Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics.
Todayâs SachsFact is brought to you by the public affairs, integrated marketing and reputation management experts at Sachs Media Group: With U.S.-Cuba relations shifting so dramatically, itâs time to reflect on the day 54 years ago that turned a chill into a hard freeze. On April 17, 1961, the U.S. launched the Bay of Pigs invasion, designed to upend the regime on the island nation just 90 miles from Floridaâs shores. Without U.S. military support, a ragtag group of 1,300 exiles was defeated in three days, launching a half-century of ill will that affected everything from international policy to Florida politics. Today, Cuban expatriates remain an essential part of the South Florida community.
DAYS UNTILÂ Sine Die: 15; Special Election in HD 64: 5; Jacksonvilleâs Mayoral Election: 32; Floridaâs Presidential Primary: 332; Floridaâs 2016 Primary Election: 501; Floridaâs 2016 General Election: 572.
THE COUP THAT ISN’T IN THE FLORIDA HOUSE CONTINUES
The tumultuous series of events taking place within the GOP caucus in the Florida House took a dramatic turn after several members pledged to Eric Eisnaugle withdrew their commitments Wednesday to the Orlando Republican.
During a gathering in a side office near the House floor towards the end of an afternoon session, a band of  freshman lawmakers — led by Blaise Ingoglia and including Mike Hill, Danny Burgess, Chris Latvala, Chris Sprowls, Jennifer Sullivan, and Jay Trumbull — met with Eisnaugle and one of his lieutenants, Scott Plakon, to express their frustration with the process by which the caucus chooses its future leader.
The confrontation took place after the disaffected members “ambushed” Eisnaugle while he was meeting with Sullivan.
By the end of the meeting, Eisnaugle’s support within the GOP caucus had been halved.
Eisnaugle supporters had been saying that he had the pledges of 17 or 18 of 19 of his fellow freshmen (Hill being the only member of the class who has not signed a pledge card, while its not clear if Jay Fant actually signed a pledge card).
According to one of the participants in the meeting, an “aggressive”, “red-faced” Ingoglia informed Eisnaugle that this ‘caucus within the caucus’ seeks to “reform” the system for selecting future Speakers of the House. The members also said they were now reserving the right to decide who they would support for Speaker during the 2021-22 Legislative Session after their first term. (It’s unclear whether these members want to vote for a Speaker-to-be after the serve two legislative sessions or after they are re-elected.)
According to Rep. Scott Plakon, a steadfast supporter of Eisnaugle, the meeting seemed to be more about “Ingoglia becoming Speaker” than reforming the process.
After this meeting, a group of members pledged to Eisnaugle held their own pow wow, confirms Plakon. They each reconfirmed their commitment to Eisnaugle.
“To a person, we decided our word is important,” said Plakon, who expressed frustration with his House colleagues “reneging” on their pledge to support Eisnaugle.
HERE’S WHY EISNAUGLE IS ON SHAKY GROUND
Here is who Eisnaugle still has in his camp (at least) himself, Plakon, Colleen Burton, Bob Cortes, Brad Drake, Fred Costello, Julio Gonzalez, Shawn Harrison, Mike Miller, Rene Plascenia, and Paul Renner. Probably Jay Fant. Probably Cyndi Stevenson.
Here is why Eisnaugle is on shaky ground.
Costello is considering running for Ron DeSantis’ congressional seat once DeSantis enters the race for Marco Rubio’s U.S. Senate seat.
Furthermore, Cortes, Harrison, Miller, and Plascenia are all in battleground House districts. In a presidential election cycle, it’s plausible to assume that the ever-hapless Florida Democrats can poach one or more of those seats.
MORE COUP REPORTING — “House Speaker 2020 saga continues as faction withdraws Eisnaugle support” via Gray Rohrer of the Orlando Sentinel; “House leadership fight is the latest political drama in Tallahassee” via Jeff Henderson of the Orlando Sentinel
COUP BACKGROUNDERÂ — “The coup that wasn’t against Eric Eisnaugle“
TWEET, TWEET:Â @SallyAnnWest:Â stories about coups and budget impasses keep me involved in this business. #intrigue
AT LEAST THEY WILL HAVE SOME TIME TO THING ABOUT THINGS —Â HOUSE TAKING EXTRA TIME OFF FOR WEEKEND
Just over two weeks left in the 2015 Legislative Session and House members are taking some extra time off this weekend. No meetings are scheduled House today, with only a single meeting scheduled Monday â the Rules, Calendar & Ethics Committee at 5 p.m. May 1 is the scheduled end of the regular 60-day session, but with the budget impasse between the House and Senate an extended or later special session is almost certain. The Senate is also not meeting today, but they do have meetings scheduled on Monday, including several bills facing the Senate Fiscal Policy and Rules committees.
WHILE THE FRESHMEN CLASS OF HOUSE REPUBLICANS IS AT WAR WITH ITSELF, THE HOUSE IS STILL AT WAR WITH THE SENATE, WHICH IS STILL AT WAR WITH THE GOVERNOR, WHO IS IS STILL AT WAR WITH THE FEDS.
GOV. SCOTT SUES FEDS OVER HEALTH CARE MONEY, MEDICAID EXPANSION via Kathleen McGrory and Steve Bousquet of the Tampa Bay Times
Gov. Scott announced he will sue the federal government for allegedly coercing Florida to expand Medicaid.
