement seems to want to subject, depress, and sermonise The West as being responsible for institutionalised suppression of minoritiesand the alternative is to either moan or destroy.

If I get despondent about woke, then I am maddened by anti-woke. The anti-woke buckets anyone or anything into a woke conspiracy against them. Marxists, Feminists, Gary Lineker, Social Democrats, Transgender, BLM, Meghan, Climate Change, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Remoaners, and the BBC are all sneered at. Especially the BBC.

Key to the anti-woke is telling you what it stands against (be that woke or not), but it struggles to say what it stands for. Take their latest pin-up boy, Laurence Fox. He is standing for London Mayor in his capacity as leader of the Reclaim Party, bankrolled with up to 5 million over several years.

Fox has got some good one-liners, such as Police streets not Tweets and Sadiq Cant. Fox wants freedom, rather as Mel Gibson did in Braveheart. We were meant to be getting a tsunami of freedom back from Brussels, but it never turned up, so he is looking elsewhere. He wants the freedom to not wear a face mask. He wants the freedom to reclaim things, like the right to insult. For example, someone called him a racist on Twitter, so he called them a paedophile. He definitely wants to defund the BBC, presumably to elevate the institution to the level of his Twitter interactions. There is also something about traffic in London I think he is for it.

What I cannot find is a written manifesto for the Reclaim Party. I can find loads of videos on the partys website, such as Fox talking about Western Civilisation being pulled down from within because of critical race theory. (It just isnt.) I can also find a video of Fox supposedly unveiling a manifesto, but there seems to be no copy of it, digital or physical, for me to read. His multi-million pound fighting fund, it seems, does not give Fox the ability to actually publish a declaration of his partys intentions. That would need him to have something to stand for, not against.

Someone who has nothing to do with the woke culture war, as far as I know, is the joker known as Count Binface. Like Laurence Fox he is also standing for London Mayor; in fact, the two are neck and neck in the polls. (Both are on one per cent.) The Count has written a manifesto that includes finishing Crossrail, free parking for electric vehicles between Vine Street and the Strand (look at the Monopoly board), London to re-join the EU and renaming London Bridge Phoebe Waller-Bridge. It says a lot that a man with a bin on his head stands for more concrete, achievable policies than either side of the woke culture wars.

Mainstream politicians are falling into the culture war trap. You see it with all the nationalists: whether they are blaming it on Brussels or Westminster the cry of Freedom is always the same. Its a cry which means very little other than its their fault. When fighting to remain in the EU, Cameron et al just tried to scare us into the status quo, not give us a vision of the future. Today, Keir Starmer should be raining blow after blow on his political opponents, but he is not getting cut through because nobody knows what he believes. If the age of the anti-politician is to come to an end, leaders must tell us what they stand for, not just what they stand against.

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Woke culture wars? Give me Count Binface any day - TheArticle

A man wearing a historical military uniform salutes during a march marking Poland's independence day, organised by the far-right. Photo:Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Decade of Hate is a series that covers the dangerous rise of far-right movements across Europe over the past 10 years.

When a top court in Poland passed a ruling last October ushering in an almost total ban on abortion, women rose up in fury.

Blaming the influence of the Catholic Church, in part, for the drastic assault on womens rights, some protesters targeted churches. In cities around the country, members of far-right ultranationalist groups, backed by groups of hardcore football fans, appointed themselves as protectors of the churches, and proceeded to brutally confront the protesters.

At Warsaws Church of the Holy Cross, women were hauled down the church steps by burly men, who hurled misogynistic insults as they did so. In the aftermath, Robert Bkiewicz, the ultranationalist leader in the thick of the confrontation at the church, announced he was forming a vigilante National Guard to repel the protesters, who he referred to as leftist barbarians.

We will defend every church, every district, every town, every village, he said. I can say that a sword of justice is hanging upon them, and if necessary, we will turn them into dust and destroy this revolution.

