PROGRESS
FLORIDA IN THE NEWS
The Blu Vu: Week of December 7, 2012
By Gayle Andrews
The Blu Vu
The Florida GOP meltdown continues in the courts and the Governor's office Rep. Michelle Rehwinkle Vasilinda gives us an inside look at what to expect from the House this session, and Progress Florida’s Damien Filer talks Bush tax cuts as political reality comes your way!
FEATURED
STORIES
Charlie Crist signs papers to become a Democrat
By Adam C. Smith
Tampa Bay Times
Related AP story: Florida's Crist may run again; GOP says its ready
It was just a matter of time. Charlie Crist is becoming a Democrat.
Governor previews re-election strategy: jobs, education and low cost of living
By Bill Cotterell
Florida Current
Declaring that "everybody should be a Republican," Gov. Rick Scott on Saturday previewed a re-election strategy of job creation, education improvement and holding down Florida's cost of living -- while pointedly brushing off ex-Gov. Charlie Crist's looming Democratic candidacy for 2014.
Senator calls for replacing transparency program
By Mary Ellen Klas
Miami Herald
Open government advocates increased the heat on state officials to unleash access to a budget transparency web site Friday as the Senate president continued to distance himself from the site under his control.
Changes to Florida Voting Laws Possible As Officials Survey Election Damage
By Ashley Lopez
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
State officials are still not sure where to lay blame for this year’s disastrous election, but changes to voting laws might be in the cards.
Republican insider fight becomes headache for GOP
By Marc Caputo
Miami Herald
A Republican is suing the Republican Party of Florida, saying it disenfranchised him and some Republican voters.
Scott is the ‘challenge’ for higher education in Florida
Editorial
Palm Beach Post
The people who run Florida’s public colleges and universities didn’t cut $300 million from this year’s higher education budget.
EDITORIAL
CARTOON OF THE WEEK
By Andy Marlette
Pensacola News Journal
Related editorial: Change voting laws
FLORIDA
POLITICS
Former lobbyist Allison Tant joins race to lead Florida Democratic Party
By Adam C. Smith
Tampa Bay Times
Two of Florida's most prominent Democrats, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and Democratic National Committee chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, have recruited a new candidate to lead the state Democratic Party: Allison Tant, a top fundraiser in Tallahassee.
Florida lawmakers seek reform of independent campaign committees
By William March
Tampa Tribune
Trying to figure out who pays for campaigns by members of the Florida Legislature has become a bewildering trek through a morass of anonymous, independent committees funneling money back and forth among themselves.
'Transparency' is a virtue -- except when it's not
By Aaron Deslatte
Orlando Sentinel
There's an obvious reason why Florida politicos spend so much time talking about the cleansing effect of transparency without ever hopping in the tub.
Get tough on corruption
By Dan Krassner
Pensacola News Journal
The results of a Florida State University study on corruption in Florida was disturbing and cries for serious ethics reform.
Thousands of rejected Miami-Dade absentee ballots show perils of voting by mail
By Marc Caputo
Miami Herald
Absentee ballots are often touted as a pain-free, easy way to cast a vote without having to stand in long lines at a polling station.
Senate President Don Gaetz cancels on governor to avoid rule violation
By Steve Bousquet
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Gov. Rick Scott invited Senate President Don Gaetz to dinner Thursday and the senator gladly accepted, before realizing that going might violate Senate rules and the Florida Constitution.
POLITICAL
RACES
A Crist-Scott showdown? Here's how it might play out
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Lakeland Ledger
Former Gov. Charlie Crist finished laying the groundwork for his political comeback, joining the Democratic Party this weekend and positioning himself to run against Republican Gov. Rick Scott in 2014.
How the GOP can blow another election
By Carl Hiaasen
Miami Herald
Only 11 days after the re-election of Barack Obama, Marco Rubio flew to Iowa to informally begin his quest for the presidency in 2016.
BALLOT
INITIATIVES
Lengthy Ballots No Favor to Voters
By Lloyd Dunkelberger
Lakeland Ledger
Florida's lengthy general election ballot, which included 11 constitutional amendments, has been cited as one of the main causes for long lines and delays in the recent election.
ENVIRONMENT
AND ENERGY
South Florida summit message: Climate change is here
By Curtis Morgan
Miami Herald
South Florida took the threat seriously before most everybody else, with four counties reaching a landmark compact in 2009 to work together to start addressing the risks of global warming.
Central Florida wetlands fight headed to U.S. Supreme Court
By Steve Patterson
Florida Times-Union
After nearly 20 years of courtroom skirmishes, a property owner’s fight with the St. Johns River Water Management District over developing a few acres will be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
LGBT
Supreme Court will hear gay marriage cases
By Michael Doyle and Steve Rothaus
Miami Herald
The Supreme Court turned to same-sex marriage Friday in a big way, by agreeing to review a California ballot measure that banned it and a federal law that blocks benefits for married same-sex couples.
