FLORIDA POLITICS
Since 2002, daily Florida political news and commentary

 

UPDATE: Every morning we review and individually digest Florida political news articles, editorials and punditry. Our sister site, FLA Politics was selected by Campaigns & Elections as one of only ten state blogs in the nation
"every political insider should be reading right now."

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Welcome To Florida Politics

Thanks for visiting. On a semi-daily basis we scan Florida's major daily newspapers for significant Florida political news and punditry. We also review the editorial pages and political columnists/pundits for Florida political commentary. The papers we review include: the Miami Herald, Sun-Sentinel, Palm Beach Post, Naples News, Sarasota Herald Tribune, St Pete Times, Tampa Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, the Daytona Beach News-Journal, Tallahassee Democrat, and, occasionally, the Florida Times Union; we also review the political news blogs associated with these newspapers.

For each story, column, article or editorial we deem significant, we post at least the headline and link to the piece; the linked headline always appears in quotes. We quote the headline for two reasons: first, to allow researchers looking for the cited piece to find it (if the link has expired) by searching for the original title/headline via a commercial research service. Second, quotation of the original headline permits readers to appreciate the spin from the original piece, as opposed to our spin.

Not that we don't provide spin; we do, and plenty of it. Our perspective appears in post headlines, the subtitles within the post (in bold), and the excerpts from the linked stories we select to quote; we also occasionally provide other links and commentary about certain stories. While our bias should be immediately apparent to any reader, we nevertheless attempt to link to every article, column or editorial about Florida politics in every major online Florida newspaper.

 

Older posts [back to 2002]

Previous Articles by Derek Newton: Ten Things Fox on Line 1 Stem Cells are Intelligent Design Katrina Spin No Can't Win Perhaps the Most Important Race Senate Outlook The Nelson Thing Deep, Dark Secret Smart Boy Bringing Guns to a Knife Fight Playing to our Strength  

The Blog for Sunday, January 29, 2006

"Dramatic battle for governor"

    "Most voters may not know it yet, but Florida is poised to have a dramatic battle for governor this year." "GOP hopefuls are well-known; Democrats lag in recognition".


    I Think GOoPers Call it "Flip Flopping"

    He was against wingnuts, now he is one:

    He was a Republican who opposed taxes but talked about raising sales taxes in the 1980s to pay for fighting crime. He proclaimed himself "pro-choice" in his 1994 campaign for governor, saying in a tape-recorded interview with newspaper reporters, "I'm pro-choice. . . . I don't like abortion . . . but I do believe that government should stay out of people's lives. . . . The choice is one that individuals should make along with their doctor. It shouldn't be a government choice."

    When asked about school prayer in 1994, Gallagher said, "That would be a nice thing, but it causes a tremendous amount of problems, as to whose prayer and what prayer, and what denomination. So when you end up with those kind of conflicts, it would be better just to allow silence, and each pray in their own way."

    Former state Sen. Curt Kiser of Clearwater, now a Tallahassee lobbyist, was Gallagher's 1994 running mate. They were running against Jeb Bush, who was campaigning to the hard right. Attorney General Jim Smith also was on the ballot. Kiser says he and Gallagher ran to the middle.

    "Absolutely. No question about it," says Kiser, who is supporting Gallagher this year. "We prided ourselves in 1994 as the more moderate voice."

    Kiser says he has been surprised to hear Gallagher talk about problems with "activist judges" and notes that Bush, who lost the general election in 1994 but won in 1998 and 2002, has not pushed for an amendment banning same-sex marriage as Gallagher is doing.
    "Gallagher's fourth bid for governor shows shift".


    When You Don't Pay 'Em, They Won't Come

    "Schools prepare for likely teacher shortage". And, when, in response, the GOoPer "proposal's biggest chunk of money - $188 million - would be spent to buy a laptop for each of Florida's 164,000 public school teachers, a proposal that sounds like a 21st-century 'chicken in every pot.'" "Better Pay Over Laptops".

    Let's face it: "Jeb!" is constitutionally incapable of simply paying teachers more.


    The McInvale Legislative Agenda

    Now we know why McInvale switched parties. She will finally be able to muscle her legislative agenda through the House: "A bill she is sponsoring that could make it possible for people to keep their dogs with them while they eat outside at some restaurants passed its first House panel." "McInvale switch has a few hitches".


    Not Likely

    "Can Rubio close the gap between the Capitol and the dinner table?"


    "Lingering Contradiction

    Bush "opposes embryonic stem cells on moral grounds. How far the governor would go to let his personal religious convictions set back science and its economic potential in Florida is the lingering contradiction of his foray into biotechnology." "Biotech's embryonic stage".Earth to "Jeb!"

    "'Gov. Jennings' would have been fine by Bush".


    Not A Particularly Apt Analogy

    Mel "Martinez criticized 'the Bush administration' for allowing Cuba to field a team in the World Baseball Classic, even though Cuba has said Cuban players who live in the states, such as Hernandez, won't be allowed to represent their native country. While the issue isn't exactly akin to the war in Iraq or Medicare reform, it marked an unusual instance in which Martinez was at odds with Bush. In a news release, the Florida Republican called it 'a disappointing reversal' and subsequently went so far as to compare it to playing ball with a segregated team from South Africa." "[A] baseball stink".


    More From the Values Crowd

    This speaks volumes about "Jeb!"'s economic priorities

    In the late 1990s, two studies, from Harvard and the University of California at Berkeley, showed the link between health and income levels. The greater the wealth disparities, the worse the health and life expectancy at the poorer end of the spectrum. A joint study just released by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and Economic Policy Institute ranks Florida's gap among the worst in the nation and growing.

    There isn't just a health care crisis in this state. There's an ideas crises, though all legislators would have to do is look north and borrow.
    "States seek prescription to plug the gap".


    The ID Thing

    "The school districts choose their books from a state-approved list that includes 'Biology: Dynamics of Life,' which on page 388 briefly touches on intelligent design under the subheading "Divine Origins." "Teachers Opt For Texts Without Intelligent Design".


    Yuck

    "St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker is raising his profile. After Baker's overwhelming re-election win in November, a writer (and friend of Baker's political consultant Adam Goodman) wrote a column in the New York Sun touting Baker as a national model for Republicans because of his ability to win big among African-Americans." "Baker's Future".


    GOoPers Have "No Appetite" For Their Own Agenda

    "Asked last week if he thought lawmakers would consider placing such an amendment on the ballot themselves if the petition drive falls short [even though the Florida Republican Party has poured $150,000 into the effort to get a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage or the 'substantial equivalent'], Republican House Speaker Allan Bense didn't hesitate. 'No,' he said flatly. 'I don't have an appetite for that in the Florida House.'" "".


    Scripps

    "Gov. Bush said last week that he will let the public know his thoughts on sites for The Scripps Research Institute. If, as the governor has said countless times, the site decision is local, his thoughts should not come as the final word." "What Jeb needs to say".


    Gruesome

    "Senate President Tom Lee defended his visit to Florida's death chamber last week to watch the scheduled execution of convicted cop-killer Clarence Hill, who was spared by a last-minute U.S. Supreme Court stay. Policy, not politics, inspired the trip, said Lee, who is seeking the GOP nomination for chief financial officer." "Innocent bystander".


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