Yet despite a police warning that the far-right vigilantes were inflaming the situation, figures from the countrys conservative ruling Law and Justice party publicly supported them.

Law and Justice leader Jarosaw Kaczyski, considered Polands most powerful politician, called on Catholics to mobilise and defend the churches, while one of his MPs, Tomasz Rzymkowski, commended the young nationalists who were defending the church, as well as the whole of Latin civilisation, against the barbarians.

While the clashes that rocked Poland in the wake of the abortion ruling were shocking, they werent exactly new.

A demonstrator gestures during a pro-choice march in Warsaw this January. Photo: WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP via Getty Images

Similar scenes have played out repeatedly across Poland in recent years, with ultranationalist groups violently confronting groups standing up for progressive causes, from LGBTQ to reproductive rights. Emboldened by the aggressively nationalist direction of the conservative government which has sought to forcefully impose its traditionalist vision on Polish society these men, drawn from neofascist ultranationalist movements and the football hooligan scene, have consistently acted as willing foot soldiers in their countrys furious culture wars.

Since coming to power in 2015, the right-wing populist Law and Justice government has proven itself unlike any previous Polish administration in the post-Communist era, rapidly remaking the country in its own image, in a way that critics say imperils the countrys democratic order.

Its stacked courts with loyalists, tightened its grip on the media, and systematically sought to roll back socially liberal values. Adopting a nationalist agenda as central to its populist platform, Law and Justice has demonised minorities, polarised society, and emboldened the far-right, allowing radical right-wing sentiment to creep from the margins into the mainstream.

Far-right supporters take part in the independence march last year. Photo: WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP via Getty Images

These moves have attracted widespread criticism, both externally and domestically. State-appointed watchdog Adam Bodnar, Polands Commissioner for Human Rights, says Law and Justices tactics are jeopardising Polands democracy, particularly in its empowering of the far-right.

This moment when the leader of the country is sharing the monopoly for violence with private organisations like [the] far-right is extremely dangerous to democracy, he told VICE World News, referring to Law and Justices endorsement of the ultranationalist church defenders amid the protests over abortion rights.

It is a little bit like playing with fire you are opening some possibilities for them. You are giving them some positions in the whole structure of the state.

Since 2015, Law and Justice has relied on a political M.O. of routinely scapegoating minority groups to whip up waves of support from its conservative base.

It came into government in 2015, at the height of the European migration crisis, on the back of a wave of anti-migrant hysteria that resulted in an outpouring of Islamophobic sentiment despite Poland being overwhelming homogenous, with a tiny Muslim population, and not being situated on main migration routes through Europe.

READ: Polands populist government let right-wing extremism explode into the mainstream

Then, seeking a new target, Law and Justice moved on to the LGBTQ community, with leading politicians in recent successive election campaigns painting gay rights as a dangerous, alien ideology that threatens the traditional, Catholic Polish family unit.

A man wearing a white supremacist mask and T-shirt takes part in an anti-LGBTQ demonstration in Krakow last summer. Photo: Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The sustained and ugly onslaught came from the highest levels of the party, with Kaczyski describing calls for greater LGBTQ rights as a great danger and essentially an attack on children. Other Law and Justice politicians tweeted that Poland is most beautiful without LGBT, or compared gay marriage to bestiality, while about 100 municipal councils accounting for about a third of Polands territory adopted resolutions declaring themselves LGBT-free zones.

The hate speech from those in power emboldened bigots, and unleashed a wave of public hostility thats left the LGBTQ community under attack, often physically so. At events like the 2019 Pride march in the city of Bialystok, marchers were set upon by a hostile far-right mob of hooligans, ultranationalists and Catholic hardliners who assaulted them with impunity.

READ: Polands ruling party is using homophobia to attract voters

People got attacked. People got chased on the streets. People got beaten up, people got bricks thrown at them, or bottles with piss, said Ola Kaczorek, co-president of Love Does Not Exclude, a group that campaigns for marriage equality.

