Sink promises change, wants your spare

Echoing the campaign slogan of you know who, Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink is promising "change" if Florida elects her governor. And in a play on words, the Democrat is asking supporters in an e-mail today to donated their spare "change" to her campaign.

"The change Florida needs is not complete, and that's why with your help and support I am determined to be Florida's next governor.'' Sink said at the Florida Democratic Party's Jefferson Jackson dinner last month.

Republicans, however, are trying to saddle Sink with the controversial aspects of the Barack Obama administration -- the bailouts, the deficit, et al.

"The last election they tried to sell us change,'' Senate President Jeff Atwater told Miami-Dade Republicans last week. "Now we know they sold us change we cannot afford."

Attorney General Bill McCollum, the Republican frontrunner for governor, has tried to put his own twist on the "change" slogan, calling for "a new way up."

Still waiting for the Florida candidate who will try to sell us hope.

RPOF swings at Sink and hits Atwater

The Republican Party of Florida clearly thinks that being a banker in the 1990s is a toxic asset. That's why they've sent out two missives against "banker Alex Sink" alleging that she was complicit in "predatory lending practices'' that led to the subprime mortgage crisis.

The email sent out late Tuesday night had RPOF chairman Jim Greer calling on Sink to "release all information relating to her involvement with NationsBank, Barnett Bank and Bank of America’s subprime predatory lending practices.''

The release said: "According to information in Barnett Bank’s SEC reporting forms, during Alex Sink’s tenure they used predatory lending practices - 1 out of 3 mortgages in Barnett Bank’s portfolio consisted of sub-prime mortgages. These mortgages were often given to homeowners who couldn’t afford to make the payments usually resulting in them falling behind on their mortgage payments and defaulting on their home loans causing them to lose their homes.''

Big problem: Alex Sink was never at Barnett Bank, a large, Florida-based bank. She was at NationsBank, which merged with Barnett in August 1997. The SEC report the RPOF used was Barnett's 10-K form in 1996.

Who was at Barnett Banks in 1996? Jeffrey H. Atwater -- the Republican Senate President who announced this week he wants to succeed Sink. He's listed as the President of the Fort Lauderdale branch, on p. 65 of the SEC report the RPOF cites.

Problem 2: The conclusion that one out of three mortgages consisted of sub-prime mortgages is based on the 10-K report that "mortgage-backed securities" constituted 36 percent of the bank's total mortgage portfolio. According to Princeton University's Worldnet, a mortgage-backed security is not the same as a sub-prime mortgage. Instead, it is "a security created when a group of mortgages are gathered together and bonds are sold to other institutions or the public.''

Sub-prime mortgages are also mortgage-backed securities and are also sold to other institutions and investors, but the financial term refers to higher risk loans.

Problem 3: RPOF reports in a May 19 press release that Sink oversaw "both Barnett and Bank of America.'' Technically, Sink never worked at Barnett. Atwater did.

(For the record, when the Dems start doing this for Bill McCollum we'll be checking their facts too.)

Bogdanoff, Domino officially enter state Senate race

Republican state representatives Ellyn Bogdanoff, of Fort Lauderdale, and Carl Domino, of Jupiter, officially jumped into the race for Sen. Jeff Atwater's Broward-Palm Beach state Senate district, releasing formal statements on Wednesday.

Atwater, Senate President and North Palm Beach Republican announced Tuesday that he will run for chief financial officer, creating a wide open race for the coastal state Senate district that runs from Fort   Lauderdale to Juno Beach.

About 35 percent of the district is in Broward County with the rest in Palm Beach. Republicans have a slight edge in the district, with 39 percent of voters registered Republican and 36 percent registered Democratic in the last election.

Bogdanoff was elected in a 2004 special election. She served as the Majority Whip from 2006 until 2008 and now serves as the chairwoman of the House Finance & Tax Council. Her House District stretches also stretches up the coast, running from Dania Beach to Boca Raton.

Domino was elected in 2002 and served as Majority Whip between 2004 and 2006. He now chairs the House budget committee that oversees seniors spending. Domino's House district includes the portion of the Palm Beach coast running from North Palm Beach to Jupiter as will as parts of Palm Beach Gardens.

