The Fine Print

"Rick Scott could be at zero percent approval...."

It's no secret that Gov. Rick Scott's poll numbers have steadily gone downhill since he was first sworn in as governor.

There is some debate as to whether or not Scott's numbers are as bad as the latest poll from Quinnipiac University showed. Some newer GOP-leaning polls have suggested that the 29 percent number given to Scott by Quinnipiac may be too low.

Still Scott's poll numbers have triggered some debate and speculation on whether his unpopularity could aid President Barack Obama and the Democrats in Florida come next year.

There are some who obviously think mentioning Scott could help them.

U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch on Tuesday, for example, sent out a fundraising pitch for this quarter that asked his supporters to "send Rick Scott" a message as state lawmakers get ready to redraw districts.

But others say that the fate of Obama is tied to the national economy, not anything that Scott does.

"Rick Scott could be at zero percent approval, and if unemployment is at 10.5 percent or 11 percent, then Barack Obama is not getting re-elected,” Rick Wilson, a Republican strategist working for Adam Hasner in the United States Senate race in Florida, was quoted in a story that ran Tuesday in the New York Times.

To read the whole story, go here.

 

 

House would force federal candidates to resign to run

The Florida House has unveiled its version of a sweeping elections bill - and surprise! - it's got a handful of major differences than the Senate bill that passed out of the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee.

One difference is that the Florida House would restore the "resign to run" law for federal candidates. Back in 2007 state legislators - anticipating the possibility of Gov. Charlie Crist as a vice presidential candidate - changed the law to let candidates for Congress or other federal office run without having to give up their state office. (This was the law that tripped up Secretary of State Katherine Harris back in 2002.)

This change would not really affect Crist even if he does run for the U.S. Senate because candidates in Florida cannot run for two offices at the same time. But it would affect candidates such as Dan Gelber, the Miami Beach Democrat running for U.S. Senate. Under the current law Gelber could run for Senate without resigning his spot in the Legislature. The move would also cover any current members of the Legislature toying with the idea of running for Congress.

Some other differences between the two bills:

* Lets disabled voters use touchscreen machines until 2016. The current deadline is 2012.

* Gives the governor the right to extend early voting hours and days by executive order declaring an emergency.

* It does not include the provision that lets out-of-state political committees operate in Florida without complying with registration and reporting requirements.

* It would give third-party registration groups 5 days to turn in voter registration forms instead of the 48-hour deadline in the Senate measure.

* It has slightly different language regarding talking to voters in line. Instead of having a 100-foot buffer zone around anyone in line outside the polling place the House legislation says that no one can offer advice to anyone standing in line. The House does not have the provision that states that no one with a tape recorder or video camera can talk to someone in line.

But despite those differences, the House legislation does contain several of the other major elements of the Senate bill including changes to the executive committee structure of political parties, change in voter ID requirements and the recreation of leadership funds.

The House version is scheduled to be heard on Friday morning.

Top donors have stake in session outcome

The first quarter fundraising totals for the Republican Party of Florida and the Florida Democratic Party came in late Friday. On the surface, they show that the majority party still has the upper hand in the state despite President Obama winning Florida during last year's presidential election.

The Republicans reported raising $3.92 million to $1.21 million for the Democrats.

The other tidbit to gleaned from the fundraising reports is that many of the top donors during the first quarter have a stake in the battles being waged on the legislative front. While the state budget had been the main item of the session, legislation dealing with regulation of phone rates, renewable energy standards, property taxes, gambling and the make-up of the Low Income Pool council have been heard this session.

Here's a rundown of some of them:
AT&T: $100,000 to Republicans; $45,000 to Democrats
Florida Power & Light: $85,000 to Republicans; $42,500 to Democrats
HCA (and its various political committees): $150,000 to Republicans; $30,000 to Democrats
TECO Energy: $90,000 to Republicans; $46,000 to Democrats
Florida Medical Association: $100,000 to Republicans; $10,000 to Democrats
Realtors PAC: $100,000 to Republicans; $15,000 to Democrats
Palm Beach Kennel Club: $35,000 to Republicans; $15,000 to Democrats
Dosal Tobacco: $20,000 to Republicans; $10,000 to Democrats
CSX Transportation: $15,000 to Republicans; $5,000 to Democrats