However, "the U.S. unemployment rate for June was 6.1 percent."

Before June, Florida's jobless rate had been equal to or lower than the national rate for 13 months in a row. Nationally, the number of jobs is up about 1.8 percent during the past 12 months.

To be fair, Obama’s jobs recovery, as in Florida, has been a relatively low-wage jobs recovery.

Scott Claims Credit for Tiny Unemployment Drop, But Is Unable to Explain What He's Done

Rick Scott takes credit for Florida's June unemployment rate of 6.2 percent, notwithstanding the fact that Florida's rate has fallen behind and is worse than the U.S. unemployment rate of 6.1 percent." Consistent with Scott's inability to answer questions, and explain precisely what he has done to keep pace with national trends, it appears that he has done little more than "Being There" while the Obama economic recovery takes root. See generally "Rick Scott's nonanswers bring national ridicule."

Rick Scott "insults everyone's intelligence"

Aaron Deslatte: "News flash: Gov. Rick Scott doesn't answer questions."

Yes, it's media-driven sound and fury, but when a governor can turn an oxymoron into a national cable-news debacle with CNN's Anderson Cooper claiming he "insults everyone's intelligence," voters deserve an explanation.

His discipline in staying on script is impressive. But television turns hard-nosed obstinacies that may be assets in corporate negotiations into cringe-worthy YouTube curiosities.

Dodging one question is an art form. Dodging the same question repeatedly for 60 seconds is a bad week. And in the heat of a high-stakes campaign, it produces a positive-feedback loop.

Instead of talking about gay marriage, medical marijuana, giving tax dollars to an Orlando-to-Miami rail company or alleged prisoner abuses, he's fielding questions about not answering questions.

"Oh, gosh, I answer questions," he told the throng of TV cameras in Tampa this week. In Orlando, he was asked again about the law-enforcement snafu and blamed Crist for "mudslinging."

Meanwhile, Crist tapped a Miami-Dade County Democratic chairwoman for a running mate — Annette Taddeo — in a county the party comfortably carried in 2010. The decision smacks of confidence. Scott looks like he's worried about making media missteps, which is often when they blow up on CNN.

Easy target

"The two men hoping to take on Republican Attorney General Pam Bondi this November have sharp criticism for the way she handled her first term in office. George Sheldon and Perry Thurston both say they could do a better job. Before they get to take on Bondi directly, one has to get past the other during next month’s Democratic primary." "Democrats vie to take on Bondi."

Shilling hard

Jeff Henderson shills hard for the Scott campaign today, arguing that "Charlie Crist hoped to get some positive attention by announcing Annette Taddeo as his running mate but his move was overshadowed by other events, some of which don’t help his campaign." "Charlie Crist's Gamble on Annette Taddeo Didn't Get Instant Payoff."

Scott outspending Crist on television advertisements at a five-to-one clip

"Through the last week of July, Republicans have spent $16.1 million on television advertisements as part of the governor’s race versus the Democrats’ $3 million, according to an analysis of television ad buys in the governor’s race obtained by the Scripps/Tribune Capitol Bureau." "Scott campaign dominating TV in governor’s race."

Atlas shrugs

"With weeks left before the August 26 primary, U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson is once again raising campaign cash far faster than anyone else running in any of six Central Florida Congressional races – and is spending it far faster than anyone else too, according to the latest federal campaign finance reports."

Grayson, the Orlando Democrat incumbent congressman in District 9, which covers Osceola, most of east Orange and part of north Polk, reported raising $1.8 million in contributions through June 30. That is nearly double anyone else running in the six congressional districts that cover all or parts of Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Lake, Brevard and Volusia counties.

Grayson’s district features a hotly-contested Republican primary, with three candidates who have been campaigning against one another for more than a year, mostly by taking shots at Grayson. Carol Platt of St. Cloud remained on top financially with $253,000 in contributions. Jorge Bonilla of Orlando raised $212,000. Peter Vivaldi of Windermere raised about $40,000. Democrat Nick Ruiz, who entered in April to challenge Grayson in the primary, reported raising $19,000.

Scott running low on wingnuts

"Scott has rejected six nominees for two spots on the Palm Beach Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission [including] two black women." "Gov. Scott rejects 6 for judicial nominating panel, more applicants sought."

