Daily Clips for November 1, 2010

PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS Terry Jones pops up in political video By Chad Smith Gainesville Sun Progress Florida, a nonprofit organization pushing “progressive values,” has a message for the state’s voters: Conservative Floridians from Ann Coulter to Katherine Harris will be voting come Tuesday, and they don’t want you to. FEATURED STORIES Governor's election will be a watershed for Florida By Jeff Ostrowski Palm Beach Post Related: Scott gets shout-out from Jeb Bush; Sink bonds with teachers The governor's race — which promises to be the closest in years — is shaping up as a referendum on just how conservative Floridians want their state government to be. Razor-close governor's race triggers fear of recount, memories of 2000 By Lee Logan and Steve Bousquet St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Related: Governor, Senate rivals rally the faithful in a sprint for votes Like most Florida election officials, Pasco County Supervisor Of Elections Brian Corley dreads a close and confusing vote. So he'll seek help from a higher power Tuesday. In Florida, a wild election ride nobody envisioned By Adam C. Smith St. Petersburg Times Related: Marco Rubio holds 'commanding' lead in U.S. Senate race Look what you've wrought, Charlie Crist. Elections 2010: Who rose, who stumbled and who's likely to win in Florida races By Jim Stratton Orlando Sentinel After more than a year of politicking, Florida's nasty, brutish and long campaign season comes to a close Tuesday, as voters select a new roster of leaders in Tallahassee and Washington, D.C. High stakes in Florida vote By Gary Fineout Sarasota Herald-Tribune Florida's bitter, expensive and wild election season will finally lurch to a close on Tuesday. End state's political gerrymandering By Brad Ashwell Ocala Star-Banner Election Day is near, and competition is in the air, or so it seems. Blocking the facts: Congress avoids truth on spill By Stephen Goldstein South Florida Sun-Sentinel Truth: It's as liberating as the Book of John says it is: "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." EDITORIAL CARTOON OF THE WEEK By Chan Lowe South Florida Sun-Sentinel Artist’s commentary: A Florida Halloween horror FLORIDA POLITICS In political twist, Sen. George LeMieux sets groundwork for 2012 By Alex Leary St. Petersburg Times All eyes will be on Florida's new U.S. senator the day after Tuesday's election. But at a Marriott in Palm Beach Gardens, the man currently occupying the office will be seeking some attention of his own. Public Service Commission gives another reason to shudder Editorial Orlando Sentinel In July, we declared credibility at the state's Public Service Commission dead. Court to public: Shut up Editorial Pensacola News Journal That's the message from the Florida Supreme Court in refusing to hear an appeal of a case from Pensacola about the rights of Floridians to be heard by public boards on public issues under the state's Sunshine Law. POLITICAL RACES Money flows as campaigns near end By Lee Logan, Mary Ellen Klas, Alex Leary, Steve Bousquet, Beth Reinhard and Aaron Sharockman St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Staff Writers Related: PolitiFact Florida examines the 2010 campaign Republican Rick Scott gave his campaign another $11.6 million in the final 12 days, bringing his total personal spending to more than $73 million and making this far and away the most expensive governor's race in history. Scott-Sink race is a major test of voters' character By Steve Bousquet St. Petersburg Times Related: Alex Sink and Bill McBride have adjusted to new roles in governor's race Related editorial: Don't let anger with D.C. cloud judgment on what's right for Florida For Florida voters, it's gut-check time. Last-Minute Sprint to Rally the Faithful By Gary Fineout New York Times Rick Scott and Alex Sink sprinted across the state. Alex Sink fights to make history in a tough political environment By Jim Ash Florida Capital News Related: Rick Scott, for better or worse, is defined by business background Four years ago, when a U.S. Senator from Illinois was making history by becoming the nation's first African-American president, Alex Sink was launching her political career in Florida, running statewide for chief financial officer. Rick Scott defends Jennifer Carroll in story about faked documents used in program application By Jeremy Cox Florida Times-Union Responding to a news story suggesting that altered documents helped give a boost to Jennifer Carroll’s consulting firm, Republican Rick Scott said Saturday he was standing by his running mate. State workers have stake in governor's race By Bill Cotterell Florida Capital News Rick Scott cites an example from his days running hospitals, when asked about reducing the size of Florida's government workforce and improving efficiency. Florida's frenzied Senate race gets even stranger as Election Day nears By Beth Reinhard, Michael Van Sickler and Aaron Sharockman St. Petersburg Times Only two people in the world know for sure whether former President Bill Clinton urged Democratic Senate candidate Kendrick Meek to bow out of the race, and both of them are denying it. Kendrick Meek both admired, doubted By Beth Reinhard Miami Herald Related AP story: Bill Clinton, Kendrick Meek to