Isaac could be Gov. Rick Scott's moment

TAMPA — Gov. Rick Scott expected to get just a few minutes in the Republican National Convention spotlight. A seven-minute speech during Monday's opening session, maybe a few appearances at a fundraiser or a reception.

Then Tropical Storm Isaac began churning in the Caribbean and made a turn toward the Florida peninsula.

Almost overnight, the unpopular governor kept somewhat on the fringes of Mitt Romney's presidential campaign was thrust front and center.

While no one will say it, the storm offers Scott an opening to many still skeptical Floridians to prove his mettle in a crisis. It's Scott, not Romney, the state is seeing on TV twice a day. And it's Scott's voice that is trying to reassure Florida and its thousands of convention guests as Isaac impacts the coastline.

"We do hurricanes well and we do hospitality well," he told CNN's Candy Crowley Sunday morning. "And this week, we've got to show both sides."

Read more here.

Florida delegates arrive -- at the Republican equivalent of Siberia

Florida's convention delegates and party faithful streamed into the Innisbrook Golf and Spa resort on Sunday, right on schedule, as the hurry-up and wait for convention activities began. They were handed white bags with blue trim, loaded with RNC swag from water bottles to a beach towels.

But if the gray clouds, persistent drizzle and tropical storm warnings weren't enough to dampen the mood in the swank, sprawling resort, the lack of convention buzz certainly was.

The conventioneers face an hour long drive, each way, to get to the Tampa Bay Times Forum and convention headquarters. Buses have been reserved for the trips but travelers were urged to be vigilent about departure times.

This is the Republican equivalent of Siberia. Comfortable and lovely, the resort features a golf course, spa, swimming pools and restaurants. It is owned by Sheila Johnson, co-founder of the BET network and a major Democratic contributor.

Women’s suffrage, stirred not shaken, at YG Network

Sure, conservatives are playing defense these days over abortions thanks to the widely condemned remarks of Missouri Rep. Todd Akin.

That’s where the YG Network comes in during the Republican National Convention.

Though technically not part of the RNC, the network is sponsoring a “Woman Up” pavilion dedicated to showcasing conservative women and women’s issues. While the press talks abortion, abortion and abortion, the YG Network wants to talk about the economy, economy, economy.

“More and more, women are the breadwinners in the household. They care about the economy,” said Mary Anne Carter, an event organizer and former chief policy advisor to Republican Gov. Rick Scott. “Women make almost all of the healthcare decisions for the family. We’re going to have substantive policy discussions on these issues.”

And they can have a few drinks doing it. In addition to having a large lounge and women’s suffrage exhibit, the pavilions sprts the Kahwa Café & Grey Goose Bar, which serves drinks like the “Woman Up-Tini.”

“It’s a place where women can come relax, chill out, learn a little suffrage and do a little work,” Carter said.

Scott cancels Tuesday events for RNC week

Gov. Rick Scott, who has cancelled his RNC events for Sunday and Monday said his RNC black-out will continue through Tuesday, when Tropical Storm Isaac is expected to continue to be pummeling Florida.

Scott has been operating out of Tampa at an RNC emergency operations center where he is receivng storm briefings. Although he appears to be keeping his distance from the party faithful, he did conduct one interview with CNN's Candy Crowley this morning in which he offered up his political observations.

Scott's decision was commended by Republican Party of Florida chairman Lenny Curry, as state party officials gathered for their quarterly meeting at Innisbrook resort on Sunday afternoon.

"He did that because it's about the safety of Floridians and people traveling,'' Curry said. While some of the party faithful were unhappy about the abbreviated schedule because of the storm, Curry said he's not hearing too many complaints.

"People get it,'' Curry said. "In fact, people are craving leadership. People are so used to people making poltiical decisions, when Gov. Scott stood up and said 'Here's what I'm going to do and here's why' people said 'That's what I'm looking for."

Here's the statement from the governor's office:

Today, Governor Scott announced that we would cancel his Tuesday activities related to the Republican National Convention in order to monitor and respond to issues related to Tropical Storm Isaac. Tropical Storm Isaac is expected to continue to impact Southwest Florida today before continuing into the Gulf of Mexico. Florida’s Emergency Officials encourage all Floridians to stay informed and finalize emergency preparations. 