Negron fears federal loan

The Palm Beach Post editorial board: "A powerful state senator from the Treasure Coast has jumped onto the region’s growing bandwagon opposing All Aboard Florida, the private long-distance passenger rail that plans to transport travelers between Miami and Orlando. But not — he says — because of the fears of traffic jams or inconvenienced boaters or the specter of environmental Armageddon that so many residents conjure."

The supposed source of Sen. Joe Negron’s concerns? That the service might be created with help from a federal loan.

Environmentalists react swiftly

"Elected officials and environmentalists in Florida reacted swiftly to the federal government’s decision Friday to reopen the Eastern Seaboard to offshore oil exploration using sonic cannons to find deepwater energy reserves." "Florida officials oppose reopening of offshore oil exploration."

Bits and Pieces

Kevin Derby: "Political Bits and Pieces." See also "Arrivals and Departures, July 18, 2014" and "Weekly Roundup: It's All About the Appeal."

Simply unable to get over it

"A Florida judge ruled that because the employer mandate was delayed, and not canceled, the compliance costs [Dr.] Kawa incurred in preparing his business to meet the requirements of the mandate did not amount to an unlawful taking -- even if he may have wasted significant resources. The same mandate would apply just one year later, the judge’s reasoning went." "Florida Orthodontist Braces for Oral Arguments in Obamacare Lawsuit."

TeaBaggers in a Dither: "Millennials Are More Liberal and Less Conservative"

This very recent libertarian poll [.pdf]shows that "Millennials Are More Liberal and Less Conservative than Americans over 30."

Taddeo, of Colombian and Italian heritage, symbolizes the battle between Democrats and Republicans over the increasingly important Hispanic vote. Gov. Rick Scott last year chose Carlos Lopez-Cantera as the state’s first Hispanic lieutenant governor and his 2014 running mate.

Taddeo could also help Crist appeal to women voters, now 54 percent of the state electorate, and provide a South Florida ally against former state Sen. Nan Rich of Weston, who’s challenging Crist in a Democratic primary in six weeks. . . .

In 2008, Taddeo ran unsuccessfully against Republican U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen in a Republican-leaning district. She ran unsuccessfully for a Miami-Dade county commissioner’s seat in 2010 — a race with a crowded field of candidates that was won, she said, by a tea party-style candidate.

Feds intrude on Walmart's "freedom" to trash rare endangered wildlife habitat

"A developer building a Walmart on a tract of disappearing forest between two national parks in south Miami-Dade County should stop all work until a survey of endangered wildlife is completed, federal officials warned this week."

In a strongly worded letter sent to Ram Realty Services, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said at least eight threatened species, including the federally protected Florida bonneted bat and two endangered plants, could inhabit about 140 acres of pine rockland north of Zoo Miami off Coral Reef Drive. . . .

Just two percent remain of about 165,000 acres of pine rocklands that once stretched from Homestead to the Miami River on an upland ridge. The rare rocklands occur in just two places in the world — Miami-Dade County and the Bahamas — and provide habitat for a host of animals, insects and plants found no place else on earth.

Dominoes Begin to Fall: Monroe County Judge Overturns Marriage Ban

"A judge ruled that gays can marry in Florida’s most gay-friendly county, siding Thursday with same-sex couples in the Florida Keys who challenged a voter-approved ban as discriminatory. But an immediate state appeal quickly silenced their wedding bells." "Ruling allows same-sex marriages for Florida Keys."

See also "Ruling allows same-sex marriages for Florida Keys," "Judge declares Florida's ban on gay marriage unconstitutional," "Monroe County Judge Overturns Same-Sex Marriage Ban" and "Judge’s ruling on gay marriage celebrated in Tampa."

Threats to fire employees if Obama won fall by the wayside

You remember the creepy "CEO who built himself America's largest house [yet] threatened to fire his employees if obama's elected." Scott Maxwell brings us up to date: "Congratulations to time-share magnate David Siegel, who seems to have mounted quite the comeback."

In the past few weeks alone, Siegel has made headlines for buying a football team, the Cocoa Beach pier — even a big new casino in Las Vegas.