The lawsuit stands to further tie up the budget building process, which is already behind schedule and is likely to force lawmakers into a special or extended legislative session.
Senate leaders have said they want to hear from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on the future of the LIP program before deciding how to spend state money. If no federal LIP funds are awarded, Florida could be facing a $1.3 billion budget gap.
Senate President Andy Gardiner said he supported the governor’s authority “to protect the state’s interests in the way he sees fit.”
But Gardiner also said the clock is ticking, and the budget must be balanced.
“From where I sit, it is difficult to understand how suing CMS on day 45 of a 60-day session regarding an issue the state has been aware of for the last 12 months will yield a timely resolution to the critical health care challenges facing our state,” he said.
House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, however, said he didn’t expect the suit to affect the budget: “You can’t force the state to take on Medicaid expansion.”
HOUSE WON’T BACKFILL HOSPITAL FUNDING PROGRAM WITH STATE DOLLARS via Kathleen McGrory of the Miami Herald
The House will not backfill the $2.2 billion Low Income Pool program with state dollars if the federal government fails to renew funding, Crisafulli said.
“Florida is not in a position financially to backfill a program that was created out of Washington,” Criasfulli said.
Using the reserves to fill the gap, he added, would be “irresponsible.
But Crisafulli said the House would be open to considering new ways to help Florida hospitals that serve large numbers of uninsured, under-insured and Medicaid patients. Some of those safety net hospitals have said they would have to close or dramatically reduce services if the federal-state LIP program is not renewed.
AFP BACKS SCOTT
âWe applaud Governor Scott for standing up to the federal government,â said state director, Chris Hudson. âThe Obama administration has proven once again to Florida taxpayers that Washington cannot be trusted to negotiate in good faith â something that supporters of Medicaid expansion in Florida should think long and hard about before voting to expand Obamacare even further into our state. This is why AFP is continuing to lead the effort against Medicaid expansion in Florida.â
DEMSâ LEADER CALLS LAWSUIT âTEA PARTY GONE WILDâ via Bruce Ritchie of Florida Politics
âSure, itâs Tea Party gone wild,â Pafford said. âThe governor is back to that. The lawsuit I think is frivolous at best â not being an attorney, but Iâm going to guess.â
The lawsuit doesnât complicate problems with the chambers agreeing on a 2015-16 state budget, Pafford said. With Republican majorities in the House and Senate, he said, the chambers can do what they want: follow the governor or vote to expand Medicaid despite his objections.
Pafford said that if House and Senate Republicans provide leadership, the session could end on May 1 with a budget.
FORMER JEB BUSH HEALTH CARE CZAR SAYS HEâD EXPAND MEDICAID COVERAGE via Christine Jordan Sexton of Florida Politics
Jeb Bushâs former health care czar said Florida should take the Medicaid expansion dollars to provide health care access to the poor.
However, in a Facebook post, former Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Alan Levine also said he thought the federal government was âoverplaying its hand in Floridaâ by threatening to end the supplemental Medicaid funding known as Low Income Pool, or LIP, if the state doesnât expand Medicaid as envisioned in the federal health care law.
He also said the move âforever changes the dynamicsâ between the Centers for Medicare and Medicaidâs relationship and the states.
âUsing such an important program, like Low Income Pool, as a political lever, is unusual and bad policy,â Levine wrote in his post.
Now the president and chief executive officer of Mountain States Health Alliance in Tennessee, Levine was the architect of the five-county Medicaid managed care pilot project that Bush championed in 2004. Levine helped Bush secure the 1115 waiver needed to launch the program as well as the Low Income Pool program.
MORE ON THIS STORY — “Rick Scott has an easy way out of his Medicaid mess” via Greg Sergeant of the Washington Post
TWEET, TWEET:Â @PatriciaMazzei: I asked Jeb Bush in NH about Florida Legislature’s impasse over Medicaid expansion and funding hospital charity care…Â The executive branch and representatives from the House & Senate ought to forge a compromise.” Expanding Medicaid? “I don’t know.”
SENATE COMMITTEE ROUGHS UP SCOTT’S VOTING CHIEF via Steve Bousquet of the Tampa Bay Times
Gov. Scott’s elections chief got roughed up again in the Senate as he continues to oppose a bipartisan bill for an online system of voter registration by 2017, which already exists in 20 states.
Appearing before the Senate Appropriations Committee, Secretary of State Ken Detzner said his agency has no plan to implement the change and he’s worried about having to work with 67 county supervisors of election, 67 tax collectors and the state highway safety agency. He raised a flurry of potential problems, including “distractions” from the 2016 presidential election and the “high risk” of computer hacking, cyber-attacks and “the forces of evil” that seek to disrupt Florida elections.
“I would prefer to have a plan in place before I knew that I had an implementation date,” Detzner said. “This is too important to get wrong.”
As he did last week in another Senate committee, Detzner did not want to testify, which only riled senators even more. When a young aide to Detzner said the Department of State “waived in opposition,” Sen. Don Gaetz quickly insisted that Detzner testify, and things rapidly went downhill from there.
This isn’t your first rodeo,” Sen. Jack Latvala told Detzner, a long-time friend. Detzner worked in the Department of State decades ago.
