Sunburn – The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics.
By Peter Schorsch, Phil Ammann, Mitch Perry, Ryan Ray, and Jim Rosica.
DID JEFF ATWATER JUST HAND A U.S. SENATE SEAT TO FLORIDA DEMOCRATS?
Imagine you are a well-heeled, card-carrying member of Florida’s Republican establishment. It’s already a difficult election cycle with your having to choose between supporting Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio for president.
Now, because of Jeff Atwater, your election cycle just became even more difficult.
After FloridaPoltics.com first reported that the Florida Chamber of Commerce has poll numbers showing Atwater would be the clear frontrunner were he to decide to run for the U.S. Senate, the Florida CFO told the Tampa Bay Times‘ Jeremy Wallace that he was indeed considering entering the race after earlier this year declaring that he would not run.And with that, a thousand groans could be heard up and down the streets of Tallahassee. The Republican establishment is peeved … at Atwater for his Hamlet act about whether or not to run … But, what the Florida GOP should really be upset about is that Atwater just likely handed the seat to Florida Democrats … because, at the end of the day, Atwater likely won’t run. Yet, with the chance of him entering the race, the current field of Republicans campaigning for the seat just got screwed.
Screwed because it will be hard for Carlos Lopez-Cantera, David Jolly, and Ron DeSantis to raise money … recruit volunteers … or win endorsements with Atwater looming over the race … while the Republicans wait to see what Atwater does, Patrick Murphy (or maybe Alan Grayson) can gather his resources and attempt to build a substantial head start over whoever emerges from the GOP primary.
Meanwhile, there are quite a few conspiracy theories out there about who is behind the Atwater boomlet. First among these is that it’s the Florida Chamber itself, with its favorable-to-Atwater poll numbers. The thinking goes that the Chamber does not want to have to choose between Atwater and Adam Putnam in the 2018 gubernatorial race. So why not encourage Atwater to run in 2016?
Of course, if Atwater ends up being partially responsible for a Democratic win in the U.S. Senate race, his chances of beating Putnam and/or Marco Rubio and/or Will Weatherford will be slim.
This is not to mention the argument that control of the U.S. Senate may come down to who wins Florida’s open seat. Imagine if Atwater dithers so long and decides not to run and that the Democrats win back control of the Senate because it won back the Florida seat.
If that happens, poor ol’ Jeff Atwater — about the nicest and one of the most competent men in all of politics — won’t be able to get a cup of coffee at the Republican Federated Women of South Florida club.
>>>Look for POLITICO’s Marc Caputo to discount Atwater’s effect on the Democrats 🙂
DAVID JOLLY: CAN WE TRUST JEFF ATWATER AFTER HE LEFT SO MANY AT THE ALTAR? via Adam Smith of the Tampa Bay Times
Jolly … planned to endorse Atwater for U.S. Senate … until Atwater … suddenly pulled the plug on his all-but-announced campaign. Jolly wound up getting in the Senate race himself, and now, six months after ruling it out, Atwater is talking again about running for Senate.
“I was prepared to endorse him in February or March…The truth is, he left a lot of people at the altar … If he were to decide to get in, there are going to be some hard questions about whether we can believe he’s going to stay in.”
— “Florida Insider Poll: Atwater would be Senate race game changer” via Adam Smith of the Tampa Bay Times
— “Some donors hoping Atwater can help GOP avoid bloody Senate primary” via Matt Dixon of POLITICO
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HILLARY CLINTON VISITS FLORIDA TODAY via Patty Mazzei of the Miami Herald
Clinton’s presidential campaign plans to step up its Hispanic outreach Friday after she visits Broward College and sits down with Spanish-language television network Telemundo, a campaign aide said.
“Latinos for Hillary” is timed with Hispanic Heritage Month and will increase its efforts as Clinton heads into the first Democratic primary debate Oct. 13 in Las Vegas. The aide said there will be watch parties in states such as Florida with sizable Latino populations.
Clinton will also hold events geared at Hispanics in Nevada and Texas in the days after the debate.