campaign together Monday Related AP story: Meek begins 24 hours of nonstop campaigning At Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist Church in downtrodden Liberty City, where he was baptized, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate was summoned to the altar. Independent voters leaning toward GOP in Cabinet races, poll shows By Paul Flemming Florida Capital News A poll released Saturday shows Republicans verging on a sweep of three open Cabinet seats. Pam Bondi, Dan Gelber criss-cross state in final days of attorney general race By Kathleen Haughney News Service of Florida The final days of campaigning for former Hillsborough prosecutor Pam Bondi and state Sen. Dan Gelber to be the next attorney general likely won?t be very polite. "The Buzz" House Race Rankings: The Final Frontier By Louis Jacobson St. Petersburg Times For the last time this election cycle, the Times' political blog the Buzz is ranking the six U.S. House seats in Florida that are most vulnerable to a party switch. Alan Grayson, Suzanne Kosmas fight off GOP By Carol E. Lee Politico Rep. Alan Grayson walked onto a stage for the final debate of his reelection campaign. Voters receive mystery – and illegal – mailer By Mark Schlueb Orlando Sentinel With just days left before the election, an illegal mailer has hit voters' mailboxes in the 8th Congressional District — and all candidates are denying responsibility for the mystery ad. Rivera, Garcia forage for votes By Patricia Mazzei Miami Herald More than 100 miles from their homes, Republican David Rivera and Democrat Joe Garcia waded for votes over the weekend in what seems like an unlikely locale for a Miami congressional election: the annual, ``world famous'' swamp buggy races in Naples. Klein-West race down to wire By Amy Sherman and Lesley Clark Miami Herald Democrat incumbent Rep. Ron Klein has run television ads accusing his Republican opponent of harboring a “sinister side,” of being “too extreme, too dangerous.” And he has highlighted Allen West's personal financial troubles, including a string of liens from his homeowners association. Who's giving tons of cash to candidates? By Aaron Deslatte Orlando Sentinel When Republican Rick Scott crashed the party and wrested the gubernatorial nomination away from the establishment-preferred candidate, the wealthy former health-care titan boasted that he owed special interests no favors and "Tallahassee dealmakers were crying in their cocktails." Millions of ‘Super PAC’ dollars flow through Tampa and into races nationwide By Luke Johnson Florida Independent “What the heck is an earmark?” asks a woman to herself in a coffee shop reading the right-leaning Las Vegas Review-Journal in an ad created by the Ending Spending Fund. Democrats hope to limit losses in campaign's last hours By The Associated Press Tampa Tribune Bracing for Monday's final burst of campaigning, President Barack Obama implored voters to remember that GOP policies failed to prevent the recession, while top Republicans said the public will deliver a harsh verdict on his stewardship of an anemic recovery. Student vote may be less of a factor By Nathan Crabbe Gainesville Sun University of Florida junior Jay Shooster voted for the first time in the 2008 presidential election, enthusiastically casting his ballot for Barack Obama. How a Republican landslide would look Wednesday morning By Howard Troxler St. Petersburg Times Sheer speculation for argument purposes only. No wagering. Watch the watchers on 'vote fraud' Editorial St. Petersburg Times Beyond ongoing problems with absentee ballots, voter fraud is not a serious problem. BALLOT INITIATIVES Amendments appear doomed come Election Day, poll shows By Marc Caputo Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau Every major constitutional amendment on the ballot looks doomed and so do each of the three Democrats running for Florida's Cabinet, according to a new poll of likely Florida voters. Millions of dollars muddle message on Amendment 4 By Andres Viglucci and Becky Bowers St. Petersburg Times Pop quiz: What is a comprehensive land use plan? 'Hometown' battle alters amendment landscape By Derek Catron Daytona Beach News-Journal For seven years, supporters and critics alike have been saying Florida Hometown Democracy's proposed constitutional amendment would bring sweeping changes to growth-management laws in the state. Florida Amendment 8 vote brings last minute surprise By Thomas Bradwell The Examiner The St. Petersburg Times reported on Friday that in a stunning admission, one of the sponsors of Amendment 8 conceded that if Amendment 8 fails at the ballot on Tuesday, "we will possibly look at other statutory fixes." Dirty closing tactics from groups fighting Amendments 5 and 6? By Abel Harding Florida Times-Union Fair Districts Florida, the group behind Amendments 5 and 6, said opponents of the effort, which would require legislative and congressional districts to be drawn "fairly," engaged in last-minute trickery. Time to put a stop to gerrymandering By Rosalie Bandyopadhyay Gainesville Sun Out of 420 elections for the Florida Legislature over the past six years, only three incumbents have been defeated. Letting the voters be heard Editorial St. Petersburg Times The best opportunity to bring fundamental change to Tallahassee and Washington is in a