PROGRESS FLORIDA IN THE NEWS
October 24th Weekly Show
By Gayle Andrews
The Blu Vu: Florida’s Political Reality Show
A federal judge blocks the drug testing of welfare applicants, an aide to Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carol is arrested, Sen. Nan Rich reminds us that Republicans have turned away $150 million in federal revenues hurting the elderly, children and working Floridians and Progress Florida’s Damien Filer discusses some scary people lurking in the Florida capitol…all this and more coming your way.
AWAKE THE STATE IN THE NEWS
Awake the State gears up for 2012 (audio story)
By Lisa Marzilli and Beth Bell
WMNF Community Radio Tampa
Excerpt: Our guests today are Tim Heberlein, a community organizer with the Florida Consumer Action Network and Ray Seaman, online director with Progress Florida, two main players in the Awake the State movement. They're with us to talk about the Awake the State Summit held last weekend in Orlando and about the call to actions taking place across the state, including Tampa, St. Pete, Sarasota and Orlando on Tuesday, November 1.
FEATURED STORIES
Florida Democrats point fingers at Gov. Scott, GOP lawmakers
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Related: Vice President Biden scolds GOP as 'obstructionist' in two Central Florida speeches
Regardless of who wins the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, Florida voters can expect to hear a lot from Democrats about Rick Scott, George W. Bush and the tea party next year.
Florida Sen. Bill Nelson in unfamiliar political territory
By Adam C. Smith
St. Petersburg Times
If you're Sen. Bill Nelson, you must feel good about the campaign year ahead: flush with $7.5 million in your campaign account; President Barack Obama preparing a massive get-out-the-vote campaign for Florida Democrats; a crowded Republican primary lacking any titans and promising to be bloody.
Obama is counting on one-on-one 2012 campaign strategy
By Marc Caputo
Miami Herald
Barack Obama’s re-election hopes are a numbers nightmare: 9.1 percent unemployment, increasingly negative job-approval ratings and a gap in enthusiasm between Republican and Democratic voters.
Fla. teacher may be fined under new election law
Associated Press
St. Petersburg Times
A Florida Panhandle teacher who registered students to vote but turned in their applications late may be fined for violating the state's new election law, which has drawn fire from critics who say it will suppress voting.
In Florida Battle, Casino Cash vs. Disney Image
By Lizette Alvarez
New York Times
The battle for Florida’s tourism soul has been joined.
EDITORIAL CARTOON OF THE WEEK
By Jim Morin
Miami Herald
FLORIDA POLITICS
Florida Democrats: Rick Scott the poster boy for GOP extremism
By William March
Tampa Tribune
At the state Democratic Party's convention this weekend in Orlando, one of the political figures most talked about, maybe more than any other, is a Republican -- Gov. Rick Scott.
How Florida’s new elections law may impact the youth vote
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
This week, reports surfaced of a New Smyrna Beach high school teacher becoming embroiled in possible legal problems because she preregistered high school students to vote.
Federal court refuses to speed review of election law
By Mark K. Matthews
Orlando Sentinel
A three-judge federal panel on Friday denied a motion by Florida to speed up a review of controversial changes to the state's voting laws -- a decision that all but guarantees Florida will hold its Jan. 31 presidential primary under two sets of election rules.
Opponents line up against new casino bill
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau
An array of opponents, from South Florida to the state capital, has lined up swiftly in response to proposed legislation to bring gigantic “destination resort” casinos to South Florida, despite promises of economic development and an infusion of jobs.
POLITICAL RACES
Sen. Bill Nelson resolute in face of opposition
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Gainesville Sun
When a sore throat stopped Jill Biden from introducing her husband, Vice President Joe Biden, to a partisan crowd of Florida Democrats attending their state convention, Bill Nelson eagerly took up the task.
Sen. Nelson takes low-key path to race
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson has five Republicans firing shots at him, and he'll be just below the low-polling President Barack Obama on the 2012 ballot, and yet he's acting like he doesn't have a re-election coming up.
Why Rubio won't help GOP get Latino vote
By Maria Cardona
CNN
Repeat after me, GOP: "Marco Rubio will not be our savior with Latinos in the 2012 election."
Despite contracts, Republican National Convention officials tell hotels they want cheaper rooms, higher fees
By Steve Huettel and Richard Danielson
St. Petersburg Times
A crowd of hotel managers gathered in the ballroom of the Wyndam Tampa Westshore on Wednesday expecting a routine update on plans for the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa.
BALLOT INITIATIVES
State, union clash in court over "no-aid" repeal
By Lynn Hatter
WFSU Public Radio Tallahassee
A lawsuit led by the Florida Education Association is aimed at getting Amendment 7 kicked off the 2012 ballot.
