Opinion
By Dave Scott, 9-20-24
Genece Minshew, the former head of the local Pride organization, abandoned the Democrat party the day before she filed to run for Fernandina Beach City Commission Seat 2, Wednesday, April 24, 2024, and registered as a Republican. Why?
Commission candidate Joyce Tuten also chucked her Democrat party affiliation in her bid for the Commission’s Seat 1, against incumbent Mayor Bradley Bean and registered “No Party Affiliation”. Why Ms. Tuten?
They’ve both been asked why they switched but neither candidate will explain their motives. Let’s start with Minshew.
Since she is now allegedly a Republican and a candidate for a seat on the Fernandina Beach City Commission, Minshew was invited to speak to the Nassau County Republican Executive Committee (REC) to explain why they should endorse her and provide funding.
She has an odd way of displaying her appreciation. The new Republican was a no-show, saying she had a previous commitment.
In 2020 and 2022 the REC endorsed Republicans David Sturges, and Darren Ayscue, respectively for Commission seats. Did Minshew have an epiphany then, thinking: “That’s the ticket! I’ll trick ’em by joining ‘em.”
If she had shown up at the Thursday, Sept. 19 session, where she was conspicuous by her absence, an endorsement would have been an uphill slog for the newly minted GOPer, comparable to Hamas military leader Yahya Sinwar seeking the support of the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith.
When the time came to call for endorsements, the REC, using Rule 8 of Florida’s GOP Rules of Procedure, the crowd thunderously and unanimously proclaimed their support for Minshew’s Republican opponent, David Sturges. They also voted to provide him a $500 campaign donation. When a voice vote for Minshew was called, it solicited dead silence and a few chuckles.
What was Minshew thinking? She has been critical of local Republican candidates for receiving money from the party or Republican Political Action Committees (PACs). Even though the race is nonpartisan, did she believe the Republican party would not endorse or help fund her opponent if two or more Republicans were running for the same seat?
Did she intentionally register as a member of a party, whose beliefs she loathes, to deceive the electorate, hoping they won’t notice and prevent funds from going to her opponent? Or does she think that as a registered Republican she might actually pick up some GOP campaign support and cash, even though there is almost no chance of that happening. Apparently she thinks local voters are as stupid as she is devious and dim. This gal puts an entirely new blush on the term “RINO!”
As a newly registered local Republican does she — the former head of the local Pride group — believe in the party’s principles including:
- Conservative Values promoting family ideals, such as marriage between a man and a woman, and advocating for policies that support and strengthen families.
- Keeping inappropriate sexual materials out of K-12 classrooms.
- Does Minshew agree with Republican Governor Ron DeSantis’ initiated state law that Florida schools cannot indoctrinate children with transgender ideology or attempt to transition children behind their parents backs?
- Does she agree with the DeSantis initiated “Stop WOKE” law that says Florida’s parents, not school officials, have the say over the upbringing of their children?
- Does Minshew believe that the city and Nassau County School Board should enforce and endorse that state law that prohibits members of one sex from entering a restroom or changing facility designed for members of the opposite sex?
She won’t respond to these questions when asked.
If she doesn’t believe in these laws and values then why did she register as a Republican? Is it because Republicans vastly outnumber Democrats in Nassau County, 48,890 to 13,275, and she hopes by registering Republican that she’ll dupe voters?
While president of the local Gay Pride organization, Minshew advocated promoting Amelia Island as a gay vacation destination exclusively concentrating on attracting members of the LGBTQA+ crowd. She publicly expressed those intentions. This is not part of the Republican platform. Republicans believe the community should be promoted as welcoming to everybody including the LGBTA crowd, not focusing on just one specific group.
During her last two failed runs for the City Commission, Minshew refused to answer a question sent to all candidates by the local chapter of Citizens Defending Freedom asking if they advocated making the island a gay vacation destination. She refused to answer or return calls or emails from me and others when we attempted to question her about not answering it. Why?
Minshew lost her first run for the Commission to current Commissioner David Sturges, the second time she lost to current Commissioner Darron Ayscue and is now trying again against Sturges. Hopefully she’ll score a losing trifecta.
If Minshew is a Republican then I’m a Marxist.
As far as Ms. Tuten is concerned it appears this newly arrived extreme tree hugger from Maryland is a one-trick pony. Her platform is all environmental. She’s joined every environmental and conservation group hereabouts that exists. If there was a mosquito and gnat sanctuary facility here she’d be its leading advocate.
For some reason she also abandoned the Democrat party registering No Party Affiliation, probably rightly thinking that her Democrat party affiliation would alienate the area’s majority Republicans.
This green climate change zealot filed for Seat 1, currently held by Mayor Bradley Bean, who is seeking re-election.
Tuten lost little time jumping in bed with the “everybody that arrived here after me please get out now” crowd. She dove head first into the fanatical wing of the Nassau County tree-hugging, turtle-watching, anti-business, anti-development, climate change alarmist crowd.
Tuten says she’s a retired AP Environmental Science teacher and a National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA) climate steward educator, whatever that is. She is also an officer for Conserve Nassau.
Neither the sad left-wing News Leader nor the pathetic online Observer have ever mentioned the two party-hopping extremists except in glowing terms. Like these two gals pretending to be something they’re not, those two publications are pretending to be news outlets.
