FEATURED STORIES
Judge Hints He May Rule Against Health Law
By Kevin Sack
New York Times
A federal judge asserted on Thursday that it would be “a giant leap” for the Supreme Court to accept the Obama administration’s defense of a central provision of the new health care law, suggesting he may become the second judge to strike it down as unconstitutional.
PolitiFact's Lie of the Year: No topping 'government takeover'
By Bill Adair and Angie Drobnic Holan
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald PolitiFact
In the spring of 2009, a Republican strategist settled on a brilliant and powerful attack line for President Barack Obama's ambitious plan to overhaul America's health insurance system.
Florida gov.-elect Rick Scott gets advice from predecessors
The Associated Press
Naples Daily News
Gov. Charlie Crist, true to his populist leanings, says his successor should "listen to the people of Florida — to the criticism as well as to the praise."
A $500,000 question over track's payments
By Scott Hiaasen and Patricia Mazzei
Miami Herald
The Miami-Dade state attorney's office is investigating more than $500,000 in secret payments from the owners of the Flagler Dog Track to a company tied to Congressman-elect David Rivera, The Miami Herald has learned.
BEST OF THE BLOGS
Vouchers, the Republican's Public Option
By Jake
Rantings From Florida
As people in the last year tried to label the public option as a socialist plot, it struck me that the system the plan was most comparable too was not British health care, Canadian health care or Nazi health care, but Jeb Bush's plan for educational vouchers.
Only a strong message, not fair districts, will help Florida Democrats
By Mike Cantone
Florida Progressive Coalition
Let me be clear: as great as Fair Districts Florida’s victories are, they are not a Democratic nor Republican tool for victory – and never should be.
Get the Feds off Florida's back: states rights!
By Gimleteye
Eye on Miami
A funny thing happened on the way to the feds cracking down on Miami-Dade Transit for accounting irregularities deemed so insignificant that the county manager simply swept them under the rug.
What's That Word?
By Bobby Cramer
Bark Bark Woof Woof
Rep.-elect Allen West (R-FL) told a conservative radio talk show host that he thinks the media should be censored for leaking the WikiLeaks cables.
FLORIDA POLITICS
Fasano urges state leaders to block move to 'Taj Mahal' courthouse
By Lucy Morgan
St. Petersburg Times
The 1st District Court of Appeal should be stopped from moving into its posh new courthouse, says Sen. Mike Fasano, chairman of the committee that controls budgets for the state's court system.
Governor-elect Scott to receive transition insight today
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Capital News
Like all newly elected officials, Gov.-elect Rick Scott is getting a lot of advice about his job.
Scott will ask high-level state officials to remain on the job past inauguration
By Gary Fineout
Florida Tribune
With time running out before Governor-elect Rick Scott takes office, his transition team plans to ask many high-level state officials to remain on the job past the inauguration date of Jan. 4.
Scott team: Reports of $1 billion annual cuts to prisons ‘fantastic claims’
By Travis Pillow
Florida Independent
Gov.-elect Rick Scott has continued to draw scrutiny for his supposed goal of shaving $1 billion a year from the state’s annual prison budget.
Rick Scott's lavish inauguration: out of touch with the people?
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
That's the question a couple of Tampa Bay residents raised in letters to the St. Petersburg Times published today.
Gutted Public Service Commission's integrity in question
By Dan DeWitt
St. Petersburg Times
Everybody knows the Public Service Commission has been gutted.
Corrine Brown - again - requests earmarks for center her daughter lobbies for
By Matt Dixon
Florida Times-Union
A $1.1 trillion spending plan put forth by Senate Democrats Wednesday included a $750,000 request by U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown and U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson for a Jacksonville nonprofit organization that uses Brown’s daughter as a federal lobbyist.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
Federal court to hear Everglades case Friday
By Bruce Ritchie
FloridaEnvironments.com
Leading up to a federal court hearing in Miami on Friday, Friends of the Everglades is calling on the state to require polluters rather than taxpayers to pay for cleaning up the "River of Grass."
Get moving to clear BP claims backlog
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
Alex Sink is making good use of her final days as Florida's chief financial officer by calling on President Barack Obama and the BP claims fund to speed up payments to victims of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
LGBT
North Miami man who won gay adoption case invited to White House
Staff Report
Palm Beach Post
Martin Gill, the North Miami man who successfully challenged Florida’s ban on gay adoption, will attend a White House holiday reception this afternoon.
EDUCATION
Schools outsmart failure on the FCAT
By Kathleen McGrory
Miami Herald
Last year, based on a lackluster performance on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Tests, Dillard High got a D grade from the state. This year, without significant improvement on the exams, the Fort Lauderdale school scored a B.
Fewer Florida teachers seek national certification
By Dave Weber
Orlando Sentinel
A dwindling number of Florida teachers are seeking national certification after the state cut incentive pay to reward them for their work.
Lt. Gov.-elect Carroll talks education reform, jobs
By Matt Dixon
Florida Times-Union
Much of Lt. Gov.-elect Jennifer Carroll's speech to lobbyists and business leaders Thursday in Jacksonville echoed her pro-business, anti-red tape campaign narrative, but another hot topic also made the afternoon's talking points: education reform.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
Florida companies brace for jump in unemployment taxes
By Jeff Harrington
St. Petersburg Times
For 19 straight months, Florida's unemployment rate has been stuck in double digits.
Gov. Crist extends Florida crop freeze emergency order
The Associated Press
Ft. Myers News-Press
Gov. Charlie Crist has extended an emergency order lifting weight restrictions on trucks transporting freeze-threatened crops for two more weeks through Dec. 31.
HEALTH AND SENIORS
By Dara Kam
Palm Beach Post
Health care for uninsured Americans in 20 states, including Florida, now rests in the hands of a federal judge who heard oral arguments Thursday in the states' lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the national health-care law.
No comments:
Post a Comment