PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS
Tea Party sets up shop in State Senate office building
By Troy Kinsey
Tampa Bay News 9
Excerpt: "I find it just terribly ironic that the anti-government Tea Party is making their headquarters in a government building," said Damien Filer, with Progress Florida.
The Blu Vu October 3rd Weekly Show
By Gayle Andrews
The Blu Vu: Florida’s Political Reality Show
Show highlights: Rubio says no to the VP slot, Christie says he’s not ready to face Obama, prison privatization is ruled illegal and the Governor is still deleting emails and side stepping open government.
FEATURED STORIES
Budget shortfall, proposed tax cuts: 2012 starting to look a lot like 2011 in Florida
By John Kennedy
Palm Beach Post
Amid fresh warnings that the state budget could fall $2 billion short next year, Gov. Rick Scott is poised to begin rolling out key pieces of his second-year plan for rebooting Florida's stagnant economy.
Business lobbyists gearing up to ask for more in 2012
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
Florida business lobbyists were kids in the candy store during the spring legislative session, and who could blame them for being giddy?
Occupy Wall Street fervor growing in South Florida
By Wayne K. Roustan
South Florida Sun Sentinel
Despite the stormy weather, hundreds of people showed up at Bryant Park in Lake Worth and Stranahan Park in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday to add their voices to the grass-roots chorus echoing from protesters in the Occupy Wall Street movement in recent weeks.
Grand jury probes Panhandle private prison deal
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau
As legislative leaders continue the push to privatize 19 South Florida prisons, the state’s most ambitious private prison project in Northwest Florida is enmeshed in a grand jury investigation.
Scott ’setting the record straight’ on his 700,000 jobs pitch
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
Gov. Rick Scott’s office put out a statement Friday to stem the bad press over his gradual walk-back of the campaign pledge to create 700,000 jobs in addition to normal growth.
EDITORIAL CARTOON OF THE WEEK
By Jim Morin
Miami Herald
Related editorial: Scott’s transparency problem
FLORIDA POLITICS
Scott tries to improve relationship with media
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
You wouldn’t have known it from his campaign, but Gov. Rick Scott insists he likes newspapers.
Jim Greer sues Florida GOP again
By Rene Stutzman
Orlando Sentinel
Ousted Florida GOP Chairman Jim Greer Friday refiled his suit against the state party, this time upping the ante, saying he plans to seek $5 million in damages.
Republican Party of Florida settles with whistleblower
Associated Press
St. Petersburg Times
The Republican Party of Florida is keeping secret a settlement it reached with a former employee who accused party leaders of improper spending.
Future Florida House leaders raising big money from special interests
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
The next two Republicans slated to lead the Florida House have been traveling the state this summer for redistricting hearings — at the same time raising gobs of cash from health-insurance companies, Big Sugar and companies such as Walmart.
Democrats launch voter protection effort
By Erika Bolstad
Miami Herald
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is launching an effort in Florida to strike back at whey they say are oppressive voting laws designed by Republicans to suppress turnout.
Tampa Police tell Occupy Tampa protesters to leave Gaslight Park
By Josh Holton and Sean Kinane
WMNF Community Radio Tampa
At about 8:10 p.m. Sunday night Corporal Robin Penix from Tampa Police Department told about 18 protesters that downtown's Gaslight Park was closed and they had to leave.
'Occupy Wall Street' movement stages first rally in Palm Beach County
By John Lantigua
Palm Beach Post
The "Occupy" movement staged its first rally in Palm Beach County Saturday, drawing about 250 people, who addressed an array of concerns about today's society, most of which they say lead to one place - Wall Street.
Early on, Florida attorney general Pam Bondi shows ambition
By Dara Kam
Palm Beach Post
Photogenic, earnest and affable, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi should be riding high after nine months on the job as one of the state's most powerful elected officials.
Cliff Stearns, from obscure Florida congressman, to leading Solyndra investigation
By Alex Leary
St. Petersburg Times
When U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns lost his bid to become chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, fate seemed to pull him back into the ranks of the obscure, a figure unrecognizable outside a Florida district whose power players tend to be thoroughbred horses.
No public investment should escape review
Editorial
Tampa Tribune
State Sen. Mike Fasano had a simple request for the director of the state pension fund: Show why he authorized the state to make a $125 million investment in a particular investment fund.
POLITICAL RACES
2012 could swing on the 'Walmart Moms'
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
The change Barack Obama campaigned on four years ago is a distant memory for some of the country's most important voters.
Obama's visit to Orlando on Tuesday comes amid sour voter mood
By Mark K. Matthews and Scott Powers
Orlando Sentinel
President Barack Obama plans to visit Orlando on Tuesday as part of a nationwide tour intended to drum up support for his jobs bill — and his own re-election.
Romney rivals may go after him for flip-flops
By Philip Elliott
Associated Press
Related: Doubtful social conservatives are now giving Romney chance
Mitt Romney faced relentless criticism four years ago for changing his positions on abortion and gay rights and equivocating on other issues, including immigration and gun control.
Romney's camp adding familiar faces
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
They had been with Mitt Romney four years ago, and for awhile this year flirted with other presidential candidates, particularly former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
Voting in the dark
Editorial
Orlando Sentinel
Welcome to The Dark Ages, brought to you by Florida's Republican leaders.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
Scott's Everglades plan faces cost, timetable concerns
By Andy Reid
South Florida Sun Sentinel
Construction on new Everglades restoration projects could start next year, but meeting water quality standards would take a decade under Gov. Rick Scott's revamped plan unveiled Thursday.
