Storms: Rail doesn't matter to Tammy from Wal-Mart
Sen. Ronda Storms emerged Thursday morning as one of the fiercest and most articulate allies of Sen. Paula Dockery, questioning the liability provisions and cost of the commuter rauil proposal facing lawmakers this special session.
Storms said she wonders why Senate leaders have summoned the chamber to Tallahassee to address rail -- on what she called a "rushed" timetable -- when that is not what her constituents are worried about.
"They heard about this special session and they asked me, 'Oh, is it about healthcare?' No," Storms said. "They ask, 'Is it about unemployment and small businesses?' No, it's about rail. They say, 'what? Rail?' The people of the state of Florida are not on this page. This is not where they want us to be."
Last year, Eustis Republican Sen. Carey Baker was a yes on SunRail. But now he says...
"Originally I committed to the SunRail.. a Little Red Riding Hood bill. Instead we're voting on this big bad wolf bill."
Ouch. Senate President Jeff Atwater had called the special session on rail to garner more votes. But Baker shows that he just lost one. And he didn't have many to spare. Baker just made the announcement at a workshop where Sen. Paula Dockery and Sen. Ronda Storms eviscerated the proposal by casting doubts on the liability provisions, the cost and the need for the rail deal. They also didn't buy the leadership's statements that this isn't a SunRail bill, that instead it's a Rail bill. Sure it is.
Dockery pointed out that many in leadership scuttled her husband's high-speed rail citizens initiative in 2004. Among them: Sen. Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, who cast a yes vote asking for a repeal of the constitutional amendment in 2004.
Another objection to the bill: Little time to discuss it. Storms said each senator only had an average of 6 minutes of questions for a bill that would ultimately cost taxpayers more than $1 billion.
"I had more time to shop for a home computer than I did to study the provisions of this..and I object to that," she said.
Several weeks ago, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Yvonne Colodny accepted a new friend request on the social networking site Facebook -- from Miami Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones.
On Thursday, Spence-Jones was not a pal but a defendant whose criminal case appeared before Colodny for arraignment.
Colodny disclosed the tidbit to lawyers in the case, assuring them that she immediately de-friended the politician when she learned of her arrest on Nov. 13. Colodny also noted that she never once looked at Spence-Jones' Facebook page.
"We'll be leaving Facebook because of the issues arising from that website,'' Colodny announced Thursday morning.
Seems the onetime champion of anti-immigration activists -- now mulling a run for office -- has ticked off his one-time allies by suggesting he'd back a pathway to legalization for illegal immigrants.
Americans for Legal Immigration PAC says it's so mad it's withdrawing support for the former CNN anchor, including suspending websites that championed Dobbs for president.
William Gheen of the group says Dobb's recent comments on Telemundo and his national radio show "supporting some kind of path to citizenship for illegal immigrants is inconsistent with positions of ALIPAC and the views of most American citizens."
ALIPAC says it was the first national organization to call on Dobbs to run for president. Now it's shuttering its two Dobbs fan websites: The Facebook "Draft Lou Dobbs for President or US Senate" and the fan site www.LouDobbsForPresident.org.
Judge refuses to dismiss Confederate Veterans lawsuit against Florida
The Sons of the Confederate Veterans is trumpeting what they call a major victory this week in its efforts to get a specialty license plate in Florida.
The controversial group filed a lawsuit in January against Legislature and the state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles after lawmakers refused to take action on its "Confederate Heritage" plate (see it here) application in 2008.
U.S. District Judge John Antoon II in Orlando dismissed the complaint against the lawmakers but refused to drop the case against the state motor vehicle department, according to the Dec. 1 order.
The judge's decision "is a huge step forward for our case and the ruling will pave the way for the Confederate Heritage plat to become a reality," said attorney Fred O'Neal, who argued the case on behalf of the group.
Grimm: Charlie Crist, the 'gaudiest' asset of Scott Rothstein
The feds seized Scott Rothstein's gaudiest assets, allegedly purchased with purloined money.
The governor was not among them.
The federal charging document claimed Rothstein used funds from his brazenly mendacious billion-dollar Ponzi scheme to buy homes, yachts and cars with the kind of mindless ostentatiousness not seen hereabouts since the days of the cocaine cowboys.
