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
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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 Thursday, July 06, 2006

No Sadder Sight

    "In the hustings racket is there a sadder sight than a pol all dressed up with no one to schmooze while awaiting the next opportunity to connive a way into public office?"
    Thus as he becomes more of a lame duck with each passing day, as he prepares to leave the governor's mansion, Jeb Bush has fallen back on an old reliable standby to kill time until - well, until whatever.
    That "old reliable standby" is of course the old "Foundation For Florida's Future, which was a high-toned think tank dedicated to thinking about Jeb Bush's future." And this
    Foundation To Provide Jeb Bush With Public Housing has solicited the services of a wide cadre of political operatives including Ann Herberger, the governor's former campaign finance director, consultant Adam Goodman and the silk-stocking Washington law firm of Patton Boggs.

    Maybe all those folks are sitting around rubbing their chins over FCAT scores and vouchers and graduation rates. And if you believe that, you probably also believe Jeb Bush will be content to become the Mr. Chips of Coral Gables.
    "All Dressed Up, But Nowhere For Jeb To Go".

    Mike Thomas - a reliable "Jeb!" voter - thinks Jebbie won't wait until 2012:
    John McCain and Jeb Bush in 2008.

    The whispers have started, and for good reason. Both Republicans want to be president and can help each other get there. John is old, so he goes first. Jeb is young, so he can wait.
    "Behold team John and Jeb, U.S. electorate".


    Tom in Trouble

    "Tom Gallagher didn't tell other members of the state Cabinet last year that he had a financial stake in a company he favored with his vote. That revelation, along with another report about his failure to disclose a financial interest in a company doing business with the state, tarnishes Gallagher's generally solid reputation and undermines public confidence that he is the best Republican candidate for governor." "Private Trades Raise Questions About Tom Gallagher's Judgment". See also "Gallagher held stock in development firm".

    Troxler weighs in: "How now the Dow, Gov. Gallagher? Got any stock tips for us?".


    Pathetic

    "'When you defeat the incumbent, you're adding one conservative vote for Florida and taking one liberal vote,' she said." "Harris Urges Voters To Help Change Senate".

    In the meantime, more details are emerging about Harris' Katherine Harris' relationship with Mitchell Wade. See Vantiy Fair's "Washington Babylon" (via The Buzz, which summartizes it this way: "'Mitch, what a special evening! The best dinner I have ever enjoyed in Washington…. Please let me know if I can ever be of assistance,' she supposedly wrote.")


    Privatization Follies

    "The former head of Florida's prison system and one of his top deputies were charged Wednesday with accepting $135,000 in kickbacks from a state contractor, while eight other current or former Corrections Department officials were charged with separate crimes, prosecutors announced." "Ex-chief of prisons charged in kickbacks". See also "Ex-prison chief admits to kickbacks", "Former prisons boss charged" and "Ex-prison chief admits guilt in bribery case".


    Limbaugh Case Goes To Dade County

    "Palm Beach County prosecutors decided not to file criminal charges against talk-show host Rush Limbaugh for possessing Viagra prescribed in someone else's name, despite his previous charge for illegal prescription 'shopping.' ... However, since the doctor wrote the prescription in Miami-Dade County, the case has been forwarded to prosecutors there for review." "Limbaugh case up to Dade".


    "Green groups battle"

    "Four environmental groups are taking on one of their own, fighting the Sierra Club's legal efforts to block development on the Babcock Ranch. Audubon of Florida, the Florida Wildlife Federation, the Everglades Foundation and 1000 Friends of Florida argued in court filings Wednesday that Sierra Club's challenge to development on the massive, 92,000-acre ranch in Charlotte and Lee counties imperiled the state's attempt to buy most of the ranch for conservation." "Green groups battle over Babcock buy".


    Rate Increase

    "Nationwide wants to raise homeowners rates by 71%".


    'Glades

    "Water managers should have until 2010 to finish working on their $1 billion-plus Everglades cleanup, a federal court adviser recommended Wednesday in a report that had both the state and its critics claiming victory. The report by Miami lawyer John Barkett also appeared to leave room for a much bigger showdown after Dec. 31 — the deadline state lawmakers originally set 12 years ago for the South Florida Water Management District to deliver clean water to all parts of the Everglades." "2010 deadline for Everglades cleanup urged". See also "".Report: Everglades work on track, but don't slack


    Charlie's Angels

    "Advocacy groups don't work for candidates, but they can influence a race. And one with deep pockets backs Charlie Crist. They call themselves 'Floridians for a Better and Brighter Future,' and their primary interest appears to be Charlie Crist's political future." "Unofficially, they'll sway governor race".

    Charlie can't seem to get enough love: "Florida nursing home operators are still peeved at Jeb Bush, weeks after the governor vetoed a $91-million appropriation to pay for staffing increases the Legislature mandated five years ago. Now the nursing home industry is channeling its anger into bundling checks for Attorney General Charlie Crist in the Republican primary for governor." " Long-Term Care for Crist".


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