House Dems to oil companies: "Use it or Lose it"

Accused by Republicans of blocking efforts to find new sources of oil and gas, House Democrats today unveiled legislation they say will help lower gas prices by demanding that oil companies use what they say are 68 million acres of land onshore and offshore that they currently lease.

"Before we put Florida's economy and families at risk, I want to know why the major oil companies have yet to drill on more than 68 million acres of federal lands that are already under lease," said Rep. Tim Mahoney, D-Palm Beach Gardens, a co-sponsor of the legislation and opponent of plans to lift a drilling ban off the coast.

The act would bar companies from obtaining any more leases until they demonstrate they are producing oil and gas, or developing the leases they already hold.

Republicans have scoffed at the measure, saying oil companies already have time limits to explore and tap leases. They held a dueling press conference of their own, poking fun at two of the Democrats' more liberal members who earlier this week raised the possiblity of the government controlling gas prices.

"Apparently," said Rep. Adam Putnam, R-Bartow. "They went to the Hugo Chavez school of goverment enterprise."

Raul Martinez to help make Dems case

Democrats have picked Democratic congressional hopeful and former Hialeah mayor Raul Martinez to help them make their case for relevancy next month in DC.

Democratic National Committee member Jon Ausman, who filed the appeal asking the national party to recognize Florida's Jan. 29 presidential primary, said he's asked Martinez, a Hillary Clinton supporter and Janee Murphy, a Barack Obama supporter from Tampa to help him make his case May 31 before the national party's rules and bylaws committee. Ausman, a onetime Dennis Kucinich supporter, is uncommitted.

The move is sure to boost Martinez's national profile as he challenges Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, R-Miami, for re-election. Ausman noted Martinez "has already raised a large treasury and is a very credible candidate."

More on the appeal here.

Garcia defends controversial fundraiser

Under fire for inviting an anti-embargo congressman to a campaign fundraiser, Democrat Joe Garcia is looking to turn the tables, assailing Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart for accepting campaign contributions from companies with ties to the Cuban government.

At a news conference, Garcia defended his campaign's decision to invite New York Democrat Rep. Charles Rangel to an April 21 fundraiser. Critics see Rangel as an ally to Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez; Garcia says he's a powerful legislator who could help bring sorely-needed dollars to South Florida.

Diaz-Balart called the New York Democrat a "radical left wing extremist."

Read more here.

Miami's "battle of the titans" reaches the small screen

The looming matchup between Republican Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart and rival Democrat Raul Martinez has already been billed as a battle of the Cuban-American titans.

Now it's being paid fitting tribute in a mash-up video that lampoons the expected slugfest. The nearly 2-minute long YouTube video splices together interviews of the two combatative pols with movie clips, portraying them as brawling boxers, bawling babies, sharks and sequined ice skaters.

It ends with a shot of a track-suited Fidel Castro who notes in a phony voiceover, "The one who ends up winning is me."

Democrat fundraiser Inamdar appointed to MDX

   Republican Gov. Charlie Crist on Tuesday appointed a Democratic fundraiser and affordable housing developer to one of three vacant seats on the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority, Herald transportation writer Larry Lebowitz reported.

   Crist appointed Nikul "Nick'' Inamdar, vice president of the Gatehouse Group Inc., to complete the four-year term of lawyer Justin Sayfie, who resigned in late June. The term ends April 6, 2010.

   Before going to work at Gatehouse, Inamdar, 31, of Miami Beach, worked for several prominent Democrats: U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, former Sen. Bob Graham, Miami Mayor Manny Diaz and gubernatorial aspirant Bill McBride.

   "It's my first appointment," Inamdar said. "I'm very interested in trying to deal with some of the traffic issues we're facing."

   The 13-member expressway authority is comprised of seven appointees controlled by the Miami-Dade county commission, six by the governor's office.

   Crist still has two vacancies to fill on the MDX board, replacing accountant Darryl K. Sharpton and hotelier T. Gene Prescott, both of whom resigned in late June.

Dems echo ghosts of Crist's past

In a sign of just how strangely bi-partisan and twisted-up politics have become under Gov. Charlie Crist, the Florida Democratic Party sent out an appeal today inspired by a civil rights case that the moderate Republican investigated himself as attorney general.

The e-mail from Democratic state Rep. Joyce Cusack tells the story of Harry T. Moore, who led the Florida State Conference of the NAACP. He and his wife were murdered on Christmas Day, 1951 -- their 25th wedding anniversary -- when a bomb went off in their home.

"Now 56 years later, the Moores' bravery still resonates,'' Cusack writes. "I hope that you'll take time to remember them this holiday season and that this reflection will inspire you to get involved in the 2008 election. No matter how small it may seem, our individual efforts can make a powerful difference.''

Crist supporters would say he did just that. A two-year investigation by his office fingered four dead Ku Klux Klansman. Moore's daughter agreed to talk about the case in a campaign commercial during the 2006 governor's race.

But after the Miami Herald reported that two scholars said Crist failed to uncover new evidence, he pulled the ad, saying he didn't want to politicize the case.

Be a Republican, look cool

The good-looking hipster with the slicked back, slightly mussed hair looks out from his dark shades.

"He's a Republican,'' reads the billboard spotted around South Florida in recent weeks. "But you don't see that.''

A Sunglass Hut official denied that the company's ad is a political statement, but its message is clear: Being a Republican isn't cool (unless you have fabulous hair and expensive sunglasses). Is that you, Karl Rove, behind those Foster Grants?

Read the rest of Beth Reinhard's column here.

Absence of GOP straw poll discourages some activists

Some Florida Republican activists say the state party's decision to forego a presidential straw poll has dampened interest in its annual convention in Orlando.

Applications to serve as "ambassadors'' to the event from some of the largest counties fell short of the party's expectations. According to local party leaders, Miami-Dade got 300 applications for 330 slots; Broward got about 180 applications for 250 slots; Palm Beach got roughly 190 applications for 250 slots. In Pinellas County, about 150 people applied for 240 slots.

State party officials in February decided to jettison a presidential straw poll in favor of a nationally televised debate. The poll would have amounted to a non-binding popularity contest but would have encouraged candidates to spend money and time courting party activists.

"It always means a little more if you do a straw poll," said Mary Ellen Miller, chairwoman of the Miami-Dade Republican Party. "I think we're doing pretty good, considering."

GOP officials say that statewide, the party surpassed its goal of 3,000 applications. "We've had an overwhelming response," said spokeswoman Erin VanSickle.

Note: VanSickle says Broward got 218 applications  and Pinellas got 193.

GOP meeting offers fashion and firearms

Check out two of the activities planned for the Republican Party of Florida's quarterly meeting at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando on Friday:

"First lady of the RPOF'' Lisa Greer is hosting a fashion show, while Chairman Jim Greer is hosting a concealed weapons course taught by Pasco County GOP chairman Bill Bunting. "Last meeting it was a tea party and golf,'' grumbled one female party leader, who sees the social activities geared toward ladies and gents as a bit of a throwback.

Here's a look: Download august_social_event_flyer.doc

Greer was Gov. Charlie Crist's choice to replace Carole Jean Jordan, only the second woman to lead the party.

In between styling and shooting, activists will discuss weightier matters like their delegates to the 2008 nominating convention. Read more here.

Thurman deserves kudos not kicks

The Ocala Star-Banner today opines that Democrat activists should stop fretting about Florida  Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Thurman's side gig with Republican lobbyist Al Cardenas. Read the editorial here.

A spokesman for U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson -- who helped recruit Thurman to serve as chairwoman -- said he did not know about her lobbying in Washington with Cardenas until he read the story in The Miami Herald.