RNC BRACKETING via Ali Pardo, RNC spokeswoman: “Everywhere Hillary Clinton goes, her campaign is overshadowed by unanswered questions regarding her secret email server. Clinton’s reckless attempt to skirt transparency laws put sensitive information and our national security at risk. With the FBI continuing to investigate, Hillary Clinton’s growing email scandal shows she cannot be trusted with the White House.”
FLORIDA TOWN BALKS AT PROVIDING SECURITY FOR HILLARY CLINTON via Frances Robles of the New York Times
The Davie Police Department balked at spending several extra thousand dollars on police overtime … The town’s sudden turnabout raised eyebrows about whether the decision was political in nature … Davie is a rural enclave, with an old western atmosphere that stands out from the rest of the county … An assistant police chief who attended an interagency meeting to prepare for the visit announced the news that the city would not provide security. The Secret Service officials who were at the meeting did not take it well, and promised to name names about the episode if ever called before Congress, according to one of the people at the meeting.
FLORIDA GOP WANTS TO KNOW WHERE SOUTH FLORIDA DEMOCRATS STAND ON CLINTON’S EMAIL PROBLEM via Kevin Derby of the Sunshine State News
The Republican Party of Florida wants to know where two South Florida Democrats stand on the controversy over her use of a private server for confidential email she used at the State Department … Blaise Ingoglia … wanted answers … “As Hillary Clinton makes her way to South Florida to convince donors and voters that her negative headlines, FBI investigations, and unsuccessful record are not hurting her campaign, the silence from Democrat candidates Patrick Murphy and Annette Taddeo, both Clinton supporters, is unacceptable,” Ingoglia said … “It is time for Murphy and Taddeo to end their silence on Hillary Clinton’s private email server scandal. South Florida voters deserve to know where they stand.”
WITH CLINTON IN FLORIDA, GRAYSON GOES AFTER PATRICK MURPHY ON BENGHAZI via Alex Leary of the Tampa Bay Times
It won’t be the first time Alan Grayson has deployed the Benghazi attack on Senate rival Murphy. But Grayson has a generous hook Friday morning for a telephone conference call with reporters.
“Patrick Murphy was one of only seven Democrats who voted with Republicans to approve the Benghazi witch hunt committee, and he has since refused to express regret for that decision,” reads a Grayson news release inviting reporters to the 10:30 a.m. call.
TWO MORE REPUBLICANS PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES WILL ATTEND FLORIDA CATTLE CALL via Patricia Mazzei of the Miami Herald
The Republican Party of Florida said Thursday two more 2016 presidential candidates will attend the party’s Sunshine Summit in Orlando next month. Donald Trump and Mike Huckabee have been added to the schedule, RPOF said in a statement. The party announced earlier this week that Jeb Bush, Lindsey Graham, Bobby Jindal and Marco Rubio have also said they’ll be there.
The Florida GOP is trying to draw attention to the nation’s largest swing state, which doesn’t hold its winner-take-all-delegates primary until March 15. Some candidates have been reluctant to campaign here in earnest because Rubio and Bush have monopolized most Florida Republicans’ attention.
“The road to the White House goes through Florida, and our grassroots leaders and volunteers are ready to hear the candidates share their vision for the future of our nation,” RPOF Chairman Ingoglia said in a statement.
By attending, the candidates avoid penalties that the RPOF was threatening to impose. New rules adopted recently by the RPOF require candidates either to show up at the Nov. 13-14 Summit at the Rosen Shingle Creek resort in Orlando, write a $25,000 check to the state party, or gather 3,375 signatures from Florida Republicans in order for the party to place their names on Florida’s presidential primary ballot in March.
IS JEB BUSH IN TROUBLE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE via CBS News
In recent days, New Hampshire polls have made clear what Republicans around the state have been whispering about for weeks: Bush hasn’t exactly been a hit in the Granite State. Bush’s slipping poll numbers … have unsettled his supporters here and financial supporters around the country who know how important the Granite State is to Bush’s candidacy.
