The Fine Print

Former top Scott aide pushes Thrasher for LG

Consider this part of a new ongoing series that I refer to as news from Inside the Tallahassee bubble. These will just be short interesting tidbits.

THRASHER FOR LG?

While there has been a fair amount of radio silence regarding a successor to Lieutenant Gov. Jennifer Carroll one former top aide to Gov. Rick Scott has someone he thinks deserves consideration.

Steve MacNamara, former chief of staff to Scott, in March sent an email to his former boss touting State Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine as a potential candidate.

In the email MacNamara says at the very least it could help generate some good will for Scott if Thrasher at least made the short list. MacNamara was chief of staff for Thrasher back when he was House speaker. He also jokes that he's not interested in the job.

From: Stephen MacNamara
Date: March 13, 2013, 10:30:48 AM EDT
To: Rick Scott
Subject: LG

Hope you pick Thrasher. Given all he has done, I hope you at least put
him on the short list, have Adam tell him he's not it so he can
gracefully withdraw saying he needs to keep his commitment to his
constituents and fill out his term. He understands you need to make
the right political choice with this appointment but it would buy you
tons of good will to include him in the list being considered. This is
a great opportunity to make a couple of key people feel important by
saying they are being contemplated as a replacement. As Rahm Emanuel
would say "Never let a good crisis go to waste". BTW...I'm not
interested but thanks!

The email from MacNamara came the same day that news about Carroll's departure became public.

It was sent to a personal email account maiintained by the governor. Scott forwarded the email on to his public email account that is maintained on a public website. (It is worth noting that one of the emails sent to his private account Scott did not forward to his public account until two months after it was sent.)

Since Carroll's resignation Scott has said little about the next LG even as speculation has come from all quarters about potential candidates. The governor has insisted that he won't even think about a LG until after the session is over.

ARDUIN IS BACK

Tweeted this last week but it's interesting that the Florida Senate in March hired Donna Arduin. Arduin is former budget director for former Gov. Jeb Bush as well as prime architect of Scott's 7-7-7 plan. (That was Scott's seven step plan to create nearly 700,000 jobs over a seven-year period.)

According to Senate documents Arduin will receive $10,000 for two months worth of work.

Arduin has been hired to provide consulting related to "economic planning for funds received by Florida" from either government or private sources in connection to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

 

 

Rick Scott's long list of challenges

A beaming Governor-elect Rick Scott and his wife, Ann, showed up at the governor’s mansion on Monday night where they joined Gov. Charlie Crist and First Lady Carole Crist for a symbolic menorah lighting ceremony.

Scott helped 11-year-old Mendy Oirechman light the candles of a large menorah that was placed up against one of the front windows and he later held hands with Crist as they briefly danced with some of the rabbis in attendance.

The ceremony, which was started under former Gov. Jeb Bush, was a tangible sign of some of the many social responsibilities that come with being governor. But it also could be seen as a prelude of many of the large and small challenges that will confront Scott once he is sworn into office in early January.

During the half-hour ceremony, he was reminded of Florida’s insurance problems when he was asked whether he planned to follow Crist’s footsteps. Crist went to Jerusalem and placed a prayer in the Wailing Wall where he asked God to spare Florida from hurricanes.  Rabbi Schneur Z. Oirechman politely asked whether or not the mezuzah that now sits on the door jamb into Crist’s office would remain once Scott becomes governor. Crist back in 2007 took some heat from groups such as the ACLU for placing the religious symbol in his office.

But there are many other large challenges that are looming for the rookie governor whether it's the state budget mess, the dismal economy, Medicaid and even the brewing leadership battle for the Republican Party of Florida.

The complete rundown on Scott's challenges can be found here at the Florida Tribune.

Rubio: I am not under investigation nor will I ever be

The furor over the still unreleased Republican Party of Florida audit this past weekend prompted the campaign of U.S. Senate candidate Charlie Crist to take several shots at rival Marco Rubio. After a closed door session on Saturday, the party said it may sue to recover hundreds of thousands of dollars that Crist and former chairman Jim Greer spent on non-party related travel expenses.

Danny Kanner, a spokesman for Crist, said the party should worry about whether or not Rubio is under investigation for the way he used his Republican Party of Florida issued credit card instead of inferring that Crist may need to pay back thousands of money to the party. The Crist campaign says the move by the party is a political payback aimed at Crist, who bolted the party to run as an independent.

Rubio, however, flatly insisted on Friday that he is not under investigation by either the FBI and IRS - and he boldly predicted that he never will be.

"It's just not true,'' said Rubio following his well-received speech at the 2010 Victory Dinner at Walt Disney World. "I have never been contacted by anyone. I'm not going to because it's not true."

Rubio continued to insist that he used his RPOF credit card for “political purposes” and that the “few instances” that it wasn’t that it was “paid back at the time.”

It's clear, however, that there is some type of investigation into party finances that has been underway for some time now. And Al Hoffman, a former U.S. ambassador and top fundraiser for the party, said at the Saturday RPOF meeting that he has been questioned by both the FBI and IRS about party spending matters.