Nicely done, David! It's all especially impressive, considering you told us that, if Barack Obama were re-elected, you might have to abandon your business — maybe even leave the country.

You remember that, right? It was in 2012 when you made national news for telling your employees that, before they voted, they should know that re-electing Obama might cost them their jobs.

You were sure Obama was bringing new taxes your way. And if he were re-elected, you told your workers: "My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed and with it, so will your opportunities."

"If that happens, you can find me in the Caribbean sitting on the beach, under a palm tree, retired and with no employees to worry about."

Yet, miracle of miracles, you somehow manage to not only stay in this great country and keep your doors open, but even buy an Arena Football League team!

"Proudly claiming he was a geek"

Jeff Henderson: "All of a sudden, [Ted Yoho's primary opponent, Jake Rush, an attorney who served as a deputy for the Alachua County sheriff’s office] went from contender to pretender against Yoho. After the news about Rush's role-playing -- and more importantly the photos -- went public in April, all momentum was sucked out of his campaign. Rush never quite knew what to do about how to handle the negative publicity. Sometimes, Rush embraced it, proudly claiming he was a geek and even appearing on Stephen Colbert’s show to weigh in on it. Other times, Rush said the Yoho camp was behind it as a dirty trick." "Move Over, Buffy! Ted Yoho Looks Like a Vampire Slayer."

Ethics attacks in SoFla

Kevin Derby: "Attacks Surround Ethics in South Florida Congressional Race."

Stop the presses! Dems putting their money where their mouth is

"At their annual fundraiser in Hollywood less than a month ago, Florida Democrats heard an earful from former President Bill Clinton about the importance of getting the party faithful -- who historically have been lackluster when it comes to voting in midterm elections -- to the polls."

Now, national Democrats are putting their money where their mouth is.

"The world discovers what Florida already knows"

Steve Bousquet: "Rick Scott, who ditched his adopted rescue dog Reagan after the 2010 election, and who invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination 75 times in a deposition, once again finds himself all over the Web and cable as the rest of the world discovers what Florida already knows" about Rick Scott

He doesn't like to answer questions.

Name a subject, and Scott won't address it.

Climate change. Problems with the state's jobless claims website. How a sex offender slipped through the cracks and got a state license as a massage therapist. Amendment 1, the land and water proposal on the November ballot.

Scott might well revise his campaign slogan to "Let's Keep Working at Obfuscation."

Scott made CNN's "RidicuList," as Anderson Cooper said Scott's evasiveness "insults everybody's intelligence."

MSNBC, with its endless fascination for Florida politics, awarded him a place in its "Canned Response Repetition Hall of Fame."

Both channels ran the same video clip of Scott, eyes open wide, a frozen smile fixed on his face, dodging Tampa TV reporters asking why uniformed, on-duty sheriff's deputies were at a Tampa event promoting his re-election last week. It is illegal for public employees to engage in such activity, and illegal for anyone to coerce them into doing it.

"I'm very proud that last week, police chiefs endorsed me," Scott said earnestly, totally ignoring the question. "I'm very proud that 40 sheriffs have endorsed me."

That's a campaign commercial, not a serious reply.

With his very next breath, Scott said: "So we invite them to our campaign events and I'm very appreciative of the ones that came."

There it is: Scott said his campaign invites on-duty cops to campaign events that they should not attend.

GOPers have private meeting with Scott’s education advisor, talk about it at school board meeting

"Members of the Flagler County Republican Club had a private meeting Wednesday with Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s education advisor, Kim McDougal, regarding the new national academic measures known as the Common Core State Standards Initiative. The date and time of the meeting at the governor’s campaign headquarters in Palm Coast, which was closed to the media, was mentioned by Flagler School Board Chairman Andy Dance during Tuesday night’s board meeting." "Flagler GOP club has closed meeting with governor’s education advisor."

Do Scott apologists really want to talk Nigeria?

Nancy Smith says, "Hey, Charlie, Introduce Us to Your Nigerian Friend." She "writes,

Charlie Crist's donors get stranger and stranger. The latest is Onajite Okoloko.

