Sunburn for 9/9 — A morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics

A morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics.

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IS OBAMA READY FOR PRIME TIME? via Michael Hirsh of National Journal

Just how lonely does it get when not only the U.N., the pope, the British, and Vladimir Putin are against you but even your own Democratic allies on Hill? When even the man who took over your secretary of State’s U.S. Senate seat, Edward Markey—from that bluest of blue states, Massachusetts—only votes “present” on the Syria resolution?

Really, really lonely. Barack Obama looked like about the most isolated man on earth Fridaywhen, at his closing news conference at the G-20 summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, he lamented that it was his lot to prevent international law from “unraveling” over Bashar al-Assad’s flagrant use of chemical weapons.

Now, with the vote in the House at least apparently going against him, Obama has one last chance to rescue what may be his international reputation by delivering a prime-time speechon Tuesday. To give Obama a little bit of company, the White House released a joint statement on Syria signed by 10 allies: Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. But the statement fell short of endorsing a military strike, calling only for “a strong international response.”

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ADAM HASNER WATCH via George Bennett of the Palm Beach Post

While remaining mum on whether he’ll run for Congress, former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner met with operatives from the National Republican Congressional Committee last week to discuss a possible bid for the nationally targeted Palm Beach-Treasure Coast seat of freshman Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Jupiter.

Hasner lives outside Murphy’s District 18 in Boca Raton. But he has put his Boca town house on the market and is said to have looked at houses in northern Palm Beach County, where he grew up and graduated from Palm Beach Gardens High School.

BAD BET: WHY REPUBLICANS CAN’T WIN WITH WHITES ALONE via Ronald Brownstein

This much is undisputed: In 2012, President Obama lost white voters by a larger margin than any winning presidential candidate in U.S. history. In his reelection, Obama lost ground from 2008 with almost every conceivable segment of the white electorate. The key question facing the GOP is whether Obama’s 2012 performance represents a structural Democratic decline among whites that could deepen even further in the years ahead—or a floor from which the next Democratic nominee is likely to improve. In recent months, a chorus of conservative analysts has bet on the first option. 

GUS BILIRAKIS: A WORKHORSE, NOT A SHOW HORSE via Jeff Henderson of Sunshine State News

It’s easy to overlook Gus Bilirakis, even though he’s been embroiled  in Florida politics for 15 years.  Bilirakis generally avoids headlines and has kept a relatively low profile in both the Florida House and in Congress. But in Tallahassee and Washington, he has put in yeoman’s work as he has slowly risen in the Republican ranks. Elected to the Florida House in 1998, Bilirakis was a mainstay Republican legislator during Jeb Bush’s tenure and he eventually rose to chair the important Economic Development, Trade and Banking Committee.  Bilirakis came into Congress as part of the leadership serving as an assistant GOP whip under Roy Blunt. The grandson of Greek immigrants, Bilirakis serves as a co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Hellenic Issues.  Despite only being in his second term, from 2009-2010 he was the ranking Republican on the House Committee on Homeland Security’s Subcommittee on Management, Investigations and Oversight.

RON DESANTIS, TREY RADEL AND TED YOHO MAKE NOISE AS FRESHMEN IN CONGRESS via Jeff Henderson of Sunshine State News

Three Republicans from Florida are ignoring the old congressional rule that freshmen should be seen and not heard. Ron DeSantis, Trey Radel and Ted Yoho never held elected office before winning crowded Republican primaries last August, then cruising in the general election. Despite their lack of political experience, the three have all had a knack for getting attention. DeSantis has used his experience as an attorney to raise his profile demanding Barack Obama dismiss Eric Holder as attorney general. DeSantis has been a frequent guest on cable talk shows, especially building a little niche for himself on Greta Van Sustern’s show on Fox News.

Radel… has shown some mastery of the media — no surprise with his experience in communications. Radel won national attention with his love of hip-hop music and his reviews of Jay-Z and Daft Punk albums earlier in the year. But he has also shown a more serious side, including his appearance on the BBC network this week, expressing his opposition to American military intervention against Syria.