ASSIGNMENT EDITORS: Gov. Scott will visit Miramar to announce Marchâs jobs numbers. Press conference is 9:45 a.m. at Kellstrom Defense, 15501 SW 29 St, Suite 101.
AGREEMENT REACHED IN DUST-UP BETWEEN JOE NEGRON & FLORIDA COLLEGE SYSTEMÂ via Ryan Ray of Florida Politics
Negron announced on Thursday that he has succeeded in brokering an agreement between the legislature and the Florida College System in an ongoing conflict over the proper role and scale of Florida’s community colleges.
The deal – under the moniker of the “2+2 Program,” referring to the common course of study that includes two years towards an associate’s degree and two more for a bachelor’s – resolves a few major sticking points, including enshrining the issuance of bachelor’s degrees as a secondary rather than a primary purpose into state law and going forward with an already-scheduled sunset of a prohibition on community colleges adding new four-year programs.
It would also change the name of the 28-member body back to “Florida Community Colleges System,” pushing back against the schools’ encroachment towards a focus on four-year degrees.
âI would like to thank [FCS head] Dr. [James] Henningsen for his effort to reach this agreement. We have many excellent community colleges in Florida, including two of the past three Aspen Prize winners,â said Negron in a Thursday announcement. âI am confident our community colleges will continue to excel at their primary mission of facilitating Floridaâs exceptional two plus two program as well as local workforce support.â
Negron, who sits on the Senate Higher Education Committee, has been at the center of a years-long squabble between the state’s universties and its community colleges over who can offer what in their respective course catalogues.
Community colleges, appealing to their relatively inexpensive tuition and traditional focus on workforce-driven offerings, have begun to proliferate bachelor’s programs rapidly. Members of the State University System for their part maintain that that trend represents a redundant “mission creep” that requires limitation by the Legislature.
JACK LATVALA WARNS AGAINST OPPOSING HIS NUKE PLANT FINANCING BILL via Bruce Ritchie of Florida Politics
Latvala cautioned against any elected state official opposing his bill that would allow Duke Energy Florida to issue bonds for closing its Crystal River nuclear plant. His warning came after a vote on the House version was delayed this week.
Duke says the plant closing cost is $1.4 billion. Latvala said his legislation, SB 288, would save customers $600 million over 20 years by allowing the company to sell bonds.
Latvala told a Senate committee that a âmysterious $6 million fiscal impactâ had shown up on the House bill version, HB 7109. A Senate staff analysis said only that the legislation would save money for utility customers.
âNone of us really quite understand how our analysis of the fiscal could be so different from that oneâ in the House, Latvala said.
âIâm hopeful that will work out,â Latvala said. âAnd I canât imagine there is anyone in elected service in this building, whether they be the legislative or executive branch, which would dare to oppose the idea of our ratepayers on the West (Gulf) Coast saving $600 million.â
LEGISLATIVE LEADERS AGREE ‘IN CONCEPT’ ON PRISON REFORM DEAL via Mary Ellen Klas of the Miami Herald
A panel of legislators would be empowered to investigate and subpoena staff at the Department of Corrections in an effort to provide aggressive oversight and demand reform at the troubled agency, under a compromise prison-reform plan being floated by top negotiators for the House and Senate.
The tentative deal was hatched between Sen. Greg Evers and Rep. Carlos Trujillo as they huddled together in the House chamber during the morning legislative session.
The proposal would replace a provision in the Senateâs prison reform bill, SB 7020, to create a nine-member independent oversight commission approved by the governor, Evers said.
The compromise would create a legislative select committee with at least four investigators. It would have the power to subpoena staff, monitor inmate and staff grievances, investigate complaints, take public testimony, meet regularly and monitor DOCâs ability to follow performance standards.
The compromise still must get conceptual approval from House Speaker Steve Crisafulli and Senate President Andy Gardiner and then be approved by the full House and Senate.
ENTERTAINMENT INCENTIVES FINALLY MOVING FORWARD IN THE LEGISLATURE via Peter Schorsch of SaintPetersBlogÂ
After years of legislative legwork and heated debate – occasionally before a national audience –  Sen. Nancy Detert may land her Senate tenure’s Moby Dick at long last. Her proposal to establish state incentives for Florida-based film and entertainment projects is alive and moving through the process.
Language similar to Detert’s SB 1046 has come close to passage before, however, but has not been implemented. And there’s also the matter of conforming her bill to another moving target in the House.
Rep. Mike Miller’s HB 451 is also advancing through the process. Currently TP’d on second reading before the full House, there are differences that must be reconciled for the bill to hit to the governor’s desk.
Miller recently told the Miami Herald that Detert’s plan – which contains a fast-track mechanism that would allow the state to formulate and offer deals quickly in order secure time-sensitive productions – may not pass in its exact present form, but that outstanding differences are merely a matter of degree.
âI know that Sen. Detert likes the quick action close,â Miller told Michael Auslen. âThe House is not â weâre not saying no to that. Itâs just how we fit the pieces together.”
One thing they agree on is that these kinds of incentives are just plain good policy.
CITING PRIVACY, MEDICAL CANNABIS TRADE GROUP DROPS CHALLENGE
Medical Cannabis Trade Association of Florida dropped its challenge to the draft rules enacting a 2014 law allowing a form of medical marijuana extract in Florida.