He makes Steve Mostyn -- the Houston trial lawyer-cum-fly-boy who donated $600,000 to support Charlie three states away -- look downright common-garden variety.

Onajite Okoloko, 48, is a Nigerian oil executive turned fertilizer manufacturer who has suddenly "emerged" as one of Charlie's biggest donors.

Remember Jeb's Nigerian connection?

Just in time for the latest round of Jeb for Prez speculation, the juiciest scandal tied to Florida's former governor is headed back to court. The courts are revisiting a two-decades old charge that a company Bush cofounded spent millions bribing Nigerian officials with federally loaned money to secure a lucrative deal selling water pumps in the African nation.

Fred Grimm: "It’s as if you spotted someone cruising around in the family sedan that had been swiped from your driveway. Sorry, the thief says, but he can’t return the car just now. Maybe in 2016."

Sooner than that would cause nothing but “chaos and confusion.”

Except, it wasn’t a car that was stolen. Just a fair election.

The very legislative leadership that allowed political “consultants and operatives” to flout the Florida Constitution and hijack the congressional redistricting process told a judge Tuesday that they’d eventually “enact a remedial plan consistent with this Court’s judgment.”

But not until after the 2014 elections.

The judge said the consultants “managed to taint the redistricting process and the resulting map with improper partisan intent. There is just too much circumstantial evidence of it, too many coincidences, for me to conclude otherwise.”

House Speaker Will Weatherford and Senate President Don Gaetz indicated in a motion filed Tuesday that they won’t appeal the decision. Instead they’ll just dawdle, arguing that they can’t fix the gerrymandered districts now “without irreparable damage.” So losing the lawsuit becomes no worse than winning.

"Happy to meet"

"Gov. Rick Scott said today his administration would be 'happy to meet' with 10 scientists from Florida universities who want to talk about climate change, a subject he has been reluctant to address."

This, even though

Scott, who is running for re-election, has worked to dismantle climate change initiatives put into place by his predecessor and current opponent, Republican-turned-Democrat Charlie Crist.

Florida’s other top Republicans, including possible 2016 presidential candidates U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and former Gov. Jeb Bush, also have challenged climate science.

Allen West calls for impeachment

"Former U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Fla., who has left the door open to a political comeback in 2016, made the case to impeach Obama on Tuesday." "Allen West and Alan Grayson Clash on Impeaching Obama."

Scott may "follow Jolly’s game plan"

Jeff Henderson writes that, "if Scott’s team wants to keep Crist busy in his own backyard [Pinellas County], they should follow Jolly’s gameplan with strong research and a great ground game. An underdog at the start of the year when Republicans were pining for Jack Latvala, Will Weatherford and other candidates to get in against Sink, Jolly just might turn out to be the Florida GOP’s MVP for 2014." "David Jolly Could Be Florida GOP's MVP for 2014".

Tampa Caught With Hand in the Federal Cookie Jar

"The Tampa City Council will be asked this morning to approve repayment of more than $560,000 the city received from the federal government after Hurricane Frances a decade ago." "FEMA wants $560K back from Tampa for storm."

Road to Dems winning winds through Sunshine State

"According to the Democratic leader in the U.S. House, the road to her party winning back control of the chamber winds through the Sunshine State. In an interview published on Wednesday, U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., offered her take on Democratic chances to flip the U.S. House in November -- and said it comes down to Florida." "Nancy Pelosi Bets on Florida Redistricting to Win Congress." See also "Nancy Pelosi’s goal is to win 25 seats. Here’s how she thinks it can happen."

Florida ranks last in the nation in per-person Obamacare funding

"Florida ranks last in the country in per-person funding from the Affordable Care Act, a new study shows, and that doesn’t even include the billions of dollars the state is forfeiting by saying no to Medicaid expansion."

The Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation at the University of Michigan performed the analysis of ACA grant totals between the time the law was signed in March 2010 and the end of September 2013.

Judging by the grant totals of other states, Florida appears to have forfeited at least $100 million and possibly $300 million or more.

“Florida is 51st in per capita funding, last among all the states and the District of Columbia,” said Josh Fangmeier, health policy analyst at the Center. In a study released by the same group a year ago, Florida had been 48th.

