Daily Clips for September 30, 2011

PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS

Cannon to appeal ruling upholding Fair Districts amendment
By William March
Tampa Tribune
Excerpt: Cannon’s “self-serving, tax-payer funded crusade to defy the will of Florida voters is a case study in why Floridians are cynical about politics,” said Mark Ferrulo of Progress Florida. “Florida taxpayer money is being used to defeat a taxpayer-approved constitutional amendment in a lawsuit defended with taxpayer money. You can’t make this stuff up.”

The Blu Vu September 26th Weekly Show
By Gayle Andrews
The Blu Vu: Florida's Political Reality Show
Show highlights: Ion Sancho steps up as an expert in the voter suppression lawsuit, Jennifer Carroll has a lot of weirdness going on in her office, the governor can’t resist that delete button when it comes to those emails and Damien Filer lays out the meltdown in the Republican Party.

FEATURED STORIES

Cannon: House to appeal Amendment 6 ruling
By John Kennedy
Palm Beach Post
The state House plans to join a pair of Florida members of Congress in appealing a federal judge’s ruling that upheld a new, voter-approved standard for lawmakers when they draw congressional and legislative boundaries next year, House Speaker Dean Cannon said Thursday.

Fla. GOP leaders back away from plans for immigration reform
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau
Can Florida legislators turn their backs on immigration reform?

State Sen. Mike Fasano's request for public records draws $10,000 invoice
By Sydney P. Freedberg
St. Petersburg Times
When state Sen. Mike Fasano requested records about a $125 million pension fund investment, the head of the State Board of Administration sent him a three-page invoice for $10,750.13.

Chief Justice Canady asks for $46 million as court system continues struggle with budget
By Katie Sanders
St. Petersburg Times
Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Canady has asked Gov. Rick Scott and legislative budget leaders to provide a temporary transfer of $45.6 million into the trust fund that pays for the court system's operations.

As GOP presidential candidates bash President Barack Obama, voters clamor for specifics
By Alex Leary and Marc Caputo
St. Petersburg Times
For three days last week Republican activists in Orlando heard an unrelenting stream of taunts, slams and jokes against President Barack Obama, a feast served by the candidates who want to replace him.

BEST OF THE BLOGS

Claude Kirk: A Republican Environmentalist
By Gimleteye
Eye on Miami
It has been a long time since Republican Claude Kirk was governor of Florida, and the current generation of anti-science Republicans would do well to reflect on what he accomplished.

UF Panel with GOP Reps: Government is bad; Next question
By Bruce Seaman
Daily Marion
When Republicans meet on a panel with normal business people, it really shows how wacky and clueless our elected representatives are.

Florida County Republican Party Appeases Islamophobia And Denies Muslim Republican A Spot On Executive Committee
By Zaid Jilani
Think Progress
Nezar Hamze is both a Muslim American who is the executive director of the South Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and a self-identified Republican.

What To Make of Cain
By Jake
Rantings from Florida
I have been trying last night to figure what the Herman Cain win in Florida means, since I feel like I really should say something about it.

Morning essay: One Democrat’s perspective of ‘Presidency 5′
By Daniel Tilson
St. Petersblog 2.0
Today marks the beginning of three fun-filled days – well, three full days anyway – of Republican-Tea Party posturing, pontificating and politicking, Sunshine State style.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Scott discuses budget cuts, drug testing during two-hour CNBC appearance
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
While making a two-hour appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Gov. Rick Scott spoke about a host of issues — most notably job creation and drug testing state welfare applicants.

Lawyers fought corruption, then lost their jobs
By Scott Maxwell
Orlando Sentinel
When last we checked on Attorney General Pam Bondi, she was being investigated for forcing out two of her top-producing investigators, and legislators had asked her to produce records to justify her actions.

Host of new Florida laws take effect Saturday
By Travis Pillow
Florida Current
More than two dozen laws passed this year, from medical malpractice reform to new penalties for bestiality and sexting by minors, will take effect this weekend.

With expressway authority consolidation on table, lawmakers want to add old one
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
Call it the once and – possibly – future expressway authority.

Legislators Will Consider Caylee Anthony Child Protection Law
By Les Coleman
Public News Service Florida
In the wake of the high-profile Casey Anthony case, several state lawmakers already have filed legislation that would put safeguards in place to protect Florida's children.

Kirk to lie in state Friday at Old Capitol
By John Kennedy
Palm Beach Post
Former Gov. Claude Kirk, who died at home in West Palm Beach on Wednesday, will lie in state Friday at the Old Capitol in Tallahassee.

Sen. Marco Rubio in Libya to meet with opposition movement leaders
By Alex Leary and Becky Bowers
St. Petersburg Times
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio arrived in Libya on Thursday, joining a small group of lawmakers for meetings with the former rebels who have ended the rule of Col. Moammar Gadhafi.

