They failed. After two weeks of bickering, the Republicans running the House and Senate gave up and sent their members home, tossing the hot potato of redistricting—for the moment—back to the judiciary. This being Florida, the legislative whiff was not entirely a surprise: Despite one-party rule, Republican leaders in the Sunshine State have gotten along no better than Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid do in Washington. The Senate even sued the House earlier this year in a health care dispute.

When it comes to ideas, the RPOF files for bankruptcy

"State Rep. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, the chairman of the RPOF, promised Republicans across Florida was ready to hit Clinton on ethics as the presidential race continues." "RPOF Chairman Promises to Hold 'Hillary Accountable to her Record'."

Teacher shortage

Joe Henderson: "Many districts in Florida and around the country report significant shortages in qualified teachers." "Retaining, hiring teachers big challenge in Hillsborough and all over."

Blame the unions

Lloyd Brown has all the answers: "Big Revelation in Pinellas Is an Epic Fail." Here's another genius.

GOPer laff riot: Trump mocks Jeb!

"Donald Trump mocked Jeb Bush on Twitter on Tuesday morning after the former Florida governor dug himself into a deeper hole explaining his 'anchor babies' comment."

"In a clumsy move to get out of his 'anchor babies' dilemma, where he signed that he would not use the term and now uses it, he blamed ASIANS," Trump wrote.

"Clock is Ticking for Politicians"

"Court-drawn districts have led to sweeping shifts in Florida’s political landscape in the past. Will it happen again?" "Move to let court draw maps could reshape Florida politics — again."

"Florida politics got a whole lot more interesting last week as the Legislature ended a special session without agreeing on new congressional districts. The next few days should offer some clarity on where things go from here. Rick Scott could call a special session and have the Legislature try again. The Florida Supreme Court, which ruled against the old districts and mandated the special session, could wind up creating the new districts." "Clock is Ticking for Politicians Even as Redistricting's Still Up in the Air."

"There’s a fine line between mild-mannered and wimpy"

Carl Hiassen shares his "plan to energize Jeb Bush’s presidential campaign," which includes the recommendation that he

Get mad. Or at least pretend to be mad.

Waiting for Trump to flame out might seem like a sound strategy, but in the meantime you’d better lock up second place. Would it hurt to fight back a little harder?

The jerk slurred your wife’s national heritage, yet you never braced him about it during the first debate, when he’s standing right beside you.

Sometimes there’s a fine line between mild-mannered and wimpy. No one’s expecting you to morph into an electrifying personality at age 62, but they do expect evidence of a pulse.

Relentless

"Controversial political committee Relentless for Progress has bought its first attack ad, but it’s not directed at any candidates." "Miami Beach commissioner slams Michael Putney in full-page ad by Relentless for Progress."

CD 5 Redistricting

The Orlando Sentinel editors: "The Florida House and Senate lapsed back into their maddening pattern of skirmish and stalemate last week, deadlocking over the details of congressional redistricting. It's not clear who will end up drawing the maps. But even the two dueling chambers could agree on a Florida Supreme Court-dictated redesign of the state's most indefensible district."

District 5, represented by Democrat Corrine Brown, meanders from Jacksonville to Orlando, cutting through eight counties. It belongs in the dictionary to illustrate the term "gerrymandered."

That's our Jeb!

"As a presidential candidate, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush hasn’t said much about the environmental issues facing America."

He’s waffled on climate change, and supported approval of the Keystone pipeline and drilling in the Arctic, and that’s been about it.

After all, this is a state that single-handedly held up a presidential election in 2000. It bungled the 1876 presidential election, too. For crying out loud, this is a state that elected Rick Scott as governor. Twice!

Considering such an inglorious history, how could 2015 possibly be in the running as the worst of the bunch?

[1] We began with a bang in early January when Scott kept insisting that Florida Department of Law Enforcement chief Gerald Bailey had resigned a month earlier. Turns out, that was a crock. Bailey told the Tampa Bay Times that he had refused to politicize investigations at the behest of the governor's office, and Scott later sent a henchman to force him to resign or be fired.

The problem with that scenario is the governor doesn't have that power. He needed someone from the Cabinet to sign off on it. Except Cabinet members were under the impression, fostered by Scott, that Bailey was resigning on his own.

So the governor lied to cover up the fact he was defying the Constitution to fire a law enforcement official who was guilty of having too much integrity. . . .

[2] The state House followed by ending the legislative session early — technically, another constitutional no-no — because it refused to accept billions of dollars in federal money so poverty-level residents could buy private health insurance. . . .

[3] As if one special session weren't enough, the state Supreme Court sent legislators back to Tallahassee this month to redraw congressional maps that had been influenced by political consultants in violation of the Constitution. Noticing a trend here? . . .

[4] Then there was Attorney General Pam Bondi refusing to back off a same-sex marriage lawsuit that even a first-year law student knew was a loser. . . .

[5] Finally, there is the governor sticking taxpayers with a $700,000 bill because he got caught violating the state's open government laws.

"Bush is abruptly shifting strategy"

"Bush is abruptly shifting strategy, going after Trump head-on and repeatedly launching some of his toughest shots yet at Trump over the past few days."

It's a risky strategy — dueling with Trump has only plunged candidates like Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R).

Some Republican strategists consider it necessary for Bush, the candidate who has yet to dominate in the way many thought he could and would, to light a spark in his campaign. He trails Trump by double digits in national polls and in New Hampshire. And in the Granite State, he's getting squeezed by candidates like Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R).

"An insult to everyone’s intelligence"

The Gainesville Sun editors: "A bonus intended to reward the brightest teachers is an insult to everyone’s intelligence. The program rewards teachers who received top ACT or SAT scores — tests that most took as high school students. It has sent teachers on a scramble to find their scores, in some cases from decades ago, to qualify for bonuses of up to $10,000." "Teacher bonus not a bright idea."

Swells speak

"Florida Insiders say Trump's candidacy will last until Florida primary in March and Jeb Bush will win it."

"Jeb Goes Full Dolezal?"

This is a laff riot: "Is it getting this bad? Flailing in the polls and struggling to find a rationale for his candidacy, is Jeb Bush suggesting he may be black?" "Desperate Jeb Goes Full Dolezal?" See also "Jeb Bush super PAC admits to Photoshop 'fail' in mailer to 86,000 Iowans after one of candidate's hands appeared to be someone else's." This isn't the first time Jebbie has been associated with a campaign misprint: "Fate of 25,000 Votes in Seminole and Martin Counties Is Now in Judges' Hands ("The Seminole and Martin cases stem from an unusual get-out-the-vote effort and a printer's error.")"

"Epic failure"

"The epic failure of the Florida House and Senate to agree on a new congressional district map last week isn’t bad news for Palm Beach County." "Legislature’s redistricting failure may be good for Palm Beach County."

"Lawmakers arrogantly ignored voters"

The Tampa Trib editors: "The group that successfully pushed the constitutional amendment mandating land conservation is restructuring itself into a political action group that can work on individual elections, and we hope it is successful in holding lawmakers accountable for their betrayal of Florida voters."

"[L]awmakers arrogantly ignored voters, using Amendment 1 dollars to fund salaries and other ongoing expenses, instead of bolstering land preservation. It was a shameful episode and one that underscored how lawmakers, mostly in safely drawn districts, feel little responsibility to voters." "Holding arrogant lawmakers responsible for failing to deliver on Amendment 1."

Jeb burnishes his extremist bona fides

"Newcomer to Koch scene, Jeb Bush competes for tea party support."