Over the study period, the average nationwide funding per person was $47.67, the Center’s charts show. By contrast, Florida’s per-capita funding was just $18.04.

FEA sues to block runaway voucher legislation

"The state teachers union filed a challenge to a controversial education law Wednesday, saying it violates a constitutional requirement that each law be limited to a single subject."

Gov. Rick Scott signed Senate Bill 850 last month over loud objections from the union, parent groups, the NAACP and the League of Women Voters.

Among other things, the law expands the school voucher program and creates new scholarships for children with profound disabilities. The scholarships, which can be used for private tutoring, educational materials and various types of therapies, are being rolled out this week.

The lawsuit from the Florida Education Association takes aim at the way SB 850 became law. Some of the bill’s more contentious provisions, including the voucher expansion and the scholarship accounts, started out as stand-alone proposals that met resistance in the Legislature. They were combined into a sweeping education bill on the second-to-last day of the legislative session, giving lawmakers little time to review the proposal and citizens virtually no chance to weigh in.

In its final form, the 140-page bill also addressed career education, collegiate high schools, dropout prevention, hazing and middle-school reform.

This year, lawmakers expanded the program by creating partial scholarships for children from higher-income families. They also raised the amount of the scholarship beginning in 2016-17.

The union, which has about 140,000 members, opposed the measure, saying it would take money from public schools. Leaders began mulling over a legal challenge as soon as session ended, McCall said.

FEA Attorney Ron Meyer said that the union had “grave concerns about the constitutionality of the tax credit [scholarship] program and the damage potentially being done in these unregulated, unaccountable schools.”

"Liberal credentials"

Kevin Derby: "With less than six weeks to go, the two Democrats looking to topple Gov. Rick Scott are trying to reach out to primary voters by stressing their liberal credentials." "Charlie Crist and Nan Rich Go Left for Primary Votes."

As explained by Jac Wilder VerSteeg in the Sun Sentinel over the weekend,

Former Gov. Bush enjoys a national reputation as an education reformer — a neat trick considering the terrible harm he has inflicted on public education. Although the Legislature and succeeding Republican governors share responsibility, Jeb is mostly to blame for the bad things that followed his 1999 arrival in office.

Jeb is a godfather of bogus high-stakes testing. Way back in 1999, he started using the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test to assign grades to schools. Nothing about that grading system was valid. Yet then-Gov. Bush claimed it was "accountability."

Things have only gotten worse in subsequent years. Schools and teachers have been labeled as "failing" by a test that was not even administered to large numbers of their students. The Legislature and Gov. Scott decided high-stakes tests should be used to decide if a teacher should be kept or fired. Never mind that there is no formula or algorithm that can reliably tell which teachers are good and which are bad.

Desperate in PBC

"Attempting to make inroads with a Democratic-leaning voting bloc, the Palm Beach County Republican Party is reaching out to the gay and lesbian community. Chairwoman Anita Mitchell hopes gays and lesbians will see the Republican Party as something other than an intolerant entity hostile to their interests." "Republican leader seeks support from gays and lesbians."

"Crist trying to change the topic"

Jeff Henderson: "Caught in the polls by Rick Scott and behind in the money chase, Charlie Crist and his supporters in the mainstream media are trying to change the topic from the new Democrat’s underwhelming performance so far in the campaign. In recent days, the media have started playing the guessing game of who will be named as Crist’s running mate." "Charlie Crist Not in Any Rush to Name Running Mate."

"Graham is stressing she is a political outsider"

Kevin Derby: "Democratic congressional candidate Gwen Graham is drawing fire from the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) for going after Washington, even as she follows a game plan honed by national Democrats and used by their candidates across the nation."

Graham, the daughter of Bob Graham, who served three terms in the U.S. Senate and two terms as governor, is running against U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Fla. Despite serving as an aide to her father and two Democratic presidential candidates in the 2004 election cycle, then-U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., and former Gov. Howard Dean, D-Vt.. Graham is stressing she is a political outsider.

The proxy campaign for Governor

"Orlando trial lawyer John Morgan said he has pledges of up to $6 million — not including his own substantial checkbook — to back a proposed constitutional amendment going before voters in November that would allow doctors to order marijuana for patients with debilitating illnesses."