It’s easy to see DeSantis and Radel aspire for higher office. DeSantis is only 34 while Radel is 37. Yoho also represents a solid Republican area but…Yoho has promised to serve only four terms in Congress and he has no interest in making a career in politics.

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CHARLIE CRIST SAYS HE AND CO-AUTHOR HAVE FINISHED WRITING NO-HOLDS BARRED MEMOIR via George Bennett of the Palm Beach Post

Crist says he recently finished work on his “no-holds-barred” memoir detailing his journey from Republican to independent to Democrat.

Before a visit with Democratic activists in West Delray, Crist said he and co-author Ellis Henican finished writing about two weeks ago and the manuscript is now in the hands of editors at Dutton before a scheduled February release.

The book is to be titled The Party’s Over: How the Extreme Right Hijacked the GOP and I Became a Democrat.

Crist, widely expected to launch a Democratic bid for governor in the fall, said his first-ever book project was “hard work, I gotta tell you, but I enjoyed it thoroughly.”

Asked about the writing process, Crist said: “He ended up coming down to St. Petersburg and we worked about 8 weeks straight, day and night, from A to Z, went through it and had a lot of fun doing it. Hard work, but a lot of fun.”

CRIST SAYS TOP OBAMA AIDES HAVE GIVEN HIM ADVICE ON RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR AS DEMOCRAT via George Bennett of the Palm Beach Post

Crist said he has talked about the 2014 governor’s race with key 2008 and 2012 Obama campaign strategist David Axelrod, Obama 2012 campaign manager Jim Messina and longtime Obama confidanteValerie Jarrett.

LOSER OF THE WEEK IN FLORIDA POLITICS: ALLISON TANT via Adam Smith of the Tampa Bay Times

“Florida’s Democratic chairwoman is openly warring with state Rep. Darryl Rouson, D-St. Petersburg, over his leadership of state House campaigns. She’s still stinging from endorsing a CFO candidate who quit about 30 seconds after announcing because of bankruptcy revelations. And last week her staff giddily announced their latest exciting speaker for the upcoming state party conference: an obscure state senator from Ohio. This does not appear to be a well-oiled political machine.”

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FLORIDA COULD SEE $845M BUDGET SURPLUS via CBS Miami

Florida could see a budget surplus for the fiscal year and Gov. Scott has a few ideas for how to use it. Gov. Scott says he wants to cut taxes and fees by $500 million during his re-election year. But a new three-year budget forecast released Thursday by state economists shows that there won’t be enough money to do both tax cuts and increase spending significantly on schools. The annual forecast, which is required by the state constitution, has plenty of good news for Scott and the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature. It shows that the state continues to recover from the depths of the Great Recession and there is no need for budget cuts in the near future.

The new forecast shows Florida would have a projected surplus of $845 million in fiscal year 2014 even after meeting current enrollment needs for schools and health care programs such as Medicaid and setting aside $1 billion in reserves. This year, the state’s overall budget is $74.2 billion. But the forecast — which will be presented next week to legislators — also warns that more than half of next year’s anticipated surplus is a one-time windfall. “I want to ask all citizens ‘what are their ideas?’” Scott said. “What can we do to give you, the citizens, back your money.”

JAGS OWNER MEETS WITH GOV. SCOTT

Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan met with Gov. Scott at the governor’s mansion Sunday night, not long after the team embarrassed itself on the field losing to the otherwise hapless Kansas City Chiefs.

A Scott spokeswoman said the meeting was to discuss “economic development opportunities.” She was not sure if the discussion was specific to Jacksonville or if any specific project was discussed.

SCOTT NO LONGER A LONG-SHOT FOR RE-ELECTION via Aaron Deslatte of the Orlando Sentinel

(T)here are growing signs that Scott — an unknown in Florida until his $100 million campaign drowned out primary- and general-election challengers in 2010 — will be a formidable contender next year.