Gov. Scott's wildlife appointee has history of environmental infractions
By Craig Pittman
St. Petersburg Times
Gov. Rick Scott faced a choice. He had to fill a seat on the state's wildlife commission, and 20 people had applied.
Big Biz creates 'Big Green' boogeyman to scare you
By Scott Maxwell
Orlando Sentinel
October is the perfect time to talk about boogeymen — especially since Florida now has a terrifying new one: "Big Green."
Federal report highlights need to restore gulf ecosystem
Associated Press
St. Petersburg Times
Five coastal states are determined to clean up the damaged Gulf of Mexico ecosystem after last year's oil spill highlighted how decades of contamination and deterioration had placed a backbone of the U.S. economy at risk of ruin, according to a federal report released Wednesday.
Will St. Johns water-district shake-up spur conflicts of interest?
By Kevin Spear
Orlando Sentinel
With the St. Johns River Water Management District set to replace its ousted executive director this week, efforts by its board members to remold the powerful environmental agency into a smaller operation on friendlier terms with developers and utilities have created in some cases at least the appearance that a board member's company could gain an unfair advantage when dealing with the district.
EDUCATION
Two Pinellas educators among those taking on new teacher evaluation law
By Keyonna Summers
St. Petersburg Times
Brandt Robinson was an ''activist" long before he understood the meaning of the word.
Merit-pay puzzle: How do you grade art, theater teachers?
By Erica Rodriguez
Orlando Sentinel
A 15-hour workday is not uncommon for Vince Santo when he's directing the busy East Ridge High School theater program.
Hernando County rolls out teacher evaluation system
By Tony Marrero
St. Petersburg Times
Jason Galitsky started his lesson about the future of teacher evaluations with a question about the past.
Hillsborough educators see encouraging signs at single-gender schools
By Marlene Sokol
St. Petersburg Times
Make no mistake, Leonard Sax told educators from as far away as Iceland and Argentina: Single-gender education is under attack.
Tallahassee lawyer to head Fla. college system
Associated Press
St. Augustine Record
A Tallahassee bond lawyer is the new chancellor of the Florida College System.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
Protecting the 1 Percent While Attacking the Other 99 Percent
The Progress Report
Think Progress
It’s not news that Republicans will do nearly anything to protect the wealthy and special interests like Wall Street banks and Big Oil.
Governor wants the pension windfall back
By Brittany Wallman
South Florida Sun Sentinel
The counties, cities, sheriff's offices and school boards that saved millions this year because of state pension changes will not be rolling in that newfound money next year, if Gov. Rick Scott has his way.
September jobs report shows no change in unemployment rate
By Marcos Restrepo
Florida Independent
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report issued today indicates that total non-farm payroll employment “edged up” 103,000 in September while the unemployment rate “held at 9.1 percent.”
Florida Poverty Agenda Set for 2012
By Les Coleman
Public News Service Florida
According to a CNN Money.com article, "Poverty Pervades the Suburbs," poverty in Florida spikes the nation's poverty rate and is now at the highest level since 1994.
Major shift under way in Florida's gaming business
By Kathleen Haughney
South Florida Sun Sentinel
>From Tallahassee to coastal South Florida, there have been increasingly strong tremors of late that may signal a tectonic shift in the state's gaming business.
Workforce job agency does little to track its effectiveness
By Jim Stratton
Orlando Sentinel
It is an understatement to say that Julie Durr's experience with Workforce Central Florida was unsatisfying.
HEALTH AND SENIORS
‘Omnibus anti-choice bill’ picks up state House sponsor
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
State Rep. Rachel Burgin, R-Riverview, this week introduced an anti-abortion bill that aims to further restrict third-trimester abortions and to place new restrictions on women’s health clinics.
Florida to launch its own health insurance marketplace
By Phil Galewitz
Washington Post
Florida, which is fighting to overturn the federal health overhaul, is preparing to launch an insurance marketplace early next year that looks like a distant cousin of the ones being created under the federal law.
Many health-care workers shun flu shots
By Sonja Isger
Palm Beach Post
Doctors fight an annual battle to persuade patients to get flu shots. But it turns out that persuading the doctors - and nurses, and other clinicians - to take their own advice and get those very shots is nearly as trying.
Nodding to Tea Party, Pinellas Commission Stops Community Water Fluoridation
By Ralph De La Cruz
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
In 1999, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cited community water fluoridation as one of the 10 great public health achievements of the last century.
CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
Guns in public buildings have local officials on edge
By Mark Schlueb
Orlando Sentinel
Under threat of stiff financial and criminal penalties from the gun-friendly Legislature, cities and counties across Florida rushed to repeal all their local gun laws over the past few weeks.
Study says Florida a leader in teaching civil rights movement
By Marcos Restrepo
Florida Independent
“Teaching the Movement: The State of Civil Rights Education 2011,” a Southern Poverty Law Center study, shows that most states fail when it comes to teaching the U.S. Civil Rights movement to students. Florida earned an A for its curriculum.
Bill offers kids path to citizenship
By Joe Pishgar
Florida Today
“The son shall not bear the sins of the father,” unless, of course, he’s an illegal immigrant.
JUSTICE AND THE COURTS
Some GOP politicians push to ease Fla. drug lawsBy Bill Kaczor
Associated Press
Jeffrey Pitts is serving a five-year prison sentence for drug trafficking involving only eight to 27 Lortab tablets - prescription-only pills containing a small amount of a controlled substance but mostly made up of the same ingredient found in Tylenol and similar over-the-counter painkillers.
Jail inmates facing loss of educational programs
By Stephanie Wang
St. Petersburg Times
Adrian Miller used to be a teen with a drug problem and a habit of landing behind bars.
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