pair of constitutional amendments, not in a race for a particular office. By Jeff Parker Florida Today ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY Halliburton Rejects Blame for BP Cement Job By John M. Broder New York Times Halliburton, whose failed cement job on the BP well in the Gulf of Mexico was identified as a contributing factor to the deadly blowout by a presidential investigative panel on Thursday, is defending its work and assigning the blame for the accident to BP. Feinberg takes questions from oil spill task force, announces additional improvements to claims process By Travis Pillow Florida Independent Speaking before Florida’s Oil Spill Economic Recovery Task Force Thursday, oil spill claims administrator Kenneth Feinberg faced lingering questions about the “unknown future” of the oil spill claims process as it prepares to enter its next stage. LGBT Gay rights activists push for discrimination ban The Associated Press Florida Today Jacksonville gay rights activists are meeting with business leaders to get their support for a measure that would ban discrimination based on sexual preference. Generation gap divides troops on gays in military By Kristin M. Hall and Tom Breen The Associated Press If you want to know what a member of the armed forces thinks about repealing "don't ask, don't tell," you could start by asking how old they are. EDUCATION Scott, Sink education plans differ greatly By Dave Weber Orlando Sentinel The direction of public education in Florida could hinge on Tuesday's election of a new governor, who will have wide influence on decisions affecting the schools. Election Day could bring big change to South Florida schools By Michael Mayo South Florida Sun-Sentinel These are uncertain times for South Florida public schools, with voters about to decide on a revision of the class-size amendment and a new governor. Concerns raised over scholarship program By Abel Harding and Paul Pinkham Florida Times-Union If the goal of Florida's Corporate Income Tax Credit Scholarship program is simply to reduce state spending on public education, it's graded an A. AP classes save families money, but for taxpayers the jury is out By Ron Matus St. Petersburg Times For a decade, Florida has gone gangbusters with Advanced Placement classes, pouring students and money into the college-caliber, high school courses that some say are a good way to prepare "average" students for higher education. JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY Home values down, but taxes going up By John McCarthy Florida Today The overall taxable value of Brevard County dropped by 12 percent this past year, the third consecutive decline. HEALTH AND SENIORS Florida could get $39 million to help with state employee health insurance costs By Christine Jordan Sexton Florida Tribune Florida has been approved to participate in a program that could lower its state employee health insurance costs by nearly $40 million in the next two years but is made possible by the federal health care overhaul legislative leaders have decried as unconstitutional. Florida loses sight of caring for its children By James P. McHale St. Petersburg Times Just last month, Pinellas County hosted a large rally for the Florida Children's Movement, a bipartisan group of parents, teachers, military leaders, business leaders and other concerned citizens fed up with Florida's horrific national standing in how we care for our children. Surgery 'complication?' Here's an option By John Koenig Health News Florida Andrew Kagan, the son of a Fort Myers orthopedic surgeon, remembers a malpractice case several years ago against one of his father’s partners. CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES With Images Of Civil Rights, Blacks Urged To Vote The Associated Press NPR On the Sunday before Election Day, preachers told black churchgoers across the country to get out and vote — and defy predictions that they'll be complacent or uninterested in a year that President Barack Obama isn't on the ballot. Poll: Florida Latino Voters Rally to Polls By Anti-Immigration Stands By Gina Presson Public News Service Florida New polls show Latino voters in Florida and across the country are "more enthusiastic" about going to the polls Tuesday, in part rallied by anti-immigration stands by candidates like Rick Scott and Marco Rubio. Tea Party racism? By Ken Warren Florida Today A new report from the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights says there are solid links between tea party factions and acknowledged hate groups. JUSTICE AND THE COURTS Trip to see furnishings for 'Taj Mahal' was quashed By Lucy Morgan St. Petersburg Times Three years ago, when Paul M. Hawkes was chairman of the building committee for the courthouse now called the "Taj Mahal," he checked into buying more than $1 million in furniture for the building. Scott's ill-advised prison plan By Tiffany L. Thagard Ocala Star-Banner With the state's unemployment rate at an all-time high, how is Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Scott's plan beneficial? Scott Rothstein scandal: One year later By Jon Burstein and Paula McMahon South Florida Sun-Sentinel Fallout from the largest fraud in South Florida history continues after the dark secret behind Scott Rothstein's success was revealed a year ago this week.