President Joe Biden announced in his State of the Union address he will be visiting Tampa on Thursday to promote his Medicare and Social Security plans.
As Biden took the podium on Tuesday, he called for the country to come together and “finish the job” on rebuilding a broken COVID-19 economy and lowering the costs of healthcare for Americans.
“So tonight, let’s all agree to stand up for seniors. Stand up and show them we will not cut Social Security. We will not cut Medicare,” Biden said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday. “Those benefits belong to the American people. They earned them. If anyone tries to cut Social Security, I will stop them. And if anyone tries to cut Medicare, I will stop them. I will not allow them to be taken away. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not ever.”
Florida Focus will be providing coverage all day Thursday on social media.
DeSantis plans to pass largest tax relief proposal in Florida history
Governor Ron DeSantis featured his plans to provide $2 billion in tax relief for Florida families during the 2023-2024 fiscal year.
The plan is part of the Framework for Freedom Budget Proposal, which was announced last week by DeSantis. Aimed to provide assistance for families, DeSantis’ proposal will provide a one-year sales tax exemption on necessities like children’s books, toddler clothing, cribs and strollers.
DeSantis said while the state is unique from mass amounts of people moving into Florida and visiting, he wants to pay it back to the current Florida residents.
“We have to take some of this money, a big chunk of it, and return it to taxpayers and give taxpayers savings… particularly when you’ve seen inflation the way it’s been over the last year and a half to two years,” DeSantis said.
11,000 dead from Turkey earthquake
Buildings shattered as major earthquakes battered southeastern Turkey and parts of Syria on Monday and Tuesday.
More than 11,000 lives were lost after the tragedy. A record 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit first followed by a 7.5 magnitude earthquake nine hours later. The damage resulted in 3,450 collapsed buildings and there have been over 100 aftershocks since.
Gemalyn Barlan spoke from Turkey and found herself fighting for her and her family’s life. In the middle of broken mirrors and falling dressers, her focus shifted to making sure her son was alive.
“We didn’t have any shoes, and then we just grabbed our blankets and ran off with our pajamas. My son had just his t-shirt and it was very cold,” Barlan said. “It had heavy rains, hail, windy… you know, it’s like, you’re having a shower.”
Although Barlan and her son made it out alive, many others didn’t. She said the roads were closed and there were no hospitals left for people to get help.
“We are so thankful that even though we didn’t have any food for two days, no water for two days, we are still alive,” Barlan said. “What can I say to you, we are alive, I can just tell you we are alive.”
Credits
Anchor: Bailey Wegenast
Producer: Samantha Trezevant
Reporters: Jackson Shewey, Tahani
Muhammad, Aziz Turner, Matt Narváez,
Emily Ward, Ansley Topchik, Emma
Mccarthy, Ashleigh Yuhas
Teleprompter: Ashleigh Yuhas
Graphics: Matt Narváez
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Cameras: Ansley Topchik
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Faculty Adviser: Dr. Stephanie Anderson,
Wayne Garcia
