Daily Clips for December 20, 2010

FEATURED STORIES Lacking any hires and facing criticism, Gov.-elect Rick Scott asks Crist team to stay on longer By Michael C. Bender and Marc Caputo St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Lacking a single hire to staff Florida's government, incoming Gov. Rick Scott on Friday asked most of Gov. Charlie Crist's administration to rescind their resignations and stay on board for up to three months. South Florida activists cheer Senate vote to rescind 'don't ask, don't tell' gay military ban By David Lightman and Steve Rothaus Miami Herald Related: Congress repeals 'don't ask, don't tell' policy on gays in military Related AP story: Obama to sign law ending military gay ban The Senate voted 65-31 Saturday to end the Pentagon's ``don't ask, don't tell'' policy on gays and lesbians in the military, as President Barack Obama declared ``it is time to close this chapter in our history.'' Immigration activists disappointed after Senate blocks DREAM Act By Melissa Sanchez Miami Herald Related: Students look to 2012 after immigration bill fails A bill that would have granted legal status to hundreds of thousands of undocumented students was blocked in the Senate on Saturday, effectively killing its chances of passing this year. Appeals judges slip into controversial new $50 million courthouse By Lucy Morgan St. Petersburg Times Related: Taj Mahal timeline: How a $50 million courthouse got in the budget but stayed off the radar For some, the moving vans outside the 1st District Court of Appeal were reminiscent of the night the Colts moved out of Baltimore in the middle of the night on their way to Indianapolis. State jobless rate rises slightly to 12 percent By Jim Stratton Orlando Sentinel Florida's unemployment rate in November ticked up to 12 percent, rising one-tenth of a point from October's rate, even as the labor market across the nation showed signs of improvement. Scott's plan doesn't add up Editorial Palm Beach Post Gov.-elect Rick Scott wants to provide every student in Florida a voucher to be used at any school, public or private. EDITORIAL CARTOON OF THE WEEK Cartoon Caption Contest By Jeff Parker Florida Today FLORIDA POLITICS Florida could gain two House seats thanks to census count By Lesley Clark Miami Herald Florida may pick up as many as two seats in the U.S. House — further boosting the state's influence in Congress and making it an even bigger prize in the race for the White House. Will controversy over RNC chairmanship affect Tampa convention? Some answers By Adam C. Smith St. Petersburg Times Uncertainty over the leadership of the Republican National Committee has prompted questions about how the 2012 GOP convention in Tampa could be affected. Departing LeMieux gets flattering send-off By Bart Jansen Florida Capital News Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell praised departing Sen. George LeMieux on Friday as "smart, capable and willing to work hard." 2011 Inauguration Events Staff Report Florida Capital News The 2011 Inauguration will mark the historic election of Jennifer Carroll as Florida's next lieutenant governor. Hillsborough's value may sway pick for state GOP chair By William March Tampa Tribune While internal political party elections are hard to predict, there are indications that Debbie Cox-Roush of Tampa is a leading contender in the upcoming battle for chairman of the state Republican Party. Lesson for Florida GOP Editorial Orlando Sentinel Legions of politicians profess their love for the film Patton, featuring George C. Scott's memorable portrayal of one of the least politic generals in U.S. history. Haridopolos' financial disclosure case illustrates need to reform flawed system Editorial TC Palm The coziness of it all makes the conscientious person want to scream. POLITICAL RACES CNN, Tea Party to co-host GOP presidential debate in Tampa By William March Tampa Tribune CNN announced Friday it will co-host a Republican presidential primary debate in Tampa along with the Tea Party Express during Labor Day week 2011. Sink Has No Regrets Running for Governor By Keith Laing News Service of Florida Four years ago, Alex Sink became the first chief financial officer of Florida to win a contested election in her first bid for elected office. BALLOT INITIATIVES ACLU Files Motion to Intervene against Corrine Brown in Lawsuit Staff Report First Coast News There's a legal battle brewing between Rep. Corrine Brown and the Florida chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY Judge not pleased with Florida in Everglades case By Bruce Ritchie FloridaEnvironments.com A federal judge on Friday expressed support for a new $1.5 billion federal plan to reduce Everglades pollution while raising concerns with Florida's response to the proposal, according to the Associated Press. Levee that protects South Florida from Everglades flooding fails to meet federal standards By Andy Reid