POLITICAL RACES

Early primary could hurt Florida, some Republicans say
By William March and Catherine Whittenburg
Tampa Tribune
The plan by Florida Republican leaders to move up the state's presidential primary date to Jan. 31 is drawing dissent from unexpected quarters: Republicans who argue the change would actually decrease Florida's impact on the nomination process.

Insiders: Florida the New Presidential Kingmaker
By Taylor West and Peter Bell
National Journal
Move over, Iowa. Make room, New Hampshire.

Florida's early primary plan draws criticism from South Carolina GOP
By Seanna Adcox
Associated Press
South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Chad Connelly said Thursday he'll wait to see what Florida does before announcing a date for the Palmetto State's presidential primary, but he vowed to retain the state's first-in-the-South status no matter what.

Huntsman to close Orlando office
By Scott Powers
Orlando Sentinel
Republican presidential hopeful Jon Huntsman is shutting down his national campaign headquarters in Orlando so he can pour more resources into New Hampshire.

Florida jumps near front of primary line
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
Florida leaders are meeting today to set the state's 2012 presidential primary for Jan. 31.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Conservatives don't care about conserving
By Eric Ernst
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
They may call themselves conservatives, but they have little interest in conserving.

Florida gets federal grants to support habitat conservation for endangered species including scrub jay
By Olivia Kabat
WMNF Community Radio Tampa
Last month the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced $53 million in grants given to 17 states for habitat conservation planning for endangered species.

Jefferson County approves landmark ordinance protecting Wacissa River from water bottlers
By Brett Ader
Florida Independent
Citizens in North Florida marked a pivotal victory earlier this month with the adoption of a first-of-its-kind law that will ensure the Wacissa River and surrounding public waters are protected from private water bottling interests for generations to come.

EDUCATION

In Latino education, challenges remain formidable
By Eduardo J. Padron Gaston Caperton
Miami Herald
One-hundred and twenty-five years ago next month, President Grover Cleveland presided over the dedication of what would become one of New York’s most iconic images: the Statue of Liberty.

Miami-Dade schools debut merit pay in Florida
By Sarah Butrymowicz and Laura Isensee
Miami Herald
In their latest paychecks, thousands of Miami-Dade teachers got an extra bump based on their students’ or schools’ FCAT scores.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

No Florida recession, Fed index says
By Douglas Hanks
Miami Herald
Florida should avoid a recession through the start of 2012, even as some state economies show signs of shrinking, according to a Federal Reserve index.

Report: Florida lost about 114,000 jobs due to U.S.-China trade deficit
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
According to new research from the Economic Policy Institute, about 2.8 million U.S. jobs were “eliminated or displaced” since 2001 because of the growing U.S.-China trade deficit.

Every job counts toward Workforce Central Florida's numbers
By Jim Stratton
Orlando Sentinel
As state and local officials began overhauling Workforce Central Florida on Thursday, the region's labor agency acknowledged that it takes credit for virtually anyone who comes in contact with the organization and then later lands a job.

Gov. Scott won't intervene in Glades utility $2M shortfall; leaving county to work on bailout
By Jennifer Sorentrue
Palm Beach Post
Gov. Rick Scott does not plan to intervene in the financial travails of the Glades Utility Authority, leaving the utility and county to find a way out of its impending collapse.

Coming Soon: The Tea Party Recession of 2011?
By Kevin Drum
Mother Jones
Back in 2008, during the worst of the financial crisis, I remember that many of us were shaking our heads a bit over Europe.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

Florida CHIP Program ‘Treading Water’
By Phil Galewitz
Kaiser Health News
Despite the tough economy, Florida’s Children’s Health Insurance Program added just 2,000 children in the year ended June 30, for a growth rate of less than 1 percent.

Medical board protest planned
By Carol Gentry
Health News Florida
Usually, prescription drug-abuse picketing is aimed at “pill mills.”

Huge grant will attack chronic disease
Staff Report
Health News Florida
By pulling in all the community health players, Broward Regional Health Planning Council has won a real plum -- a $1.76 million federal grant that aims to prevent chronic disease.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Rick Scott's Odd Defense Of Much Maligned Welfare Drug Testing Program
By David Taintor
Talking Points Memo
If Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) wants to defend the merit of his state's welfare drug testing law, this might not be the best way to do it.

Report highlights high number of Latino children living in poverty
By Marcos Restrepo
Florida Independent
Latino children ages 17 and younger represent the highest number of children living poverty in the U.S., according to a Pew Hispanic Center report released Wednesday.

Among young, a troubling ignorance of civil rights era
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
As Washington prepares for the delayed formal dedication events surrounding the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall on Oct. 16, it is troubling that growing numbers of young people know little about the murdered civil rights leader, or the cause for which he died.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

Judge says she's prepared to rule on prison privatization case
By Travis Pillow
Florida Current
A Leon County circuit judge said today she expects to rule before the end of the week on a case challenging proviso language calling for the privatization of South Florida prisons.

Death penalty's high price
Editorial
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
There is no real doubt that Manuel Valle, executed at the Florida State Prison on Wednesday, committed first-degree murder.