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Progress Florida -- Progressive Solutions for Florida

Friday, March 26, 2010

Daily Clips for March 26, 2010

FEATURED STORIES

Democrats fight Republican health care challenges

By Marc Caputo

St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau

Related column: Bill McCollum has a healthy interest in our ... votes

Days after Florida Republicans assaulted President Barack Obama's health care reforms, the state's Democrats launched a political counter-attack Thursday aimed squarely at the GOP's front-runner for governor: Attorney General Bill McCollum.


Supporters rally for education funding

By Iricka Berlinger

Tallahassee Democrat

Related column: SB 6 has many questions and offers few answers

Related column: This is not a great time to be a schoolteacher

When parents feel as though someone is messing with their children, they are going to do something about it.


Class-size law likely to go back to voters

By Aaron Deslatte and Leslie Postal

Orlando Sentinel

The Florida Senate, which for years has resisted conservatives' push to weaken Florida's 2002 class-size amendment, voted Thursday to ask voters to take a second look at the costly mandate this fall.


Florida's $68.6 billion budget headed for Senate floor vote next week

The Associated Press

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

A Senate committee has approved a $68.6 billion state budget bill that includes a contingency plan if Congress sends more Medicaid dollars Florida's way.


Crist releases tax returns, challenges Rubio to follow suit

By Alex Leary

St. Petersburg Times

Gov. Charlie Crist on Thursday released tax returns going back to 2000 and challenged rival Marco Rubio to do the same, another salvo in their escalating U.S. Senate race.


For Rubio and Corcoran, 'selfless' service really paid off

Editorial

St. Petersburg Times

Let's give credit where credit is due.

BEST OF THE BLOGS

DWS: In rush to file political suit, McCollum forgot the law

By Joy Reid

The Reid Report

Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz just wrapped up a DNC conference call with reporters in which she leveled the charge, now familiar from various editorial boards, that Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum's lawsuit to undo healthcare reform is pure political theater and a waste of taxpayer money.


McCollum Rolls Dice On Medicare & Social Security

By Daniel Tilson

Progress Florida

Beware, Seniors: Medicare and Social Security are in danger of being declared unconstitutional if Florida's Republican Attorney General Bill McCollum, has his way.


Bill McCollum Wants To Deny 4 Million Floridians Health Insurance

By Ray Seaman

Progress Florida

Attorney General and Republican candidate for Governor Bill McCollum, panderer:


Crist and Rubio Duke It Out

By Ron Mills

Change in Tallahassee

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has launched the first television ad of his now-uphill Senate primary race against former state House speaker Marco Rubio, a direct attack on the legislator that seeks to use his national celebrity against him.


On citizens being part of the "solution" to Florida's development disaster

By Gimleteye

Eye on Miami

Yesterday I responded to "Brickell Avenue" on the futility of citizens being "part of the solution" to a bankrupt, dysfunctional, and ethically corrupt Growth Machine whose components, from Wall Street, to downtown lobbyists, from mortgage pools to local county commissioners feeding at the developers' trough-- in other words, from sea to shining sea-- pushed the US economy into a time release depression.

LEGISLATIVE SESSION

Senate panel approves $70 billion budget that includes federal stimulus

By Steve Bousquet

St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau

The Senate Ways and Means Committee approved a nearly $70 billion budget Thursday after fortifying it with $880 million more in hoped-for federal stimulus money from Washington.


Tax break for yacht buyers included in Legislative stimulus package

By Lee Logan

St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau

In a year when meals for the elderly, Alzheimer's programs and education funding is facing budget cuts, lawmakers pushing a tax break for yacht buyers had some explaining to do Thursday.


Revised version of PSC reform bill emerges in the state House

By Mary Ellen Klas

St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau

A House committee gave approval Thursday to a sweeping bill to reform the Public Service Commission, but only after revising it in response to a veto threat from the governor and a harsh rebuke from the chairwoman of the utility board.


Bills Give Businesses Lawsuit Protection from Injury Accident Suits

By Bill Kaczor

The Associated Press

Two Senate-passed bills would make it harder to win lawsuits against businesses for "slip-and-fall" accidents and for injuries children suffer in risky activities such as theme park or carnival rides, go-cart racing, bungee jumping and horseback riding.

POLITICAL RACES

Sink: Small businesses key to economic health

By Luisa Yanez

Miami Herald

Florida gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink visited a popular Hialeah bargain store on Thursday to pitch her plan to revive Florida's economy by helping small businesses expand and create new jobs.


Rubio and Crist Set to Debate on Sunday

Staff Report

WCTV News Tallahassee

"It really has been a remarkably fierce contest when you consider the primary isn't until August.


Meek touts centrist credentials

By Kendrick Meek

Panama City News Herald

Reading Pat Rice's column "Could Crist Declare His Independence?" (March 7) I couldn't help but laugh at Pat's characterization that I have positioned myself "somewhere to the left of Obama."


Crist says Beltway moving forward in campaign-style speech

By Larry Hannan

Florida Times-Union

Charlie Crist has been popular for much of his political career.

