Naples Automotive Experience 2025 begins, benefiting St. Matthew’s HousePolice report released for Fort Myers child abduction, search for suspect ongoing
NAPLES Naples Automotive Experience 2025 begins, benefiting St. Matthew’s House The Naples Chapter of the Ferrari Club of America presents the Naples Automotive Experience 2025, benefiting St. Matthew’s House.
Police report released for Fort Myers child abduction, search for suspect ongoing A mother chased down the man who kidnapped her toddler in Fort Myers. This dramatic event is part of the ongoing investigation into the Amber Alert issued earlier this week.
FORT MYERS Spring training kicks off as Boston Red Sox truck arrives in Fort Myers Baseball fans in Fort Myers are eagerly anticipating the arrival of the Boston Red Sox equipment truck.
the weather authority Warm and dry for your Thursday plans The Weather Authority is tracking a continuing warm stretch, as we can expect dry conditions along with plenty of sun this Thursday.
LABELLE 17-year-old arrested after deputies respond to gunshots at LaBelle Dollar General According to the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office, there is a large presence of law enforcement in the area of Cowboy Way and Collinswood Parkway in LaBelle.
GOLDEN GATE Golden Gate love triangle turns violent with screwdriver attack A screwdriver became the weapon of choice in a dramatic altercation between an ex-lover and a current partner in Golden Gate, leaving one man injured.
CHARLOTTE HARBOR Charlotte County’s Sunseeker Resort sale sparks community discussion Big changes could be on the horizon for the Sunseeker Resort in Charlotte Harbor; the company that owns the resort recently announced plans to sell it.
SANIBEL Sanibel residents alarmed by red tide’s impact on local beaches The Florida Department of Health has issued several red tide warnings in Southwest Florida recently. In Sanibel, red tide has taken over popular beaches, causing concern among residents and visitors.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers school hosts community leaders for World Read Aloud Day event Knowledge is power, and the community at James Stephens Elementary School in Fort Myers is sharing that power.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda limits lawn watering to once a week to conserve water The Punta Gorda City Council tackled a significant issue during their monthly public meeting on Wednesday morning: water usage.
NAPLES Collier County teen leads fight for dignity at Rosemary Cemetery A teenager in Collier County is pushing for change at the Rosemary Cemetery.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for February 5, 2025 Here are some of Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for February 5, 2025.
Lost ashes in Fort Myers: USPS employee speaks out A widow’s search for closure continues as her husband’s ashes remain lost in the mail. Stacie Claytor is still frustrated and desperate after the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) failed to deliver the package containing her husband Ron’s cremated remains a week ago. “I don’t know how, how you can lose somebody’s loved one and just […]
Cape Coral man faces Florida Supreme Court in 1990 murder appeal hearing Joseph Zieler, convicted of a brutal double murder in Cape Coral in 1990, faced his first mandatory appeals hearing on Wednesday before the Florida Supreme Court.
Gene therapy shows promise for bladder cancer patients A breakthrough in bladder cancer treatment is offering new hope to patients.
NAPLES Naples Automotive Experience 2025 begins, benefiting St. Matthew’s House The Naples Chapter of the Ferrari Club of America presents the Naples Automotive Experience 2025, benefiting St. Matthew’s House.
Police report released for Fort Myers child abduction, search for suspect ongoing A mother chased down the man who kidnapped her toddler in Fort Myers. This dramatic event is part of the ongoing investigation into the Amber Alert issued earlier this week.
FORT MYERS Spring training kicks off as Boston Red Sox truck arrives in Fort Myers Baseball fans in Fort Myers are eagerly anticipating the arrival of the Boston Red Sox equipment truck.
the weather authority Warm and dry for your Thursday plans The Weather Authority is tracking a continuing warm stretch, as we can expect dry conditions along with plenty of sun this Thursday.
LABELLE 17-year-old arrested after deputies respond to gunshots at LaBelle Dollar General According to the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office, there is a large presence of law enforcement in the area of Cowboy Way and Collinswood Parkway in LaBelle.