Administrative Law Judge W. David Watkins dismissed the challenge, according a filing with the state Division of Administrative Hearings.
Watkins’ ruling came one day after the association announced it is dropping the case, citing privacy concerns, because of a ruling forcing it to disclose the identities of its members.
“Rather than comply with this order that MCTAF (the association) asserts violates its constitutional rights of privacy and association, MCTAF voluntarily dismisses its rule challenge,” the filing says.
The challenge brought by the association was one of three facing a proposed Department of Health rule to enact the 2014 law. Last week, an administrative law judge tossed out one of the other challenges. The last challenge, filed jointly by Master Growers, P.A., and Baywood Nurseries Co., Inc., will be heard April 23.
HOUSE OKS EXPERIMENTAL DRUGS FOR DYING PATIENTS via Brendan Farrington of the Associated Press
The House unanimously passed a bill that would let people use experimental drugs – but not marijuana – if a doctor tells them they have less than a year to live.
The “Right To Try Act” will only apply to drugs that have gone through the first phase of federal testing, though several lawmakers are still hoping marijuana will be included in the legislation if it eventually passes the full Legislature.
And one Republican lawmaker made it clear that even though marijuana isn’t included in the bill, Floridians who are terminally ill should go ahead and smoke it anyway.
“The right to try represents a core value protected by our Constitution, and if you are facing death and there is a substance you want to use for your personal health that is not set forth in this legislation, assert your constitutional right and use it,” said Rep. John Wood.
Democratic Rep. Katie Edwards responded to the remarks by saying, “Amen, amen, amen.”
An effort to put marijuana language in House Bill 269 was aborted to let it to go through with strong support. Lawmakers agreed that allowing experimental drugs already under federal review is appropriate for people about to die, even if, like Republican Rep. Dennis Baxley, they don’t support medical marijuana.
SPOTTED IN THE IRISH TIMES for her bill about what happens to your Facebook and Gmail data after your death: Sen. Dorothy Hukill.
STATE LANDS BILL PASSES HOUSE BUT DEMSâ LEADER SAYS ITâS A BAD DEAL via Bruce Ritchie of Florida Politics
A bill that would allow the Cabinet to give away state parks and other conservation lands to neighboring agricultural landowners passed the House with opposition from some Democrats.
Environmentalists oppose HB 7135 although they said it had been improved in earlier committee stops by requiring proposed giveaways to be reviewed by the Acquisition and Restoration Council. The bill also requires managers of parks and other state lands to review property for disposal or use for âlow impactâ agriculture.
Rep. Matt Caldwell previously said the bill would result in more conservation by requiring the giveaway sonly to those adjacent landowners who agree to maintain both properties.
But Rep. Mark Pafford said the bill raises concerns about state constitutional requirements that agency governing boards determine that land no longer is needed for conservation. And he said giving away state land in exchange for conservation on private property could be a bad deal.
Florida buys conservation land for $6,400 per acre but pays only $1,300 per acre for conservation easements, which involvements by landowners to not develop their property.
âThat means for every acre exchanged in this way the state is potentially giving away $5,100,â Pafford said.
TWEET, TWEET: @SaintPetersBlog:Â @RepDanaYoungâs gaming bill up next Tuesday in @MattGaetz Finance & Tax Committee.
BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS CRY FOUL OVER SEXUAL PREDATOR REMARK via James Call of Florida Politics
In the tension-filled chambers of a legislative sessionâs final days words matter and poorly chosen ones can stress long-standing relationships. Supporters of the Boys & Girls Club of Florida Thursday were pushing back against remarks Sen. Eleanor Sobel made after Wednesdayâs meeting of the Children Families and Elder Affairs Committee.
The committee had unanimously approved SB 250 that mandates level 2 background checks, a nation-wide criminal search of fingerprints for groups working with children. Afterwards Sobel remarked there were numerous newspapers articles about the Clubs employing sexual predators. The quote was used a story under the headline âSenate panel backs exemption for Boys and Girls Clubs.â
Membership organizations like the Boys and Girls Clubs and the YMCA who provide after-school programs for children 6 and older are not child-care facilities as defined by state law since at least 1987.
âWe are not licensed to dispense gasoline either because we are not a gas station,â said lobbyist Jack Cory. âWe are not a child-care provider, itâs that simple.â
The clubs support SB 250 because it clarifies background-screening requirements for after-school programs and standardizes the requirements. Different state agencies require different screening procedures forcing non-profits to pay for two or three screenings for an employee.
ANTI-TRAIN GROUP RAILS AGAINST ALL ABOARD FLORIDA via Ryan Ray of Florida Politics
In a conference call Thursday, the anti-rail group Citizens Against Rail Expansion in Florida inveighed against a plan backed by Gov. Scott to build more rail lines in the Treasure Coast and Palm Beach County areas.
Their main bone of contention was a poll conducted by Mason-Dixon, which CARE says offers stark evidence that the public-private deal between the state of Florida and rail giant CSX to add
âTodayâs poll results speak loud and clear: All Aboard Florida is not embraced by residents in the Treasure Coast and North Palm Beach County,â said Brent Hanlon, CARE FL’s treasurer. âOur residents understand whatâs at stake if this ill-conceived project manages to go forward: more traffic, more threats to area businesses, and less access to our area hospitals. With this poll we are telling our elected leader and those who are pushing this project: Slow down and listen to our community.â
The group also emphasized that several state lawmakers are in their corner — and that the ones who aren’t ought to reconsider.