The feds grabbed them all.
Unhappily, they failed to confiscate his judges.
Rothstein, a cigar-chomping, Ferrari-driving, money-flashing wannabe tough guy, used his booty to insinuate himself into the local and state political hierarchy. Money, apparently, is all it takes.
Rothstein handed out campaign contributions the way a happy drunk tips waiters. And managed to hunker down with pols from the governor on down. He donated to the sheriff and the state attorney, perhaps trying to inoculate himself from local scrutiny.
Twice in two years, proposed commuter rail in Central Florida died despite backing from powerful political and business leaders.
Both times, Lakeland Republican Sen. Paula Dockery engineered the train wreck. Today, as the Florida Legislature convenes in a special session to consider commuter rail legislation for a third time, Dockery is once again standing up against her party's leadership. But this time, the stakes are higher and the spotlight on her is far brighter.
Now, Dockery is running for governor. And the Senate president says he has the votes to make SunRail happen in spite of her objections. More here
Florida's real estate market is crumbling so badly that the taxable property value for schools statewide will tumble 9.5 percent next year, state economists forecast Wednesday.
The plummeting property values pose problems for lawmakers, taxpayers and the school system: If the Legislature keeps the schools tax rate the same during the spring lawmaking session, schools could lose tens of millions of dollars statewide. But if lawmakers raise the tax rate, they fear a backlash in an election year.
"I'm not interested in raising taxes on people who can't afford to pay their mortgages," said Fort Lauderdale Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff, the chairwoman of the House's Finance and Tax Council. "People are struggling enough as it is. (story here)
Lamberti moves his right-hand man out of his office
Broward Sheriff Al Lamberti moved his executive officer, Lieut. David Benjamin, out of his post yesterday. BSO is investigating Benjamin to determine if he complied with rules when he opened a side business. BSO won't provide a copy of the one-page form Benjamin would have had to fill out and show command staff to get permission -- a sign that perhaps he didn't ever fill one out. Benjamin, a longtime Scott Rothstein pal, escorted the lawyer from his car to airplane when he fled for Morocco.
BSO spokesman Jim Leljedal said that Benjamin's rank stays the same and he will now work in youth intervention and countywide service
Did you know state Sen. Paula Dockery of Lakeland, a longshot Republican candidate for governor against Attorney General Bill McCollum, graduated from Coral Springs High Schoool?
Dockery of course mentioned that fact in her speech today to the Broward Women's Republican Club Federated, along with her "100 percent Italian" heritage. But most of her speech dealt with her signature crusade to block SunRail, which she sees as a massive taxpayer boondoggle.
"I certainly think she stands a chance,'' said the club president, Ginger Eisenrod. "I'm not a big Bill McCollum fan...I've heard him speak about five times and it's always the same.''
Another woman said that Marco Rubio's unexpectedly vigorous challenge of Gov. Charlie Crist in the U.S. Senate race suggests that underdogs like Dockery can't be counted out. But in a sign that Dockery has a ways to go before approaching Rubio's status, she drew a small crowd of 20 people, about one-third as many as the former House Speaker did to the women's club October meeting.
Some women said Dockery's anti-establishment image hurts her credibility as a statewide candidate.
"She has all this information on rail, but what about the rest of the state?'' asked Colleen Stolberg of Fort Lauderdale. "And why can't she persuade the other senators? It concerns me that for whatever reason they are tuning her out.''
Dockery criticized party officials for discouraging Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson from running against McCollum and said she felt obligated to step up.
"I was convinced that if we didn't get someone else we were going to get the first female governor, but it wasn't going to be a Republican,'' said Dockery, referring to the Democratic frontrunner, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink. Dockery called McCollum a "nice man'' but noted that he lost two statewide races and said he won the third in 2006 only because of a weak Democratic opponent.
"I don't want to see us blow an opportunity to have a strong candidate in the general election,'' she said. "I don't mind bucking the party when I think they are wrong, but I'm a team player when I think they are right. I think that's a big difference in our leadership styles.''
