FEATURED STORIES
America needs my jobs bill, Obama tells Orlando fundraiser
By Scott Powers
Orlando Sentinel
Saying the nation's "rugged individualists" can work together for the common good, President Barack Obama told an Orlando gathering tonight that America needs his $447 billion jobs program.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott: 'I could argue that I don't have to create any jobs'
By Michael C. Bender
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday added more nuance to his campaign promise to create jobs, questioning the validity of the state's economic forecast and saying he just has to stop unemployment from rising.
Occupy Florida
By James Harper
Florida Courier
Last week, in a sign that it is shifting from a loose-knit fringe group to a bloc that could draw in mainstream America, the movement called Occupy Wall Street brought thousands of people to the streets of New York after major labor unions gave their backing to its anti-greed message.
State moves to streamline environmental permits; enviros fear that may mean gutting regulations
By Christine Stapleton
Palm Beach Post
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection's top priority for the coming legislative session is to make the regulations for building homes, docks, malls and highways less complicated for its "customers."
Don't slash, burn to balance the budget
Editorial
Orlando Sentinel
The new math's not much better than the old: State government, according to the numbers crunchers in Tallahassee, will likely face a $2 billion shortfall next year.
BEST OF THE BLOGS
Rick Scott, Florida GOP on 2012 vote: Block it, don’t rock it
By Daniel Tilson
St. Petersblog 2.0
Of all the long-standing traditions characterizing the history of the Republican Party on the American political landscape, voter suppression may be edging its way into first place on the list – if it hasn’t already earned that dubious distinction, thanks to the Sunshine State GOP doing more than its fair share of heavy lifting.
Florida’s Newest Democrat: Mrs. Charlie Crist
By Trish Ponder
Pensito Review
While the obvious question might be, “What took you so long?” the fact remains that even Carole Rome Crist, wife of former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, is now a Democrat.
Special interests use the economic crisis to wreck Florida's environment
By Gimleteye
Eye on Miami
A lot of Floridians may be out of work or under-employed. Distracted to say the least.
Florida secretary of state argues 1965 Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional
By Hunter
Daily Kos
The Republican drive to repeal the 20th century continues.
Occupy Ocala: A Slice of Discontent or Segue to Revolution?
By Bruce Seaman
Daily Marion
Here in Ocala, a group of young folks inspired by Occupy Wall Street (OWS) has begun organizing for an event on the downtown square on Saturday morning, October 15th.
FLORIDA POLITICS
Occupy Tampa tries to build a movement
By Michael Sasso
Tampa Tribune
When does a movement become legitimate?
Occupy Tampa challenges police orders to leave and wins, for now
By Kelly Benjamin
WMNF Community Radio Tampa
As we reported yesterday, on Tuesday evening Tampa Police officers asked members of the protest group Occupy Tampa to abandon their 24-hour-a-day protest or risk arrest for trespassing.
FAU students rally for Occupy College movement
By Wayne K. Roustan
South Florida Sun Sentinel
A steadily growing crowd of students gathered at Florida Atlantic University on Thursday afternoon to add their voices to the Occupy Wall Street movement.
Occupy Wall Street movement spreads to Bay County
By Meridith Kaufman
Panama City News Herald
The Occupy Wall Street movement is nearly a month old and has grown from a single protest in Manhattan to dozens of protests across the nation, calling for economic fairness and an end to financial greed and corruption.
Vern Buchanan’s former car dealership is fined for illegal contributions
By Jeremy Wallace
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
In an anticipated move, a federal court on Thursday hit U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan’s former car dealership with a nearly $68,000 fine for making illegal donations to his past campaigns.
Florida legislators advocate less government intrusion
By Anthony Clark
Gainesville Sun
Three Republican state legislators advocated less regulation and taxes on businesses and less government in people’s lives in response to concerns from local insurance and financial advisers Thursday.
For legislators, Waffle House wisdom rules
By Frank Cerabino
Palm Beach Post
We got a rare glimpse into the world of Florida lawmaking this week when a state legislator credited lunchtime banter he overheard at a Waffle House for his inspiration to execute Death Row inmates by firing squads.
POLITICAL RACES
Cain jumps ahead of Romney in Florida poll
By Jeff Ostrowski
Palm Beach Post
Herman Cain's catchy 9-9-9 proposal has catapulted the former Godfather's Pizza CEO from political unknown to serious contender for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.
GOP isn't sold on Romney, seeking other options
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
If polls show one thing with certainty, it's that Republicans aren't sold on Mitt Romney and they've been looking for other presidential candidates.
Hispanic organizations, businesses, media evaluate GOP presidential candidates’ messages
By Marcos Restrepo
Florida Independent
Latino entrepreneurs, conservative policy groups and media outlets continue to closely track what GOP 2012 presidential candidates are saying about issues important to Hispanic voters.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
Going, Going, Gone: Two FL Species May Be Extinct
By Les Coleman
Public News Service Florida
The South Florida rainbow snake and Florida fairy shrimp may have names that sound magical, but the magic may have run out for both of them.