Renewed support from Morgan — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist’s boss and close friend — comes as opponents of the measure, aided by Sheldon Adelson, a Las Vegas casino magnate and supporter of Republican Gov. Rick Scott, double down on efforts to kill it.

"Democrats shouldn't get too giddy"

Ledyard King: "Most Democrats are cheering the Florida Circuit Court's judge ruling Thursday throwing out the congressional district map drawn by the GOP-controlled Legislature."

But at least one expert who studies congressional races says Democrats shouldn't get too giddy, even if it helps put the Orlando-area seat — now held by Republican Daniel Webster — back into play.

David Wasserman, who monitors House races for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, said there are several reasons why not much might change in a state where Republicans control 17 of the state's 27 congressional seats.

First, there's little time to take advantage of the ruling in this fall's elections, largely because the filing deadline for candidates has passed. In addition, the Florida Legislature is expected to appeal the ruling, further delaying any remedy.

Second, any changes to the map might affect Webster and Jacksonville Democratic Rep. Corrine Brown, but maybe only marginally, and probably no one else.

And third, even redrawing the districts would not tremendously help Democrats whose voters are generally concentrated in the state's urban corridors. The decidedly GOP District 8 seat held by Republican Bill Posey of Rockledge, for example, probably wouldn't change parties even if the boundaries were adjusted.

This analysis of the Cook Report piece by King, of Gannett's Washington Bureau, overlooks that Wasserman's analysis, was limited to the 2014 races. This is plain from the headline to Wasserman's piece, "Florida Redistricting Ruling Unlikely to Alter 2014 Math" (subscription required). No one has claimed that the decision - which will no doubt be stayed pending appeal - will have any bearing on 2014, except as a talking point; rather, the impact on the shape of the districts, which could be substantial, obviously pertains only to 2016 and beyond.

Absentee Ballots: New Rules

"Voting by mail has soared in popularity among Floridians in the past decade, but new restrictions are leading some advocates to warn that some people may miss voting this year because of new rules." Two key points:

• College students and snowbirds. People who want their ballots sent to addresses other than what's on file with the county elections office will no longer be able make the request online or over the phone. The request now must be made in writing.

“The group that is going to be most affected by it is, of course, students. There’s no two ways about it,” said Pamela Goodman of Palm Beach Gardens, first vice president of the League of Women Voters of Florida. “Down here in southeastern Florida where we have so many snowbirds, they won’t even know. They will expect their ballot to come to them and they won’t even know. It’s going to affect their turnout.” . . .

• Expiration of standing requests. The law governing how long vote-by-mail request remains valid has changed several times. Currently, it lasts for two big general elections. So people who signed up before the 2010 governor's election won't receive absentee ballots for the 2014 primary and general election unless they reapply.

In January, the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office sent notices to all voters whose absentee ballot requests were expiring. “We didn’t get a lot of response,” Bucher said.

The signatures of people who send in absentee ballots are scrutinized and compared with the person's voter registration form. If the signature doesn't match, the ballot isn't counted.

It can make a difference. A 2012 state Senate contest in Palm Beach County was decided by 17 votes — and 40 absentee ballots weren't counted because signatures didn't match.

Snipes, who had her staffers trained in handwriting analysis last week, said it's natural that people's signatures change as they age, especially if they develop medical conditions. Bucher said young people change their signatures "very often."

People can – and should – contact the elections office to update their signatures on file if they've changed since they first registered to vote, Snipes said.

Other absentee ballots aren't counted because people forget to sign them entirely. But a new provision of state law, effective for 2014 elections, allows people to get signatures attached to their absentee ballot envelopes if they forget to sign them.

The [new] law requires the elections offices to monitor non-signatures and allow people who forget to sign to mail in an affidavit with a signature that will be attached to the ballot envelope.

In 2012, Bucher said, about 200 Palm Beach County absentee ballots weren’t counted because there were no signatures. She didn’t have figures for the number of ballots that weren’t counted because their signatures didn’t match.

The Palm Beach County elections office will have a feature on its website allowing people to check the status of their absentee ballots. Bucher also said she expects candidates to get in touch with voters whose ballots don’t have signatures because they’ll want potential supporters to have their votes count.