“The residents of the Treasure Coast are standing up for what they believe is a direct threat to our safety and our rights as taxpayers,” said Vero Beach Rep. Debbie Mayfield in a statement.
MEANWHILE, BACK ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL…
JEB BUSH: CAMPAIGN DECISION âIN RELATIVELY SHORT ORDERâ via the Associated Press
Jeb Bush will make up his mind âin relatively short orderâ whether to seek the Republican nomination for president in 2016.
The former Florida governor will be in New Hampshire this weekend to speak at town hall-style meetings at two businesses and at a GOP event. He will also attend a night event called Politics and Pies and a morning event called Politics and Eggs, he said.
âTypical day in New Hampshire, apparently,â Bush told reporters Thursday in Jackson, Miss., where he attended a bill-signing ceremony with Republican Gov. Phil Bryant.
Bush said heâs not concerned that several other hopefuls are ahead of him in launching their campaigns.
âIâm on a journey to kind of measure support,â Bush said. âOther peopleâs processes are not really that relevant to me. Iâll make up my mind in relatively short order. Iâm excited about just the possibility of being in a position to consider it.â
He said his family supports his exploration of a presidential bid.
EMAIL INSIGHTS: AMERICAN BRIDGE SAYS BUSH RUNNING WITH WâS HAND-ME-DOWNS via Phil Ammann of Florida Politics
Being a younger sibling has its drawbacks. Hand-me-downs, for one. Always living in an older brotherâs shadow is another.
So imagine Jeb Bushâs situation. Having two-term President George W. Bush as an older brother â who left as one of the least popular leaders in modern history â a White House run provides a long list of consequences. No one is more aware of this than the former president, who told an audience in Chicago recently that his could be a âproblemâ on his brotherâs campaign trail.
Thatâs putting it mildly, says the latest email from American Bridge 21st Century, but Jeb âdoesnât seem to mind.â All while he continues to insist he is his âown man.â
âFar from running from or downplaying the views once expressed by his brother, George W. Bush, Jeb Bush is embracing them â and emphasizing them,â wrote the Washington Post.
Jeb is more than happy to run as a âthird term for George,â using many of the same economic advisers.
âBecause who wouldnât want advice from the guys who brought you two wars and the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression,â they ask.
It is difficult to be your own man, especially if you rely on your brotherâs hand-me-downs.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “To hell with the diet,” Jeb Bush says as he digs into blueberry pie during a stop in New Hampshire. Pic here.
CLUB FOR GROWTH BACKS TED CRUZ, RAND PAUL AND MARCO RUBIO via Alex Altman of TIME Magazine
The first three candidates to enter the race for the Republican presidential nomination earned rave reviews from a powerful conservative group.
The Club for Growth, a deep-pocketed network of economic conservatives, published detailed analyses of the voting records of Sens. Ted Cruz, Rand Paul and Marco Rubio that heaped praise on each of the candidates.
âCruz, Paul, and Rubio are the real deal,â said Club for Growth President David McIntosh. âWeâve looked at their records and their rhetoric, and they give us hope for the future of the GOP on fiscal policies.â
The verdicts werenât a surprise. The Club backed each of the candidates in their campaigns for the Senate, and all three have amassed staunchly conservative voting records during their short stints on Capitol Hill. But the rave reviews were a reminder that conservative interest groups are poised to play a kingmaker role in the 2016 nominating contest, pulling candidates to the right in the process.
The Club has long been known for spending large sums to oppose candidates who stray on economic issues. But it is considering a more aggressive role in this yearâs GOP primary, including a possible endorsement. In late February the group drew a range of presidential hopefuls â including Cruz, Rubio and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush â to address a donorsâ conclave in Florida.
RUBIO TRIES TO FIND THE MIDDLE GROUND ON SAME-SEX MARRIAGE via Arit John of Bloomberg Politics
When it comes to same-sex marriage, Rubio is trying to stake out a position somewhere between Hillary Clinton and Ted Cruz.
A day after being called the âcandidate of yesterdayâ by CNN’s Jake Tapper over his opposition to same-sex marriage during a CNN interview, Rubio told Fusionâs Jorge Ramos that he would participate in a gay wedding involving someone he loves. At the same time, he called homosexuality a choice and compared a gay wedding to a divorceeâs second marriage
âIâm a member of the Catholic faith,â the Florida senator said. âIt teaches that marriagesâafter you get married the first time, if youâve been divorced you canât be remarried, and yet people attend second marriages all the time.â Rubio, who has said he believes marriage should only be between a man and a woman, told Ramos he wouldnât hurt someone he loved âbecause of a choice theyâve made, or a decision theyâve made.â
Still, Rubioâs comments place him somewhere in the middle of the 2016 presidential candidate marriage debate, with Cruz on his right and Clinton on his left. Unlike Clinton, who announced she hopes the Supreme Court rules in favor of same-sex couples this term, Rubio argued that marriage laws should be decided by the states. âIf people want to change the definition of marriage, they should petition their state legislature and have that debate in a political arena,â Rubio told Ramos. âWho I donât think should be redefining marriage is the court system.â
At the same time, he currently doesnât support Cruzâs position that the country needs a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, and on Tuesday he told MSNBC that heâs ânever supported a federal constitutional amendment on marriage.â
RUBIO AND THE ‘MONEYBALL’ CAMPAIGN via Scott Bland of the National Journal
“Jeb Bush is building the New York Yankees. Marco [Rubio] is playing Moneyball,” GOP strategist Rick Wilson told National Journal this week as Rubio launched his presidential campaign.