As the national economic recovery has taken hold, Florida has seen its unemployment rate shrink — from 10.9 percent when Scott took office to 7.1 percent in July, with 342,000 moved off the unemployment rolls — though state economists attribute nearly half that reduction to people dropping out of the labor force. State revenue is up, enabling Scott to pledge to tea-party groups this month to cut $500 million in unspecified taxes and fees next year.

Scott, whose campaign slogan was “Let’s get to work,” is capitalizing on that trend, hop-scotching among photo-op job announcements at storage facilities in Lake City, a Univision headquarters ribbon-cutting in Doral and a Walmart summit in Orlando.

“My job is to keep doing what I got elected to do: make this the best state to work, live and play,” he said in an interview, declining to answer questions about how much credit he deserved for the economic turnaround. “I’m going to continue to work my tail off to continue to grow jobs and improve education.”

SCOTT SAYS MAJORITY OF BUSINESSES ARE EXEMPT FROM BUSINESS TAXES via PolitiFact

Florida’s CEO-turned-governor has a big crush on businesses. Republican Gov. Rick Scott loves them so much that the majority don’t have to bother paying business taxes, he told a conservative crowd at the Americans for Prosperity conference in Orlando… Scott initially wanted the Legislature to reduce the corporate tax rate, but that didn’t work out. So he took a different route: relieving businesses of paying the tax by upping the amount of income exempt from the tax.

In his first year, Scott lobbied to exempt the first $25,000 worth of taxable income, up from $5,000. In 2012, he got the Legislature to raise the exemption to $50,000. Scott wanted to then raise the exemption to $75,000 but the Legislature didn’t go along with it in 2013.

Scott said “70 percent of our businesses don’t pay a business tax.” His general point was that during his tenure, he’s been cutting all sorts of taxes. State data for 2011 taxes shows that 76.8 percent of businesses don’t pay the corporate income tax due to the exemption. Scott is including some very small businesses here in his calculation and omitting that many of them were exempt from paying this tax before he took office. We rate this claim Mostly True.

SCOTT SETS ‘IT’S YOUR MONEY’ TOUR TO TALK TAX CUTS

Scott announced a week ago that he’d ask the 2014 Legislature to cut “taxes and fees” by $500 million. But so far, he’s resisted saying what he thinks lawmakers should cut.

“I want to ask all citizens ‘what are their ideas?'” Scott told reporters earlier this week. “What can we do to give you, the citizens, back your money?”

On Friday, the governor announced a series of public hearing that he said would hear from taxpayers about what cuts they wanted to see.

According to a release from Scott’s office, the “It’s Your Money” tour will kick off in West Palm Beach on Tuesday and stop in Ft. Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando.  Exact times and locations will be released in the coming days.

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CONTEXT FLORIDA

Bob West: “Ghost voters” in the 2012 Florida election — read here.  

Doug Clifton: Miami-Dade has lots of crooked mayors, but Broward had Lomelo — read here. 

Gregory Newburn: Revisiting Florida’s “10-20-Life” law — read here.

Julie Delegal: Florida leaders may want state to have its own standardized test — read here.

Wendy Howard: Stop bickering and support Common Core standards — read here.

EXECUTION RESCHEDULED TO ACCOMMODATE PAM BONDI’S CAMPAIGN EVENT via the News Service of Florida

A “hometown campaign kickoff” at a waterfront home in Tampa for Attorney General Pam Bondi is scheduled for the same night that Gov. Rick Scott had once set as the execution date for Death Row inmate Marshall Lee Gore. The execution was moved to a later date at Bondi’s request.

A spokeswoman for Bondi said Friday that the Sept. 10 fundraiser had been planned before the execution date was set. Scott had scheduled two earlier execution dates for Gore this summer, but both were scuttled because of legal battles about Gore’s sanity. Gore was convicted of killing two women in 1988 in Miami-Dade and Columbia counties. 

