Looking ahead to this week

Debbie Wasserman Schultz, member, U.S. House of Representatives

Donald Trump’s tax plan was written by wealthy Republican donors, for wealthy Republican donors. While giving an enormous handout to giant corporations, it will ultimately raise taxes on millions of middle and lower-class families. Meanwhile, Republicans are already discussing how they will use the reduced revenue as an excuse to slash billions of dollars from Medicare and Social Security. It’s an insult to students trying to get ahead, veterans who served our country with pride, and seniors living dignified lives. This reckless plan is not a gift anyone should ask for this holiday season. We must defeat it.

Dan Daley, Vice Mayor, Coral Springs; president, Broward League of Cities

Municipal elected officials are keenly aware of the devastating impact the opioid crisis has on our cities. Last year, opioid overdoses killed 582 people in Broward, with indications that this year’s record will easily double that number. Looking beyond the human toll caused by this crisis, we need to make sure we are planning for and providing the necessary tools to deal with challenges we are facing, including training our first responders, Narcan availability, and education. Municipalities are working to identify solutions — including litigation against the drug manufacturers. We must stay vigilant in our efforts to deal with this epidemic.

Barbara M. Sharief, member, Broward County Commission

It’s almost a year since the deadly shooting at our airport and we have learned valuable lessons on how to better prepare for an emergency. On Tuesday, I supported additional training for all passenger service employees at our airport which would include the basics of first aid and CPR as well as evacuation procedures and what to do after the crisis is over. The training plan would be similar to ones recently enacted at airports in Los Angeles and Boston. It intensifies our current training and meets another after-action goal from the consultant’s report. Safety is our priority.

Eduardo J. Padron, president, Miami Dade College

Florida’s 2018 Legislative Session begins Jan. 9. As always, many critical issues are at stake, especially for MDC and its fellow institutions in the Florida College System. More than a million students are enrolled in the FCS, considered the best and most successful in the nation. It’s truly a great source of pride for the Sunshine State and, more important, provides critical, responsive education and workforce training to local communities. State colleges are led by very effective boards. That’s why I join many FCS presidents in expressing concerns over any constitutional revisions and legislation that will remove local governance and potentially adversely impact budgets for educational services for those who need it most.

Gary Resnick, mayor, Wilton Manors

The Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal Obama-era net neutrality rules along party lines. Most people do not know what this means, but they will when they cannot get access to certain Internet content, or their content is not accessible. While internet service providers will have to disclose their practices of throttling or blocking content, we have hardly no choice since U.S. households are limited generally to only two ISPs. Free and open Internet access to all lawful content has been a given in the U.S.; it will be a shame when that goes away.

Eleanor Sobel, former member, Florida Senate

An individual dared to write the offensive statement “Dab on the Jews” — as a name on a sign-in sheet in T.Y. Park, which shocked many people. Since Donald Trump was elected, 37 offensive incidents against the Jewish population were reported in Central Florida according to the Orlando Weekly. Can there be a nexus between the president’s recent announcement about Jerusalem becoming the capital of Israel and anti-Semitism? Does the rise of white nationalism encouraged by Steve Bannon increase white supremacists’ bigotry and hatred? Silence is unacceptable. Our democracy will only succeed when we are vigilant and reject hate crimes and racist slurs.

Joshua Thifault, Advancement Director, Turning Point USA

The week has finally arrived. Turning Point USA’s top 2,500 student leaders converge on the Palm Beach Convention Center, Tuesday through Friday. The Student Action Summit will feature Donald Trump Jr., Lara Trump, Charlie Kirk, Judge Jeanine, Tomi Lahren, and dozens more. While culture continues to depict young people as “liberal,” TPUSA is here to correct the record. We are the ones who face astronomical student debt. We are the ones who want to start businesses. More and more every day, young people are saying “NO” to big government.

Paul Castronovo, host, Paul Castronovo Show on Big 105.9

It’s time for Paul Castronovo’s rules for the holidays: 1) Do not get drunk at your company Christmas party (unless you were thinking of quitting; in that case, have at it and tell the boss off on your way out). 2) Don’t be this person: “You guys wanna do a ‘Secret Santa?’ ” No! (I have to spend enough money on my wife and kids; leave me alone at work). And finally, if I drive by your house in March and you still have your lights and your 25-foot inflatable Frosty the Snowman up, you deserve to be ridiculed.