EDUCATION
To Steer Students Toward Jobs, Florida May Cut Tuition for Select Majors
By Lizette Alvarez
New York Times
Rick Scott, businessman turned politician, campaigned for governor in 2010 with promises to run Florida like a successful business — more efficiency, lower costs, less hand-wringing and measurable results.
More STEM degrees may not equal more jobs
By Michael Vasquez
Miami Herald
Science, technology, engineering and math — the fields collectively known as STEM — are all the rage these days.
Professors pan idea to vary tuition based on students' majors
By Denise-Marie Ordway
Orlando Sentinel
Public university professors statewide are speaking out against a set of higher-education reforms that the Florida lawmakers will consider during the next legislative session.
Scott halts early learning funding shift
By Travis Pillow
Tallahassee Democrat
After months of outcry that culminated in a letter signed by all 31 of the state’s Early Learning Coalitions, Gov. Rick Scott announced the state would stop phasing in a new funding formula that has cost the Big Bend organization hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for programs that help toddlers prepare for school.
Evaluations earn failing grade
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
It was obvious to Florida public school teachers six weeks ago that the state's new system for evaluating them uses imperfect data that makes the evaluations of dubious value.
Florida needs practical leader on education
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
Like an old pinball machine about ready to tilt, Florida's Department of Education has been bouncing from crisis to crisis for more than a year.
JOBS,
BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
At the fiscal cliff, it’s big business vs. small
By Kevin G. Hall
McClatchy News Service
Democrats and Republicans aren’t the only ones divided over how to fix the nation’s fiscal problems.
Obama: Republicans blocking middle-class tax cuts
Associated Press
Tampa Tribune
President Barack Obama said Saturday that Republicans in the House are blocking a bill that would prevent a tax increase on the first $250,000 of income earned by all Americans.
Florida backs off license tag fight
By Brittany Alana Davis
Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Backing away from a possible court fight, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles announced Friday that it will halt its attempt to bid license tag services to private vendors.
Insurers seeking Citizens loans fined
By Charles Elmore
Palm Beach Post
Two companies named as potential players in a controversial plan to cash eight-figure checks in exchange for taking Citizens insurance customers have been hit with penalties for not complying with an existing state loan program, records reviewed by The Palm Beach Post show.
Insurance investigations as sought by Artiles have dropped in recent years
By Gray Rohrer
Florida Current
In the past two weeks, Rep. Frank Artiles, R-Miami, has asked for “market conduct examinations” -- thorough reviews of insurance companies’ business practices to ensure compliance with state laws -- of state-run Citizens Property Insurance Corp. and the Tower Hill Insurance Group and related companies.
Miami-to-Orlando passenger rail on track
By Michael Turnbell
South Florida Sun Sentinel
A new passenger rail service is on track to begin in 2015, whisking travelers from Miami to Orlando, while offering hourly trains, gourmet meals and Wi-Fi.
HEALTH
AND SENIORS
Obamacare creates questions about state marketplace
By Jim Saunders
News Service of Florida
The long-discussed Florida Health Choices program is moving forward with plans to run a health-insurance “marketplace” catering to small businesses, but its long-term future is more uncertain because of the federal health overhaul.
Partisanship at its worst
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
Perhaps nothing better captures Washington's ideological gridlock than a Senate that could not find enough bipartisan agreement to ratify a U.N. treaty banning discrimination against people with disabilities. Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, whose grandfather was a polio victim, chose partisanship over humanitarian concerns and voted against the legislation.
Florida failing to protect children
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
The last hours of Marie Freyre's short life were torturous.
CIVIL
RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
No Major Changes for Stand Your Ground
By Mike Vasilinda
Capitol News Service
After seven public meetings listening to experts and reviewing thousands of letters and public comments from 140 people, today was the last day for Stand Your Ground task force members to submit their comments to the Governor.
Jacksonville Teen's Death Prompts New Anti-'Stand Your Ground' Campaign
By Jessica Palombo
WFSU Tallahassee
The family of an unarmed Jacksonville teenager killed after a dispute about loud music is calling for a repeal of the controversial Stand Your Ground law.
Region's young immigrants now making it through new Deferred Action program
By Victoria Macchi
Naples Daily News
Fatima Soto didn't live under the radar when she was undocumented.
JUSTICE
AND THE COURTS
As DOC Prepares Appeal In Prison Health Privatization Case, Some Ask 'What Happens To Employees?'
By Sascha Cordner
WFSU Tallahassee
The Florida Department of Corrections is preparing to file an appeal, after a Judge ruled privatizing most of the health care services in Florida’s prisons, illegal.
On prisons, no legislative power play
Editorial
Tampa Bay Times
One of these days, legislative leaders in Tallahassee may finally understand they cannot do an end run around their own members and the state Constitution.
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