Starla Brown at January Lunch

Our first meeting of the new year featured Starla Brown, Grassroots Director, Americans for Prosperity Florida.

If you haven’t been involved with AFP lately, it was interesting to learn of the variety of their projects, over and above the core mission of getting out the vote.

Of particular interest to Starla is free speech on campus. Having just completed an event on this topic at FAU, they are supporting HB909 this session which would end “free speech zones” on florida campuses. While many would expect that the entire country is a “free speech zone”, unfortunately the liberal stalwarts that run our universities have relegated objectional views (such as conservative thought) to small pens in out of the way places (such as next to dumpsters). HB909 would stop the practice but it made it out of its first committee by only a 2 vote margin (out of 12) and has 2 more committee hurdles before it can get to the floor.

Other projects by AFP and their 501(c)(3) subsidiary AFP Foundation include the Libre Initiative, that advances the principles and values of economic freedom to empower the U.S. Hispanic community, primarily by offering English classes with a dose of policy.

Others are the Concerned Veterans for America (CVA) that aims to preserve the freedom and prosperity they and their families fought and sacrifices to defend, and Generation Opportunity – an outreach to millenials. Starla related that millenials she works with live in a virtual bubble through social media, only seeing people and ideas that are like minded.

To keep up with the bills in Tallahassee that AFP is supporting (or opposing), check out the Florida Billboard

Maryann Connors

Accompanying Starla was their local Field Director, Maryann Connors.

Also present was Derek Schwartz, candidate for CD21, the Lois Frankel seat. Derek is a Boca attorney and lives in Boynton Beach who specializes in tax law, and is a self described “America First” Trumpster. We expect to hear more about Derek in the months to come.

Candidate for SD31 Tami Donnally was represented by Paula Prudente.

Please join us next month, February 28, for a 2018 Election Update with PBCGOP Executive Director Ryan Hnatiuk.