>>>Democratic mega-donor Tom Steyer announced Thursday he will run ads targeting Bush in Iowa, reports POLITICO’s 2016 Blast.
BUSH’S RECENT CONVERTS ARE INVESTING FOR THE LONG TERM via Michael C. Bender of Bloomberg
It’s been almost two months since Bush was atop a Republican presidential poll in New Hampshire or South Carolina. He’s never quite been the top choice in Iowa. He’s fifth in a pair of national polls this week.
But those numbers aren’t keeping Bush from picking up supporters around the country in the scramble to scoop up men and women from recently folded presidential campaigns. A significant share of Scott Walker‘s former team is backing the son and brother of former presidents, and the head of Rick Perry‘s super-PAC is now helping Bush raise money.
Interviews with recent additions to the Bush team show that the former Florida governor is selling the campaign, at a time when he’s at his lowest point in the polls, on the ability to outlast the insurrection within the Republican Party that has lifted Trump, Carson, and Fiorina. Bush has also told these new supporters that he’s clear-eyed about where he needs to make improvements.
“He’s probably gotta drink more Red Bull, but I do think he’s going to get there,” said New York hedge fund manager Anthony Scaramucci, a member of Walker’s finance team who took a similar position with Bush after a pair of conversations with the candidate in the past week. “Jeb Bush has the horses behind him.”
BUSH TELLS TRUMP TO PUT ON HIS ‘BIG BOY PANTS’ via CNN
Bush and Trump clashed over how to handle the Syrian refugee crisis — and just about everything else, including whether Bush is really friends with Marco Rubio — during dueling Wednesday night town hall events in New Hampshire.
By the end of the night, Bush had even told Trump to put on his “big boy pants.”
In their most substantive policy dispute, the two disagreed sharply over whether refugees who fled the Middle East amid ISIS’ rise should be allowed in the United States.
“I think we’re duty-bound to provide support,” Bush said in Bedford.
ASSIGNMENT EDITORS: Bush heads to Greenville, SC to take part in the Conservative Leadership Project (CLP) Forum with Attorney General Alan Wilson at 2:30 p.m. PT. The event is hosted by the CLP, at the McAlister Auditorium Center on the Furman University grounds.
— “Game on: Bush vs. Rubio” via Eli Stokols of POLITICO
— “Rubio campaign boots Bush-backing tracker from Iowa event” via Marc Caputo of POLITICO Florida
RUBIO TO HOST DONORS AT LAS VEGAS STRATEGY SUMMIT NEXT WEEK via Sean Sullivan of the Washington Post
Rubio plans to huddle with top donors at a two-day strategy summit in Las Vegas next week where he and his team are expected to lay out their plan for the months ahead in the Republican presidential primary.
The gathering is slated to come amid a new and critical phase for the Florida Republican senator. He is rising in the polls after the second televised debate and, like many of his opponents, he is pushing to win the support of donors who backed Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who dropped out last week.
The “Quarter Four Strategy Summit” is scheduled for Oct. 8 and 9 at the luxe Bellagio Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip, according to a notice obtained by The Washington Post. The summit includes events like a flag football and picnic dinner with Rubio — who played wide receiver and defensive back in college — and a “breakfast and team talk” with the senator.
POLL DU JOUR: A new Economist/YouGov poll finds Trump leads the GOP presidential race with 25%, followed by Rubio at 16%, Carson at 15%, Cruz at 9%, Fiorina at 8%, Bush at 7% and Paul at 4%.
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DANIEL WEBSTER MAKES HIS CASE FOR THE SPEAKER’S GAVEL, EVEN IF IT ONLY LASTS A YEAR via Jack Fitzpatrick of National Journal
Daniel Webster wants to be the next speaker of the House, even though he knows that he might only hold the title for a little more than a year.
Although he’s popular among Republicans who are unhappy with the party’s leadership, there’s a catch to Webster’s bid: His chances of getting reelected in 2016 are slim at best.