How an anti-abortion push to redefine ‘person’ could hurt women’s rights
By Jessica Valenti
Washington Post
A common message from anti-abortion activists is that “women deserve better than abortion.”
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
St. Johns water district eases permitting to tap aquifer
By Kevin Spear
Orlando Sentinel
Daytona Beach and the region's main water authority went to war last year over whether the city was pumping the life out of a state forest.
Soon-to-be-introduced bill would give utilities more power over reclaimed water
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
GOP state lawmakers will soon introduce a bill to eliminate regulations on the reclaimed water often used by Florida utilities — treating it as an alternative water supply owned by utilities, and not by the state.
USF receives $11 million grant to fund BP spill research
By Valerie Quintana
Tampa Tribune
Eighteen months after one of the worst oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico, researchers at the University of South Florida in St. Petersburg are studying the effects of the deep water blowout with the help of an $11 million grant.
Fighting against Florida's alien invaders
By Craig Pittman
St. Petersburg Times
One day this summer, Susan Arehart noticed her cat, Luna-tick, acting strangely.
Protect Florida's wild places
By Bill Maxwell
St. Petersburg Times
One of the benefits of living in Florida is being within easy driving distance of beautiful, wild places.
LGBT
For some, equality is an offensive idea
By Gary Stein
South Florida Sun Sentinel
It is hardly unusual for a columnist to get accused of offending people.
EDUCATION
Miami-Dade school district makes midterms, finals optional for students
By Laura Isensee
Miami Herald
A long line of tests stand between students and summer — baseline exams, interim tests, FCAT and end-of-course state exams, to name a few.
Florida shortchanges its universities
Editorial
St. Petersburg Times
At least credit former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux for being half-right: Tuition at Florida's public universities is too low.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
Gov. Rick Scott's jobs czar defends Florida's economic incentive programs
By Michael C. Bender
St. Petersburg Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Gov. Rick Scott's jobs czar defended the state's economic incentive programs on Friday, saying Florida would go after companies that failed to perform.
Work-force oversight boards do little overseeing
By Jim Stratton
Orlando Sentinel
Elected officials overseeing Jacksonville's publicly funded jobs agency took just 20 minutes in June to approve the organization's $21.6 million budget.
Foreclosure prevention program struggles to help homeowners in Florida
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
Florida’s foreclosure epidemic continues to haunt the state, but federal programs designed to keep people in their homes are having a hard time trickling down to distressed homeowners.
When Voting Against Job Creation Just Isn’t Enough
The Progress Report
Think Progress
As we’ve been documenting, Republicans keep voting against millions of American jobs. But it doesn’t stop there!
HEALTH AND SENIORS
Finding more filth, abuse, state moves to shut ALFs
By Michael Sallah and Carol Marbin Miller
Miami Herald
At a Vero Beach assisted-living facility, a 300-pound caretaker was accused of yanking a frail, 89-year-old woman from a wheelchair, shaking her in the air and then throwing her on a bed, shattering the woman’s hip.
How much are you worth to HMOs?
By Carol Gentry
Health News Florida
Medicare health plan members are worth more than any other category of enrollee in a merger or acquisition deal, Wall Street analysts say.
Florida CHAIN asks feds to reject request by state to ‘phase in’ medical loss ratio
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
A patient advocacy group is asking the feds to not grant insurance companies in Florida exemption from profit caps mandated by federal law.
Pill mills prove tough to stop
By Andrew Knapp
Florida Today
In early August, a woman walked into Dr. John Gayden Jr.’s pain clinic and walked out 60 seconds later with prescriptions for painkillers and anxiety medication.
CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
Sen. Marco Rubio: "I Got Mine, So Long Suckers"
By Gabe Gonzalez
Huffington Post
It is fascinating to see the Republican Party tie itself into knots over the issue of Florida Senator Marco Rubio's citizenship.
State Sen. Alan Hays misguided on remarks about Hispanics
By Lauren Ritchie
Orlando Sentinel
Leave it to Alan Hays to light up a firestorm.
In Lake County, Whizzing Bullets From New State Law
By Ralph De La Cruz
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
About a month ago, Sandy Dziak and her husband were riding horses on their 20-acre property in Lake County when they were jolted by an explosion.
JUSTICE AND THE COURTS
Recommendations are in for fixing courts' financesBy Travis Pillow
Florida Current
A work group looking at ways to shore up state courts' finances amid dwindling revenue from foreclosure filings recommends creating a new stabilization fund and redirecting revenues from Florida's higher courts.
Lawmaker Promotes Early Release for Inmates
By Les Coleman
Public News Service Florida
Clearing Florida's bulging prison population is the topic of the state House Criminal Justice Subcommittee.
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