A man holds a "Women's Strike" flag during a protest against Poland's near-total abortion ban. Photo: Omar Marques/Getty Images

Then in October came the ruling from Polands Constitutional Court that abortion in the case of severe foetal defects was unconstitutional. The decision, made by a court stacked with Law and Justice appointees, outlawed the most common of the few existing grounds for legal termination in a country that already had some of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe. For critics, it represented the culmination of a systematic wave of attacks on womens rights by the ruling party.

You feel like you are in a war with your own government, Justyna Wydrzyska, a board member of Abortion Without Borders, an initiative that helps Polish women access abortions, told VICE World News.

Bodnar, Polands Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the abortion ban which came into effect in January represented the government paying a political debt to the Catholic Church. When the Catholic Church has a strong stance on abortion, then the coin which is paid is a restriction on of access to abortion.

All of which has made the countrys far-right fringe increasingly brazen, buoyed by the countrys sharp lurch to the right under Law and Justice. One of the clearest illustrations of its growing confidence is the annual Independence March in Warsaw, held every November 11 on the anniversary of the restoration of Polish independence in 1918.

A police officer faces a woman as she argues against a pro-life counter protest in Krakow last October. Photo: Omar Marques/Getty Images

For over a decade now, an association of far-right organisations currently led by Bkiewicz has hijacked Polands national day by organising a huge rally through the capital, which draws ordinary patriotic Poles alongside hooligan and neofascist groups from across the country and elsewhere in Europe.

READ: Polands capital erupts as far-right take over streets

The march, which has grown dramatically in scale in recent years, frequently descends into violence, with flare-wielding hooligans clashing with police. At last years march, a flare was fired at an apartment that had womens rights and LGBTQ banners hanging from it, setting the building on fire.

The hateful messaging on display also underlines the many shared positions between the far-right and the government in various flashpoints in Polands culture wars.

Last years march organised under the theme "Our civilisation, our rules had a markedly homophobic tone, echoing the governments anti-LGBTQ rhetoric. The event was advertised with a poster depicting a knight driving his sword into a rainbow star, while marchers carried banners reading Normal family, strong Poland a slogan used by the Polish right in opposition to LGBTQ rights.

Years of facing a conservative Law and Justice juggernaut in power, and an emboldened far-right brutally enforcing its traditionalist vision of society on the streets, has left liberal and progressive Poles fearing that their country may be slipping away. For minorities, in particular, the sustained attacks on their community has taken a toll.

Huge numbers of people gathered to protest the near-total abortion ban. This was the scene in Warsaw last October after the ban was announced. Photo: Omar Marques/Getty Images

LGBT+ youth are growing up surrounded by this whole agenda, this whole ideology that says that there is something innately wrong with them, said Kaczorek of Love Does Not Exclude.

READ: Polands populist government has declared war on the LGBTQ community

There are routine reminders of the daunting obstacles in seeking to challenge the increasingly authoritarian Law and Justice government. Earlier this month, Bodnar who acted as one of the few independent watchdogs of the government was ordered out of his post, by the same Law and Justice-captured court behind the abortion ruling in October. Human Rights Watch described the finding against Bodnar, which prompted street demonstrations and which NGOs say was legally flawed, as being made at the governments behest; his replacement is almost certain to be a Law and Justice appointee.

A protester holds a Virgin Mary with a rainbow halo poster during a Pride parade in Plock, central Poland, in 2019. Photo: WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP via Getty Images

But despite the challenges, liberal and progressive Poles say they are determined to keep up the fight.

This is my place and this is my home, said Kaczorek. Even though Poland hates me, I really love this country.

More here:
How the EUs Most Homophobic Country Stoked a Culture War and Emboldened the Far-Right - VICE

Hello and welcome to Monday.

Band on the run OK, another session of the Florida Legislature is in the books. Whos ready for the 2022 governors race?