It's just another reminder that despite RPOF chairman John Thrasher's bold statement before donors and party faithful on Friday night that the "dark period" of the party is over there is still plenty of fallout that could come from Jim Greer-credit cards-Ray Sansom series of scandals.

Now it's unclear how much of this will unfold before Election Day. The trial of Sansom - the former House speaker charged with using his power as budget chairman to steer money to a political donor and developer - has now been scheduled for early next year.

Greer's trial on charges that he steered party money to a shell company that he set up with former executive director Delmar Johnson was initially scheduled for October. But Damon Chase, an attorney for Greer, said the case will not move forward until the defense team has had a chance to put under oath Thrasher, incoming Senate President Mike Haridopolos, and incoming House Speaker Dean Cannon. They all signed a proposed severance package back in January that says that what Greer did as chairman was "proper, lawful and appropriate."

"I can't wait for the depositions where you sit them down and ask them questions," Chase said this past week. "We're going to walk into court, and go, boom, boom, boom, with the testimony."

Haridopolos, Cannon and Thrasher said they aren't bothered by the prospect of giving a deposition.

"I look forward to justice being done in that case and look forward to cooperating anyway I can,'' Cannon said.

Should the GOP be afraid of Rick Scott?

Shortly after Rick Scott jumped into the race for governor this past spring, Republican Party Chairman John Thrasher met with the Naples businessman.

Thrasher vowed to stay neutral in the GOP primary for governor and even offered Scott the same deal that the party offered Attorney General Bill McCollum: You can have the party pay some of your campaign expenses if you raise money for the party.

Scott said no.

Since that cordial first meeting, a lot has changed.

And it is becoming clear that with less than a month to go before Election Day that a Scott victory could do more than shake up the governor’s race. It could bring substantial upheaval for Republicans hoping to take advantage of voter anger at Democrats and the White House.

If Scott wins, it would be the second time in less than a year that the de facto leader of the party had either left or got pushed aside.  Republicans would now have to turn to a largely self-funded candidate to help raise money for the party during the crucial fall elections. Plus, Scott has his own team of people who have little reason for allegiance to the existing party leaders.

Scott insisted during a campaign swing through Northwest Florida on Monday that there’s no reason for Republican leaders to fear him winning the primary.

“I am not going to make my decisions based on emotion,’’ said Scott.

Read the full story here.

Spilling the secrets of the Republican Party

Some of the innermost secrets of the Republican Party of Florida spilled out in the open on Tuesday as prosecutors released documents that raise additional questions about the ongoing financial scandal that has resulted in the arrest of the former party chairman.

Jim Greer, the man handpicked by Gov. Charlie Crist to lead the party, was arrested earlier this month on six felony charges that he steered party money into a shell company that he set up with another top party official. Greer, who was ousted from his post in January, has said he is innocent.

But the documents that were released -- and the potential witness list for Greer's trial -- could have extensive reverberations for many top elected officials. Crist is listed as a potential witness, as are many other party officials and even a potential future House speaker.

Keep reading here for the full story.

Among the details:

Crist gave investigators a written affidavit saying he knew nothing about Greer's involvement in Victory Strategies, the company that Greer set up and received money from the party.

A 56-minute phone call between Greer and former executive director Delmar Johnson where Greer says he Crist and Greer talked about Crist's independent bid for U.S. Senate days before Crist went on Fox News and said he staying with the Republican Party.

Greer says on that same phone call that he and House speaker in waiting Rep. Chris Dorworth talked about whether the party intended to use Victory Strategies - the company that Greer used to get payment from the party - as a "blackmail mechanism" to get out of paying Greer a severance agreement.

Johnson - who in May signed a deal that keeps him out of prison for helping investigators - repeatedly reassures Greer on the phone call that he's not turning on him. "You never have to worry about me,'' Johnson lies to Greer at one point.

Greer talks about how that "idiot Thrasher," a reference to party chairman John Thrasher, will "try to use that anybody as a scape goat." He calls Thrasher, Attorney General Bill McCollum, and incoming Senate president Mike Haridopolos and incoming House Speaker Dean Cannon the "four horsemen."

Johnson on the call says that McCollum "played a much role behind the scenes than we realize."

While some party officials say they knew nothing about Greer's involvement with Victory Strategies, one party employee says she told to "keep quiet" about the arrangement.

Investigators seized items from Greer's home when he was arrested in early June and included in the haul were American Express records for Cannon, Senate President Jeff Atwater, former House speaker Allan Bense, former Senate President Ken Pruitt, former RPOF chairman Carole Jean Jordan, and Richard Corcoran, a former top aide to Marco Rubio. Investigators also seized invoices/payments for other party officials and Dane Eagle, a top aide to Crist.

So who had the best session? J.D.? Atwater? Cannon? Time to vote.

While the main political news is Gov. Charlie Crist's defection from the Republican Party of Florida, the 2010 session of the Florida Legislature is about to come staggering to a close.

