What happened
A federal judge yesterday ordered the administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) to stop threatening television stations with criminal prosecution for airing a commercial in favor of Amendment 4, a ballot measure that would enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution. U.S. District Chief Judge Mark Walker said the Florida Department of Health and Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo were unconstitutionally quashing political speech.

Who said what
The Florida health department sent letters on Oct. 3 to TV stations, warning them to stop broadcasting a "categorically false" ad in which a cancer survivor says the state's strict ban would have prevented her from getting a life-saving abortion. At least one station stopped running the ad. Floridians Protecting Freedom, the amendment's main backer, sued on Wednesday, accusing the DeSantis administration of "blatant government interference" and violating free speech rights. Walker agreed and issued a temporary restraining order. "To keep it simple for the State of Florida: it's the First Amendment, stupid," he wrote.

A DeSantis spokesperson dismissed the ruling as "another order that excites the press" and reiterated the claim that the ad is false and dangerous to women's health because Florida's six-week abortion ban "protects the life of a mother and includes exceptions for victims of rape, incest and human trafficking" up to 15 weeks of pregnancy.

What next?
Walker's order "effectively bars Ladapo from intimidating local stations for airing the Amendment 4 ad" until Oct. 29, a week before the election, CNN said. That halts "one of DeSantis' most brazen attempts to defeat Amendment 4," the Miami Herald said. But he and his administration are still aggressively using other "state agencies to attack the proposed amendment," The Washington Post said.

What happened
Donald Trump drew both applause and jeers for his pointed jokes at last night's Al Smith dinner, an annual white-tie charity event hosted by New York's Catholic archdiocese where the two main presidential candidates traditionally trade light ribbing shortly before an election. Vice President Kamala Harris gave her speech in a prerecorded video while she campaigned in Wisconsin. 

Who said what
Trump "rushed through prepared remarks, stumbling at times as he read through pointed political jokes, bitter grievances and crude and at times profane personal attacks," The New York Times said. He "seemed most energized when he ditched his script, caught between being an insult comic or just being insulting." Trump's tone "echoed his appearance in 2016," The Associated Press said, when his "particularly nasty" jabs at Hillary Clinton earned him angry boos.

Trump mocked Harris, her husband, her running mate, President Joe Biden and other Democrats. He tried for a Biden-Harris twofer by saying the current White House occupant "can barely talk, barely put together two coherent sentences, who seems to have the mental faculties of a child" and "no intelligence whatsoever. But enough about Kamala Harris." In fact, The Washington Post said, "the only person off limits for Trump was himself."

Harris' absence "robbed the event of some of its electricity," the Times said. Her video, featuring "sly" digs at Trump and a cameo by comedian Molly Shannon in her Catholic schoolgirl character Mary Katherine Gallagher, at times "fell flat" in the Manhattan ballroom.

What next?
Trump told Catholics that when they vote, "you better remember that I'm here and she's not." Harris' campaign told organizers she would appear at a future Al Smith dinner as president if she wins in November.