South Florida Sun-Sentinel New flood control concerns are surfacing about the 60-year-old, earthen levee that keeps the Everglades from swamping South Florida communities spread across former wetlands. LGBT Breaking down military's wall of discrimination Editorial St. Petersburg Times It is always a proud moment when Congress acts on behalf of tolerance and equality. EDUCATION Graduation rates soar through loophole Ron Matus and Connie Humburg St. Petersburg Times When the state of Florida released its official high school graduation figures last month, Gov. Charlie Crist's office said the rates had "soared to new heights." Report: Low-income students more often get teachers without expertise in field By Katherine Albers Naples Daily News A new report released by The Education Trust has found that, when it comes to low-income or at-risk students being assigned to strong teachers, school districts aren’t making the grade. Florida Democrats Work To Discontinue FCAT Exams For High School Students Staff Report Lakeland Ledger Florida Democrats are continuing to propose dumping the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test as their Republican counterparts continue to put more emphasis on standardized exams. Do improving high school FCAT grades have any meaning? By Michael Mayo South Florida Sun-Sentinel At Lake Worth High in Palm Beach County, 59 percent of sophomores flunked the reading portion of the FCAT exam. Reject Scott’s idea for universal school vouchers Editorial Bradenton Herald Public education is sailing into a perfect storm. JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY Florida's 'underemployed' focus on survival, not gifts By Jeff Ostrowski Palm Beach Post Janeisha Saintelus has two children, one part-time job and no idea how she'll buy Christmas presents and decorations. Can Rick Scott keep jobs promise? By Beth Kassab Orlando Sentinel Could Rick Scott be growing concerned that he may have overpromised on those 700,000 jobs he says he's going to create? Why didn’t Scott set the record straight on prison spending earlier? By Travis Pillow Florida Independent When Gov.-elect Rick Scott said during his run for governor that he would save $1 billion in prison spending, everyone seemed to believe that he wanted to save that much every year. State work force has declined, but barely By Aaron Sharockman St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald PolitiFact On the campaign trail, Gov.-elect Rick Scott promised to cut the state work force by 5 percent. Fraud, Abuse Found in NASA Research Funding to Small Companies By Peter Tartaglione Huffington Post Investigative Fund A NASA program to encourage small companies to develop new technology has accepted questionable research from some contractors and given others multiple contracts for doing the same job, according to NASA’s inspector general. Taxes keep society functioning By Stephen Goldstein South Florida Sun-Sentinel Taxes: Mention the word, and it's like feeding time for one of Pavlov's dogs. HEALTH AND SENIORS Gov.-elect’s ties to health care worry reformists By Tonya Alanez South Florida Sun-Sentinel Proponents of health care reform despair over Gov.-elect Rick Scott’s stated determination to roll back “ObamaCare.” Florida congressman to oversee ‘ground zero’ for health care repeal By Travis Pillow Florida Independent Republican Congressman Cliff Stearns of Ocala could play a major role in health care repeal efforts and investigations into the Obama Administration’s greenhouse gas regulations for the House Energy and Commerce Committee when the new Congress takes over next month. Thrasher ‘does not condone’ group that says Planned Parenthood efforts similar to ‘genocide’ By Virginia Chamlee Florida Independent John Thrasher, a Republican state senator from Jacksonville and the chair of the Republican Party of Florida, “does not condone” the controversial comments of an anti-abortion group he helped raise money for — comments that include the claim that Planned Parenthood’s efforts are similar to “genocide.” CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES Another dream dies for millions of worthy students By Ernest Hooper St. Petersburg Times Despite strong support from South Florida congressional lawmakers, the Dream Act failed to gain passage in the Senate on Saturday. JUSTICE AND THE COURTS Justices Offer Receptive Ear to Business Interests By Adam Liptak New York Times Almost 40 years ago, a Virginia lawyer named Lewis F. Powell Jr. warned that the nation’s free enterprise system was under attack. Chinese drywall decision favors insurers By Aaron Kessler Sarasota Herald-Tribune In a ruling that could have wide implications for Chinese drywall homeowners battling their insurance companies, the federal judge overseeing the combined drywall litigation in New Orleans has dismissed Louisiana homeowners' claims against 10 insurers involved in the massive case.