Session during election years are usually free of any serious debates but this session was filled with a combination of complicated policy fights over issues like Medicaid and job protections for teachers. Yet lawmakers also spent time entrenched in divisive partisan battles over federal health care reform and whether Congress should be forced to balanced the federal budget.

So who was the most effective legislator this year?

Florida Tribune takes a closer look at a potential list and offers up 10 nominees. This list is by no means exhaustive. But readers can vote for one of the 10 nominees or they can put in another legislator that they believe is most deserving of the title.

Rothstein, lawyers, insurance: Breaking down the millions spent in Thrasher election

More than four months after a nasty primary election featuring John Thrasher, the IRS reports are finally spilling into the light about who and how much was spent trying to both elect and defeat Thrasher.

Of course it has already been reported that the Florida Justice Association was a key player in trying to defeat Thrasher, the former House Speaker who was seeking the Northeast Florida State Senate seat held by the late Jim King.

But it's also illuminating studying the reports filed by these 527s to see who else had a hand in the race, including the law firm of Scott Rothstein, who pled guilty this past week to running a vast investment scheme, and many of the major players at the Capitol including Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida, Philip Morris USA, the Florida Chamber of Commerce, and those involved in insurance, gambling and health care.

A quick look at some of the highlights:

The Committee for Responsible Representation reported raising a total of nearly $700,000 and spending money on such efforts as this website and ads that highlight the  "The Real John Thrasher." The group also donated $17,540 to "Don't Bank on Sink" after the primary election.

Every dime contributed to this committee came from another outfit called the Freedom First Committee Inc., which reported collecting $1.2 million and spending $1.18 million.

Its long list of contributors include:

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida: $105,000

Florida Medical Association PAC: $50,000

Florida Chamber of Commerce Leadership CCE: $50,000

Philip Morris USA: $50,000

Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler: $25,000

The Petway Companies: $100,000

U.S. Sugar Corporation: $40,000

Dosal Tobacco: $10,000

Florida Optometric CCE: $20,000

And the groups that went after Thrasher?

All the main ones were linked to the Florida Justice Association.

Stop Tax Waste Inc., which attacked Thrasher over a subsidy for Dolphins Stadium and redecorating the Florida House, reported raising $1.07 million last year.

The largest contributor to Stop Tax Waste Inc. was Conservative Citizens for Justice, which was headed up by Scott Carruthers and was dissolved in December. Conservative Citizens donated $881,697 to Stop Tax Waste.

Stop Tax Waste's other large contributors were:

Florida Consumer Alliance: $166,159

Florida Justice PAC: $29,500

Conservative Citizens for Justice reported collecting $1.25 million. Their IRS reports show a long list of contributions from law firms across the state of Florida.

Among those contributing were numerous attorneys from the powerhouse Morgan & Morgan law firm who together donated more than $37,000 to this organization.

Another contributor to this group? The law firm of Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler, which donated $40,000 back in early August.

As noted most of the money raised by Conservative Citizens went to Stop Tax Waste, but the organization also shifted $80,000 to Families for New Leadership, which distributed fliers that showed Dan Quiggle, one of Thrasher's opponents in the primary, with the late Ronald Reagan.

Thrasher backs recreation of leadership funds

The Republican Party of Florida late Monday night posted its haul for the fourth quarter of 2009 and the $4.28 million included the names of many familiar donors, including a $500,000 contribution from The Villages, $150,000 from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida, $210,000 from Progress Energy, as well as a $250,000 check from Rooney Holdings.

One persistent criticism of Republican Party of Florida chairman Jim Greer was that he was not doing enough to raise money and that most of the donations in fact due to the work of others, including the next two legislative leaders, Sen. Mike Haridopolos and Rep. Dean Cannon. (Greer for his part steadfastly denied the allegation.)

One of the candidates vying to succeed Greer says he will back legislative efforts to recreate so-called leadership funds in order to help Floridians track which donations in fact are due to the efforts of top legislators. Leadership funds were banned more than 20 years ago amid allegations that donors were buying influence in the Legislature. The money in the funds were controlled by legislative leaders and were generally used to help with the campaigns of incumbent legislators.

Sen. John Thrasher, who also heads the Senate Ethics and Elections committee, said on Monday that "it's all about transparency" and that Florida law should allow for the recreation of leadership funds - as well as requiring independent political organizations, also called 527s, to identify donors.

"If there are going to be those kinds of funds, if there are going to be those kind of allotments later on, then everybody ought to understand who gave it,'' said Thrasher. "I think we ought to have real time disclosure and real time who gave it. How much they gave and all that, I could care less, but I do think people ought to know when and how much they gave."

Haridopolos said on Monday that even though Greer has stepped down from his post he still wants to push for the recreation of leadership funds. He said that anywhere from $10 million to $13 million will be raised to help Republican Senate candidates during the 2010 cycle and that prior to Greer's announcement that some contributors were anxious about how their donations would be spent.

"I think the way you gain trust as you move forward is you open up our books to contributors, taxpayers, whoever,'' said Haridopolos.