Florida Forever supporters, Senate allies huddle in Orlando
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
Supporters of the Florida Forever program huddled with Senate allies on Thursday in Orlando at an invitation-only gathering to discuss the future of the state land-buying program.
Associated Industries of Florida lauds petition calling for end to water pollution rules
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
A petition protesting the EPA’s “numeric nutrient criteria,” a set of stringent water pollution standards specific to the state of Florida, has been sent to President Barack Obama, in an attempt to urge him to “reign in the EPA’s power grab and return water quality regulation to state government.”
Cuba prepares for oil drilling
By William E. Gibson
South Florida Sun Sentinel
A giant Chinese-built oil rig is slowly heading across the ocean toward Cuban waters, fueling fears that offshore oil exploration north of Havana could jeopardize South Florida's fragile ecosystem and lead to environmental disaster.
Substandard levees receiving repairs to protect South Florida homes
By Andy Reid
South Florida Sun Sentinel
Levees relied on to protect South Florida communities from flooding are getting repairs to address safety concerns, and improvements are on track to meet tougher federal standards, state officials said Thursday.
Audubon of Florida to honor Florida senator
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., will accept an award for his conservation efforts at an assembly this Friday in Lake Mary.
EDUCATION
USF anthropology students to Scott: We matter
By Kim Wilmath
St. Petersburg Times
Related column: Gov. Scott's school daze
Justin Shiver came away from a year in Iraq with one overriding thought: We need more anthropologists.
Emphasize science early; don’t wait until college, experts say
By Zac Anderson
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Nobel Prize winning chemist Harold Kroto began honing his science skills as a child tinkering with radios and other gadgets.
State revising how FCAT is scored
By Laura Isensee
Miami Herald
Last school year, Florida raised the bar on its standardized test for public school students, debuting a more challenging FCAT 2.0. This year, expect tougher grading standards for the new test.
Tuition Rising and So is Prepaid
By Whitney Ray
Capitol News Service
The cost of a Florida prepaid college plan for a newborn is going up 4-thousand dollars this year, to more than 49-thousand.
On our own
Editorial
Ocala Star-Banner
First the state quit sending millions in annual funding for the renovation and repair of Marion County Public Schools.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
Scott to jobless: You'll work for benefits
Staff Report
Florida Current
Among the items in Gov. Rick Scott's legislative priorities for the coming session is a message for people receiving unemployment compensation in Florida: you’ll have to work for it.
Agency yet to name companies that failed to produce jobs
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
Last week, Gov. Rick Scott's new "economic opportunity" director told legislators that the state had awarded "millions of dollars" to companies over the last decade in exchange for jobs that never materialized.
Teamsters file wage-theft complaint on behalf of prison guards
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters filed a third-party complaint Thursday with the U.S. Department of Labor on behalf of Florida prison guards, whom it claims are not being paid for work before and after their official shifts begin and end.
Stimulus Cash at Work Weatherizing
By Mike Vasilinda
Capitol News Service
170 Million Federal stimulus dollars are being spent in Florida to increase the energy efficiency of low income homes.
South Florida casino gambling divides Orlando tourism industry
By Sara K. Clarke and Jason Garcia
Orlando Sentinel
Fissures are beginning to appear in Central Florida's $28 billion tourism industry over whether to embrace high-stakes gambling, something most industry leaders have long considered incompatible with the region's carefully cultivated reputation for family-friendly entertainment.
HEALTH AND SENIORS
New state health exchange could become precursor to implement federal health care law
By Michael C. Bender
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
A fledgling state health insurance program could have an unintended consequence for Republicans who created it: helping President Barack Obama implement his controversial health care law in Florida.
State asks for 7th extension of Medicaid reform waiver
By Christine Jordan Sexton
Florida Current
The Agency for Health Care Administration on Wednesday sent its seventh request to the federal government asking for a temporary waiver extension to continue running its Medicaid reform project in five Florida counties.
Group petitions Florida congressman to stop Planned Parenthood investigation
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
A reproductive rights group plans to deliver more than 130,000 signatures today to Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Ocala, petitioning him to halt his recently launched investigation into Planned Parenthood, a national chain of women’s health clinics.
No FL plan wins top rating
By Brittany Davis
Health News Florida
Florida's only Medicare plan to earn top billing in government ratings the past two years has slipped a bit, according to new ratings the government released Wednesday.
State senator files bill restricting the shackling of incarcerated pregnant women
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
State Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, filed legislation yesterday that would restrict the use of restraints on incarcerated women who are pregnant, in labor or postpartum.
CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
Sen. Marco Rubio sidesteps immigration debateAssociated Press
Tampa Tribune
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio is raising his national profile through a series of major policy speeches on the economy and America's role in the world.
13 years after leaving prison, Pasco County man regains right to vote
By Steve Bousquet
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Mark Heidrich is a full-fledged citizen of Florida again, and he couldn't be happier.
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