Daily Clips for May 4, 2012

FEATURED STORIES

FL passed up $200M for kids
By Carol Gentry
Health News Florida
Over the past two years, Florida did such a good job of enrolling uninsured children in KidCare that the state could have qualified for as much as $200 million in federal bonuses – money that could have helped get more children into care.

Gov. Rick Scott lets public open his email box with new website
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times Tallahassee Bureau
Gov. Rick Scott, once so wary of the state’s public records law that he refrained from creating a state email account, launched a new open records program Thursday designed to give the public access to his emails and those of his 11 top staff members.

Governor steps in it — all week
By Daniel Ruth
Tampa Bay Times
As bad weeks go, you might argue John Edwards, on trial for being a louse in North Carolina, was practically tiptoeing through the tulips compared to Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who over the course of a few short days may have successfully managed to offend more people than crazy-as-a-loon Gainesville pastor Terry Jones contemplating a match and a Koran.

'True the Vote' Still Out to Screw the Vote
By Brentin Mock
The Nation
Just two weeks ago a Rasmussen poll showed that 64 percent of Americans believe voter fraud exists.

Obama promises to push for Dream Act, while Rubio tries to allay the right wing
By Alex Leary
Tampa Bay Times
Related: Nelson pans Rubio's competing proposal to DREAM Act in talk with USF students
President Obama at a Cinco de Mayo event Thursday expressed a desire to pass the Dream Act, the legislation that's back in the news now that Republicans and Sen. Marco Rubio are pushing for an alternative.

BEST OF THE BLOGS

Book Review: From Yellow Dog Democrats to Red State Republicans
By Dave Trotter
Political Hurricane
For those of you that might be new to Florida politics or don’t know much of this history behind it, this is the perfect book to get you up to speed.

Florida Lawmakers Claim ‘Stand Your Ground’ Is Pro-Woman, Despite Exemption For Domestic Violence
By Annie-Rose Strasser
Think Progress
A father/son duo in the Florida state legislature is working hard to bring gender politics into the debate about Stand Your Ground laws.

Marco Rubio: refuses to meet with climate change scientists
By Gimleteye
Eye on Miami
Dr. Harold Wanless is Chair of the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Miami.

I Live In Florida And Wanted An Education, But All I Got Was This Rick Scott Sharpie
By Inkberries
Beach Peanuts
Hey Kids, Can You Spell Awkward? Maybe not, but it's the same way you spell pathetic: "R-i-c-k  S-c-o-t-t."

The Concealed Carry Dream World
By Jon Rector
SOG City Oracle
Tampa Bay Times columnist John Romano wrote an opinion piece the other day on concealed carry entitled, Get ready for new face of gun owners.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Sen. Marco Rubio: Gov. Rick Scott wrong on Cuba crackdown law
By Marc Caputo and Patricia Mazzei
Miami Herald
Related column: Florida law against Cuba may help Cuba
Sen. Marco Rubio joined the chorus of Republican lawmakers who disagree with Gov. Rick Scott for calling a Cuba-crackdown bill unenforceable and unconstitutional.

Florida Takes Cuba Policy to the Absurd
By Tim Padgett
Time Magazine
Cuba has always been a volatile issue in Florida, but what played out in Miami this week bordered on the farcical.

PIP fraud legislation among last batch of bills awaiting Gov. Scott's decision
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
Legislation aimed at cracking down on personal injury protection (PIP) fraud is one of 36 bills Gov. Rick Scott is expected to take action on Friday.

Jennifer Carroll says "we didn't go out asking people" to join the "stand your ground" task force: False
By Toluse Olorunnipa and Katie Sanders
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald PolitiFact
Lawmakers and lawyers clamored to join the task force set up by Gov. Rick Scott to examine Florida’s justifiable homicide laws after Trayvon Martin’s shooting death.