GOLDEN GATE Golden Gate love triangle turns violent with screwdriver attack A screwdriver became the weapon of choice in a dramatic altercation between an ex-lover and a current partner in Golden Gate, leaving one man injured.
CHARLOTTE HARBOR Charlotte County’s Sunseeker Resort sale sparks community discussion Big changes could be on the horizon for the Sunseeker Resort in Charlotte Harbor; the company that owns the resort recently announced plans to sell it.
SANIBEL Sanibel residents alarmed by red tide’s impact on local beaches The Florida Department of Health has issued several red tide warnings in Southwest Florida recently. In Sanibel, red tide has taken over popular beaches, causing concern among residents and visitors.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers school hosts community leaders for World Read Aloud Day event Knowledge is power, and the community at James Stephens Elementary School in Fort Myers is sharing that power.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda limits lawn watering to once a week to conserve water The Punta Gorda City Council tackled a significant issue during their monthly public meeting on Wednesday morning: water usage.
NAPLES Collier County teen leads fight for dignity at Rosemary Cemetery A teenager in Collier County is pushing for change at the Rosemary Cemetery.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for February 5, 2025 Here are some of Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for February 5, 2025.
Lost ashes in Fort Myers: USPS employee speaks out A widow’s search for closure continues as her husband’s ashes remain lost in the mail. Stacie Claytor is still frustrated and desperate after the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) failed to deliver the package containing her husband Ron’s cremated remains a week ago. “I don’t know how, how you can lose somebody’s loved one and just […]
Cape Coral man faces Florida Supreme Court in 1990 murder appeal hearing Joseph Zieler, convicted of a brutal double murder in Cape Coral in 1990, faced his first mandatory appeals hearing on Wednesday before the Florida Supreme Court.
Gene therapy shows promise for bladder cancer patients A breakthrough in bladder cancer treatment is offering new hope to patients.
FILE – In this June 17, 2020, file photo Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., speaks during a House Judiciary Committee markup of the Justice in Policing Act of 2020 on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Kevin Dietsch/Pool via AP, File) The mere whiff of a scandal once unraveled political careers with stunning speed. Not anymore. Suddenly embroiled in a federal sex trafficking investigation, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida has denied the allegations, rebuffed suggestions that he resign and sent fundraising appeals that portray him as a victim of a “smear campaign.” He’s expected to make a high-profile appearance Friday at former President Donald Trump’s Doral golf club in Miami. The congressman joins a growing list of politicians from both parties — almost exclusively men — who are defying the traditional response to controversy. Rather than humbly step back from public life, they barrel ahead, insisting they did nothing wrong and betting that voters will forget alleged misdeeds once the news cycle eventually shifts. “Clearly this is a new strategy people are employing in crisis response,” said Brent Colburn, a Democratic strategist and veteran of President Barack Obama’s administration. “It is a new chapter in the playbook.” Gaetz’s political future remains in question and could fully disintegrate, depending on how the federal probe unfolds. But after spending the past several years as one of Trump’s fiercest public defenders, Gaetz’s game plan strongly mirrors the former president’s approach. After a video emerged in the final weeks of the 2016 campaign of him boasting of grabbing women by the genitals, Trump apologized “if anyone was offended” and dismissed the episode as “locker room talk.” He refused calls by some in his own party to leave the presidential ticket and won the election just weeks later. As president, Trump would respond to one burgeoning scandal after another by constantly moving ahead, making it harder for the public to linger on one issue for too long, even if that meant stirring up fresh controversy on another topic. The pressure on Gaetz is mounting. A hearing Thursday revealed that one of his political allies, Joel Greenberg, is working toward a plea deal with federal investigators, which could add to Gaetz’s legal jeopardy. For now, though, the congressman appears to be emulating the former president’s approach and appealing to his most loyal supporters. The group sponsoring the Friday event at which he’ll speak also organized the Jan. 6 “March for Trump” rally in Washington that ended with a mob storming the U.S. Capitol in a deadly insurrection. “Trump sees in Matt Gaetz what he wanted in everyone else,” said Republican strategist Rick Wilson, adding that, in many ways, the congressman is “the son he never had.” Gaetz isn’t alone in refusing to bend in the face of a political storm. Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has steadfastly refused to resign despite several sexual misconduct allegations that spurred calls from some of the most powerful members of his own party for him to step aside. Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam balked at resigning in 2019, when a picture surfaced from a 1984 medical school yearbook showing one man in blackface and another wearing a Ku Klux Klan robe. Northam apologized while acknowledging he was the one in the robe. But days later, he denied it was him. The political fallout eventually calmed and staying put allowed Northam to win praise for handling Virginia’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Male politicians seem more likely to employ the tactic. California Rep. Katie Hill resigned in 2019 after admitting to inappropriate relationships with two staffers. “Men in both parties will do this. They double down, they deny and they hope that it will just sort of pass them by,” said Democratic strategist Nicole Brener-Schmitz. “Women are damned if they do, damned if they don’t.” Meredith Conroy, a political science professor at California State University at San Bernardino and author of several books, including “Masculinity, Media, and the American Presidency,” said women tend to be more damaged than their male counterparts by scandal. “Women in general, but in politics too, are perceived as more honest and moral and trustworthy,” Conroy said. “So, when women don’t fit that image, it definitely becomes a point of criticism.” An exception is Republican Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who is also on Friday night’s Doral program and has pursued a push-forward-at-all-costs strategy. Greene was stripped of her committee assignments and forced to apologize on the House floor for her past support of QAnon and other conspiracy theories and for spreading racist tropes. But she refused to resign, and saw her fundraising spike and her star only brighten in certain conservative circles. Gaetz remains popular in his heavily pro-Trump, Panhandle district. “I love Matt Gaetz. His family is wonderful people. He’s a wonderful person. I respect him,” said Gayle Wilson, who moved from Tennessee three years ago to live with her daughter in a neighborhood not far from a home owned by the congressman’s parents in Niceville, Florida. “All this false, negative stuff on him is a flat-out lie.” But Steve Jacobson, a registered Republican who lives in the nearby town of Crestview, had a much different opinion, saying that Gaetz “makes a big scene but doesn’t do a lot. It’s all about him to gain press for himself and not helping people around here.” “If he’s showing sexual pictures on his phone as a congressman — a kid does that in high school, and they get expelled — and a guy does that on the floor of Congress, and that’s all right?“ Jacobson said. Gaetz, meanwhile, also approached White House officials seeking a preemptive pardon for himself near the end of Trump’s term, according to a person familiar with the matter. The request was for a broad preemptive pardon for Gaetz and other congressional Republicans, the person said. It came as the Justice Department was actively investigating Gaetz’s conduct to determine if he violated federal sex trafficking laws and questioning associates about his behavior. It wasn’t clear if he brought up the specific investigation during the discussion. Trump has said Gaetz never asked him for a pardon. Even if pushing forward helps politicians weather immediate crises, meanwhile, it doesn’t always leave them with much political standing. Trump, of course, lost last year’s election to Biden and Cuomo finds himself increasingly politically isolated. Northam is term-limited and won’t have to face reelection. Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger on Friday became the first Republican member of Congress to call for Gaetz’s resignation, and the party’s other top leaders have been conspicuous in failing to speak out in Gaetz’s defense. The Floridian’s attention-grabbing style has often antagonized both parties, further suggesting that, though his congressional seat is likely safe, he’s unlikely to accomplish much, even within his own party, outside of Trump’s shadow. President Bill Clinton used a different strategy to survive being impeached during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, opting for contrition and watching much of the political blame for the proceedings ultimately fall on the GOP-controlled House, allowing him to finish his term in a stronger position. Newt Gingrich resigned the House speakership amid scandal in 1999, but recovered enough to run for president in 2012, winning the South Carolina Republican primary. “If your goal is simply to maintain your position, it might be an effective strategy,” Colburn said. “If your goal is to have an impact, it’s probably not the way to go.”