Patronis on Blue Angel in the Oval Office, Hurricane Prep, Property Taxes and More
- Jun 3
- 2 min read
Pensacola, FL (NewsRadio 92.3) -- Northwest Florida Congressman Jimmy Patronis joined Pensacola's Morning News Wednesday with a wide-ranging interview — including a story about placing a Blue Angel model on President Trump's desk, hurricane season advice, and his take on the property tax constitutional amendment that just cleared the Florida Legislature.
Blue Angel on the President's Desk
Patronis got a last-minute invitation to meet President Trump in the Oval Office Tuesday — and made sure Northwest Florida left its mark. After getting the call just days before the meeting Patronis reached out to the Blue Angels Foundation and asked them to scramble and produce an F-18 Blue Angel model in time for the visit. They delivered. The model now sits on the president's desk and is visible in every Oval Office photo taken going forward — including photos posted Tuesday by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Patronis says Trump spent most of their meeting talking about the differences between military aircraft — and Patronis couldn't resist pointing out that Blue Angels pilots don't need G-suits like Thunderbirds pilots do. The meeting coincidentally fell on the ten-year anniversary of the death of Blue Angels pilot Captain Jeff Coos — a detail Patronis says he didn't know until after the fact.
Hurricane Season Preparedness
With hurricane season now underway Patronis offered one piece of advice he says costs nothing and takes minutes — film a video inventory of your home right now and email it to yourself. He says walk around the outside, note the date on camera, then do the same inside — closets, TVs, wardrobes, floor coverings. He says if a storm causes a total loss most people can't remember everything they owned and an insurance adjuster is there on behalf of the insurance company — not the homeowner. Dated video evidence changes that dynamic. For videos too large to email he suggests Google Drive or a private YouTube upload. He also reminded residents to keep a photo of their insurance policy on their phone and never run a generator in any enclosed space including a carport.
Property Tax Amendment
Patronis says he has been through a property tax special session before — back in 2009 — and while he supports giving homeowners relief he says he is concerned about unintended consequences for first responders and law enforcement. He says a sunset provision would have been a smarter approach — giving governments time to adjust and giving voters a chance to revisit the decision after seeing real-world results. He noted that a Democratic senator actually proposed exactly that and it was voted down without discussion. The amendment heads to November's ballot where it needs 60 percent voter approval.
Take It Down Act
Patronis says he is advocating for the Protect Act — which would remove Section 230 liability protections for big tech platforms on deepfake and non-consensual intimate imagery. He says social media companies are incentivized to keep users engaged at any cost and that young people are especially vulnerable to the harm caused by AI-generated imagery.