Let me roll it Despite his decent poll numbers and another successful session the Republican Governors Association is already stepping in to bolster Gov. Ron DeSantis. The RGA donated $2.8 million to DeSantis political committee this past week in advance of what could be one of the most closely watched gubernatorial contests in the nation. He's been a tremendous leader for the state of Florida and the RGA is going to be there to make sure he's elected for another 4 years, RGA spokesperson Joanna Rodriguez said. The RGA gave $3 million to DeSantis in the runup to the 2018 election.

Jet In recent months, DeSantis has seen his status as a potential presidential challenger in 2024 continue to rise among Republicans, yet on Fox News this past weekend he again pushed back against the speculation. Its not anything that Im thinking about or positioning myself, he said. (Interestingly, Fox commentator Jesse Watters shot back oh, youre thinking about it.) Of course, all talk of 2024 goes out the window if Democrats can do something they havent done in nearly 30 years and win a governors race.

Let em In There are Democrats starting to line up. Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, whose bid seems imminent, continues to staff up. The first of the expected Democratic challengers Rep. Charlie Crist is expected to swing into action on Tuesday when he makes a major announcement in St. Petersburg. This will be Crists third bid for governor (hes 1-1 so far) but unlike the 2014 contest that he lost to Rick Scott, theres a good chance he will first have to slug it out in what could be a competitive primary, especially if Rep. Val Demings joins the contest.

Live and let die Crists advisers contend that even with her role in the impeachment hearings, Crist has a name advantage over Demings. And just as important they point out, Crist known for his happy warrior persona is a proven fundraiser. Another talking point is that anyone who underestimates Crist does so at their own peril. OK, then. Here we go.

WHERE'S RON? Nothing official announced for Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch: [emailprotected]

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A SIGNIFICANT ADVANTAGE? Charlie Crists bid for Florida governor faces early threats, by POLITICOs Marc Caputo and Matt Dixon: Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist officially launches his comeback campaign for his old job early next week his third bid for the office but the first as a likely underdog in what could be a crowded field. Now a Democratic congressman, Crist is the biggest name to announce his candidacy but by no means the most talked-about. Democratic insiders are buzzing more about Rep. Val Demings running, and some former Crist loyalists are planning to work for her or for Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, the only state-level elected Democrat, who has been preparing for months to challenge Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.

STAFFING UP Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried continues to bring on more help in advance of an expected bid for governor. Fried is hiring Stefanie Sass as finance director for her political committee, Florida Consumers First. Sass worked as Southern finance director or Vice President Kamala Harris and deputy Southeast finance director for President Joe Biden. She was Bill Nelsons finance director in 2019 and was senior finance adviser for the Florida Democratic Party.

FALLOUT Did Trumps actions as president cost Florida a seat in Congress and an electoral vote? by Sun Sentinels Anthony Man: Kevin Wagner, a Florida Atlantic University political scientist, and Matthew Isbell, a Florida-based Democratic data consultant who runs the MCI Maps firm, said its impossible to know until more data comes out, and even then there may not be a definitive answer. Broward County Commissioner Nan Rich, a former Democratic leader in the Florida Senate, said she has no doubt about what happened. Theres no question in my mind, said Rich, who was chairwoman of Browards Complete Count Committee, which brought civic, government and business leaders together to encourage people to complete the Census. I believe it was a whole, orchestrated attempt to undercount certain groups of people in the United States.

Will DeSantis, Rubio and Scott torch each other to vault from Florida to the White House? by Douglas MacKinnon, opinion contributor for The Hill

Perry Thurston kicks off congressional campaign in heart of Fort Lauderdales Black community, by Sun Sentinels Anthony Man

Democrats express optimism at Tampa fundraiser despite GOP victories, by Tampa Bay Times Margo Snipe

THE CHECKLIST Florida legislative session shaded by presidential contest may power Ron DeSantis future, by Sarasota Herald-Tribunes John Kennedy and Zac Anderson: A legislative session colored by last Novembers presidential election could power Floridas Ron DeSantis toward future contests with lawmakers filling a wish list the governor pushed that is seen as custom-made for the Republican voting base. Already a Fox News favorite and a potential contender for his partys White House nomination, DeSantis agenda was topped by a crackdown on protesters involved in demonstrations that turn violent, an election law overhaul limiting mail ballots and drop boxes, and new state regulations on social media platforms under fire for banning former President Donald Trump, the governors political mentor.