Webster, a Florida Republican, became one of the faces of the antiestablishment wing of his party when he garnered 12 votes for speaker in January in an act of defiance toward Speaker John Boehner. Now, he has joined House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy in the race to become speaker after Boehner announced his pending resignation.
Webster said he’s promising to “flatten the pyramid” and put more power in the hands of members, taking less of a top-down approach than Boehner did. That’s the method he used when he was speaker of the Florida House from 1996-98.
RON DESANTIS: BEN CARSON FOR SPEAKER via Emily Cahn of Roll Call
DeSantis, the Florida Republican who is one of nine founding members of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, said at a campaign event Sunday he’d be open to supporting an outsider for speaker when the House meets to vote for a new leader Oct. 8. “I would go bold, you don’t have to be a member of Congress to be the speaker of the House. I would support someone like Dr. Carson or somebody like that, I think that would be good,’ DeSantis said.”
HAPPENING TODAY — RPOF CHAIR BLAISE INGOGLIA VISITS SARASOTA GOP WOMEN’S CLUB via Legislative IQ powered by Lobby Tools
Ingoglia will be a speaker at the 65th anniversary luncheon for the Republican Women’s Club of Sarasota. Event begins 11:30 a.m. at Michael’s on East, 1212 East Ave. South in Sarasota.
MUST-READ – LIBERTARIAN PARTY DRAMA: GOAT SACRIFICE, EUGENICS AND A CHARI’S RESIGNATION via Marc Caputo of POLITICO Florida
Adrian Wyllie, chairman of Florida’s Libertarian Party, resigned his post Thursday to protest the party’s U.S. Senate candidate, accusing the rival of supporting eugenics and for being expelled from a cult group for “sadistically dismembering a goat in a ritualistic sacrifice.”
The Senate candidate, who goes by the adopted name Augustus Sol Invictus, counter-accused Wyllie of spreading “half-truths and lies” for political gain.
The dispute between the two has brewed for months, but finally came to a head after Wyllie was unable to persuade the Libertarian Party of Florida’s executive committee to publicly disavow Invictus, an adopted name that means something like “Invincible Sun Emperor.”
“I’m not making this up. It’s crazy, I know,” Wyllie, a Palm Harbor businessman who ran for governor in 2014 and received 3.8 percent of the vote, told POLITICO after announcing his resignation and levelling his accusations against Invictus in a Facebook post. “I resigned to draw attention to this, as a protest. I did this as a pre-emptive strike. I don’t want anyone to think this guy represents Libertarians. He doesn’t. Under the law, we can’t keep him from the ballot.”
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RICK SCOTT TAKES MANHATTAN NEXT WEEK via Jim Rosica of Florida Politics
New York City is now in Gov. Rick Scott‘s crosshairs as the next place to plunder for jobs to bring to the Sunshine State.
Scott’s office on Thursday announced the Republican governor would embark on another “domestic economic development mission” to The City So Nice They Named it Twice from Oct. 6-8.
He’ll be enticing financial institutions, hedge funds and other businesses to move to or expand in Florida.
The latest trip follows his tactic of visiting states with Democratic governors to poach jobs. New York’s governor is Democrat Andrew Cuomo, a former Housing and Urban Development secretary under President Bill Clinton. The city’s mayor is Democrat Bill de Blasio
SCOTT AGAIN CLASHES WITH SOCIAL CONSERVATIVE GROUP via Matt Dixon of POLITICO
John Stemberger, an attorney and head of the Florida Family Planning Council, says his organization is preparing a campaign to pressure Gov. Rick Scott to cancel Planned Parenthood’s Medicaid contracts with the state and do what he can to shut down its federal health care subcontracts.