Optimus Consulting â whose website tagline reads, “Disrupting ____ with data, analytics, and smarter execution”â has been a part of Rubio’s political team since 2013. Partner Scott Tranter declined to comment on the firm’s relationship with Rubio, but strategists and others who have observed its work over the last few years had good things to say about the company.
“They are a terrific get, and they’ve been with Marco for a while,” said Wilson. “They are a terrific get because they are unemotional and analytical about the work. ⌠I’ve worked with them before and think the world of them.”
Writing for The Cook Political Report last year, (Media/CMAG senior vice president Elizabeth)Â Wilner called Optimus the Republican Party’s “closest counterpart” to BlueLabsâa firm that grew out of Obama’s 2012 campaign. One of BlueLabs’s cofounders, Elan Kriegel, will reportedly direct analytics for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
Optimus also spent part of last year quietly researching early-state voters for a nonprofit, Conservative Solutions Project, affiliated with the newly announced pro-Rubio super PAC. The report Optimus prepared highlights other work easily applicable to a presidential primary campaign. In the back of the book, there are results from a controlled experiment using Texas voters as political guinea pigs, testing how much an online ad campaign would boost turnout in the 2014 GOP primary. Optimus’s website claims it has conducted more than 500 “voter-contact tests.”
ALAN GRAYSON SAYS âPROBABLY YESâ TO DEMOCRATIC SENATE PRIMARY VS. PATRICK MURPHY via George Bennett of the Palm Beach Post
Grayson says heâll âprobablyâ run for Senate in 2016, which would set up an ideologically tinged primary clash against the more centrist U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy.
Grayson appeared this morning on an online Democracy Now! program. Asked around the 46:00 mark if heâs planning to run for the seat Republican Sen. Marco Rubio is giving up to run for president, Grayson replied: âIâm giving it a lot of attention. The answer is probably yes but I havenât made up my mind yet once and for all. I hope to do that soon.â
Outspoken liberal Grayson would offer Democratic primary voters a contrast to Murphy, whoâs been elected twice to a slightly Republican-leaning House seat and has crossed the aisle to vote with Republicans to delay portions of Obamacare, loosen some Dodd-Frank regulations on Wall Street and build the Keystone pipeline.
MY TAKE: ANNETTE TADDEO PERFECTLY REPRESENTS THE PROBLEM BLACKS HAVE WITH FLORIDA DEMOCRATSÂ Full blog post here
The last thing Democrat Annette Taddeo needs is another bump in the road on the so-far rocky campaign trail, but she may well have one on her hands.
According to blogger and activist Jason Henry, Taddeo is not immune to some of the racially-tinged criticisms that have befallen some of her Anglo counterparts in the Florida Democratic Party.
Henry says that while he was working for the Crist for Governor campaign in 2014, he caught wind of Taddeo offering her private thoughts on the ever fraught dynamics between the Democratic establishment and the black voters that make up and indispensable component of their base.
What she revealed, he says, wasnât pretty.
Henry writes that following a pre-arranged powwow between Taddeo â on behalf of the Crist campaign â and leaders of the African-American community in Orlando, the then-lieutenant gubernatorial candidate let loose on what the author calls the FDPâs âblack problemâ:
âWhen she returned [from an interview], the crowd had long dispersed and only campaign workers remained. As she made strides toward the elevator to leave, she was asked of her thoughts regarding the meeting and if it was productive. Through a forced smile, she repeated an adage thatâs been levied against black voters for years.
She said that black voters âbitched and complained with Obama, so why should we expect anything different?’â
If thatâs true, Taddeo is all but sunk in her bid to return Floridaâs 26th Congressional District back to the D column.
DENNIS BAXLEY HITS $100K RAISED MARK FOR SENATE BID via Kristine Crane of the Ocala Star-Banner
Itâs early in the campaign season, but Republican state Rep. Dennis Baxley, who is running for a state Senate seat in 2016, already has reached the six-figure mark in campaign contributions.
The latest reporting deadline, covering campaign finance activity for March, was Friday. Baxley pulled in $11,550 during the month, pushing his total to $101,160, according to the Florida Division of Elections.
Jimmie T. Smith, a Republican state representative in Citrus County, is also running to represent Senate District 5, which covers Baker, Citrus, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Lafayette, Levy, Suwannee, Union, and part of Marion counties.
Sen. Charles Dean now holds that seat, but term limits prevent him from running again.
So far, Smith has raised $39,550, and $9,000 of that was in March. Smith took in several $1,000 contributions from various businesses in Citrus County.
ORLANDO CITY ATTORNEY PROPOSES MOVING ELECTIONS TO NOVEMBER via Jeff Weiner of the Orlando Sentinel
Orlando voters could head to the polls much sooner than expected.
