Archive for September, 2010
Most of the Broward GOP establishment backed Attorney General Bill McCollum in the primary in his race for governor, leaving activists on the outside when millionaire Rick Scott won. But since the primary Scott's campaign has reached out to the Broward Republican Executive Committee — and tonight his lieutenant governor pick state Rep. Jennifer Carroll came to speak to a crowd of hundreds at the group's monthly meeting at a hotel in Fort Lauderdale.
Carroll revealed no specifics in her 10-minute speech in which she hit on the general themes of reducing unemployment, school choice and state's rights. Scott is expected to reveal his education plan tomorrow but Carroll revealed no details: "When it comes to educating our students parents should have a choice….," she said. "We should not be stuck in failed systems whatsoever."
Carroll talked up Scott's background saying:
"Rick Scott doesn't have any ties to Tallahassee, he doesn't have any ties to a lobbyist."
Levi Williams, Scott's Broward campaign chair, said he is hoping to get Scott to speak at the Broward GOP's October meeting. By that time, thousands of Floridians could have already voted.
Scott is holding a celebration of the grand opening of its Broward County campaign office, 700 NW 57th Place, in Fort Lauderdale tomorrow at 8 a.m. Scott's headquarters are in downtown Fort Lauderdale.
Democrat Alex Sink's decision to put her assets in a blind trust to, in her words, avoid a conflict of interest helped her run smack dab into a potential conflict when, as Florida Chief Financial Officer on the state's investment board, she approved a deal that was a "windfall" for a former employer.
Guess who read the St. Petersburg Times article about it all?
Rick Scott's folks. Viola. A new 30-second ad is born to complement the Republican's narrative that the Democrat is bad with money, etc. Sink has responded once already, but with kid gloves. (More here). Expect the F word ("fraud", as in Medicare and Scott's time at Columbia/HCA) to be in Sink's next ad.
At first blush, the ad subtly misleads by suggesting that Sink is solely responsible for the decisions of the State Board of Administration. But otherwise, the 30-second spot seems accurate. There's lots of nuance, here, however. And for that, here are a few highlights from the lengthy article, including Sink's defense:
"I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't,'' she lamented. "I think I deserve a lot of credit for doing something that I wasn't even required to do, doing the right thing, and not wanting there to be any question for people to believe that I have integrity and that I'm making the best decisions I possibly can."
Sink spent 26 years in banking, retiring in 2000 as head of Bank of America's Florida operations. That year, she made $3.4 million from the bank in salary, pension, deferred compensation and stock grants….She owned stock in Bank of America, which receives millions in banking, bond and investment fees from Florida every year. She had investments in other companies that could benefit from actions she might take. And she had served on the board of Raymond James Financial, a St. Petersburg-based brokerage firm that had a stake in her decisions.
So Sink put her assets into a blind trust…. Blind trusts sound good but can run afoul of state laws requiring public officials to disclose their personal finances. (But) simply moving large amounts of money into a blind trust does not magically erase the knowledge of what you own.
If a state official cast a vote that would result in private gain, Florida law requires the official to disclose the conflict within 15 days. The law also forbids a public official from having a financial relationship with any business entity that would create a continuing conflict or impede his or her duties.
Without declaring a potential conflict, Sink has had a stake in matters benefiting her former employer and other companies that she owned stock in before she placed her assets in a blind trust. Because of the trust, it can't be learned how much of a financial interest, if any, she had in the firms at the time of her decisions.
That's the point, Sink says: She didn't know what interests she had, so she had no conflict to declare.
Sink voted with the governor and other Cabinet members to allow negotiated, or no-bid, bond deals for a financial underwriting team that includes her former employer, Bank of America. One transaction resulted in $770,000 in fees for a subsidiary of the bank and its newly acquired Merrill Lynch unit.
She is one of three trustees of the State Board of Administration, which administers Florida's hurricane fund. The fund has a financial consulting contract with a subsidiary of Raymond James.
Last November, the head of the SBA notified Sink's deputy that the contract terms could mean a "windfall'' for the company. Sink agreed that those terms had to change. But they stayed the same.