WHAT THE GOV’S OFFICE IS READING — INCOME GROWTH SLOWS IN FLORIDA BUT STILL BEATS U.S. RATE via Donna Gehrke-White of the Sun-Sentinel
Growth in personal income slowed in Florida in June but still outpaced the nation’s, according to estimates released Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
In Florida, personal income grew 1.1 percent from April through June compared with 0.9 percent nationally, the federal agency estimated. The bureau’s measure of personal income includes seasonally adjusted wages, dividends, interest and government benefits. Three months earlier, the state led the nation with 1.3 percent growth.
Despite the slowdown, personal income in Florida still grew to $877 billion in June, up from $846 billion a year earlier, according to data released by the bureau.
Overall, earnings from wages in Florida grew the least — up 0.9 percent in June — compared with a 1.1 percent increase in government benefits and a 1.5 percent rise in dividends, interest and rent. Wage growth in the state was strongest in the professional, scientific and technical services sector, followed by the health care and social service sector.
FLORIDA PRISONS’ INSPECTOR GENERAL STEPS DOWN FOR DIFFERENT CORRECTIONS JOB via Kristen Clark of the Miami Herald
Jeffery Beasley, inspector general of Florida’s Department of Corrections, said Thursday that he is stepping down to assume another role at the embattled agency.
His announcement comes after more than a year of widespread criticism and allegations by corrections officers, inspectors, sworn law enforcement officers and prisoners that he and others in his office failed to investigate, and in some cases, may have even thwarted, investigations into the suspicious deaths, beatings and medical neglect of inmates in Florida state prisons.
.. Beasley talked about everything from the accomplishments of his four-year tenure to the high-profile inmate deaths of Darren Rainey and Randall Jordan-Aparo. He hinted that the local, state and federal inquiries into their deaths would reveal no evidence of criminal wrongdoing.
Beasley, 41, also stated that he is not being “run out on a rail,” but rather, elected voluntarily to move into a new role as head of the inspector general’s intelligence division, which is tasked with probing inmate-generated crime, including identity theft and drug and tobacco trafficking.
JUDGE REFUSES TO STOP FLORIDA BLACK BEAR HUNT via The Associated Press
Florida’s first black bear hunt in 21 years will be allowed to go forward after a judge ruled today that a state wildlife agency was within its right to schedule the week-long hunt and carefully considered its impact on the bear population.
A group of several animal protection groups tried to stop the hunt, arguing that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission used old population data and flawed research in determining that it was OK to let hunters kill up to 320 bears. Leon County Judge George Reynolds refused their request for an injunction.
But wildlife officials and their lawyers said that the staff that recommended the hunt are passionate about bears, and that it wasn’t an easy decision to make. But they used conservative numbers in determining the number of bears that could be killed while still keeping a healthy population. They said the goal was to stabilize the bear population so it doesn’t grow too big, especially with increasing bear and human encounters.
EDUCATION ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM IS ‘BROKEN,’ FLORIDA SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS SAY via Kristen Clark of the Miami Herald
The Florida School Board Association … joined a slew of education groups who are calling for an “overhaul” of the state’s education accountability system because of the Florida Standards Assessments’ botched debut last spring … the group said it “firmly supports the Florida Standards and valid and reliable state assessments to measure student progress in mastering those standards … However, Florida school board members are deeply concerned about the integrity of Florida’s current accountability system, which they believe has continuously deteriorated … Additionally, the FSBA is concerned with the lack of trust from educators, students and the broader public in the fairness of statewide assessments and standards.”
THIS IS HUGE — HILLSBOROUGH PTC TO TEMPORARILY POSTPONE LEGAL ACTIONS AGAINST UBER UNTIL AFTER LEGISLATIVE SESSION ENDS NEXT YEAR via Mitch Perry of Florida Politics
Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission Chairman Victor Crist announced … that the PTC has asked its legal counsel to temporarily postpone all legal actions currently pending against ridesharing companies Uber and Lyft until after the Florida Legislative session concludes early next year.
“We want to show a good faith that we really want to go into this process with an open mind and open eyes and a willingness to try to get something worked out,” said Crist. Currently there are three separate pieces of litigation between the PTC and Uber ongoing in the county.