At 11am EDT Sunday, Tropical Storm Isaac was approximately 80 miles southeast of Key West, Florida. The official forecast takes Tropical Storm Isaac near or over the lower Florida Keys today and tonight and into the eastern Gulf of Mexico on Monday. Tropical storm force winds are already impacting the Keys and South Florida with hurricane conditions possibly arriving this afternoon. Additionally, there is a threat for severe weather including isolated tornadoes over much of Central and South Florida.

All Floridians should be closely monitoring this storm, and be prepared to act if necessary. Families and businesses can visit www.FloridaDisaster.org  to build their emergency plan and learn about what to stock in the disaster supply kits, including water, food, medication, important papers and other essential items. Supplies should be able to sustain your family for up to 72 hours after a disaster.

Deja vu from 2004 in Hialeah absentee-ballot fraud case

After one of his aides emerged two weeks ago as a key witness in the latest ballot-fraud probe in Hialeah, Miami-Dade Commissioner Esteban “Steve” Bovo said he was “deeply disturbed” that his office was “mentioned in the same breath of an absentee ballot investigation.”

But it’s not the first time that a vote-fraud investigation has led to Bovo’s doorstep.

In 2004, in another ballot-fraud probe, detectives focused on a suspected boletero, or ballot-broker, who worked as a staffer for Bovo, at the time a Hialeah city councilman, police records show. The boletero, who was never charged, told investigators that he learned the finer points of ballot collecting from Sergio “El Tio” Robaina — who was arrested earlier this month on vote-fraud charges after a witness said he dropped off ballots at Bovo’s office, court records show.

That 2004 probe, which ended with no arrests, was in many ways a mirror image of the current investigation that has led to two arrests and roiled Miami-Dade’s political scene. That investigation eight years ago exposed many of the ballot-collecting practices facing renewed scrutiny today, and touched many of the same political players — including Bovo.

Bovo says he has never asked his campaign workers to collect ballots — not today, and not when he served on the Hialeah City Council. “I have always instructed my campaign staff to follow state, local and federal election laws,” Bovo said in a written statement.

Records show that four suspected ballot brokers have worked on Bovo’s past campaigns — including Deisy Cabrera, the Hialeah woman arrested last month on ballot-fraud charges.

More from Charles Rabin and Scott Hiaasen here.

Hialeah absentee-ballot tampering suspect was Miami-Dade poll worker

Sergio Robaina, facing absentee ballot tampering charges out of Hialeah, has worked as a seasonal precinct inspector for the Miami-Dade Elections Department for the past four years.

Records show that Robaina, 74, was paid to work during 11 elections ranging from races for seats on Hialeah’s City Council to the White House. He even worked elections in which his nephew, former Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina, was a candidate. Several voters said that for years Sergio Robaina passed by their homes to pick up their absentee ballots during these elections.

In mid-June, Robaina took a refresher training course in preparation for his job as an inspector at Precinct 362 at Hialeah’s Meadowlane Elementary School during the Aug. 14 elections. But he called in sick before he could take up his post.

Four days earlier, Miami Dade police arrested Robaina on two felony counts of tampering with the absentee ballots of a woman with dementia and her son. Some 35 voters have told El Nuevo Herald and The Miami Herald that Robaina collected their ballots prior to the recent elections.

When asked about Robaina’s employment at the county’s polls, Elections Supervisor Penelope Townsley said her office carefully reviews allegations.

“The Elections Department holds itself to the highest standards to ensure a fair, secure and convenient electoral process,” she said Friday in a statement.

More from Melissa Sanchez, Enrique Flor and Alfonso Chardy here.

Obama receives Isaac update from Gov. Scott

UPDATE: President Barack Obama's press office sent out an overview of his conversation today with Gov. Rick Scott, which was preceded by the president's own briefing on Tropical Storm Isaac. From the news release:

Following the briefing, the President spoke with Florida Governor Rick Scott to make clear that the Administration, through FEMA, would continue to make resources available as necessary to support the state as the Governor’s team prepares for and responds to the storm.  The President told the Governor the people of Florida are in his thoughts during this time.  The President also told the governor to let him know if there are any unmet needs or additional resources the Administration could provide, including in support of efforts to ensure the safety of those visiting the state for the Republican National Convention.

