PROGRESS
FLORIDA IN THE NEWS
Controversy brewing over Gov. Scott's push to purge state's voter rolls
By Troy Kinsey
Tampa Bay News 9
Excerpt: (Progress Florida’s) Damien Filer thinks the Republican governor may be playing politics ahead of a major election. "What they're doing is out of compliance with the national Voting Rights Act," he said. "They're not allowed to be doing this kind of thing this close to an election. They're not allowed to target particular subsets within the voting electorate, which this clearly appears to be doing."
FEATURED
STORIES
Florida Telling Hundreds Of Eligible Citizens That They Are Ineligible To Vote
By Judd Legum
Think Progress
Related: Meet Maureen Russo: An Eligible Florida Voter Governor Rick Scott Just Purged From The Voting Rolls
Related: How Florida Governor Rick Scott Could Steal The Election For Mitt Romney
Florida Governor Rick Scott (R) has ordered the state to purge all “non-citizens” from the voting rolls prior to November’s election.
One woman's experience in Florida's targeting of noncitizen voters
By Steve Bousquet
Tampa Bay Times
She's the prototypical Tampa Bay resident in many ways.
Wetlands expert suspended by DEP after she refuses to approve permit
By Craig Pittman
Tampa Bay Times
Related: Imagine, if you can, a state that actually protected the environment
Florida's top state wetlands expert has been suspended after she refused to issue a permit on a controversial project — one that she said her boss was willing to bend the rules to approve.
New Laws Challenge Constitution and Coffers
By Tristram Korten
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
When Maria Kayanan answered the door of the ACLU’s Miami headquarters one morning in October 2011, she saw a woman in jeans and a T-shirt standing outside.
State employees' unions eye ballot
By Dara Kam
Palm Beach Post
Labor unions in Wisconsin are facing a historic test next week in the recall election of Republican Gov. Scott Walker.
College loans are next debt crisis
By Fred Grimm
Miami Herald
Marlins Park, financed by bonds that will take four decades and $2.4 billion to pay off, makes a perfect setting for commencement exercises.
EDITORIAL
CARTOON OF THE WEEK
By Monte Wolverton
Gainesville Sun
FLORIDA
POLITICS
Congressional Black Caucus rallies preachers to tackle voter-ID laws
By William Douglas
Miami Herald
The Rev. Dr. Franklyn Richardson longs for the old days, when all it took was Sunday sermons by African-American ministers to fire up their flocks to get registered and vote in local, state and federal elections.
Hunting for elephants, unleashing political tsunamis
By Myriam Marquez
Miami Herald
The rain in Spain falls mainly in the plain.
What's Spanish for 'Gov. Goofball'?
By Daniel Ruth
Tampa Bay Times
It's fair to say that should Mitt Romney win the presidency, the prospects of Gov. Rick Scott being named ambassador to Spain are somewhere between hapless duffer Charles Barkley winning the U.S. Open and Unabomber Ted Kaczynski being granted parole.
U.S. Rep. Allen West willing to 'talk about raising taxes' if government ever is 'right-sized'
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation, raised eyebrows last week when he told constituents it might be OK to "talk about raising taxes" at some point in the future if Congress slashed spending and "right-sized the federal government" beforehand.
Earmarked funds amount to abuse of public trust
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
Repairing a golf course in Orlando wasn't exactly what the U.S. Department of Education had in mind in 2010-11 when it sent $867,000 in federal stimulus money to Florida for a program run by Florida A&M University for "targeted student assistance."
POLITICAL
RACES
Marco Rubio, Rob Portman offer splashy, safe options for Romney as VP candidates
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Marco Rubio isn't the only rookie Republican senator from a swing state to generate considerable vice presidential buzz as Mitt Romney looks for a running mate.
Polls Aside, Florida Vote Will Be Close
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Lakeland Ledger
Mitt Romney leads the presidential race in Florida.
Sen. Bill Nelson's cautious approach comes with heavy emphasis on populist issues
By Alex Leary
Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times Tallahassee Bureau
The world’s greatest deliberative body faces monumental decisions on issues ranging from crushing debt to nukes in Iran. But U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson is more likely to be seen fighting monster snakes.
Changes create districts that look ripe for Democrats, Hispanic candidates
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
Call it the curse of political gerrymandering: While Central Florida's urban core has shifted Democratic and Hispanic in the last decade, the region's representation in Tallahassee remained overwhelming Republican and white.
Amid redistricting, many former Florida lawmakers seek return to office
By Steve Bousquet
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
A lot of former Florida lawmakers want their old jobs back.
Where are Kids on the Campaign Trail?
By Stephanie Carroll Carson
Public News Service Florida
Advocates for children in Florida say the youngest Americans are being ignored so far in the presidential campaigns, and they're hoping that changes before November.
Apathy is the enemy of electorate
By Stephen Goldstein
South Florida Sun Sentinel
Apathy is the mother of all extremism. When good, well-intentioned people sit on the sidelines — watching politics as though it were a spectator sport or gullibly believing everything they hear — bad things happen to all of us, everywhere.
Washington lobbyists, trade groups scaling back on Tampa convention
By Anna Palmer
Politico
Republicans aren't living up to their moniker — the Grand Old Party — at this summer's national convention.
When Political Conventions Mattered
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Voices
Do you remember the suspense, the euphoria of victory and the loneliness of defeat that can be found only in a hard-fought floor fight at a presidential nominating convention?