The Tuesday night reception for Bondi at 5224 West Neptune Way in Tampa is set for 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. On Aug. 13, Scott had scheduled Gore’s execution for the same night. But on Aug. 19, Scott advised Florida State Prison Warden John Palmer that he was moving the execution from 6 p.m. Sept. 10 to 6 p.m. Oct. 1 “at the request of the Attorney General.” On Aug. 20, Molly McFarland, the deputy press secretary for the Attorney General’s office, said the Sept. 10 date conflicted with a previously-scheduled event, without noting the event. 

“In light of the seriousness of any execution, it was very important to Attorney General Bondi that she be available personally to carry out her office’s duties in the execution process,” McFarland said in an email. On Friday, Jennifer Meale, a spokeswoman for Bondi, reiterated that the fundraiser was on the calendar before Gore’s execution had been planned for the same night.  

ICYMI: BENNETT’S CHANGES TO INDIANA SCHOOL GRADES WERE “PLAUSIBLE” via Kathleen McGrory of the Miami Herald

An independent review commissioned by the Indiana Legislature found “it was necessary” for former Florida Education Commissioner Tony Bennett to tweak Indiana’s school grading formula while serving as that state’s top education official.

Bennett drew heavy criticism for the changes, which became the subject of media reports after he lost reelection in Indiana and was named education commissioner in Florida. The controversy led to Bennett’s resignation from his Sunshine State post last month.

Emails showed that Bennett had scrambled to change the grade for Christel House Academy, an Indianapolis charter school run by an influential Republican Party donor.

But Bennett said he was addressing a flaw in Indiana’s new school grading model, and that the change helped at least a dozen other schools.

Policy Analytics, the firm hired to do the review, found that the Indiana Department of Education had “underestimated the administrative and technical challenges” associated with developing a new school accountability system.

“In the end, the authors found that the two adjustments administered to determine Christel House Academy’s final grade were plausible and the treatment afforded to the school was consistently applied to other schools with similar circumstances,” they wrote.

The authors also suggested state leaders move forward with this year’s grades — and that they be transparent and collaborative as they work to modify the school accountability rules in the future.

After reading the report, Bennett said he felt vindicated.

“More than anything, I felt vindicated for the folks who worked so hard in Indiana,” he said.

TONY BENNETT TALKS ABOUT A TO F PROBE AND RETURN TO INDIANA via Maureen Hayden of Howey Politics Indiana 

Former state schools chief Tony Bennett spent five lonely weeks at his Tallahassee, Fla., home before getting the results of an independent report that cleared him of accusations that he “fixed” a school grade for a Republican donor while he was superintendent of public instruction in Indiana.  The report’s release Friday, which he found out about on Twitter, brought him the relief for which he and his family had been hoping for since the allegations first arose in a widely published Associated Press report in late July.  The 56-page report, authored by a Democrat and a Republican who spent a month analyzing reams of data, concluded Bennett and his staff made “fair” and “plausible” changes to the state’s school rating system before releasing 2012′s A-F grades. The report also found Bennett and his staff “consistently” applied changes to benefit not only an Indianapolis charter school but to 180 other schools across the state. 

Among the report’s conclusions is that Bennett may have rushed the rollout of the new A-F grading system, which ranks schools by letter grade based on a complicated formula that includes standardized test scores. The report found there was a shortage of technical staff at the Department of Education and not enough time to test whether the new grading formula worked. 

His hope is that the report released Friday will put an end to what he described as the painful accusations that he was “dishonest” in his role as Indiana’s state schools chief. 

“If the original accusation is what’s remembered, people will also have to remember the ultimate resolution to that accusation,” Bennett said. “And that is that we didn’t do what people said we did.”

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DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS HAS A NEW COMMS DIRECTOR

Jessica Cary is the new Director of Communications at the Department of Corrections.

Cary replaces Ann Howard, who has left the position “to pursue opportunities in the private sector,” according to DOC Press Secretary Jo Ellyn Rackleff.