Republican Nick Loeb, of Delray Beach, also has announced plans to run for the state Senate seat.

See below for the statements by Bogdanoff and Domino.

Bogdanoff to announce state Senate run on Wednesday

With state Sen. Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, officially in the race for chief financial officer, state Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, said she plans to make an announcement Wednesday that she is running for Atwater's Senate district, which runs up the coast from Fort Lauderdale to Juno Beach.

Bogdanoff also was considering potential runs for CFO or attorney general but wanted to wait until Atwater finalized his political plans before making up her mind. In the end, she decided a move to the Senate was "a natural progression."

"I like public policy and I enjoy the process," she said.

Bogdanoff said she will likely make the formal announcement Wednesday by sending out a statement without "a lot of fanfare."

Bogdanoff was first elected to the House in a 2004 special election and currently serves as the House Finance & Tax Council chairwoman. Her House district runs from Dania Beach to Boca Raton and overlaps with part of Atwater's Senate district.

Rep. Carl Domino, of Jupiter, is another potential Republican candidate for the seat.

Bogdanoff's announcment also could trigger another political domino with Broward County Commission Ken Keechl saying last week that he hadn't ruled out a run for Bogdanoff's House seat.

For Atwater, what a difference 8 days makes

Senate President Jeff Atwater on May 11: "I think people should have high expectations and high demands of someone who decides to campaign for elected office at the same time that they are serving in another office....There is much work for me to do as Senate president, and there is nothing else on my calendar right now."

Atwater on May 19: "After receiving strong encouragement and support from my family, my friends, my colleagues in the Legislature and citizens from across our state, I will seek to serve the people of Florida as Chief Financial Officer... I'm excited about Florida's future, and I look forward to traveling the state in the coming months to listen to the ideas and concerns of Floridians."

Atwater is in for CFO

Sources close to Senate President Jeff Atwater say that he will make his run for Chief Financial Officer official on Tuesday, a day after Attorney General Bill McCollum jumps into the governor's race.

Atwater, a Republican banker from North Palm Beach, is lining up his Republican backers, including fundraisers David Browning and Jim Smith. Atwater speaks tonight at the Pasco County Reagan Day dinner.

Gallagher phones friends: I can beat Atwater

Here's the latest heard on the Tallahassee street: Former Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher, who lost the Republican primary to Charlie Crist, is testing the waters about a possible return to the post being vacated by Alex Sink's bid for governor.

He's telling folks that he believes he could beat Senate President Jeff Atwater in a Republican primary for CFO, assuming the North Palm Beach lawmakers gets into the race as expected.

Atwater spells out priorities but is silent about how to pay for them

Read between the lines in the following note from Senate President Jeff Atwater to his constituents and you've got to wonder if he isn't contemplating the political dominoes falling if Gov. Charlie Crist decides to run for U.S. Senate. Atwater has made it clear he's interested in running for CFO, and that's a whole lot easier if Crist jumps ship and CFO Alex Sink starts running for governor.

Maybe it's the political winds but as the Florida Senate prepares to release its budget plan this week, Atwater sent out this note to show that he's focused on: 1. critical needs; 2. stimulating job growth; 3. government efficiency.

But you'd never know that 1. there's a $3 BILLION budget hole; 2. budget cuts are needed to fill it; 3. taxes and fees are needed to avoid those cuts.

Atwater: 'Sure. Sure. Sure. Yes.' I'll return donation

Senate President Jeff Atwater said he'll return A $5k donation to indicted former New York pol Joe Bruno. Here's the story. Here's the video.

Atwater's star-crossed gift

"On your desks is a box, and inside is a sextant, a navigational tool utilized by explorers from the 16th through the late 19th centuries.  In the darkest of nights, tumbling on the most perilous seas, captains would take up their sextant and with the stars as their guide they would chart their position, adjust their course and press onward in their journey to make and capture their destiny.---Senate President Jeff Atwater's opening day remarks.

Is Atwater about to crash Florida into the rocks? Houston, we have a problem with the central metaphor of Atwater's remarks: A sextant doesn't work without visibility. It's generally used during the day. (More here) Perhaps an astrolabe would've been better.

-- ADAM C. SMITH