Daily Clips for March 19, 2012

FEATURED STORIES

New Senate district map ticks off both parties
By Mary Ellen Klas and Darla Cameron
Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times Tallahassee Bureau
The Florida Senate on Saturday released its first attempt at fixing its rejected Senate redistricting map with a proposal that protects the territory of all but four Senate incumbents, elects as many as five Hispanics and six African Americans, and retains a solid Republican majority.

Lawsuits pile up after Legislature finishes its work
By Brittany Alana Davis
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
For the second consecutive year, the conservative agenda of Florida lawmakers and Gov. Rick Scott appears likely to be settled in a courtroom.

When it comes to lobbying, Florida’s Sunshine law is dark
By Toluse Olorunnipa
Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times Tallahassee Bureau
Florida has some of the nation’s most expansive open records policies, but its Sunshine Law does not adequately regulate the sometimes shadowy role of lobbyists, according to a national report released Monday.

Rubio's misguided priorities
Editorial
Pensacola News Journal
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio's self-serving explanation of his vote against the RESTORE Act — he was the only U.S. senator on the Gulf Coast to do so — can't disguise how shocking and disappointing the vote was.

Obama campaign quietly revs up push to win Florida
By Scott Powers
Orlando Sentinel
While Republican presidential candidates dig in for what has become a long, bitter fight for the GOP nomination, Barack Obama's re-election campaign is quietly trying to take control in Florida.

EDITORIAL CARTOON OF THE WEEK

By Mike Luckovich
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

FLORIDA POLITICS

Report: $99 million spent in the dark in Florida
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
Despite the millions of dollars in independent expenditures flowing in to Florida from political committees, a new report shows that 100 percent of the money is being reported without any information regarding its target– i.e. what the money is actually being spent on.

Governor champions right-wing at rally
By Lauren Sage Reinlie
Northwest Florida Daily News
Gov. Rick Scott touted his recent accomplishments as governor at a rally Saturday.

Norman admits Fla. financial disclosure violations
Associated Press
Miami Herald
State Sen. Jim Norman admits to financial disclosure violations in a proposed Florida Ethics Commission stipulation.

POLITICAL RACES

Obama's re-election campaign focuses on women's health
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
In the two years since President Obama signed landmark health care legislation, Democrats have endured massive congressional losses, public opinion has been largely unfavorable and the Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments on whether a key pillar of the law is unconstitutional.

Report: Restrictive voting laws could have significant impact on 2012 Presidential election
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Independent
The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU’s School of Law, one of the foremost nonpartisan public-policy institutes focused on justice and democracy, reports that 70 percent of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the 2012 presidential election will now come from states with new restrictive voting laws, a statistic that could greatly affect the voter turnout and outcome of the upcoming election.

New elections boss faces busy year
By Steve Bousquet
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Ken Detzner wasn't looking for a new job, but Gov. Rick Scott gave him one anyway.

Improving economy complicates Republican message but picture still tough for President Barack Obama
By Alex Leary
Tampa Bay Times
Mitt Romney stood in an industrial manufacturing plant attacking President Barack Obama.

Florida Muslims could be pivotal in 2012 election
By Jeff Kunerth
Orlando Sentinel
Muslims have the potential to play a pivotal role in the 2012 election as Islamophobia and immigration issues galvanize the minority group into a voting bloc, according to a forum Sunday at the University of Central Florida.

Puerto Rico a force in Florida voting
By Adam C. Smith
Tampa Bay Times
You know a presidential primary has turned into a scramble for every last delegate when the candidates start showing up in Puerto Rico.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Environmental groups file suit against EPA over Gulf ‘dead zone’
By Virginia Chamlee
Florida Independent
Environmental groups in states along the Gulf coast say the Environmental Protection Agency violated the Clean Water Act by refusing to set state pollution standards to tackle the “dead zone” in the Gulf, a Massachusetts-sized area of incredibly low oxygen concentrations that can’t support aquatic life.

BP Settles? Pardon My Laughter
By Rick Outzen
Florida Voices
BP says its proposed $7.8 billion settlement will complete the company’s commitment to Gulf Coast citizens and businesses for damages caused after its rig exploded two years ago, killing 11 men and dumping more than 200 million gallons of crude into the Gulf of Mexico.

Manatee protections fall short
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
When environmental science collides with politics, nature all too often winds up on the losing side.

EDUCATION

Moms flex muscles — and Twitter fingers — in Tallahassee. And they win
By Kathleen McGrory
Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times Tallahassee Bureau
It was one of the session’s hardest-fought battles.

Education reformers experience lackluster legislative session
By Lynn Hatter
WFSU Tallahassee
Unlike past years the education agenda took a backseat to more pressing issues—mainly the once-a-decade redistricting process.

Bottom line on paddling: Florida schools still do it
By Sarah Gonzalez
Miami Herald
Spanking in school may seem like a relic of the past, but in Florida, students from preschoolers to high-school seniors are still being paddled by teachers, principals and school-bus drivers.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Business lobby won many battles during the 2012 session, but it lost a few, too
By Jason Garcia
Orlando Sentinel
Following the election of a multimillionaire businessman as governor and stronger-than-ever Republican majorities in the Legislature, last year's law-making session was a bit like Christmas-come-early for Florida's business lobby.

2012 session summary: Budget and Taxes
By Travis Pillow
Florida Current
Related: 2012 session summary: Commerce and Economic Development
There were signs in early summer that the era of budget cuts could be over, but those hopes quickly faded.

Aggressive foreclosures backfire on Florida homeowners associations
By Susan Taylor Martin
Tampa Bay Times
Ralph and Michael Chancey have gotten some great deals on real estate.

HEALTH AND SENIORS

If Mandate Is Overturned, Obama Could Need Help To Salvage The Health Law
By Jordan Rau
Kaiser Health News
When Barack Obama ran for president in 2008, he insisted the nation could fix its health care system without requiring everyone to carry insurance.

Florida's former surgeon general pleased with accomplishments
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
Florida's outgoing surgeon general says his wife's cancer diagnosis made him want to spend more time with his loved ones.

Birth control controversies a fundraising boon
By Robin Bravender
Politico
The sudden focus on contraception and abortion in the 2012 campaign has meant a surge in fundraising for abortion rights groups that support women as congressional candidates.

On abuse of the elderly, the House looks away
Editorial
Tampa Tribune
No rational lawmaker could have doubted the need to better protect residents of Florida's assisted-living facilities.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Sharpton plans rally for slain black teenager
Associated Press
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
The Rev. Al Sharpton is planning a rally for a black Florida teenager fatally shot by a white neighborhood watch volunteer.

Surprise — lawmakers turn down free drug test offer
By Carl Hiaasen
Miami Herald
Among its dubious achievements this year, the Florida Legislature passed a law authorizing random drug tests for state workers.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

Appeal of pension law ruling going to Florida Supreme Court
Associated Press
Tampa Bay Times
An appeal of a ruling that struck down a requirement that public employees contribute to their pensions is going to the Florida Supreme Court.

Challenge of congressional maps won't be delayed
By Tia Mitchell
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
The state Democratic Party and a coalition of voter groups hoping to invalidate the boundaries of Florida's 27 congressional districts will be allowed to make their case during a trial next month