***
Shockingly Exciting News – Not: I don’t know what the folks at the local electricity mill do for excitement but it appears to me that they’re an exceptionally dull crowd.
I received an unsigned letter from Florida Public Utilities the other day exclaiming in the first sentence: “We have exciting news to share!”
The exhilarating news was: “Please note your new account number below.”
I wasn’t as thrilled as they anticipated. I contained my enthusiasm and didn’t contact family, friends, and neighbors to share the news.
I’m hoping my next correspondence from this group, which will be my monthly invoice, is equally dull.
***
Tail Wagging Tales: My pal Fernandina Beach graphic designer, cartoonist and caricature artist, Steve Hall, has a recently published book that will appeal to dog lovers hereabouts and elsewhere. Titled “Tail Waggin’ Howlers,” it’s a volume of black and white cartoons that feature local canine antics, those of their owners and observers.
Though the dogs and their owners aren’t identified in the tome, local readers will recognize some of the faces and/or the hounds. Those interested can obtain a copy by going to https://tinyurl.com/ykc8zswp . It can also be purchased at Amazon by searching for “Amazon, Tail Waggin’ Howlers.”
Book signings are being scheduled at various Amelia Island venues.
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Unanswered Questions: Donald Trump’s golf outing Monday, September 15 was unplanned, a last-minute schedule change. The UK Daily Mail and retired FBI Assistant Director Chris Swecker say the most significant and troubling unanswered question thus far is: How did Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, the alleged shooter, know when and where to be?
The Daily Mail’s theory is that someone inside the Trump security apparatus tipped Routh off. Are there any other theories that make more sense? Granted, that could change. But if not, it would suggest a much bigger conspiracy reaching the top levels of the Biden Administration.
Swecker bluntly stated that there is a “scary” possibility that others were involved in the second assassination attempt on former President Trump.
He made the comment to both Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo and Newsweek. Specifically, he wants to know how the suspect Routh knew what Trump’s golfing schedule was and where to set up to take a shot. Swecker believes it’s possible that the shooter had inside information.
“The biggest question to answer is: ‘How did the would-be assassin know to be at that location at that time? There are only three possible answers: He guessed and got very lucky; he conducted surveillance on Trump and followed him to the golf course, or he had inside information about Trump’s schedule,” he noted.
Routh remains alive in custody. If he acted alone, he has no good reason to lie about how he knew to haul shooting gear, protective tiles, and a GoPro to the golf course at that particular moment. If he doesn’t talk, it will raise even more questions than if he does.
***
Wait! What? During the presidential debate Kamala Harris proudly said, “The U.S. doesn’t have a single U.S. military person in uniform engaging in combat anywhere in the world right now.”
That must have come as a surprise to the uniformed U.S. troops that were wounded in combat in Iraq last month.
And what about all the sailors and marines aboard the aircraft carriers and battleships in the Middle East, particularly the Red Sea? Who is piloting those planes hitting Iraqi missile sites and shooting down Houthi and Iranian missiles and drones being fired at commercial and U.S. warships and Israel?
According to the Defense Department the U.S. still has about 2,500 troops in Iraq and another 900 in Syria fighting the remnants of the Islamic State, which temporarily carved out its own territory in the aftermath of Iraq’s and Syria’s civil war.
Four ISIS leaders were among the 14 terrorists killed during the U.S. military raid last month in western Iraq, according to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and a number of the uniformed U.S. troops were wounded. In a press release , CENTCOM revealed that it had conducted a joint raid with the Iraqi Security Forces on Aug. 29th.
The raid was meant “to disrupt and degrade ISIS’ ability to plan, organize, and conduct attacks against Iraqi civilians, as well as U.S. citizens, allies, and partners throughout the region and beyond.”
In addition, the U.S. is currently relocating special forces troops formerly stationed in Niger to the West African countries of Ivory Coast, Benin, and Chad to combat a rise in Muslim terrorist activity.
As vice president why doesn’t she know about any of this? If she does know then she’s a flat out liar. Either way it’s frightening. The ABC moderating duo let it all slip by as they were too busy fact-checking Trump’s tone of voice for sarcasm.
The Harris-Biden duo won’t even mention the term “Islamic terrorism,” saying it’s offensive. To whom? The terrorists?
It’s obvious ISIS still remains a threat to Americans. And thanks to Harris and Joe Biden many of these killers are already in the U.S. News outlets previously reported how migrants from ISIS-linked Tajikistan have been showing up at the southern U.S. border left and right.
Indeed, the number of illegal aliens from Tajikistan that have arrived at the border has “skyrocketed” ever since President Biden assumed office in early 2021, according to the New York Post.
This is a major problem because Tajikistan is “a hotbed of ISIS recruitment.” Yet over 1,500 Tajiks made it across the U.S. border between October 2020 and May 2024 — 500 this year alone, says the Post.
Contrast this with past data: “Over the previous 14 years there were just 26 Tajik nationals crossing the border,” the Post notes.
Arkansas Republican U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton suggested Vice President Kamala Harris is as effective in fixing the border crisis as O.J. Simpson would have been in trying to “find the real killer.”
Republished with the author’s permission. Read The Dave Scott Blog– subscribe Free
The views expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Citizens Journal Florida.