Cary most recently worked as media relations and conference coordinator for the Florida Association of Community Health Centers. The position pays $80,000 per year.

JIM GREER PRISON HOUSE INTERVIEW via Steve Bousquet of the Tampa Bay Times

He once controlled the Republican Party of Florida, flying on chartered jets, drinking top-shelf bourbon and mingling with the rich and powerful… The man who use to answer to “Chairman” has a new title: Inmate No. C07705. On the surface, prison has been good to the 51-year-old Greer. Seated at a conference table at nearby Gulf Correctional Institution, where prison officials arranged an interview, Greer looks noticeably thinner. He says he has lost 40 pounds. He’s also tanner than when Floridians last saw him in an Orlando courthouse in February. The tan is the result of six-hour days on a work crew, pulling weeds and picking up trash in nearby Port St. Joe.

He says he wakes up each morning at 4 a.m., attends church services on Tuesdays and Sundays, and teaches inmates studying for their GEDs about the three branches of government. “I teach social studies and civics,” he said, “believe it or not.”  He is eligible for a work release transfer, has a spotless disciplinary record and has few complaints about prison life. “When you’re down in a ditch, it’s 100 degrees and you have a Weed Eater, it’s not the most pleasant thing,” Greer said. “But it’s not North Korea. We’re not being beaten every day.”

During a 75-minute visit, Greer talked about life in prison, the friends he thought he had and the people (he seldom gets specific) that he blames for his downfall. He tantalizes about a possible tell-all book.  “I have a lot of knowledge of a lot of things,” he said. “Maybe someday I’ll tell them and maybe someday I won’t.” 

JOKE OF THE DAY: You know how Jim Greer lost 40 lbs.? It takes conviction!

ON THE RADAR: PARI-MUTUEL RULE CHANGES COMING via Gray Rohrer of the Florida Current

State gambling regulators have announced they will begin drafting new rules for pari-mutuels next month.

The decision from the Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering, housed under the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, is a shift from recent practice. In the past few years regulators have allowed pari-mutuel operators to use loopholes to expand their gambling portfolios.

After an administrative court judge ruled Gretna Racing couldn’t operate under a barrel racing license — the first of its kind in the country –regulators allowed them to operate in the Panhandle town under “flag drop” races. That drew the ire of the horse racing groups such as the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, which brought the suit to stop the barrel races, which are less expensive to stage than traditional horse races.  

FHBPA executive director Kent Sterling said he was caught off guard by the announcement.

“The FHPBA was definitely surprised to see the Division’s announcement. We’re still in the process of reviewing the proposed Rule text, which appears to have already been drafted,” Sterling said in a prepared statement.

Regulators have also allowed dormant summer jai alai permits to be issued and given licenses to expand slot machine operations, all the while asserting their decisions were in line with state laws.

Recently, though, DBPR has stepped in to prevent or stall moves to expand slot machines, filing an administrative complaint against Gulfstream Park in July. The complaint contends the horse track did not run the required number of races as part of a scheme to obtain a license for 2,000 more slot machines.

Now, regulators have decided state laws are too murky.

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FLORENCE SNYDER TAKES ME TO TASK OVER MY DEFENSE OF CHRIS CLARK via Florence Snyder

Peter Schorsch got it wrong — dead wrong— when he suggested in his September 5 SaintPetersblog post that reporter envy might taint coverage of “the Chris Clark imbroglio.”

Miami Herald Tallahassee Bureau Chief Mary Ellen Klas broke the story that Florida’s power elite has spent the week chewing over, praying over, and kvetching over. Klas’ reported that Clark makes megabucks as a political consultant, servicing clients he also deals with in his $150,000 day job as Senate President Don Gaetz’ chief of staff.

That was news to the 99%, most of whom think that $150,000 is real money, and more than enough to purchase all of a legislative staffer’s time and loyalty to the public that picks up the tab.  In 21st century Florida, everything’s legal and there’s no such thing as a conflict of interest…. But Clark’s real-time revolving door is something new. 