A new poll shows U.S. Rep. Ron Klein, a Democrat, ahead of Republican Allen West by 48 to 43 percent. The poll of about 500 voters was conducted Sept. 20-22.
The poll was done by Harstad Strategic Research and commissioned by "Project New West'' — which doesn't relate to West's name and is a private research company based in Denver. The company's website says it is focused on eight states — none of them Florida. Jill Hanauer, the president of Project New West, wouldn't disclose the client who paid for the poll but she described her clients as "Democratic-oriented." Hanauer worked for the Democratic National Committee in the past, according to the company's website.
Paul Harstad said neither campaign paid for the poll.
Here is what Harstad Strategic Research wrote in a memo about the poll:
Harstad Strategic Research conducted a telephone survey among 504 likely voters in Florida’s 22nd Congressional District from September 20 to 22, 2010. The survey was conducted for Project New West.
The survey shows Democrat Ron Klein leading by 48% to 43% for Republican Allen West, with 9% undecided.
Among the 71% of our sample who actually voted in the November 2006 midterm election, Klein’s lead holds at 48% to 43%.
Our sample accurately reflects the party composition of the district, with a 40% plurality of registered Republicans compared to 38% registered Democrats. Klein does much better among registered Democrats (ahead 82% to13%) than West does among registered Republicans (ahead 74% to 15%). But the pivotal bloc of Independents clearly leans toward Klein, preferring him by 51% to 38% for West.
In a new ad, Rick Scott continues to hit opponent Alex Sink over losses at the State Board of Administration. The ad, featuring an old clip of Sink calling herself the "fiscal watchdog" of Florida who will "look over how our citizens' money is invested." The ad also includes the misleading phrase: "Who was in charge of Florida’s investments? Alex Sink." (Despite Sink's damning quote, we all know by now that Sink is one of three trustees.)
This isn't the first SBA-related ad. Here's PolitiFact's take on the earlier ad, as well as Sink's response.
For this week's ad buys, Sink and the Democrats are spending about $2 million and Scott and the RPOF are spending about $3 million. Sink is spending more in South Florida, while Scott is spending more in north Florida.
In a nationally televised appearance on Face The Nation yesterday, Marco Rubio flatly said he was against privatizing accounts. He's held that position for months.
But Rubio once was for partial privatization. In an interview with reporters in Tallahassee on Jan. 27, 2010, he talked how the retirement age will have to be confronted (same thing he says now) then added:
"The other is giving people the option of taking some of their Social Security money, at least a portion thereof, and investing it in an alternative to the Social Security system itself. Again, something that should be available for younger Americans – people, for example, of my generation who need to understand that Social Security, especially as we know it, will not exist for them if we stay on the current trajectory.
Q: Would people put their SS money into stock market and proceed to lose it in a downturn?
"Potentially, but it’s their money. And the second thing I would say to you is, the money they’re putting into Social Security may end up in the same place. It may not be in there for them at all in 20 years if we stay on the trajectory we’re on. I don’t think Social Security 30 years from now is any safer bet than the stock market. In fact the budgeters tell us that Social Security is not sustainable on the path that it’s on, particularly for younger Americans.
So what changed?
"He studied the issue at length and reached the conclusion that the numbers don't make it a viable solution to preserve Social Security and that the focus should be on other areas involving younger workers who are decades away from retirement" said Rubio spokesman Alex Burgos. "This conclusion is based on Marco's extensive study of the fiscal impact and his belief that Social Security must be preserved for future generations. When Marco evaluates policies, he studies important elements like the fiscal impact, whereas Charlie Crist looks at the poll numbers and takes positions based on the votes he's trying to win on a given day."
The Crist campaign, which has endured a stream of criticism about flip-flops, is accusing Rubio of the same. “Not only does Marco Rubio prefer to turn our seniors’ hard-earned Social Security over to Wall Street, but he’s lying about it,” Crist campaign spokesman Danny Kanner said in an e-mail yesterday.