The Florida House released a list of 36 members -- nearly one-third of the total membership -- who have excused absences for one or more days from the week-long special session on transportation that will get underway Thursday. With five excused senators, it means fully one-fourth of the 160 members of the Legislature will miss part of the session that leaders say is urgently needed to help Florida qualify for federal high-speed rail money.
The House absentees include 13 Republicans and 23 Democrats, 17 of whom are African-Americans and who presumably will attend the National Black Caucus of State Legislators annual conference in Fort Lauderdale. Notable no-shows on Dec. 3 and 4 include House Democratic Leader Franklin Sands, D-Weston; Rep. Ron Saunders, D-Key West; and the newest House member, Rep. Mack Bernard, D-West Palm Beach, whose own swearing-in has been delayed until next Monday.
House Republicans who won't arrive until next week include Reps. Ed Homan, R-Temple Terrace; Doug Holder, R-Sarasota; Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda; and Ron Schultz, R-Brooksville. Some lawmakers cited personal, family or business conflicts; the full list of reasons was not immediately available.
Five senators also were allowed to skip Thursday's largely-ceremonial opening of the session to attend the NBCSL conference. They are Sens. Tony Hill, Arthenia Joyner, Gary Siplin, Chris Smith and Frederica Wilson.
Reps. Cretul, Aubuchon defend need for rail project
House Speaker Larry Cretul, R-Ocala, told reporters Wednesday that black lawmakers have known since Nov. 25 that the special session on rail projects would start Dec. 3. He defended his decision to reject a proposal by black legislators to delay the start of the session until next Monday, so they can attend a national legislative conference in Fort Lauderdale.
"You have to keep in focus just exactly what your responsibilities are," said Cretul, who agreed with Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, who faulted legislators who "whine when it's time to do your job."
At least 30 House members are expected to seek excused absences from the session's first two days, when a House council will debate and likely approve legislation transferring 61 miles of CSX track from Poinciana to DeLand to the state for SunRail, a new commuter rail project. The bill also creates a new state rail office, sets a new source of operating money for South Florida's Tri-Rail system.
The rail bill's sponsor is second-term Rep. Gary Aubuchon, R-Cape Coral (left), a home builder and history grad of the University of Michigan. Aubuchon said the rail legislation will be a magnet for job creation and said it is needed for the "increased likelihood of drawing down additional federal dollars" for a high-speed rail linking Tampa, Miami and Orlando. Without providing many specifics, Aubuchon said SunRail's $2.7-billion cost over 30 years would add 100,000 new jobs over 20 years.
Interestingly, both Aubuchon and Cretul said they voted against a proposed constitutional amendment in 2000 establishing a high-speed rail. Voters later repealed the project, largely at the urging of then-Gov. Jeb Bush and then-state treasurer Tom Gallagher.
Sens. Hill, Lawson say union issue determines rail vote
Jacksonville Democrat Tony Hill wasn't on the Senate floor when SunRail was defeated by a 23-16 vote because he had a family emergency. But Sen. Hill will be there for the final vote next week, and his vote is one of those considered key to its fate.
Same goes with Senate Democratic leader Al Lawson, who voted against the matter in the spring but is considering a yes vote this time around. For both Hill and Lawson, their votes come down to the concerns of the labor union, whose leaders said this week the current proposal offers no protections for rail workers.
To know where Hill's allegiance is, he said this afternoon: "All you've got to do is read my pedigree and bio – past treasurer of the AFL-CIO. My position will be that if we take care of the trial lawyers and Associated Industries, then we should take care of the workers too. Don’t make them an afterthought – put workers on the front burner. If you’re looking for money from Washington, you have to take care of workers’ issues.”
Fort Lauderdale police won't investigate new Rothstein allegation
Fort Lauderdale Police will not investigate the allegations in the information against Scott Rothstein about police officers.
The information filed against Scott Rothstein Tuesday stated that the now disbarred lawyer used money from his Ponzi scheme to hire members of local police departments to provide security. That money was "used to provide gratuities to high ranking members of police agencies in order to curry favor with such police personnel and to deflect law enforcement scrutiny of the activities of RRA and defendant Rothstein."
