Daily Clips for June 15, 2012

FEATURED STORIES

|Gov. Rick Scott: I was wrongly called dead, stripped from Florida voter roll
Associated Press
Tampa Bay Times
Florida Gov. Rick Scott knows what it's like to be told that he's dead and not registered to vote.

Florida voters mistakenly purged in 2000
By Katie Sanders
Tampa Bay Times
An effort ordered by Gov. Rick Scott to purge Florida's voter rolls of noncitizens has U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson feeling a sour case of déjà vu.

Two of Jim Greer's lawyers withdraw from the case
By Lucy Morgan
Tampa Bay Times
Two prominent Orlando lawyers left former Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer's defense team Thursday, citing irreconcilable differences.

Florida School Board Association pans FCAT
By Christopher O’Donnell
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
A growing discontent with the high-stakes FCAT is escalating into a major rift between the state and Florida school districts.

Romney gains fundraising advantage in Florida
By William E. Gibson
Orlando Sentinel
Mitt Romney is winning the money race against President Barack Obama in Florida, a sign that GOP voters and affluent donors in this pivotal state are closing ranks around the Republican challenger.

BEST OF THE BLOGS

Who IS GOP Senator Michael Bennett?
By Gimleteye
Eye on Miami
Michael Bennett, the GOP senator from Bradenton, led the legislative effort to kill the Florida Department of Community Affairs.

The voucher double standard on accountability, with a twist
By Sherman Dorn
Sherman Dorn
Over at the redefinED blog, Robyn Rennick has an entry from yesterday arguing that accountability testing doesn’t make sense for McKay Scholarship students.

Mack adviser Art Finkelstein works for campaign but is also setting up a Super PAC to capture Senate?
By Peter Schorsch
Saint Petersblog
I know we’re all suppose to turn a blind eye to coordination between campaigns and supportive Super PACs, but let’s connect the dots for a moment.

How Will Jim Norman’s Withdrawal Impact Other Senate Races?
By Kartik Krishnaiyer
The Political Hurricane
Yesterday Senator Jim Norman formally withdrew from the Senate District 17 race giving a leg up in a competitive advantage to  Rep. John Legg in a crowded GOP Primary.

GOP Election Supervisor Blasts Florida’s Lawsuit Against Feds, Won’t Restart Purge Regardless Of Outcome
By Josh Israel
Think Progress
Even if Gov. Rick Scott’s (R-FL) administration prevails in its new lawsuit against the Obama administration, his efforts to purge voters before November’s election still faces a major obstacle — the county elections supervisors, including 30 Republicans, who have the ultimate authority over the voting rolls.

FLORIDA POLITICS

Biden addressing nation's mayors
By Mike Schneider
Associated Press
Vice President Joe Biden is addressing the nation's mayors at their annual conference.

Sen. Nelson's Florida election law filing rejected
Associated Press
TC Palm
A three-judge panel says U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson waited too long to offer new evidence in Florida's election law case.

Social media scoring big as campaign tool
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Current
As Gov. Rick Scott began a statewide campaign blitz this week to explain the purge of Florida voter rolls in the face of a federal lawsuit and sagging poll numbers, a large red rectangle popped up on Facebook pages with the message "I stand with Gov. Scott, stop voter fraud."

Officials scrambling to preserve statewide email contract
By Travis Pillow
Florida Current
State technology and purchasing officials are scrambling to salvage a contract to create a single email platform for most of state government.

POLITICAL RACES

Sen. Marco Rubio overshadows Sen. Rob Portman at faith forum
By Alex Leary
Tampa Bay Times
Related: Sen. Marco Rubio's book describes how he nearly quit the race
Pity U.S. Sen. Rob Portman.

Many millionaire candidates contend for seats in Florida Legislature
By Brittany Alana Davis
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Florida lawmakers like to say that they're just like the rest of us. 

ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

DEP's handling of controversial wetland permit now subject of investigation
By Craig Pittman
Tampa Bay Times
State officials are now investigating the way top Department of Environmental Protection officials have handled a controversial permit, according to newly released documents.

PSC Commissioner Lisa Edgar among 21 to apply for her seat
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
Public Service Commissioner Lisa Edgar and former Rep. Ken Littlefield are among 21 to apply for Edgar's commission seat before the Thursday deadline.

Progress on restoring Everglades
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
The Everglades cleanup plan that state and federal officials agreed to this week is far from perfect: It continues the foot-dragging that has gone on for decades, and it is pinned on the hope of appropriations from the very state Republican lawmakers who have starved environmental funding.

LGBT

5 reasons gay marriage losing streak may be over
By Mike Baker
Associated Press
Opponents of gay marriage have an unblemished track record in U.S. elections, chalking up 32 victories in 32 public votes.

EDUCATION

Brevard, Fla. school boards blast FCAT
By Mackenzie Ryan
Florida Today
School board members from across the state Thursday backed a growing movement to overhaul a state testing system they say places too much emphasis on the FCAT.

Florida's rules don't protect interests of students, taxpayers
By Bob Sikes
Orlando Sentinel
A memorable exchange took place in February 2011 between two powerful Florida senators during a committee debate on Senate Bill 736, which ushered inFlorida's new teacher-evaluation system.

Scott appoints health care exec to Board of Governors
By Kim Wilmath
Tampa Bay Times
They'll be a new face at the Florida Board of Governor's big meeting in Orlando next week.

USF board votes to seek 11 percent tuition differential increase
By Kim Wilmath
Tampa Bay Times
In a move the chairman of the University of South Florida Board of Trustees said would "send a message" to state lawmakers, USF trustees voted Thursday to only seek an 11 percent tuition increase for the upcoming school year.

JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY

Ports, roads are focus of transportation spending
By James Call
Florida Current
Gov. Rick Scott spotlighted the state's committment to spending hundreds of millions of dollars on transportation projects with a ceremonial bill signing at the Port of Miami on Thursday.

Feds announce record payments to counties in lieu of paying property taxes
By Bruce Ritchie
Florida Current
Florida counties will receive nearly $4.9 million in payments from the federal government in lieu of property taxes on federal lands, U.S. Interior Ken Salazar announced Thursday.

Florida banks getting healthier and healthier
By Jeff Harrington
Tampa Bay Times
Is it finally safe for Florida bankers to crawl out of their vaults?

HEALTH AND SENIORS

300,000 needy Florida kids go without meals as federal program goes unpromoted
By Ana M. Valdes
Palm Beach Post
Fewer low-income children across the country received free or discounted meals during the 2011 summer break than a year earlier, despite steady increases nationwide in the number of children dependent on subsidized meals during the school year, according to a study released this month.

Florida Department of Health still working on plans for TB patients
By Jim Saunders
News Service of Florida
Less than three weeks before the A.G. Holley state hospital will stop providing care to tuberculosis patients, the Florida Department of Health has not finalized plans to treat them at other facilities.

JUSTICE AND THE COURTS

FAMU hazing defendants face Oct. 8 trial date
By Stephen Hudak
Orlando Sentinel
A judge on Thursday set an October trial date for 11 former members of the Florida A&M University marching band in the hazing death of drum major Robert Champion.