ORIGINAL POST: Gov. Rick Scott has been working out of a Tampa business office today, receiving briefings on Tropical Storm Isaac and directing the state's response to the soon-to-be hurricane. Around lunchtime he received a call from President Barack Obama who wanted to ensure that Florida has the resources it needs.

Charlie Crist, a storm force in Florida politics and political weathervane

Tropical Storm Isaac had just delayed the Republican National Convention when a new menace hit the GOP: Hurricane Charlie Crist.

The former Republican and former governor waited until the Sunday before the Tampa convention to pen an op-ed in the Tampa Bay Times that officially cast his lot with President Obama.

It was yet another sign that Crist – now an independent – is expected to join the Democratic Party. It also positions him for a speaking slot at the Democrats’ convention next week as well as a run for his old seat against Republican Gov. Rick Scott in two years.

But Crist also carries baggage that could weigh down the power of his endorsement as well as his future political ambitions. Republicans quickly howled that Crist is a “crass political opportunist” and isn’t so much a storm threat as a gust of hot air

Indeed, Crist was a storm force in Florida politics. But he’s also a political weathervane.

Right now, though, the op-ed is clearly a coup for the Obama campaign. Democrats can crow that Crist’s support is a bellwether of independent-minded voters in Florida and a repudiation of today’s Republicanism.

“Across Florida, in Washington and around the country, I've watched the failure of those who favor extreme rhetoric over sensible compromise,” Crist wrote, “and I've seen how those who never lose sight of solutions sow the greatest successes.”

Yet Crist is a flawed messenger when it comes to talking about achievements.

Jeb Bush on NBC: Romney can win with focus on a positive tone

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush conceded that President Barack Obama is enjoying a political advantage but he predicted on NBC's Meet the Press that Mitt Romney will overcome it with a positive tone. Among the tones that needs changing, is the GOP's approach to immigration.

As the nation's democgraphics are changing, he said, the nation must also change it's approach to focus on recruitment of "young aspirational people" who want to come to this country "so we can grow over a sustained period of time at a high rate that will allow us to create jobs, without raising taxes, balance the budget, do all the things that we want to do."

He conceded that it "may be a useful tool politically for some Republicans to focus on the political issue, the wedge issue -- it might be, I don't know -- but I don't think it's right for our country."

The latest nationwide poll of Hispanic voters released last week by NBC News, The Wall Street Journal and Telemundo shows Obama with a large majority, 63-28 percent, over Romney. It was the first poll of Hispanics following Ryan's VP announcement.

"Gov. Romney can make inroads if he focuses on how do we create a climate of job creation and economic growth," Bush said. "And that's what I think this fall campaign's going to be about for their campaign. And I think people will move back toward the Republican side.

"But we've got to have a better tone going forward over the long haul for sure," he told David Gregory. "You can't ask people to join your cause and then send a signal that 'you're really not wanted.' It just doesn't work."

The former Florida governor, whose brother and father both served as presidents, said as Obama is "constantly attacking, constantly using negative messaging, I think his connectivity with people will drop."

Bush said his speech on Tuesday will focus on education, his special passion, and cautioned Republicans to better explain their plans for Medicare.

"You can't just say, 'I'm for Medicare reform and leave it at that,' because then the attack machine on the other side says 'you're throwing granny off the cliff with - in a wheelchair,'" he said. ""You have to explain that the Romney plan does not change anything for anybody that is 55 years old and older."

More here.

Why Florida matters in the fall of 2012, and every other season in politics

Welcome to Florida, Republican conventioneers.

(And sorry about the ugly storm system that caused Monday’s events to be canceled. This, too, shall pass.)

Let’s not mince words: You are in the most important state in America.

You already know this is America’s biggest battleground and that if Mitt Romney loses our 29 electoral votes Barack Obama is almost certainly re-elected. But with Florida it’s more than that.

This is a mega state so diverse that it mirrors the nation’s moods, sentiments and demographics. Florida is America — today’s America and tomorrow’s.

“It’s become a nation-state, just as New York and California were at their peak and Ohio was a century ago,” said historian Richard Norton Smith, a venerable chronicler of American politics.

More from Adam C. Smith And Charles Mahtesian Tampa Bay Times/Politico