In 2012, Cooney said, 861 Broward ballots were weren't counted because they weren't signed, a number she termed "disappointingly high." Another 33 were rejected because the signatures on the ballots didn't match those on file.

The Broward elections office will send an affidavit form to every voter who submits an absentee ballot without a signature, Cooney said. "It is not automatically rejected anymore."

On Friday, when Miami Heat fans mourned James’ decision to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers, someone from Scott World had a brilliant idea: Compare the basketball champion to . . . Charlie Crist, Scott’s Democratic opponent.

You read that right.

Scott’s campaign “attacked” Crist by comparing him to the wildly popular star who led the Heat to four consecutive NBA finals, including two titles.

Huh?

The backfiring “attack” on Crist speaks to a deeper problem for Scott World: It’s hyper-aggressive, views criticism (no matter how constructive) as disloyal, and frustrates fellow Republicans time and again — most notably Coral Gables billionaire Mike Fernandez, a million-dollar Scott contributor who quit his role as top campaign fundraiser earlier this year in frustration at what he saw as dysfunction.

Scott World also unwittingly reinforces its own negatives about the governor and the campaign. It has had its share of criticism for being populated by out-of-state advisors and operatives — some of whom live in or have close ties to Washington’s political class.

Aside from whether the LeBron James backfire buttresses the out-of-stater narrative, it’s quite a feat to attack the longtime Floridian Crist for wanting to “run away” from the state when Scott World is populated by many who are A) not from here or B) not intending to stay here or C) both.

"Western Conservatives High on Allen West, Low on Jeb Bush"

Kevin Derby: "Western Conservatives High on Ben Carson, Allen West, Low on Jeb Bush."

Wal-Mart store to be built in rare forest

"Environmentalists are scratching their heads over a recent deal between the University of Florida and a Palm Beach County developer that will bring a Wal-Mart store, restaurants and apartments to a section of rare forest." "Wal-Mart planned for endangered South Fla. land."

"Charlie's Consuming Washington Itch"

Nancy Smith: "Cameras Don't Lie: Charlie's Consuming Washington Itch."

Bush's vision when he lured Scripps in 2003 was to leverage it into a biotech hub with multiple spinoffs and tens of thousands of high-paying jobs. The state and Palm Beach County together have invested more than half a billion dollars in that vision.

Hasn't happened. Scripps Florida has met its modest targets for hiring — fewer than 700 employees — but it has not spawned a biotech hub. The now-cancelled merger idea roiled top scientists, triggering resignation threats. . . .

One of Bush's finest moments came in 2002, when he and President George W. Bush pledged a 50-50 state-federal partnership to clean up the Everglades. Gov. Bush did secure state funding. Federal funding, however, lagged. Republican deficit hawks played a part in that. And Gov. Bush significantly undermined his own work when he agreed to delay clean-water standards for a decade.

Now, as the Sun Sentinel reported last week, oil companies are taking advantage of Florida's chronically lax environmental laws to begin a form of fracking — fracturing of underground rock to release oil — in sensitive areas close to the Everglades. Republicans who dominated the Legislature since Jeb's tenure have failed to approve rules to protect the Everglades from fracking and other techniques such as horizontal drilling. Jeb's Everglades pillar is cracked and fracked.

Former Gov. Bush enjoys a national reputation as an education reformer — a neat trick considering the terrible harm he has inflicted on public education. Although the Legislature and succeeding Republican governors share responsibility, Jeb is mostly to blame for the bad things that followed his 1999 arrival in office.

Jeb is a godfather of bogus high-stakes testing. Way back in 1999, he started using the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test to assign grades to schools. Nothing about that grading system was valid. Yet then-Gov. Bush claimed it was "accountability."

Things have only gotten worse in subsequent years. Schools and teachers have been labeled as "failing" by a test that was not even administered to large numbers of their students. The Legislature and Gov. Scott decided high-stakes tests should be used to decide if a teacher should be kept or fired. Never mind that there is no formula or algorithm that can reliably tell which teachers are good and which are bad.

