Growing up in Panama City, Nadine Smith remembers watching Anita Bryant on television "almost daily," using her sing-songy voice to sell Florida orange juice.

• She also remembers when the former pageant queen and singer's messaging took a sharp pivot.
• "She was a benign guest on the television who suddenly turned into this malevolent presence that was saying awful things," said Smith, a longtime LGBTQ+ activist who is currently the executive director of Equality Florida.

Why it matters: Bryant's shift in the late 1970s from citrus industry spokesperson to Christian crusader against gay rights cemented her legacy as one of the most potent anti-LGBTQ+ activists of her time.

• It's a legacy that lives on in Florida politics today, in the wake of her death last month at 84.

Flashback: After two decades as an entertainer with several albums and a performance at President Lyndon B. Johnson's funeral under her belt, Bryant launched the Save Our Children coalition in 1977.

• The group targeted a Miami-Dade County ordinance banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, which Bryant said at the time "condones immorality and discriminates against my children's rights to grow up in a healthy, decent community."
• She argued that because they couldn't reproduce, gay people turned to children to recruit more members to their ranks, Steve Rothaus, a longtime South Florida journalist covering LGBTQ+ issues, told Axios.
• The campaign was successful. Miami-Dade voters turned out in droves to repeal the policy. The same year, Florida lawmakers passed a ban on gay adoption that was repealed only a decade ago.

State of play: Maligning LGBTQ+ people as a threat to children "worked then, and it works today," Rothaus said.

• Restrictions on trans healthcare are bolstered by slogans like "Let Kids Be Kids." A 2023 law curtailing drag shows came out of rhetoric that such performances "sexualize" children.
• Florida's Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed "Don't Say Gay" by critics, was born from the false claim that learning or reading about LGBTQ+ people would turn children gay or transgender.

The other side: Republican leaders have defended such laws as protecting a parent's right to exert control over how to talk to their child about sexual orientation and gender identity.

Go deeper: Bryant's influence on parental rights

President Trump signed a slew of executive orders on Monday that could have major impacts on Florida.

Catch up quick: Hours after beginning his second term, Trump took aim at birthright citizenship, revoked former President Biden's move to undo sanctions on Cuba and relisted it as a terrorism sponsor.

• He terminated a parole program that created a pathway for legal entry for immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela.
• He also signed an order that granted a "full, complete and unconditional pardon" to most defendants charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, dozens of whom are from Tampa Bay.

Why it matters: The orders will have an outsized impact on the state's immigrant-heavy population.

• More than one in five Florida residents is foreign-born, and nearly 10% of U.S.-born residents live with at least one immigrant parent, according to the American Immigration Council, an immigrant advocacy group and Washington think tank.
• In 2022, Florida had the third-largest population of undocumented immigrants, the Miami Herald reported, citing the Department of Homeland Security data.

Between the lines: Biden's reversal of sanctions on Cuba drew bipartisan backlash in Florida, where anti-socialist rhetoric has helped Republicans win over Hispanics and cement GOP dominance.

Many of Trump's executive orders, including his efforts to end birthright citizenship, are already facing legal challenges.

• Birthright citizenship has been recognized since 1898 following the landmark Wong Kim Ark case, Axios' Russell Contreras writes.
• The case established the birthright citizenship clause and led to the dramatic demographic transformation of the U.S.

Threat level: Trump's order would impact future births. It does not revoke citizenship for those already born in the U.S.

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⚾ The Tampa Bay Rays have changed the start times for home games at Steinbrenner Field next season to lower the odds of weather-related interruptions, such as rain and extreme heat. (Tampa Bay Times)

💸 Pinellas County is expected to receive about $813 million from the federal government to help repair roads and buildings damaged by hurricanes Helene and Milton. (Tampa Bay Business Journal)

🏈 Tampa will host the College Football Playoff National Championship at Raymond James Stadium on Jan. 22, 2029, instead of Dallas. (WFTS)

The number of public electric vehicle charging stations in Florida has more than doubled in the past four years, per federal data.

Why it matters: EVs and charging have been a chicken-and-egg problem that's now getting a little easier.

• People won't buy an electric car unless they're confident they have somewhere to charge it.
• Companies won't invest in charging infrastructure without enough EV owners to plug in.

By the numbers: There are now more than 3,600 electric vehicle charging stations open to the public in Florida, offering about 11,200 charging ports, according to data compiled by the U.S. Department of Energy.

• That's up from roughly 1,600 public charging stations with about 4,800 ports in January 2021.

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Temperatures have plunged in Tampa Bay — again.

• Lows are expected to drop into the mid to upper 30s this week, some of the coldest weather of the season.
• This month, temperatures in Tampa are around 5 degrees below average, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

The bottom line: Hold on to those sweaters a little longer!