Schorsch, himself a political consultant, is open-minded about Clark’s “hybrid job” and rightly suggests that if this is the new normal, some public dialogue is in order… But plenty of Tallahassee’s movers, shakers, and legends in their own minds do confuse real reporters like Klas with the burgeoning population of reporters turned media lobbyists.

Klas is lucky, and so are we, that what’s left of the Miami Herald will pay her a wage she can live on to find out things that Senate Presidents and their retinues don’t want you to know. Klas could have cashed in her credibility for a Chris Clark-size income in “media lobbying” years ago…..if she were the envious type.

TEXT MESSAGE FROM SENATE STAFFER: “The thing that REALLY pisses me off about the Clark story is that Klas and the other self righteous reporters are making it seem like we all get paid by the state while we roll out. We don’t. We don’t even get health insurance. No monetary value from the state whatsoever. o frustrating. Just hope this doesn’t ruin it for the rest of us.”

LEGISLATIVE STAFFING MERRY-GO-ROUND

On: Jason Thompson as a legislative analyst for the Transportation & Highway Safety Subcommittee

On: Chris Stranburg as legislative analyst for the Select Committee on Gaming, 

On: Nick Corvino as district secretary for Rep. Jason Brodeur

Off: Jonathan Little as district secretary for Rep. Brodeur

On: Taylor Ferguson as legislative analyst for Rep. Jake Raburn

On: Brittany Hogue as legislative analyst for Rep. John Wood.

Off:Angela Lane as legislative analyst for Rep. Kionne McGhee

Off: Elwood Fisher as district secretary for Rep. Elaine Schwartz.

Off: Lynda Fino from the office of Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto

Off: Legislative Assistant Juan Parrado in the office of Sen. Eleanor Sobel.

REP. MATT GAETZ WANTS TO LEGALIZE FIREWORKS via Matthew Beaton of the News Herald

State Rep. Matt Gaetz wants to make fireworks — the big, booming impressive kind — legal in Florida. The Fort Walton Beach Republican filed a bill (HB 4005) recently that would remove existing state regulations on retail fireworks — the type set off privately in backyards and open fields, for holidays, celebrations or simple fun. Gaetz said federal regulations still would apply, but this would cut down on Floridians, particularly those in the Panhandle, heading to Alabama to buy the colorful noisemakers.

“We’re pushing economic activity out of our state with a regulation that’s relatively meaningless because people get fireworks elsewhere and just bring them down and shoot them off here,” Gaetz said. “We’d rather keep those dollars in Florida.”

The idea for eliminating the regulations came from a student at Marianna High School, Gaetz said. The student told him it was silly Floridians were crossing state lines to buy fireworks just to turn around and come back. Asked about potential safety concerns with opening up the sale and use of fireworks, Gaetz dismissed the notion.

“It is a false premise that the existing regulatory structure is making us safer because people are still purchasing the fireworks that they want to purchase,” he said. “They’re just buying them online or they’re traveling to another state to buy them.”

REP. NEIL COMBEE TWEET ON SYRIA, OBAMA GETS ATTENTION via Ryan Little of the Lakeland Ledger

Is President Barack Obama responsible for the chemical attacks in Syria? State Rep. Neil Combee isn’t sure he’s not. The first-term Republican from Polk City, who is also the namesake for the county’s administration building in Bartow, asked the question on Twitter earlier this week, earning condemnation from the state house Democratic whip and drawing attention from political reporters and editors from across the country. Rep. Alan Williams called Combee’s accusations “malarkey,” but Combee is defending the tweet. He said he is just asking important questions as the country has a national discourse on military intervention in Syria.

“I think it’s my place, your place and everybody’s place to question what is going on here,” Combee said Thursday. “Who do we believe?” In the tweet, he linked to a blog post on the website globalresearch.ca that asserts the White House may be responsible for, or at least complicit after the fact, in the Syrian sarin gas attack the Obama administration claims killed at least 1,400 civilians and could lead to a U.S. military strike in the Middle East country.

