Daily Clips for September 9, 2010

FEATURED STORIES Sink, Scott agree to release tax returns and to debate By Mary Ellen Klas St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Scott said Wednesday he will release his income tax returns and stow away millions of his investments in a blind trust in response to a call from Democratic opponent Alex Sink to become more transparent. Tallahassee insiders align themselves with Rick Scott By Luke Johnson Florida Independent On the cusp of winning the Republican nomination for governor in Florida, Rick Scott cracked a joke on primary night alluding to powerful interests in Florida that had aligned themselves with his opponent, Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum: “In Tallahassee tonight, the deal-makers are crying in their cocktails.” Dems torn: Should they vote for Crist in hopes of defeating Rubio? By William March Tampa Tribune In this year's U.S. Senate race, Florida Democrats face a dilemma – whether to back their party's loyal standard-bearer, Kendrick Meek, or switch to Gov. Charlie Crist, who many believe has a better shot at keeping Marco Rubio out of the Senate seat. BP's report on the gulf oil spill spreads blame By Craig Pittman St. Petersburg Times BP, the company whose CEO accepted full responsibility for the environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, spent four months investigating the cause of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Civil Rights Pioneer Plans Citizen Arrest During Quran Burning By Steve Brown WUSF Public Radio Tampa Related: Quran-burning Pastor No Stranger to Controversy A Florida civil rights pioneer says he’ll try to make a citizen’s arrest on the pastor who plans to burn the Quran on Sept. 11. FLORIDA POLITICS "Road to Nowhere" lawsuit against Crist moving slowly Staff Report Florida Tribune David Byrne’s lawsuit seeking damages from Gov. Charlie Crist won’t go to trial for nearly a year. POLITICAL RACES CNN/Time Poll: Heated battle for Florida Senate By Paul Steinhauser CNN A new poll indicates that the three way-battle for Florida's open Senate seat, arguably the most fascinating Senate contest this year, is deadlocked at the top. Crist disputes Social Security, abortion rights claims in Meek ad By George Bennett Palm Beach Post Democratic Senate candidate Kendrick Meek is "off the mark" when he claims in his new TV ad that he's the only candidate against privatizing Social Security and for abortion rights, Gov. and independent Senate candidate Charlie Crist said today. Charlie Crist's Senate run may get snagged in anti-incumbent mood By Brandon Larrabee Florida Times-Union It wasn't always this difficult for Charlie Crist. Senate candidates turn positive in ads The Associated Press Bradenton Herald After months of negative campaigning, the three major U.S. Senate candidates are focusing on positive messages instead of attacking each other. Sink creates political committee to raise money By Catherine Whittenburg Tampa Tribune Related: Scott agrees to 2 statewide debates; Sink still calling for 5 Faced with an opponent who has already spent millions of his own dollars on the governor's race, Democratic candidate Alex Sink has created a political committee to raise unlimited funds on her behalf. Sink hits back at Scott over ‘lies’ about Medicare cuts By Virginia Chamlee Florida Independent Related: Sink to release five years of tax returns Since releasing a new ad defending her ties to President Obama, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink‘s office has remained defensive when responding to Rick Scott‘s so-called “attacks.” Republicans turning local and state races into a referendum on Obama By Adam C. Smith St. Petersburg Times Glance at the website for Republican Attorney General candidate Pam Bondi and you might think she's running for Congress. Boyd, Kosmas top the Buzz's post-primary House race rankings By Louis Jacobson St. Petersburg Times For the third time this election cycle, the Buzz, the Times' political blog, is ranking the six U.S. House seats in Florida that are most vulnerable to a party switch. Boyd endorsed by U.S. Chamber By Bill Cotterell Florida Capital News U.S. Rep. Allen Boyd proudly touted a re-election endorsement by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as proof of his conservative credentials Wednesday. BALLOT INITIATIVES Legislature's class-size ballot question challenged as misleading; judge to rule by Friday By Dara Kam Palm Beach Post A teachers union lawyer told a circuit judge Wednesday that a proposed class-size amendment should be thrown off the Nov. 2 ballot for the same reason that the state Supreme Court recently struck three other amendments — because the ballot language is misleading about its purpose. Teachers union challenges amendment on class size By Lee Logan St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau A proposed ballot amendment to ease Florida's class-size requirements was challenged in court Wednesday by the state's largest teachers union. Lawmakers' initiatives deserve skeptical eye Editorial Tampa Tribune If Florida voters needed another reason to be leery about constitutional amendments initiated by the Legislature, the failed Amendment 7 provides a textbook example. ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY BP report spreads blame for oil spill The Associated Press Tampa Tribune Oil giant BP PLC laid much of the blame for the rig explosion and the massive Gulf of Mexico spill on itself, other companies' workers and a complex series of failures in an internal report released Wednesday before a key piece of evidence has been analyzed. Another sign of oil spill recovery in the Gulf By Curtis Morgan Miami Herald Millions of barrels of crude spewed by BP's blown-out well have reduced deep-sea oxygen levels -- but nowhere near enough to create another of the ``dead zones'' that periodically plague the Gulf of Mexico, a federal study said Tuesday. State, feds agree to extend red snapper season because of oil spill By Bruce Ritchie FloridaEnvironments.com Florida has joined federal authorities in extending the length of the red snapper fishing season in the Gulf of Mexico, partially addressing a contentious issue from earlier this year. LGBT Arguments air in Miami-Dade gay-adoption case By Marcella McCarthy Miami Herald Vanessa Alenier's fight to raise an infant relative seized by state child welfare administrators ended up Wednesday exactly where she had hoped it wouldn't: in a Florida courtroom filled with lawyers and advocates on both sides of the state's politically charged gay-adoption law. EDUCATION About $28 million in federal education funds headed to First Coast By Topher Sanders Florida Times-Union First Coast school districts are expecting about $28 million in federal education funds to try innovative programs starting in the 2011-12 school year. JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY South Florida's wish list for stimulus funds tops $3 billion By Charles Rabin Miami Herald The wish list is enormous: From $4 million worth of fire sprinkler systems and alarm upgrades at Miami International Airport, to millions of dollars of new ramps on the Palmetto Expressway, to a new $100 million interchange on Oakland Park Boulevard west of Florida's Turnpike in Broward County. Labor Secretary in Florida to promote job growth The Associated Press Tampa Tribune U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis is planning to be in central Florida attending various events hoping to promote job growth. HEALTH AND SENIORS 1,000 join in 'Milk Party' for children By Harriet Daniels Gainesville Sun The local rally for The Children's Movement of Florida on Wednesday had the makings of a political movement. CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES Despite appeals, Dove World pastor still plans Quran burning By Chad Smith Gainesville Sun On Wednesday, after Dove World Outreach Center Pastor Terry Jones announced that he is, for now, going ahead with plans to burn at least one Quran on Sept. 11, he held a private meeting inside his church with the imam of the Islamic Society of Central Florida. JUSTICE AND THE COURTS Appeals court upholds Seminole Tribe’s sovereignty By Robert Napper Florida Independent A Florida appeals court upheld the sovereignty of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, halting litigation against the tribe in a civil wrongful death lawsuit. FDLE finds no criminal wrongdoing in FPL review By Susan Salisbury Palm Beach Post A state investigation into anonymous employee complaints about Florida Power & Light Co. has found no evidence of criminal wrong-doing.