Working with Plant City House Republican Dan Raulerson, the PTC has produced a piece of legislation to address those issues … that they hope will be passed next year.
GOP DEFENSE BILL THAT VIOLATES THE SEQUESTER COULD END UP HURTING MACDILL AFB via Mitch Perry of Florida Politics
The Republican-led House’s approval of a multibillion-dollar defense policy bill could end up being vetoed by President Obama and ultimately hurt MacDill Air Force Base, contends Tampa Bay area Democrat Kathy Castor … she’s not blaming the president, but the John Boehner-led House.
That’s because the $612 billion bill, which will cover new ships, aircraft and pay raises for the military, is … violating the so-called “sequester” imposed back in 2011 that puts a cap on domestic and military spending.
“Republican leaders shouldn’t pat themselves on the back for passing a short-term funding bill with only a few hours remaining on the last day of the fiscal year,” said Castor … “Republicans have shirked their primary responsibility of crafting a budget that works for the American people while a national transportation bill and jobs legislation also continue to languish.”
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STEVE CRISAFULLI TO HOST JANET ADKINS FUNDRAISER AFTER CALLING REMARKS INAPPROPRIATE via Matt Dixon of POLITICO Florida
Crisafulli is hosting a campaign fundraiser next week for current state Rep. Adkins, who last week made national headlines when she said the key to defeating Jacksonville’s Democratic congresswoman Corrine Brown was to add black prisoners to her North Florida district.
Adkins, who faces term limits in the Legislature, is running for Nassau County schools superintendent.
FINDING VP JOBS AT FOR-PROFIT COLLEGES via Fred Grimm of the Miami Herald
If an ambitious business enterprise was looking to hire bright young executives… you might not think that the Florida Legislature would be a fertile recruiting ground. Lawmakers, after all, spend months every year in Tallahassee attending legislative sessions, special sessions, committee meetings… But apparently certain enterprises aren’t looking for single-minded dedication when they employ a vice president for external affairs.
Dade Medical College, for example, gave state Sen. Rene Garcia of Hialeah a veep job, paying him $125,000 a year despite his legislative distractions. And the oddly named University of Southernmost Florida, another for-profit and a subsidiary of Dade Medical College, also hired itself a state senator as its vice president for something or another. Sen. Oscar Braynon II of Miami Gardens joined USMF (“a Dade Medical College learning affiliate”) in January. (The Herald has not yet been able to suss out the senator’s salary.)
The senator helped persuade the board to allow graduates of unaccredited physical therapy courses to take the state licensure examination. He forgot to mention his brand new day job. Or that USMF, as a news release proclaimed 11 days later, was “excited to announce the launch of its Associate of Science in Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) program.” (No accreditation necessary.)
Dade Medical College’s very own state senator, Garcia, has similarly shown up at some key state agency meetings to push for projects that — I’m sure it was just a coincidence — would benefit his employer.
WHAT BRIAN BALLARD IS READING: “Legislature should legalize fantasy sports games“
LOBBYIST REGISTRY MAY BE RESURRECTED IN PENSACOLA via Will Isern of the Pensacola News-Journal
An ordinance proposed by Pensacola Mayor Ashton Hayward around this time last year to bring a new level of transparency to city government by establishing a lobbyist registry quietly disappeared in March and has not been brought up since.
The ordinance would have required anyone lobbying city officials or the mayor to disclose any ties to city council or city board members, identify themselves as lobbyists before addressing any decision-making body, and would prohibit them from knowingly making false statements while lobbying.
Hayward announced the ordinance in his October 2014 newsletter, saying it was time for Pensacola to join the many Florida cities, such as Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale and Sunrise, that have already established lobbyist registries.
“I believe that citizens have the right to know who’s lobbying city officials,” Hayward said recently. “Anyone who is paid to speak at City Council meetings or who seeks a meeting with a city official to lobby on behalf of another individual, organization, or interest group should be required to register as a lobbyist.”