SENATORS SHOULD STICK TO FACTS ON COMMON CORE, LEADERSHIP SAYS via The Gradebook

Senate President Don Gaetz has sent all members a series of documents relating to the standards, with the message that he hoped the information “will help you and your staff answer constituent inquiries you may have received regarding Florida’s Next Generation Sunshine State Standards.”

Translation?

“It’s to separate fact from fiction … so when we have discussions, we can discuss what the actual standards are,” said Senate Education Committee chairman John Legg, who put together the materials, including copies of the standards.

The subject is bound to come up, as some Republican lawmakers have voiced their opposition to Florida’s continued participation in the model that has been adopted by a majority of states. Rep. Debbie Mayfield, R-Vero Beach, has filed a bill to remove Florida from the Common Core, which it adopted  three years ago.

“We found some of them don’t even have copies of the standards,” Legg said. “If senators have problems with a specific standard, great, let’s highlight it and address that standard.”

He also stressed that Florida’s use of the Common Core does not obligate it to implement a specific curriculum, which is separate from standards. And he noted that the associated testing, which Gaetz and House Speaker Will Weatherford have called into question, “is still in flux.”

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REGIONAL NOTES

CASTILLE WILL STAY ON via Nate Monroe of the Pensacola News Journal

Colleen Castille, hired as interim city administrator in July amid a major shakeup in City Hall, has accepted the job permanently, Mayor Ashton Hayward said Friday. Castille, the city’s first female administrator, was the one-time chief cabinet aide to Gov. Jeb Bush and later the secretary of the Florida Departments of Community Affairs and Environmental Protection. She replaced former Administrator Bill Reynolds, whom Hayward fired in July after a months-long investigation by State Attorney Bill Eddins found that Reynolds handed sensitive personnel paperwork to former City Councilwoman Maren DeWeese at a downtown bar in March.

Castille, 54, will be paid $130,000 per year. That’s the same Reynolds made while in office. From March 2011 to December 2012, she was a registered lobbyist with The Fiorentino Group of Jacksonville, the city of Pensacola’s lobbying firm with the Legislature. Since January, she has run her own Tallahassee government consulting firm.

XWAY AUTHORITY BOARD MEMBER BLAMES RECENT TURMOIL ON ‘OLD BOY’ CULTURE  via Dan Tracy of the Orlando Sentinel

Harsh words are flying at Orlando’s main road-building agency. Two days after being accused of violating Florida’s Government in the Sunshine law, board member Marco Pena said in a three-page memo that he is being unfairly maligned for trying to fight the “Old Boy” culture at the Orlando Orange County Expressway Authority.

The claim of Chairman Walter Ketcham that Pena and two others illegally discussed agency business in private among themselves or through intermediaries  is “not only wholly unfounded and reckless, but reek of the ‘Old Boy’ sensibilities that have so long marred the reputation of the authority,” wrote Pena, a growth strategist at Florida Hospital. Continue reading here.

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FUNDRAISER TONIGHT AT SPLITSVILLE TO FEATURE EIGHT CANDIDATES AND MEGA HOSTS

Southern Strategy Group joins Speaker Designate Steve Crisafulli and Chairmen Richard Corcoran and Jose Oliva in hosting a fundraising reception to benefit the re-election campaigns of eight House Republicans: Jason Brodeur, Neil Combee, Tom Goodson, Gayle Harrell, David Hood, Mike La Rosa, Larry Metz, and David Santiago.  Join them on Monday, Sept. 9, at the Splitsville Luxury Lanes at Downtown Disney.  Other hosts include Disney, the Florida Medical Association, the Florida Dental Association, FP&L, Florida Transportation Builders Association, Brian Jogerst, Mosaic, Pennington PA, and Poole McKinley. 

A VIP reception will be held from 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. followed by a general reception from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m.

