CITRUS CRUSADER

By John Labriola - For years, Citrus County libraries have subscribed to a magazine called BookPage, a monthly publication with reviews of recommended new books to read.  A stack of the magazines are prominently displayed in each of the system's five branch libraries, so anyone walking into a library can see them. The taxpayer-funded library system spends $3,300 a year on this annual subscription because it purchases a total of 500 copies, so patrons can pick them up, take them home and keep them without having to check them out.  In case you haven't ever leafed through it, the magazine is extremely woke and specializes in recommending books that push LGBT, DEI, CRT and witchcraft themes, and it demonizes parents who try to shield their children from pornography as "book banners."  While not every book recommended in BookPage is overtly political, the books that do have a political bent are invariably left-wing. The magazine never recommends a book by a conser...

By John Labriola - The Citrus County Library Advisory Board will be meeting later this month to discuss and vote on the proposed 2025-26 library budget after hearing from the public. The meeting will take place on Tuesday, Aug. 26, at 9 a.m. in Room 166 of the Lecanto Government Building , 3600 W Sovereign Path, Lecanto, FL 34461.  At $5.6 million, the library budget is more than $1 million higher than what was actually spent last year. It includes a $322,570 line item to purchase 1,300 books a month for the library system while removing an equal number of books every month to make room for them. The large volume of purchases means the vast majority of books don't get vetted, which increases the chances of highly inappropriate materials slipping into the children's section. Last year, the pornographic LGBT teen novel "Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts)" was removed from the shelves after Commissioner Diana Finegan brought it up at a commission meeting.  The proposed l...

By John Labriola - Citrus County is considering a move to limit the proliferation of marijuana dispensaries in the county.   Last week, Citrus County commissioners asked County Attorney Denise Lyn to come back with a proposed ordinance to require a greater distance between "medical marijuana" clinics and Citrus County schools.  Citrus County currently follows the minimum requirements in Florida law, which prohibits marijuana dispensaries within 500 feet of an elementary, middle or high school. Commissioner Jeff Kinnard, who is proposing the ordinance, said increasing the distance from schools is about the only way counties can limit the establishment of marijuana facilities, of which there are currently at least 10 in the county. "It's my own personal belief that there are plenty of dispensaries in the county to handle the medical needs of those who have gotten their medical marijuana cards," Kinnard said. "It's certainly not a slight on anyone realizin...

By John Labriola - After five and a half hours of discussion on the county budget, Citrus County Commissioners last week voted to set the maximum tax millages for 2025-26 at the current year's rates for each of the county’s various departments.  That means tax rates can be lowered at either of the commission’s two September budget hearings, but they can’t be increased. However, because property values rose this year, keeping millage rates the same will mean raising residents’ taxes.  The commission directed staff to increase road resurfacing funding, which was cut by several million dollars in the proposed budget from the current year despite being many years behind schedule, and to fund the county’s $1.3 million match for a federal COPS grant requested by Sheriff David Vincent to add 20 more deputies. Commissioners asked county department heads to reduce their budgets across the board so the savings can be reinvested in road resurfacing and new deputies rather than in a tax r...

By John Labriola - After months of controversy over a nearly 5,000-unit mega development that involved allegations of illegal lobbying by a former county commissioner, the Citrus County Commission last week voted 3-2 to approve the Tuscany Ranch project on more than 1,000 acres along Forest Ridge Boulevard and County Road 491 (Lecanto Highway). Commission Chairwoman Rebecca Bays and Commissioners Holly Davis and Jeff Kinnard voted yes, with Commissioners Diana Finegan and Janet Barek remaining opposed.  The timeline for buildout is 25 years, with 300 units expected to be built per year.  The developer will widen 1.4 miles of County Road 491 at a cost of about $8 million. Commissioner Finegan said that amounts to a pittance compared to the $192 million taxpayers will pay for the entire widening project. "To get $8 million from them is a drop in the bucket," added Commissioner Barek.  The widening of 491 became a major flashpoint of the project after former...

By John Labriola - This June marked the fourth year in a row that Citrus County libraries have not celebrated "LGBT Pride Month." The obnoxious propaganda displays of rainbow flags and degenerate books are now a fading memory, thanks to the active involvement of so many residents who spoke out against having their tax dollars used to subsidize perversion.  In the last four years, the Citrus County Library System also has terminated its membership in the LGBT-promoting American Library Association, removed a pornographic "LGBT teen novel" from its shelves, and is now working on giving parents more control over what their minor children read through the creation of a restricted access library card . Citrus County's experience has been a harbinger of the changing national mood. In 2024, President Donald J. Trump scored a historic comeback victory to retake the White House and immediately set about dismantling Biden's demented LGBT-promoting policies. Through ...

By John Labriola - This past Saturday was the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army, an important date that coincided with Flag Day and President Donald Trump's birthday. It was a day to celebrate America, and President Trump did so in style with a patriotic military parade in Washington D.C. that honored all the heroes who have put their lives on the line to keep our nation safe. The Democrat Party chose to spend the same day attacking President Trump's popular agenda and defending criminal illegal aliens in what they called "No Kings Day," with angry demonstrations across the country. Here in Citrus County, the angry minority of Kamala Harris voters, who represented 26 percent of the vote last year compared with the 72.41 percent who voted for Trump, took over the intersection in front of the Old Courthouse in downtown Inverness with obnoxious signs calling President Trump a tyrant and "king." Local crossdresser "Rhonda Santis," who has been identif...