NEW LOBBYING REGISTRATIONS
Brett Bacot, Marnie George, Jim Magill, Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney: City of Palm Coast; City of South Daytona; Florida Pediatric Society; McDonald’s
Christopher Carmondy, John Harris, GrayRobinson: iPic Entertainment
Jules Kariher; Johnson & Blanton: Covenant Hospice
Richard Reeves, Capitol Insight: Leon County School Board
Stacey Webb, Southern Strategy Group: School District of Clay County
Linsday Collins Whelan, Hopping, Green & Sams: Poinciana Community Development District
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CONFIDENTIAL FILES IN HULK HOGAN LAWSUIT WILL REMAIN SEALED via The Associated Press
A Pinellas County circuit judge has ruled that several pieces of evidence related to the Hulk Hogan sex tape case will remain confidential despite a request from a group of media outlets that they be made public.
Of the 17 items discussed during a hearing, Judge Pamela Campbell determined that 15 will remain sealed, one will be unsealed and one pushed to a later discussion.
Hogan, a former WWE wrestler whose real name is Terry Bollea, is suing the news website Gawker.
Hogan claims that the media company’s decision to publish an excerpt from a sex tape violated his privacy. The video involves Hogan and Heather Cole, the ex-wife of radio shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge Clem.
CONTEXT FLORIDA: JEFF ATWATER, CRAZY CONSERVATIVES AND KEVIN MCCARTHY
On Context Florida: Autumn has arrived, and Diane Roberts calls it the season when conservatives seem to ramp up the crazy. Soon-to-be-former Speaker John Boehner sure knows how to make news, says Bob Sparks. Now a new speaker will be chosen next week. U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, the current majority leader, is favored to win. Some wonder what chance do the conservatives have to deny McCarthy the position. The short answer is “not much,” but some.
Visit Context Florida to dig in.
WEEKEND TV
Black Almanac with Dr. Ed James on WWSB, ABC 7 in Sarasota: Herbalist Dave Foreman.
Facing Florida with Mike Vasilinda: Rembering Sen. Ken Plante
Florida This Week on Tampa Bay’s WEDU: Manatee Democratic Chair Sheryl Wilson, state Rep. Dan Raulerson, Craig Patrick of WTVT and Ernest Hooper of the Tampa Bay Times.
Political Connections on CF 13 in Orlando: Ybeth Bruzal sits down with Seminole County Commission Chairwoman Brenda Carey to talk transporation and tourism in Central Florida and women’s progress in the political world, and Dick Batchelor and Lou Frey talk 2016; plus PolitiFact rates a claim by John Kerry in the Iran deal.
Political Connections on Tampa Bay’s BayNews 9: Anchor Al Reuchel and political reporter Troy Kinsey take a look at coming legislative attractions foreshadowed by this week’s committee business in Tallahassee and other stories.
The Usual Suspects on WCTV-Tallahassee/Thomasville (CBS) and WJHG-Panama City (NBC):Hosts Steve Vancore and Gary Yordon with Ed Moore.
This Week in Jacksonville with Kent Justice on Channel 4 WJXT: Special episode on a possible Human Rights Ordinance in Jacksonville, with guests former Council President Clay Yarborough, Dave Leavitt of A1Assets, Jimmy Midyette of the Jacksonville Coalition for Equality and Gina Duncan of Equality Florida.
ON THIS WEEK’S EDITION OF THE ROTUNDA
Trimmel Gomes’ newest episode of The Rotunda recaps Florida’s congressional redistricting trial with University of Florida political science professor Michael McDonald. Meanwhile Congresswoman Corrine Brown speaks out on the GOP plot to get her out of office. Jeb Bush calls Marco Rubio a follower and the executive director of the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops, Michael Sheedy reflects on Pope Francis’ visit to the U.S.
The Rotunda podcast is available every Friday via iTunes, Stitcher or Soundcloud. Subscribers receive free automatic downloads of episodes to their devices. Follow on @RotundaPodcast for daily updates.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Pinellas Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, the amazing Bob Lotane, and former RPOF chair Leslie Dougher.