FUNDRAISER FOR SEN. BILL GALVANO ON SEPT. 19

At about 100, the host committee list for an upcoming fundraiser for Sen. Bill Galvano is longer than most receptions guest lists — reflecting the energy surrounding this Bradenton candidate’s re-election campaign.  Join them on Thursday, Sept. 19, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Dolphin Aviation.

REP. DAN RAULERSON FUNDRAISING RECEPTION ON SEPT. 17

Join Dan Raulerson, running for re-election in House District 58, for a fundraising reception on Tuesday, Sept. 17 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the home of Rick & Di Lott, 3200 Polo Place, Plant City.  You will be joined by honorary hosts Mayor Frank Chillura, Commissioners All Higginbotham and Victor Crist, Sheriff David Gee, State Senator Tom Lee, State Attorney Mark Ober, and State Representative Dana Young.

***Today’s SUNBURN is brought to you by the Florida Medical Association: Affordable, safe, patient-centered health care in Florida starts with a physician-led team, with all health care professionals playing valuable and appropriate roles. Learn more here.***

NEW LOBBYING REGISTRATIONS

George Oscar Anderson, Paul Bradshaw, David Browning, Chris Dudley, Towson Fraser, Paul Mitchell, Jonathan Setzer, Southern Strategy Group: I-4 Development Partners

Brian Ballard, Carol Bracy, Matthew Forest, Ballard Partners: Data Recognition Corporation; Sterling Facility Services

Derek Buchanan: Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services

Paul Mitchell, Jim Smith Southern Strategy Group: Behavior Health of the Palm Beaches, Inc.

David Ramba, Ramba Consulting: Florida Concrete & Products Association

Gary Rutledge, Rutledge Ecenia: Florida Bar, Family Law Section

Traci Small, National Strategies: Fire Eye

Karen Zeiler: Florida Hospital Association

***101 Restaurant and Mint Lounge in Tallahassee is where Big City Style Meets Southern Hospitality.  101 offers a modern American cuisine featuring steaks, seafood, and specialty cocktails.   Our private rooms are perfect for a client dinner, fundraising reception, or any event you desire.  Located near the Capitol, 101 is open for lunch and dinner every day.  Check out www.101tally.com or call at 850-391-1309 to make a reservation or book your private event. Or email us at [email protected].***  

ASSOCIATED PRESS HIRES NEW TALLAHASSEE-BASED REPORTER 

Kareem Copeland, who has covered the Green Bay Packers and college football in Mississippi, is joining The Associated Press in its Tallahassee bureau to cover Florida State University sports and state government, according to the wire service.

Copeland, 34, most recently has been covering the Indianapolis Colts, Indiana Pacers, the Indianapolis 500 and college sports for the AP and other media outlets on a freelance basis. He also worked for NFL.com covering the Colts and the annual scouting combine.

He also worked at the Wausau (Wisc.) Daily Herald, where he covered college baseball and high school sports from 2003 to 2005.

“Kareem is a tenacious, energetic journalist whose experience with both college and professional sports coverage will be well-suited to cover Florida State University and other college sports, followed closely by readers throughout the state,” South Region Editor Lisa Marie Pane said.

During the college sports off-season, Copeland will be part of a team in the AP’s bureau covering state government that includes correspondent Brendan Farrington and reporter Gary Fineout.

***SUNBURN is sponsored in part by Strategic Image Management – Florida’s premier one-stop shop for political campaigns, issue advocacy, legislative initiatives, & public relations.  Strategic Image Management does everything in-house, saving you money and providing maximum flexibility. Individualized campaigns for a customizable world. From Congress to County and issues to initiatives, Strategic Image Management WINS. Visit www.simwins.com or follow us on twitter @SIMWINS and start winning today***

HAPPY BIRTHDAY belatedly to Senator Thad Altman, Chris Cate, spokesman to the political stars, Senator Jeff Clemens, St. Pete City Councilman Jeff Danner, Representative Karen Castor Dentel, staffer extraordinaire J. Alex Kelly, and former congressman Mark Foley. Celebrating today is Nick Egoroff, one of Florida’s top political tweeters.