BALLOT INITIATIVES

Florida Senate approves revote on constitutional amendment that limits class size

By Cristina Silva

St. Petersburg Times

Related: Kendrick Meek slams Senate's class-size vote

The Florida Senate voted to put class-size limits back on the ballot Thursday, while across the Capitol, security guards rushed to protect lawmakers from a hostile crowd after House Republicans rammed through a bill that would tie teacher pay to test scores.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

10 Senate Democrats oppose climate bill if it expands coastal drilling

By Renee Schoof

Miami Herald

Ten Senate Democrats from coastal states warned in a letter released Thursday that they won't support a climate and energy bill if it permits a big expansion of drilling for offshore oil and natural gas.


Area mayors agree: Cities must cooperate to avoid water crisis

By Bob Koslow

Daytona Beach News-Journal

Having enough water at reasonable rates and economic development to provide quality jobs emerged as the priorities for the six mayors of west Volusia County gathered Thursday night at Stetson University.

LGBT

No anonymous complaints in 'don't ask, don't tell'

By Gregg Zoroya

USA Today

No longer will anonymous members of the military or public be able to make complaints about the sexuality of gay, lesbian or bisexual servicemembers, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said.


Bill no longer stops tax credit from going to films with 'nontraditional family values'

By Michael C. Bender

Palm Beach Post

An Orlando Republican on Thursday backed away from his definition of "family-friendly" in Florida after the proposal was derided as "discriminatory" and faced the glare of a national spotlight.

EDUCATION

Area residents join rally at Capitol against cuts to public education

By Ron Word

Gainesville Sun

Hundreds of parents, teachers and other educators gathered on the steps of the Florida Capitol Thursday, chanting "No More Cuts" and "We'll Remember in November," as they held their annual Rally in Tally to protest budget cuts to public schools.


Overhaul of high school pushes speedy changes

By Tiffany Lankes

Sarasota Herald-Tribune

A new education law headed for passage will fundamentally change Florida high schools by making it more difficult for students to graduate.


Proposed changes to Bright Futures concern many

By Robert Samuels and Cristina Silva

St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau

Raising four kids with college-sized ambitions, truck driver Osse Eugene's financial plan has long relied on the prospects of Bright Futures scholarships.


Jeb Bush: Bill Will Make Teaching "Truly a Profession"

By Scott Finn

WUSF Public Radio Tampa

Former Gov. Jeb Bush is praising a controversial bill that would eliminate teacher tenure and base future raises on student performance.


'Morning Joe' in Tampa pushing 'educational entrepreneurs'

By Sherri Ackerman

Tampa Tribune

Lennard High senior James Wormack has his own ideas about what will boost graduation rates in Hillsborough County schools.


No need to rush proposals to change teacher pay plan

By Ron Littlepage

Florida Times-Union

Here's the major problem with the Republican-controlled Legislature's latest plans for Florida's public schools.


Harming students

Editorial

Sarasota Herald-Tribune

The Florida Senate rashly passed a bill Wednesday that threatens to harm education.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Is state denying benefits to jobless who qualify?

By Jim Stratton

Orlando Sentinel

At first, Bonnie Lewis thought her boss was joking.


NASA watchdog projects last shuttle flight in January

By Bart Jansen

Tallahassee Democrat

The last space shuttle flight is expected in January 2011, a few months later than previously announced, NASA's inspector general reported Thursday.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

Sen. Gelber fails in attempt to stop McCollum from filing suit against health-care plan

By Bill Cotterell

Tallahassee Democrat

A Democratic candidate for attorney general failed today in an attempt to stop Attorney General Bill McCollum from suing the federal government over the new national health-care program.


Dems seek investigation of AG McCollum health care lawsuit

By Dara Kam

Palm Beach Post

House and Senate Democratic leaders want the state auditor general to investigate Attorney General Bill McCollum after he filed a lawsuit challenging the federal health care reforms approved by Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama.


GOP political theatrics lively in Tallahassee

By Paul Flemming

Tallahassee Democrat

Attorney General Bill McCollum filed suit in federal court Tuesday, challenging the constitutionality of health care legislation signed into law by President Obama a couple of minutes before.


FL Medicaid too lenient, report says

By Jim Saunders

Health News Florida

Florida Medicaid's fines for fraud and abuse have been so low --- and so often waived --- that they might not be a deterrent to wrongdoing, a new state report says. Also, it warns that officials need to set a limit on how much of state-paid premiums HMOs can keep for themselves.


Lawmakers' objections stall proposal to give property assessment break to Acreage residents over cancer probe

By Jason Schultz and Michael C. Bender

Palm Beach Post

After running into flak from fellow lawmakers, state Rep. Kevin Rader today halted his plan to give a property tax break to Acreage residents amid the community's pediatric brain cancer cluster investigation.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

Florida won't create innocence commission - yet

By Lisa Marzilli

WMNF Community Radio Tampa

Back in December, Former American Bar Association President and Tallahassee attorney Sandy D'Alemberte filed a petition with the Florida Supreme Court asking it to establish a commission to address the numerous cases of wrongful conviction that plague the state.

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