FEATURED STORIES
Staff Report
Related: BP's CEO takes a lashing from Congress, but not blame
Pie-sized tar patties washed up on Okaloosa County shores Thursday, beaching Panhandle swimmers as cleanup workers turned to nighttime hours to pluck splotches of weathered oil off some of the state's most pristine coast.
By Alan Fram
Related: Gulf oil full of methane, adding new concerns
Will the Gulf oil leak cam engulf President Barack Obama?
By John Frank and Steve Bousquet
The battle lines in the GOP primary for governor became sharper Thursday as the candidates made the contest official and escalated a heated race with a new round of nasty attacks.
By Gary Fineout
A governor bolting his own party to run as an independent. Two wealthy candidates pouring in millions of their own money for television ads. Throw in a strip club owner and Tea Party candidates jumping into legislative races.
The Associated Press
The Justice Department has asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit by 20 states challenging President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.
BEST OF THE BLOGS
By J. T. Orlando
The assault on non-sectarian public education in Florida continues. In Polk County, for example, schools have sought money from the community to make up for funding deficits.
By Daniel Tilson
Here's a story worth some very special attention in Florida, a "right to work" state that stands squarely in opposition to workers being organized into labor unions - unions that might protect them from the kind of corporate crap that has contributed to the state's outrageous unemployment statistics and economic disrepair.
By Iinkberries
Ever since the BP oil disaster everyone's noticed that Dick Cheney has been awfully quiet. While that's true, it doesn't necessarily mean he hasn't had his views "represented."
By Gimleteye
As a routine strategy, "managing expectations" is the best way to deal with disaster. Up to this moment, that has been Plan A in the Gulf of Mexico.
By Damien Filer
Certainly, she's listening to her campaign manager, Jillian Hasner. Most California voters probably have no idea Hasner's husband is Florida House Majority Leader Adam Hasner, one of the most rightwing politicians in the largest southern state, where even the political middle is far to the right of California.
FLORIDA POLITICS
By Robert Lorei
Our next guest, Howard Troxler, has been writing a lot recently about corruption in state government.
POLITICAL RACES
By Adam C. Smith
Eager to rev up his suddenly troubled campaign, Bill McCollum on Thursday vowed as governor to mandate all local governments freeze property taxes for at least two years.
By Beth Reinhard
U.S. Senate candidate Jeff Greene "grew up as a Democrat," but said the conservative climate of Harvard Business School, the oil crisis of the late 1970s and the battered Carter administration drew him to the GOP in 1982.
By William March
The Rick Scott campaign for governor has accused Bill McCollum of illegally raising money for a secretive political group running television ads attacking Scott.
By Michael C. Bender
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio is facing foreclosure on a Tallahassee house after missing five months of mortgage payments, according to a lawsuit filed in Leon County Circuit Court.
By Marcos Restrepo
Haitian native Bernard Sansaricq, who was president of the Haitian senate and a human-rights defender, remains the sole Republican challenging incumbent Rep. Alcee Hastings for the congressional District 23 seat.
BALLOT INITIATIVES
By Winston C. Perry
I would like to present to every concerned and responsible Florida voter the many reasons that voting yes for Amendment 4 on Nov. 2 is the smart, politically correct thing to do for the future good of Florida.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
By Malia Rulon
Related: Oil expected on Bay County shores by weekend
Pensacola Rep. Jeff Miller called Thursday for fellow Republican Joe Barton of Texas to step down from his leadership position on the House Energy and Commerce Committee after Barton apologized to BP chief Tony Hayward.
By Ihosvani Rodriguez
Related: 100 dime-size tar balls wash ashore on beach east of Pensacola
Environmentalists worry about growth-management changes
St. Augustine Record
St. Lucie plasma biomass plant permit approved, possibly nation's largest
FloridaEnvironments.com
FPL hiding data, group alleges
Miami Herald/St. Petersburg Times Tallahassee Bureau
Supreme Court ruling on beaches opens door to taking claims
FloridaEnvironments.com
Haridopolos at helm of clean energy summit
Florida Today
Incoming Florida Senate president blames Crist for death of energy bill
FloridaEnvironments.com
EDUCATION
Editorial
Despite complaints from Florida university students and their parents about having to pay more in tuition and fees than ever before, the state's higher education system remains a great bargain.
JOBS, BUDGET, AND ECONOMY
The Associated Press
Florida labor officials are hoping that May's unemployment report improves for the second straight month.
By Cristina Silva
Long hounded by tales of underpaid and overworked employees, the Florida Department of Children and Families is once again under investigation for denying fair wages to its workers, the U.S. Labor Department confirmed Thursday.
HEALTH AND SENIORS
By Jim Saunders
Extra Medicaid funding worth $1 billion to Florida is in jeopardy following a defeat in the U.S. Senate Wednesday on a procedural vote of 52 to 45, with all Republicans and 12 Democrats in opposition.
The Associated Press
The vital signs are improving for President Barack Obama's health care plan.
By Aaron Kessler
At least a half-dozen home builders, installers and environmental consultants knew as early as 2006 that foul smells were coming from drywall imported from China -- but they did not share their early concerns with the public, even when homeowners began publicly complaining about the drywall in 2008.
CIVIL RIGHTS, PEACE AND SOCIAL ISSUES
The Progress Report
On Monday, the State Department released its 10th annual report on "Trafficking in Persons," which assesses the efforts that 177 countries are undertaking to combat human trafficking, or "modern day slavery."
JUSTICE AND THE COURTS
By Kimberly Miller
The U.S. Supreme Court dealt a financial blow to Florida's waterfront homeowners today ruling they are not entitled to compensation when sand restoration projects leave private beachfront property open to the public.