DeSantis won big during Floridas legislative session. Now what? by Miami Heralds Mary Ellen Klas and Ana Ceballos

Gov. Ron DeSantis with state legislators after the end of the 2021 session of the Florida Legislature. | Gary Fineout, POLITICO

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY Effort to protect consumer data privacy stalls in Florida, by The Associated Press Bobby Caina Calvan: A campaign by Gov. Ron DeSantis to help Floridians regain ownership of the troves of data that companies collect came to a halt Friday, when state lawmakers could not agree on how tightly to limit how Big Data harvests and uses peoples information. It was a rare defeat for DeSantis in his bid to regulate how Big Tech treats people. Earlier this week, lawmakers sent him a measure that would punish social media companies that he and other Republicans contend discriminate and censor conservatives. Unlike the social media proposal, the legislative effort to address consumer data privacy was mostly bipartisan. But business interests lobbied heavily against the proposal, and the industrys fingerprints were clearly on the legislation.

PIVOT Florida reverses course on reversing course on college athlete pay, by POLITICOs Andrew Atterbury: Florida lawmakers during the final hours of the session abruptly reversed course on delaying the start date for allowing college athletes across the state to profit from their name, image and likeness all while taking a veiled shot at the NCAA along the way. The Legislature earlier this week quietly postponed for one year rules clearing the way for athletes to make money from things like selling autographs or scoring endorsements over fears that students or universities could face ramifications from the NCAA.

THERES ALWAYS GOING TO BE CHALLENGES DeSantis scores session wins, but court battles could loom, by Orlando Sentinels Gray Rohrer: [Gov. Ron] DeSantis, though, says he is confident the legislation will withstand any legal challenges, which he believes are sure to come. He pointed to legal victories in his first two years in office over Scott Israel, who he removed as Broward County Sheriff for his handling of the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting, and over the law requiring felons to pay outstanding fines and fees before being able to vote. Theres a cottage industry of lawsuits, thats what happens when you do this, DeSantis said. Theres always going to be challenges. So I think (lawmakers) were attentive to some of the pitfalls, and I think that will pass muster as well.

Add this one to the list? Among the bills sent to DeSantis that have serious legal questions surrounding them is a Florida Chamber of Commerce-backed measure that would impose a $3,000 cap on donations to political committees pushing citizen initiatives. DeSantis, who is an attorney, on Friday suggested he plans to sign it despite arguments it violates a string of court decisions that campaign donations are a form of free speech. DeSantis, who said he still needs to review the bill, argued that the measure strikes a good balance because the limit only applies to the petition gathering phase and ends once the amendment makes the ballot. We also want it to be more of a grassroots thing, the governor said. When they did this constitutional provision in the 60s they were thinking like PTA moms getting together, you know shoe leather type stuff.

THE MAVERICK One of the interesting side stories of the 2021 session was the emergence of Sen. Jeff Brandes as the Republican voting no on many of the top bills. Brandes voted against such top GOP priorities as a measure affecting Silicon Valley firms as well as the elections bill and the "anti-riot" bill sought by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Brandes, who has a libertarian streak but in the past has championed conservative causes on behalf of groups such as the National Rifle Association, insisted he hasnt changed. Generally, policy I have disagreed with hasnt made it this far, Brandes told Playbook. You can usually take care of this in committee.

One more regular session Brandes has to leave the state Senate in 2022 due to term limits. While his name had been bandied about as a possible GOP challenger to Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, Brandes said hes ready to stay closer to home. Im a dad of our kids and I really want to watch them grow up, said Brandes, whose children are aged 7 to 12. Ive been in the Legislature for 12 years. Ive missed a lot. These are some really prime years I dont plan on missing.