The harm to students punished, retained and even denied a diploma because of bad scores on high-stakes tests, is even worse. In a tacit admission that the FCAT was inadequate for the purposes for which it was used, Florida abandoned that test and planned to adopt the Common Core Standards and tests. But Florida's Republican governor and Legislature fretted and dithered because of right-wing opposition to Common Core — which former Gov. Bush supports.

The result is that Florida does not have its own tests to measure progress on Common Core and, as the Sun Sentinel reported, will use a version of Utah's tests.

Utah?

Any in-depth look at Gov. Bush's education record will confirm his reputation is undeserved.

HD 61

"4 rivals vie for District 61 seat."

Cops "are not campaign props"

Bill Cotterell: Last week "Gov. Rick Scott’s campaign assembled a large crowd of police officers for a big announcement about crime. The announcement was that Scott is against it, and believes his own re-election is a really neat idea."

Veteran political scribe William March of the Tampa Tribune reported that the assembled officers, or a great many of them, were on duty. They didn’t know it was a campaign event. They thought they were there to help with security or possibly to talk about crime. At the very least, their uniformed presence could illustrate city and county support for the state of Florida — in the person of its elected chief executive — as he enunciated some new policy initiative or data about crime and punishment.

It’s illegal to use state employees for campaign purposes and they sure aren’t supposed to be political props for a media event. It’s fair game for a governor, Cabinet officer or legislator to take credit for their good work, as evidence of wise policy and strong leadership. When things don’t go so well, they blame those lazy, incompetent bureaucrats. (Baseball manager Rocky Bridges put it best: “I managed good but, boy, did they play bad.”)

Some of the officers present for Scott’s campaign stop are legally exempt, like an elected sheriff who is technically on duty all the time. But somebody in the governor’s office, or his campaign staff, messed up big time.

Democrat Charlie Crist — who, of course, always made sure no teachers or cops or other public employees were on the clock when they served as wallpaper at various events he held as education commissioner, attorney general or governor — was quick to pounce.

"Anything but fair for voters"

The Orlando Sentinel editors: "In a ruling Thursday that threw out the state's congressional district map, Leon County Circuit Judge Terry Lewis found that legislators had violated their 'constitutional duty' to draw districts without gerrymandering them to favor incumbents or their parties. It was the voters who imposed that duty in 2010 when they approved the Fair Districts amendments to the Florida Constitution."

The process that Lewis described in his ruling was anything but fair for voters.

The judge concluded that the map legislators redrew and approved in 2012 bore the fingerprints of Republican political operatives. While legislators were holding public hearings on redistricting around the state and trumpeting the most transparent process ever, the operatives were working behind the scenes on the maps "in the shadow of that process," the judge wrote.

Gelber, Smith, Taddeo-Goldstein, Rundle, Demings, Soto, and Rich in the Crist running mate mix

"The speculation has already begun."

Many observers expect Crist to choose a running mate with ties to South Florida, the most Democratic part of the state.

One potential pick: former state Sen. Dan Gelber, a Miami Beach Democrat. . . .

Senate Minority Leader Chris Smith, of Oakland Park, has also been the subject of speculation. But Smith said he had not spoken with the Crist campaign, and was not sure if he was being vetted. . . .

Two names circulating in Democratic circles: Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle and Miami-Dade County Democratic Chairwoman Annette Taddeo-Goldstein. Both would appeal to women and help Crist win support in the Hispanic community.

Rundle said she was flattered to be mentioned, “but being Dade’s State Attorney is the greatest job in the state of Florida.” . . .

Elsewhere in the state, Crist may consider former Orlando police chief Val Demings. Demings launched a bid to become Orange County mayor earlier this year, but withdrew in May. Calls to her office were not returned.

Another Orlando resident who could make the short list: state Sen. Darren Soto.

The 36-year-old attorney acknowledged that his home turf would be fertile ground for picking up votes and engaging Hispanic voters. But Soto said he had not been approached by the Crist campaign, and was focused on his reelection to the Senate. . . .

What about Rich, a former Senate minority leader with Democratic bona fides and a strong base of support in Broward County? Could her name appear on the ticket as Crist’s running mate?

“Sen. Rich is not interested,” said her campaign manager, Sterling Clifford.