Urged to reschedule the city’s municipal elections to avoid a conflict with next year’s presidential primary, City Attorney Mayanne Downs has recommended Orlando commissioners vote to shift their polling date out of 2016 entirely ⌠recommending the city vote Nov. 3.
That’s five months sooner than the city’s voters are currently scheduled to go to the polls. Local party leaders and others said such a shift could decrease voter turnout and discourage potential challengers.
The municipal elections are currently set for April 5, 2016. But the state Legislature recently shifted Florida’s primaries from March 1 to March 15, putting the statewide vote less than three weeks before Orlando’s vote.
The proximity of those two elections led Orange County’s elections supervisor, Bill Cowles, to ask the city to reschedule. Cowles warned that absentee balloting would overlap, creating confusion ⌠he had anticipated the city might push its election back a few weeks, not move it forward five months. Still, “it’s their choice, and at this point I don’t see any major conflicts,” he said.
To approve the change, the City Council would have to approve multiple ordinances, including changes to the city charter.
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CONGRATS TO MARK DELEGAL – THE 2015 TALLYMADNESS CHAMPION
After more than two weeks and one million votes cast, Mark Delegal is THE 2015 TallyMadness winner. He bested John Holley in a big win, ending Holley’s impressive Cinderella run that saw the #11 seed go deep into the final rounds.
Delegal’s bid must have been keeping the paralegals at Holland & Knight busy indeed over the past three days: he receivedthe lion’s share of around 96,000 ballots submitted in the championship round of this year’s online competition to determine Tallahassee’s “best” lobbyist.
Those who know him say the key to his TallyMadness success is the same as his success as a professional advocate: hard work and strategic execution.
“Mark is a machine,” Capitol-scene staple and fellow influencer Mac Stipanovich told SaintPetersBlog. “No one more is more committed to his clients interests or works harder to further them. When all is lost, he is hopeful. When victory is at hand, he is worried. Just being around him is exhausting.”
Tabulating his votes was exhausting, too. Over the course of his dominant run Delegal was an irrepressible vote-getter as he took out Goliath after Goliath. Formidable foes Albert Balido, Marty Fiorentino, Andy Palmer, Brian Ballard and Ron Book were toppled consecutively as Delegal racked up more than a quarter of a million votes from March 26 until tonight.
Congratulations to Mark Delegal and all of the competitors who were chosen to play by this year’s selection committee.
FACEBOOK STATUS OF THE DAY via Christina Johnson: “So very honored to receive the Stanley Tait Award today from my FPRA Capital Chapter board members. It truly means the world to me. I was thrilled that David Johnson and my incredible team Courtney Heidelberg, Sara Sowerby and Anna Alexopoulos were there to celebrate. Thank you so much!!!”
NEW LOBBYING REGISTRATIONS
Chris Carmody, Fred Leonhardt, Robert Sutart, GrayRobinson: City of New Smyrna Beach
Chani Feldman: Maxim Healthcare Services, Inc.
Samuel Ludington: Children of Inmates, Inc.
Doug Manson, Manson Bolves Donaldson: Plants of Ruskin
CONTEXT FLORIDA: DOG WHISTLES, GOP DIVERSITY, SEA LEVEL RISE AND SCHOLARSHIPS
On Context Florida: Voters respond to politiciansâ racist âdog whistles,â says Martin Dyckman. No president of our era has evoked such venomous disrespect and hatred as Barack Obama. The Tea Party would not exist but for him, but I doubt there is one member in a hundred to realize let alone admit that race is the reason. Whatever happens in the next few months, Bob Sparks believes 2016 will sport a diverse Republican field, which carries their own strengths and weaknesses. Any number of them can run a strong race against Hillary Clinton. Sea levels are unquestionably rising. High tides are measurably higher. And drinking wells near our coastlines are increasingly contaminated with salt water intrusion with each passing month. Bill Golden points out that these realities are happening before our very eyes, and we must seriously address these issues in a productive and meaningful way. Sen. John Legg says Florida has successfully operated tax-credit education scholarships for 13 years. More than 70,000 underprivileged students throughout Florida currently benefit from these scholarships, which provide important school choice options.
Visit Context Florida to dig in.
FLORIDA REPORTERS HONORED WITH SEVEN NATIONAL HEADLINER AWARDS via Phil Ammann of Florida Politics
Florida media was well represented this week at the 81st National Headliner Awards, including top awards for reporters John Romano of the Tampa Bay Times and Julie Brown of the Miami Herald. Winning both Best of Show and first place for local news beat coverage or continuing story was Brownâs âCruel and Usual,â a Herald series of investigative reports on abuses in Floridaâs prison system.
First place for local interest column went to Romano, the Timesâ general interest columnist. The Times also received recognition for Laura Reiley, who won first place for special or feature column on one subject by an individual.
Jacob Carpenter of the Naples Daily News took first place in education writing for âShuttered: Floridaâs Failed Charter Schools.â
Second place for health, medical and science writing went to âInsult to Injury,â by the Tampa Bay Times staff. âInsultâ examined more than 10 million patient billing records and court records, interviewing dozens of patients. The paper found that hospitals charged outrageous trauma fees to thousands of patients, fees that are often more than the costs of actual medical care.
Coverage of the Florida State University shooting in November netted the first place award for Jacqueline Ingles, Carson Chambers and Ashley Yore of WFTS-TV in Tampa in broadcast or cable television stations coverage of a live breaking news event.