Florida election supervisors: New voting law makes it harder to request and return ballots, by Tampa Bay Times Lawrence Mower Broward Democrats fear Gov. DeSantis is planning a power grab in Broward politics, by Sun Sentinels Skyler Swisher

10 big issues from the 2021 legislative session, by News Service of Florida

Florida gambling deal faces legal questions, by News Service of Florida's Dara Kam

A message from Secure Democracy:

WHATS GOING ON HERE? How a Miami school became a beacon for anti-vaxxers," by The New York Times Patricia Mazzei: Ms. [Leila] Centner, an avid social media user who has long used her accounts to document her luxurious lifestyle, took effective control of the school last year, in the midst of the pandemic. She told the community that the school, with prekindergarten through eighth grades, would focus on happiness and espouse medical freedom. But interviews with 21 current and former parents and teachers, as well as a review of social media posts and of school documents, emails, text messages and videos, show how the wealthy and well-connected Ms. Centner brought her anti-vaccination and anti-masking views into the schools day-to-day life, turning what had been a tightknit community into one bitterly split between those who support her views on vaccinations and those who do not.

Insane and dangerous: Inside the Miami school that told teachers not to get vaccinated, by Miami Heralds Colleen Wright and Nicholas Nehamas

A TROUBLING TREND Mass COVID vaccine sites are closing. Demand is dropping. What does that mean for herd immunity? by Orlando Sentinels Kate Santich and Ryan Gillespie: As mass vaccination sites in Orange, Lake, Volusia and Polk counties begin to shutter their operations over the coming week, demand for Pfizer and Moderna is also faltering, raising the question of when or if the goal of herd immunity can be reached. Im significantly concerned about how quickly the scales seem to have tipped from having a lot of demand and not enough supply, to having enough supply and not demand, said Jared Moskowitz, the outgoing director of Floridas Division of Emergency Management, who has overseen the states vaccination distribution. This is something we all need to be concerned with, from the federal government on down What do we do if half the population doesnt get vaccinated?

By the numbers As of Sunday, a total of 8,893,992 people in Florida had received at least one vaccine dose. According to weekend data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Florida is ranked 34th when it comes to the percentage of people who are fully vaccinated. States with a higher percentage of their population vaccinated include California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio. Florida is ahead of Texas, Arizona and Georgia.

PBC eases COVID-19 mask mandate as Florida drops residency requirement for vaccinations, by Palm Beach Posts Chris Persaud

WIDENING How the Gaetz probe grew from sex trafficking to medical pot, by The Associated Press Michelle L. Price and Michael Balsamo: The Bahamas trip is a central element of a federal investigation surrounding [Matt] Gaetz that has suddenly endangered his political career. What began as an inquiry into sex trafficking and whether Gaetz paid women and an underage girl in exchange for sex has grown into a larger review of public corruption, according to people familiar with the investigation. Investigators are looking at whether Gaetz and his associates tried to secure government jobs for some of the women, the people said. They are also scrutinizing Gaetzs connections to the medical marijuana sector, including whether [Dr. Jason] Pirozzolo and others sought to influence legislation Gaetz sponsored.

MATT WHO? Gaetz says hes not going anywhere. Florida Republicans arent saying anything, by Tampa Bay Times Steve Contorno: The public silence has extended beyond Republicans. Some lobbying groups have advised employees not to talk about Gaetz to reporters. And Democrats, who typically pounce on any stumble by a Republican, are noticeably quiet. The states top Democrat, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, needles DeSantis almost daily on Twitter but hasnt posted once about Gaetz. When the Tampa Bay Times reached out, her political spokesman Max Flugrath said in a statement that Fried was saddened, shocked and disturbed by the serious allegations detailed in reports about Gaetz.