POLITICAL RACES

Swing-state polls: Florida, Ohio toss-ups; Obama up in Pa. by 8 percent
By George Bennett
Palm Beach Post
Florida is back in the presidential toss-up column according to a new poll that shows Republican Mitt Romney gaining on President Obama over the past month.

Political Florida Lets Get to Work Committee raises more than $1 million in April
By Jim Saunders
News Service of Florida
With Gov. Rick Scott making plans to run for re-election in 2014, a closely linked political committee raised more than $1 million in April --- and has already collected nearly $2 million this year, according to the committee's website.

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Coastal Cities Summit: Sea level rise is no longer a matter of if, but when listen
By Liz McKibbon
WMNF Tampa
Cities on coastlines face unique challenges including flooding enhanced by rising sea levels.

Litigious group focused on biodiversity, endangered species opens Florida office
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
An environmental group with a history of suing federal agencies over endangered species issues announced Thursday it is opening a Florida office.

Judge pushes civil trial over BP spill into 2013
Associated Press
Miami Herald
The federal judge who will decide whether to approve a class-action settlement of claims against BP PLC has scheduled a January 2013 trial for other claims spawned by the deadly blowout of the company's deepwater well in the Gulf Mexico.

LGBT

Equality Florida: Federal Bureau of Prisons now requires LGBT employee representation in system
By Steve Rothaus
Miami Herald
Equality Florida says the Federal Bureau of Prisons now is requiring LGBT employee representation in the national federal prison system.

City law should forbid discrimination
Editorial
Florida Times-Union
It's never too late to do the right thing.

EDUCATION

Scott Prays, Schools Don’t - for Now
By Whitney Ray
Capitol News Service
Many Florida school students participated in the National Day of Prayer by voluntarily attending religious events.

USF students share worries about students loans with Sen. Bill Nelson
By Justin George
Tampa Bay Times
A few students put off law school, scared a looming doubling of government-backed student loan rates would crush them.

Liberal arts cuts at UF will not mean faculty layoffs
By Nathan Crabbe
Gainesville Sun
The dean of the University of Florida's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences said Thursday that his proposal for $5.9 million in budget cuts avoids faculty layoffs, but faculty will feel the effect of the plan through changes such as larger class sizes and teaching loads.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Florida unemployment compensation being reduced
By Bill Kaczor
Associated Press
Florida's improving unemployment rate may be good news for most people, but it will have a negative effect on many of the estimated 836,000 workers who remain jobless.

Job cuts rise in April but Florida losses outpaced by hiring
By Marcia Heroux Pounds and Dana Williams
South Florida Sun Sentinel
Announced job cuts in April were three times larger than the number in March, based on layoff notices filed with the state.

Scott's new power over jobs agencies might violate federal law
By Jim Stratton
Orlando Sentinel
|A new state law allowing the governor to remove chief executives and members of the state's 24 regional work-force boards may violate federal legislation giving that power to local elected officials.

Florida no-fault insurance reform sponsors say Governor Scott will sign bill despite glitch
By Michael Peltier
News Service of Florida
Two key lawmakers behind Florida's no-fault insurance reform package said today they expect the governor to sign the new law Friday despite a potential glitch that could delay payments to some health providers.

CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES

Rick Scott’s Obsession With Other People’s Urine
By Pierre Tristam
Flagler Live
Anyone other than my doctor who’d ask me to pee in a cup isn’t just out of line.

Tampa’s Plea for a Bit of Disarmament? Rejected
Editorial
New York Times
Mayor Bob Buckhorn of Tampa, Fla., proudly packs a .38-caliber revolver as one of the 900,000 Floridians holding concealed-weapon permits these days.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

Justices fire back in flare-up over their campaign paperwork
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald
Florida's three Supreme Court justices, who are under fire for using court staff to assist them in their last-minute completion of their paperwork needed to meet the deadline for their merit retention campaigns, shot back on Thursday with a letter from a well-regarded constitutional law expert.