ENVIRONMENT
AND ENERGY
Green Slime Outbreak on Florida Waterway
By Stephanie Carroll Carson
Public News Service Florida
This Memorial Day weekend, red, white and blue weren't the only colors visible on Florida waterways.
Second company plans to drill between Cuba and Keys after first test well was dry
By Eric Staats
Naples Daily News
A Spanish company's search for oil off the northern coast of Cuba has come up empty after raising concerns about the potential of an oil spill reaching Florida shores, but another exploratory well is in the works.
Progress Energy's Levy County nuclear project carries on despite setbacks
By Ivan Penn
Tampa Bay Times
Arguably, Progress Energy has a gambling problem.
Scott ignores value of proper planning
Editorial
Tampa Tribune
Gov. Rick Scott's planning decisions invariably show he is a relative newcomer to the state.
LGBT
Marriage issue looms in Florida vote for president
By Michael Peltier
News Service of Florida
With debate and votes taking place around the state and polls showing a growing acceptance, the issue of same-sex marriage and domestic partner rights will likely be among a host of second tier issues that could determine which presidential candidate takes the state.
Polls on gay marriage not yet reflected in votes
By David Crary
Associated Press
Poll after poll shows public support for same-sex marriage steadily increasing, to the point where it's now a majority viewpoint.
Gay students graduate openly at U.S. military academies after repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell'
By Brian Witte
Associated Press
Gay students at America's military service academies are wrapping up the first year when they no longer had to hide their sexual orientation, benefiting from the end of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy that used to bar them from seemingly ordinary activities like taking their partners openly to graduation events.
EDUCATION
Education commissioner addresses FCAT concerns in black community
By Jeff Kunerth
Orlando Sentinel
Florida Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson addressed members of an Orlando black church, a gathering of black clergy, and an "emergency town hall" at Evans High School Sunday in response to a drastic drop in FCAT scores.
Give the FCAT an F
By Donna Koehn
Tampa Tribune
Kick the FCAT to the curb. Do it with malice, and break all the No. 2 pencils for good measure.
College-readiness test yet another challenge for Florida students
By Erica Rodriguez
Orlando Sentinel
Thousands of high-school students across Florida are having to take a new state-mandated test to gauge how ready they are for college classes regardless of whether they plan to pursue higher education.
Hail to our newest campus: Useless State
By Carl Hiaasen
Miami Herald
At a time when Florida’s 11 state universities are financially gasping, the Legislature and Gov. Rick Scott are throwing $50 million away on a whimsical new school that might as well be called Useless State.
Plans to create 12th state university could be in trouble
By Sascha Cordner
WFSU Tallahassee
A few wrenches have been thrown into the plan to create Florida’s 12th state university.
JOBS,
BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
Florida grabs a chunk of foreclosure settlement money for state budget
By Toluse Olorunnipa
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Out of $334 million in cash payments sent to Florida in a multibillion dollar mortgage settlement with major banks, more than $33 million will help bolster the state's budget.
Citizens has $19.5 billion after six storm-free seasons
By Charles Elmore
Palm Beach Post
Supporters of uncapped rates for new Citizens insurance customers have complained about the "hyperventilating" media coverage the plan has received, but insist such moves are necessary to protect Floridians from something really bad – assessments.
Construction Projects in Jeopardy
By Whitney Ray
Capitol News Service
A stalemate in Washington could bring construction in Florida grinding to a halt.
Still reckless after all these years
Editorial
Miami Herald
Last week brought some encouraging news about the nation’s banking industry: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said bank earnings in the first quarter rose to the highest level in nearly five years and the number of troubled banks fell for the fourth consecutive quarter.
HEALTH
AND SENIORS
Counties, state making progress over Medicaid billing problem; lawsuit still looms
By Tia Mitchell
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
County officials across Florida say they appreciate a new level of openness with the state regarding a long-running dispute about unpaid Medicaid bills.
Planned Parenthood's bold voice shifts fight for women
By Lona O'Connor
Palm Beach Post
Faced with what critics call a war on women, Planned Parenthood is launching its own tactical weapon.
State's new surgeon general still finds refuge in Ocala
By Vishal Persaud
Ocala Star-Banner
Florida's new surgeon general is a globe-trotting Army brat who spent time in exotic locales like Cambodia and Hawaii, has studied at Princeton and the University of Virginia and has practiced medicine from one end of Florida to the other.
More doctors avoid jury trials, require arbitration agreement
By Jane Musgrave
Palm Beach Post
A couple of steroid injections to ease the pain of an aching shoulder nearly killed suburban Lake Worth resident Stuart Goldberg.
Fl State Hospital Workers Fired for Improper Care of Pregnant Woman
By Ryan Benk
WFSU Tallahassee
As the investigation continues into the alleged mishandling of a pregnant mental patient at the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee, at least two hospital employees have been fired, with more action expected.
JUSTICE
AND THE COURTS
Witnesses in Trayvon Martin case contradict, change their stories
By Frances Robles
Miami Herald
The fight between George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin began with two people huffing and puffing in the dark, and then a brief exchange of bitter words.
Targeting America's "Stand Your Ground" Laws
By Adam Weinstein
Mother Jones
Nearly three months after the death of Florida teen Trayvon Martin put the spotlight on "stand your ground," a new national organization is pressing thousands of lawmakers across the country to "reform or repeal" laws that sanction the controversial self-defense doctrine.
When the state kills the innocent
By Robyn E. Blumner
Tampa Bay Times
If you're reading this in a comfortable, middle-class home, what happened to
Carlos DeLuna almost certainly could never happen to you.