The information doesn't specify which police department but dozens of Fort Lauderdale officers worked off-duty details which started earlier this year at Rothstein's home, law firm and Bova restaurant. Plantation police and the Broward Sheriff's Office both said that their officers did not provide off-duty detail although Rothstein had connections at both: his law firm represented the Plantation police union for many years and Rothstein was close to Sheriff Al Lamberti's executive officer, Lieut. David Benjamin.
It was Benjamin who escorted Rothstein from his car to the airplane when he fled for Morocco in October. He was not paid to do that but BSO is investigating Benjamin's side business and Lamberti removed him from overseeing internal affairs.
"There is no internal investigation into what was alleged in that complaint," said Fort Lauderdale police Sgt. Frank Sousa, spokesman for the agency. "We have not been contacted by federal authorities."
When asked if any city officer received a gratuity from Rothstein, Sousa said: "You are asking a question I don't have an answer to. You are speculating it was a Fort Lauderdale officer who got a gratuity. (The information) doesn't say Fort Lauderdale police officer."
Tough news release today from Charlie Crist communications director Andrea Saul: As Marco Rubio speaks to Florida TaxWatch today, I would like to remind everyone that while his words might sound credible, his record certainly is not. From supporting the largest tax increase in Florida history to the hundreds of thousands Rubio has squandered in taxpayer dollars, there are good reasons Rubio has tried to hide his record.
Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink is in Washington today at the Democratic Governors Association's annual conference, which just announced a "GOP Accountability Project'' aimed at knocking down Republican contenders for governor in five states: Florida, California, Colorado, Iowa and Ohio.
The DGA says it will spend at least $1 million in each of these states in a campaign that aims to link Republicans like Attorney General Bill McCollum -- who spent two decades in Congress -- to the current economic crisis.
Watch dog group calls for an investigation into secret senatorial holds
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington is asking the Senate Select Committee on Ethics to investigate the Senate's failure to follow a 2007 provision that prohibits the use of secret "holds" to block legislation -- and nominees. (Florida Sen. George LeMieux has three holds pending, including a block on the nomination of a new ambassador to Brazil -- though he's not necessarily kept his moves very secret.)
CREW is urging the committee to discipline senators who have violated the ban and issue guidance for future conduct.
According to the group, a 2007 act called "Honest Leadership and Open Government" requires senators to reveal when they are "intending to object to a proceeding" — a parliamentary maneuver commonly known as a "hold," which is used to stall or stop legislation or nominations. The provision, CREW says, didn't contain any enforcement mechanism and senators have continued to use secret holds.
CREW said it conducted a review of the Senate Calendar of Business from 2007 through today and found only found two bills that had "a notice of intent to object" placed in the calendar. For the same period, however, CREW discovered several bills and nominations that appeared to have had secret holds placed on them.
"Senators claimed HLOGA would change the way business is conducted in Washington," said CREW executive director Melanie Sloan. "But the so-called ban on secret holds was nothing more than an empty promise."
Only two days after denying an initial request for a statewide grand
jury because it was too vague, the Florida Supreme Court has
approved a more detailed request submitted by Gov. Charlie Crist.
Originally
aimed at public corruption, the new grand jury would look at a lengthy
list of crimes -- including burglary, drug offenses, RICO crimes and
fraud. The statewide grand jury could return indictments on crimes as
long as they were committed in two or more of Florida's 20 judicial
circuits.
Victor Tobin, the chief judge of the 17th judicial
circuit in Broward County (where much of the recent corruption has
occured), was designated at the presiding judge of the grand jury. The
initial request was denied 6-1. Wednesday's request was approved 7-0.
Saunders seeks rail session absence to attend black caucus event
And so the game of chicken/who flinches first continues between House leadership and black legislators and House Dems...
Rep. Ron Saunders, Key West Democrat, just requested an excused absence from House Speaker Larry Cretul for the first two days of the special session on rail that starts tomorrow, Thursday.
Saunders says he has 6,000 black constituents in his district, so he needs to be in Fort Lauderdale at the end of this week for the national conference of black lawmakers that was organized and lured here by members of Florida's black legislative caucus.