TAMPA BAY TIMES’ ROLE IN CAPITOL STUNT EXAMINED via David Bauder of the Associated Press
A Florida newspaper that knew ahead of time that a man planned to fly a gyrocopter into restricted airspace at the U.S. Capitol faced questions about whether its editors should have used this knowledge to try and stop the risky stunt.
The Tampa Bay Times, which posted reporter Ben Montgomery in Washington to document postal worker Doug Hughes’ self-styled protest flight that landed on the Capitol grounds, said that its responsibility was to cover, not change, the story. Hughes is charged with operating an unregistered aircraft and violating national airspace.
The debate is an old one in journalism: should reporters strictly observe society or be part of it? The Times’ role began last summer, when Hughes contacted Montgomery about his plan to fly the tiny aircraft in Washington. He wanted to do something splashy to draw attention to campaign finance reform by personally airmailing letters to members of Congress. The Times interviewed Hughes in advance, and took photos and videos of his gyrocopter, but Brown said the reporter made no commitment to do a story and made clear the newspaper was not his partner.
“Our job is to be observers,” said Neil Brown, editor and vice president of the Times. “We are not arms of the government. That said, that position was clearly strengthened by the fact that the authorities were already in the know about Doug Hughes.”
In its reporting, the newspaper confirmed with Hughes and a co-worker that they had been interviewed by the Secret Service, and Washington lawmakers said Thursday the troubled agency had interviewed Hughes two years ago.
As soon as Hughes took off, the Times posted a story that Montgomery had written in advance and touted it on social media accounts. The newspaper called the Capitol Police and Secret Service to ask if they were aware that a man was flying toward the Capitol in a gyrocopter and to seek comment, Brown said.
MORE ON THIS from the Poynter Institute’s Roy Peter Clark — “The Tampa Bay Times should have alerted authorities earlier“
ON THIS WEEK’S EDITION OF THE ROTUNDA
Trimmel Gomes’ newest episode of The Rotunda features NPRâs former political editor and host of the Political Junkie radio program, Ken Rudin discussing why Marco Rubio wins in the presidential announcement category over Hillary Clinton and the obstacles in front of Jeb Bush when he makes his bid official.
The battle over Medicaid expansion continues as Governor Rick Scott announces plans to sue the federal government putting in jeopardy any plans for the House and Senate to find a budget compromise in the remaining days of session.
As the Legislature votes to officially take off the books the stateâs ban on gay adoption, Gomes talks with Martin Gill, who won the landmark court decision overturning Floridaâs anti-gay adoption law.
In the latest version of the Growler bill craft brewers say they are hopeful for a happy ending and explain why all the fighting couldnât be settled over a pint.
The Rounda is available every Friday via iTunes, Stitcher or Soundcloud. Subscribers receive free automatic downloads of episodes to their devices.
WEEKEND TV
Black Almanac with Dr. Ed James  on WWSB, ABC 7 in Sarasota: Political strategist Dr. Lawrence Miller discussing Hillary Clinton, Jeb Bush and the 2016 Presidential race.
Facing Florida with Mike Vasilinda:Â Reporter Marc Caputo on 2016 presidential politics, and director Gabriel London on his new film.
Florida This Week on Tampa Bayâs WEDU: Sarasota Herald-Tribune Jeremy Wallace, Punditfact’s Aaron Sharockman, Pinellas County GOP Chair Nick DiCeglie and Susan Smith of the Democratic Progressive Caucus of Florida.
Political Connections on Tampa Bay’s BayNews 9: Pinellas Congressman David Jolly.
Political Connections on CF 13 in Orlando: Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs on transportation and promoting tourism in Orlando. Plus political analysts Michelle Ertel and Jeremiah Jaspon on recent polling ahead of 2016.
The Usual Suspects on WCTV-Tallahassee/Thomasville (CBS) and WJHG-Panama City (NBC): Steve Vancore, Sean Pittman, Gary Yordon and Mary Ellen Klas.
WOMAN WHO ACCUSED JAMEIS WINSTON OF RAPE FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST HIM via the Associated Press
A former Florida State University student on Thursday filed a lawsuit against top NFL prospect Jameis Winston, saying he assaulted and raped her at an off-campus apartment in 2012.
The lawsuit by Erica Kinsman, which seeks damages from the former Seminoles quarterback, was filed two weeks before the April 30 NFL draft. Winston could be selected as the first overall pick.
Winston has denied the allegations and prosecutors declined to file charges against him in late 2013. He also was cleared by the university following a two-day student conduct hearing last year. The hearing was held to determine whether Winston violated four sections of the code of conduct – two for sexual misconduct and two for endangerment.
But John Clune, a lawyer for Kinsman, said in a statement there are consequences for Winston’s behavior “and since others have refused to hold him accountable, our client will.”
“Erica hopes to show other survivors the strength and empowerment that can come from refusing to stay silent no matter what forces are against you,” Clune said. “Jameis Winston in contrast has proven time and time again to be an entitled athlete who believes he can take what he wants. He took something here that he was not entitled to and he hurt someone.”
HAPPY BIRTHDAY this weekend to our very own Christine Jordan Sexton. Also warm wishes to Towson Fraser and Megan McCord.