Rubio's campaign says that is no longer his position. Flip flop, or not?
– ALEX LEARY
Republican Marco Rubio is the first major U.S. Senate candidate to air a Spanish-language ad. Makes sense, considering that the telegenic son of Cuban exiles is fluent in Spanish and can speak directly to the camera.
Yet in a recent debate aired on Univision, Rubio expressed his support for making English the official language of the U.S. Under one such proposal in Congress, that means the government would not be required to offer ballots and other documents in Spanish. But it's okay to try to get votes in Spanish?
Here's what he says (in English) and the ad is below: This is Marco Rubio. My parents came to this great country and worked very hard. They made many sacrifices so I could live the American dream. For that I will be eternally grateful. Unfortunately that dream is threatened by the actions of some politicians in Washington. I'm Marco Rubio and I approve this message because I will work so that our children and grandchildren have the opportunity to live out their dreams.
The Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates is applauding Orlando Democrat Alan Grayson for his newest campaign ad — a hard hitting piece that likens his Republican opponent, Dan Webster — to a member of the Taliban.
"Congressman Grayson reminds Central Florida voters of Webster’s long-standing effort to restrict women’s access to reproductive health care in a new campaign video released this weekend," Planned Parenthood said. "Dan Webster is too extreme for the women of Central Florida and will be too extreme for the women of this nation,” says Stephanie Kunkel, the group's executive director.
Some may consider the ad extreme:
Billionaire businessman Norman Braman announced Monday he is launching a petition drive to recall Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez.
He said, however, he will not seek the recall of sitting county commissioners — at least not yet.
The move comes after the mayor and eight county commissioners approved a property tax rate increase to plug a budget hole for the coming fiscal year.
Braman promised last week he would seek the recall of any politician who approved the rate hike. Read the developing story by The Herald's Matthew Haggman and Martha Brannigan here.
Republican State Sen. Alex Villalobos, term-limited and no stranger to bucking his party, threw his support behind Democratic gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink Monday in Miami Dade College's Kendall campus.
"I've never understood how you can make so many serious allegations against someone one day and then two days later stand by them and say this is the person that's going to lead the state," said Villalobos, referring to the GOP nominee for governor, Rick Scott. Villalobos, who has also endorsed ex-Republican Gov. Charlie Crist for U.S. Senate and Democrat Dan Gelber for attorney general,said he sees eye-to-eye with Sink on issues of ethical reform in Tallahassee. "Alex Sink has consistently called me on issues, looked to work with me," he said.
Sink called Villalobos "one of the most courageous public servants I have ever been associated with" and stressed her shared education interest with Villalobos, a critic of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test and of a controversial bill this year overhauling teacher tenure and pay.
"There really shouldn't be anything Republican or Democrat about education," said Sink, who was also joined by Republican supporter and newly elected Miami-Dade School Board member Raquel Regalado and Democratic state Rep. Luis Garcia of Miami Beach. He, too, has ruffled feathers in his party by backing Crist.
CFO candidate Loranne Ausley is once again hitting opponent Jeff Atwater for decisions by the Legislature on his watch. This time, it's the Legislature's failure to audit annual lobbyist disclosure reports
— as required by law. Passed in 2005 (and supported by both Ausley and
Atwater), the law requires lobbyists to say how much they are getting
paid, and by whom. The law also requires audits, but as the Sarasota
Herald-Tribune noted, none have been performed.
“There is absolutely no excuse for not following the law,” Ausley
said. “Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent in this building
influencing legislators and legislation in Tallahassee, and Floridians
have a right to know the whole story.”
Senate staffers have said
there aren't enough Florida auditing firms without ties to lobbyists
and that the audits could cost between $750,000 and $1 million. Atwater campaign spokesman Brian Hughes noted that lawmakers submitted a request for proposals calling for 10 auditing firms to compete for the job — one firm replied.
Hughes
also hit on the cost in a statement: "Where does Ausley want money for this
new bureaucracy to come from? Is she ready to cut $1 million from our
schools or services for our most vulnerable kids or seniors?"