Daily Clips for August 5, 2010

FEATURED STORIES Effects from gulf oil spill far from over, experts say By Craig Pittman St. Petersburg Times The federal government — which has had to repeatedly revise its estimate about how much oil has gushed into the gulf from the Deepwater Horizon disaster — announced Wednesday that "the vast majority" of the oil appears to be gone. Meek tours state touting himself as the real Dem in Senate race By William March Tampa Tribune His campaign struggling under attacks from billionaire Jeff Greene, Kendrick Meek Wednesday began a 10-day, "Real Dem Express" bus tour to re-establish himself as the Democrats' choice in the U.S. Senate race. State, McCollum abandon legal defense of taxpayer matching money for candidates By John Frank St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Florida will not appeal a court ruling that struck a key provision of the state's campaign finance law. Lawsuit trail hints at troubles in Rick Scott's current health care business By Marc Caputo St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Just six days before Rick Scott announced his bid for governor, he was deposed in a case that alleged his health care company, Solantic, broke Florida law by filing false medical licensing information with the state. State to school leaders: FCAT results accurate By Leslie Postal Orlando Sentinel The 2010 FCAT was "high-quality" and its results are accurate, Education Commissioner Eric Smith said today in a conference call with Florida school superintendents. FLORIDA POLITICS Another oil special session on horizon? By Sara Kennedy Bradenton Herald Local lawmakers say there’s still a chance that they will call a second special legislative session in September to address Gulf oil spill issues. Jobless benefits could be on table for special legislative session By Brandon Larrabee Florida Times-Union An executive order from Gov. Charlie Crist will ensure that out-of-work Floridians will continue receiving unemployment benefits under a federal extension that passed last month, but the topic might not be off the table for the Legislature. POLITICAL RACES Sink running even with both Scott and McCollum By Luke Johnson Florida Independent The race for Florida governor remains very close between Florida CFO Alex Sink (D) and either former health care executive Rick Scott (R) or Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum (R), according to a poll released Wednesday by Rasmussen Reports. Democratic Senate hopeful Greene explains Cuba trip The Associated Press Tampa Tribune First Democratic Senate candidate Jeff Greene said he'd never been to Cuba. Then the billionaire businessman said he went there on a mission trip with a visa from the Jewish Federation. Jeff Greene's Cuba trip ... business or pleasure? By Aaron Sharockman St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Politifact Jeff Greene says one of his political idols was the first U.S. senator he remembers while growing up in Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy. Trailing in polls, Kendrick Meek chases a U.S. Senate victory in a bus tour of Florida By Adam Smith St. Petersburg Times Kendrick Meek likens his U. S. Senate primary to David against Goliath, but the Democratic underdog wields a weapon that covers more ground than a slingshot: a four-wheel motor coach with his smiling face plastered across the side. Kendrick Meek seeks statewide momentum, starting in Orlando By Jim Stratton Orlando Sentinel Hoping to build badly needed momentum heading into the Aug. 24 Democratic primary for Senate, Kendrick Meek kicks off a 10-day bus tour today with appearances in Orlando, Sanford, Daytona Beach and Jacksonville. Kottkamp backs Rubio, not Crist in Senate race The Associated Press Tampa Tribune Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp is endorsing Republican Marco Rubio for Senate over his boss, Gov. Charlie Crist. Crist blames ad makers for use of Talking Heads song By Elaine Silvestrini Tampa Tribune Charlie Crist is blaming the producers for a campaign ad that used a song without permission. Once more, GOP candidates for governor to debate By Jeremy Wallace Sarasota Herald-Tribune The second - at this point, final -- debate between the two Republican candidates vying to become Florida's next governor takes place tonight in Tampa. McCollum speaks to business crowd By Derek Catron Daytona Beach News-Journal Trailing in the polls and at the bank with just three weeks left in the campaign, Bill McCollum came to Daytona Beach on Tuesday to appeal to the people who are his best hope of winning the Republican primary for governor. Dockery turns to Facebook to blast McCollum over CSX contribution By Abel Harding Florida Times-Union State Sen. Paula Dockery has blasted GOP Gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum on her Facebook page for accepting $25,000 in contributions from CSX Corp. GOP foe sues Grayson over DVD By Tim Alberta Politico Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson's decision to mail thousands of DVDs – which essentially serve as a legislative highlight reel of his first term – to his Orlando-area constituents sparked a backlash late last week when those constituents realized that $73,000 of their tax dollars paid for it. A pre-election reminder of how the Legislature voted By Howard Troxler St. Petersburg Times Between now and the November election, let's revisit some of the key votes taken by our Legislature over the past two years and see how our Tampa Bay-area lawmakers voted. BALLOT INITIATIVES Can Florida Hometown Democracy Tame Out Of Control Commissioners? By Daniel Tilson The Examiner Florida deserves some relief after the latest in an almost comical - if it wasn't so tragic - flood of municipal commissioners gone bad. ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY Oil spill lessons include benefit of dispersants, Florida DEP chief says By Bruce Ritchie FloridaEnvironments.com Related: Sole says leaving DEP was a “tough choice” The use of chemical dispersants against the oil spill was a benefit to Florida with no drawbacks, Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole told a House work group on Wednesday. Citizens express concern over dispersants at town hall meeting listen By Matthew Cimitile WMNF Community Radio Tampa The Obama administration’s person in charge of Gulf Coast restoration visited St. Petersburg last night to receive citizens’ input. Property Firm That Lost Value Sues Halliburton By Robbie Whelan Wall Street Journal St. Joe Co., a large Florida real-estate developer that owns resorts on the Gulf of Mexico, filed suit against oil-services company Halliburton Co., seeking more than $1 billion in damages related to the Deepwater Horizon oil-rig explosion and subsequent oil spill. Crist's Big Sugar deal shrinks yet again By Curtis Morgan Miami Herald For a third time, Gov. Charlie's Crist's bid to buy sugar farms for Everglades restoration is being downsized. Big Oil's politics rule Senate on energy Editorial Miami Herald Here are a couple of statistics whose connection may not be immediately apparent. LGBT Judge rejects California’s ban on gay marriage By Robert Barnes and Sandhya Somashekhar The Washington Post A federal judge in California ruled Wednesday that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage violates the constitutional right to equal protection, the first step in a legal struggle that is widely expected to end at the Supreme Court. EDUCATION Experts confirm disputed FCAT results accurate The Associated Press Palm Beach Post Two independent experts have confirmed the accuracy of Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test results that were disputed by some school districts. JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY Stimulus Funds Help Move Floridians from Welfare to the Workplace By Gina Presson Public News Service Florida The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has pumped millions of dollars into Florida for jobs programs, but that well is scheduled to run dry at the end of September. Florida to invest stimulus cash in clean-tech companies By Richard Burnett Orlando Sentinel Fueled by federal stimulus money, Florida is looking to pour millions of dollars into businesses that "go green" in a major way – but there are some strings attached to it. HEALTH AND SENIORS Health talks leave out patients By Nancy McVicar Health News Florida Sen. Mike Haridopolos kicked off a three-day "Health Care Solutions Tour" in Miami today with a slide show that hit the major Republican talking points, including warnings about the cost of "Obamacare" and the surge in the Medicaid program it will create. CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES National Association of Evangelicals calls for cancellation of Quran-burning event By Cooper Levey-Baker Florida Independent Responding to news that Gainesville’s Dove World Outreach Center — a self-described “New Testament, Charismatic, Non-Denominational Church” — is holding a public Quran-burning event on Sept. 11, the National Association of Evangelicals last Thursday issued a press release condemning the event (via The Religion World). Blame politicians for immigration problems, not babies By Paul James Palm Beach Post As if they were invasive kudzu or tilapia, children of illegal immigrants should be eradicated from our nation. The Neo-Know Nothings The Progress Report Think Progress In the heat of the fiery debate over Arizona's anti-immigrant law SB-1070, a new attack on immigrant rights is burgeoning within the Republican Party.