"If you could cash in on crazy, Florida would be the richest state in America"

Scott Maxwell: "If you could cash in on crazy, Florida would be the richest state in America."

In this week's make-everyone-else-laugh-at-us news, we have a state senator trying to force every public-school student in the state to watch an Obama-bashing "documentary" . . . twice.

"Lake County Republican Alan Hays filed the bill Monday. It would force districts to repeatedly screen "America: Imagine the World Without Her" — one of the worst-reviewed movies of 2014."

Lake County Republican Alan Hays filed the bill Monday. It would force districts to repeatedly screen "America: Imagine the World Without Her" — one of the worst-reviewed movies of 2014.

The only way students could avoid watching would be with signed notes from their parents.

Hays calls it "An act relating to patriotic film screening."

I call it "An act to make people flee Florida like bats out of hell." . . .

The movie barely cobbled together a theme about how some people supposedly hate America and how you should hate those people ... and Obama.

It started with an interesting premise about what the world would be like without America, but never followed through.

"Instead, it tried to convince viewers that this country's most sordid chapters, like slavery and The Trail of Tears, weren't really as bad as biased history books made them sound."

There are good conservative-themed movies out there. This one — from author Dinesh D'Souza, who's currently serving an eight-month sentence on a campaign-finance felony — is not one of them. I was tempted to ignore this silly bill at first. Except, too often in this state, silly becomes statute. (Remember last session's Pop Tart bill, protecting children's right to chew their breakfast pastries into the shape of guns?)

Also because Hays is one of only 40 senators — one who chaired a budget subcommittee earlier this year.

I'd like to think that Hays' peers would call him out on this top-down attempt at indoctrination; that someone like Senate President Andy Gardiner would have the guts to say: "Alan, if you want people to stop viewing us like jokes, quit acting like one."

But fringe bills rarely get reprimands in Tallahassee these days.

More often, they get co-sponsors.

"Mandatory movies: Florida's newest nutty idea."




Yeah, sure, it "has nothing to do with his connections"

"Former Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum and Florida deputy attorney general Patricia Conners said his access to Pam Bondi’s office has nothing to do with his connections." "Former attorney general’s contact with Pam Bondi’s office raises questions."




Break out the Pom Poms

The Scott cheerleaders on the Tampa Trib editors pat him on the back this morning: "Many environmental activists dismissed Scott’s promises to protect the Everglades as campaign posturing. They looked to have underestimated the governor’s sincerity."

In a Nov. 1 letter, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity rejected the plan by U.S. Sugar and Hilliard Brothers, another sugar firm, to develop more than 43,000 acres — 67 square miles — in Hendry County. The Hendry County Commission had already endorsed the proposal.

This was no grandstanding political move. The state’s position was not publicized until after the election. It indicates the governor is willing to stand up to the powerful sugar industry. . . .

In any event, the Scott administration is not looking like the development patsy it was accused of being during the campaign.

"Strong stand for Everglades."




About that Bainter fellow

"A lawsuit claiming the state’s congressional maps are at odds with anti-gerrymandering provisions in the constitution has cast a searing statewide spotlight on Bainter’s role as sort of a Wizard of Oz in state politics. His firm’s presence can be felt nearly everywhere, but little is known about the man pulling the levers."

Bainter, under fire in recent months over his firm’s role in the state’s 2012 redistricting process that a judge determined unfairly favored Republicans, took the unusual step last week of asking for an opportunity to tell his side of the redistricting case to the Tribune-Scripps Capital Bureau. . . .

Bainter’s legal bills have been paid for by the state GOP, a point Bainter would not talk about during the interview.

“I’m not going down that road,” he said.

"He defends the strategy of using third parties to submit proposed maps as part of the Legislature’s formal redistricting process." Much more here: "Political data wizard Bainter has big influence in Florida."




"For Scott, Chateaubriand is out and brisket is in"

"For Rick Scott, Chateaubriand steak is out and beef brisket is in." "Gov. Scott to kick off jobs-themed victory tour on Monday."




"Water policy up in the air"

"State lawmakers and other elected officials are calling water policy a priority for next year, but where they’ll go with it remains up in the air." "Renewing water policy talk opens floodgate of questions."




An Apparatchik by any other name

Among the dozens of pages of redistricting testimony from political consultant Pat Bainter unsealed by the Supreme Court this week, there were plenty of inside details about how Bainter and his allies tried to influence the process of redrawing the state’s congressional and legislative districts after the 2010 Census.

Among the dozens of pages of redistricting testimony from political consultant Pat Bainter unsealed by the Supreme Court this week, there were plenty of inside details about how Bainter and his allies tried to influence the process of redrawing the state’s congressional and legislative districts after the 2010 Census.

There are also a few incidents of Bainter parsing words and airing complaints during his examination by David King, an attorney for voting-rights organizations, including the League of Women Voters, who sued to overturn a congressional map approved by lawmakers. For example, Bainter took exception to the use of the term “political operatives.”

“Mr. King, I don’t know, with all due respect, what a political operative is,” Bainter said. “That’s a new term for me.”

"An Operative by any other name . . . ."




"Proponents of Amendment 2 haven’t given up"

"Legalization of medical marijuana in Florida went up in smoke earlier this month, but proponents of Amendment 2 haven’t given up." "Florida’s Pot Legalization Forces Open 2-Front Offensive: Legislature and 2016 Ballot."




Good luck with that

"For Democrats, the call for change is an admission that they can no longer compete with Republicans in statewide races for governor and three down-ballot, powerful Cabinet seats." "Stung by low turnout, Democrats eye shifting Fla.’s statewide election schedule."