DEAR DONALD The Lincoln Project is out with another ad aimed primarily at an audience of one. The organizations newest missive is called Swamp Thing and it will air on Fox News and Fox Business in the West Palm Beach media market as well as digitally. The ad mocks former President Donald Trump and says that Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnells Republican consultants are making money off of Trumps name. They brought you a little bowl to hold in your little hands and you fell for it, the ad states.

Latino Republican support for Trump is still going strong in Florida, by NBC News Carmen Sesin

R.I.P. We lost a giant: First Black judge on Florida Supreme Court dies in Tallahassee, by Tallahassee Democrats Bill Cotterell: Former Florida Supreme Court Justice Joseph W. Hatchett, who marked many milestones in a legal career spanning more than a half century, died in Tallahassee Friday. He was 88. He was the first Black member of the states highest court, appointed by Gov. Reubin Askew in 1975. President Jimmy Carter elevated him to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal four years later, making him the lone Black member of the Atlanta-based federal court at the time."

HES NEEDED EVERYWHERE 'Black Americas attorney general seems to be everywhere, by Associated Presss Aaron Morrison and John Seewer: Ben Crump, the Rev. Al Sharpton says, is Black Americas attorney general. In less than a decade, the Florida-based attorney has become the voice for the families of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd Black people whose deaths at the hands of police and vigilantes sparked a movement. He has won multimillion-dollar settlements in police brutality cases. Hes pushed cities to ban no-knock warrants. He has told a congressional committee that reform is needed because its become painfully obvious we have two systems of justice; one for white Americans and one for Black Americans.

Woman awarded $48 million after getting sick from mold in her apartment, by Sun Sentinels Rafael Olmeda and Brooke Baitinger

Michael Hernandez, who murdered classmate in middle school bathroom, dies in prison, by Miami Heralds David Ovalle

A message from Secure Democracy:

Its time for Floridians to acknowledge the impressive role that our trusted, certified, and independent election administrators have in the preservation of our democracy.

Each season, these dedicated public servants manage our elections with professionalism, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to ensuring every vote is counted.

In 2020, despite the pandemic and other hurdles, voters showed up in record numbers to do their job. And our election administrators did theirs verifying and counting every eligible ballot, just as they have in every previous election.

This legislative session, many of these same election administrators stepped forward to safeguard Floridians freedom to vote and preserve Floridas reliable voting laws. We owe them our gratitude.

Please take a moment to add your name to the virtual thank-you card for Floridas dedicated elections administrators. Secure Democracy will proudly deliver the card on your behalf.

Giant lizards, hissing ducks, and pythons: Florida has an invasive species problem, by National Geographics Matthew Wolfe: [Michael] Litersky tried to shoo his assailant outside, but it latched onto his leg, biting him and slashing his calf. Grabbing a frying pan, Litersky backhanded the animal into the bathroom while [Gillian] Hicks dialed 911. Sheriffs deputies arrived quickly, but, outmatched, they could only peek around the door and watch as the quadruped ripped up the shower curtain. Finally, a team of animal control officers and officials from the state wildlife agency managed to corner the creature. It wasnt a lemur but a kinkajou, a carnivorous mammal native to the South American rainforest.

Quite the list Such interspecies assaults are often written off as a logical product of Floridas ambient weirdness. Theyre better understood, however, not as random attacks but as skirmishes in a war the state has been waging for decades. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Florida is home to more nonnative plants and animals than any other part of the country. This set of intruders now includes hissing ducks, walking catfish, hermaphroditic river eels, bloodsucking worms, pet-eating monitor lizards, dog-size rodents, gigantic snakes, and rodent-size African land snails, which, according to rumor, are smuggled in for esoteric religious rituals.

BIRTHDAYS: Author and journalist Andrew Nagorski David Siegel, president and CEO of Westgate Resorts (Was Sunday) POLITICOs Andrew Atterbury (Was Saturday) Sarah Rumpf, freelance writer and contributing editor at Mediaite

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Governor's race off and running Crist's bid for governor faces early threats Culture wars session comes to an end Invaders: Giant lizards, snakes,...