RICK SCOTT “HURTING GOP UP AND DOWN THE TICKET” Gov. Scott never turns the campaign off [Times/Herald] “Scott’s image-crafting also has done little to help him in the polls, and made him damaged goods on the campaign trail. He has not been invited onto GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s campaign bus, and a recent Public Policy Poll of likely voters showed that even little-known state Sen. Nan Rich, a Democrat from Weston, could beat Scott if the election for governor were held today…’Voters don’t like him, Republicans won’t campaign with him, and he’s hurting the GOP up and down the ticket,’ said Brannon Jordan, spokeswoman for the Democratic Party of Florida.”

Loser of the Week: Rick Scott [Tampa Bay Times] “Gov. Scott, whose gubernatorial primary campaign largely consisted of attacking Bill McCollum for being soft on illegal immigration, last week backed off wanting to require employers to use the federal E-Verify system — just as Scott previously backed off an Arizona-style anti-immigration law for Florida. In more and more cases, Scott’s campaign seems to have been based on poll-tested rhetoric rather than core principles.”

White House spox thanks Republican Party of Florida for touting good economic news [Miami Herald] “In a press gaggle with the White House’s principal deputy press secretary, Josh Earnest…thanks the Republican Party of Florida for talking about good economic numbers, which have put President Barack Obama and Gov. Rick Scott on the same page for a few months now”

MEANWHILE…SCOTT FAILS ON EDUCATION & WATER The best wishes [Gainesville Sun Editorial] “Scott’s vision of a “No. 1” university system resembles nothing so much as an academic Potemkin village; hollow and without substance. The Florida Legislature treats state universities like pork barrels to be manipulated, rewarded, punished and rearranged according to the whims of powerful lawmakers.”

Florida takes low road on higher education [Tampa Bay Times Editorial] “It showed just how much damage Gov. Rick Scott’s pinched view of higher education has inflicted in such a short time. For a governor who claims he wants higher education to serve as an economic engine for the state, he’s setting the wrong priorities and reducing what could be a world-class university system to a widget factory for bachelor’s degrees. That doesn’t serve students, Florida taxpayers or the state’s economy.”

Former Gov. Graham leads rally to protect Fla.’s springs, rivers [Daytona Beach News Journal] “The petition urges Scott ‘to do everything within your power and ability’ to protect and restore Florida’s aquatic resources, beginning with a plan to address and resolve the dire conditions of Silver Springs, Silver River, Rainbow Springs and Rainbow River.”

Florida Struggles to Overcome Threats to Freshwater Springs [New York Times]  “In a letter last week, the coalition called on Mr. Scott

to direct a state agency to assess the decline in Silver and Rainbow Springs and Rivers and come up with a plan to help them. The plan could then benefit the state’s other ailing springs..” 

MEMBER OF ROMNEY’S HISPANIC TEAM: ROMNEY’S POSITION TOWARDS HISPANIC COMMUNITY “NOT WHAT WE NEED”   Member Of Romney’s FL Hispanic Team Once Said Romney Wasn’t Right For Hispanic Community [FLDemocracy2012] “Acevedo joined with other Hispanic leaders across the country to send an open letter to Mitt Romney during the primary on why they could not support him. ‘We’ve come to our decision based on our belief that your support of the Hispanic community is not a clear representation of what we need,’ Acevedo and her fellow co-signers wrote in the letter dated January 26, 2012. The letter, which has been taken off the Gingrich site, appears here.”

Obama’s immigration maneuver could box in Romney, GOP [Miami Herald] “Republicans have struggled to embrace any version of immigration reform. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has fumbled when asked how he would handle such undocumented youths if he were elected president. And Sen. Marco Rubio, who began talking about his own immigration plan for young people this spring but never had a bill in writing, peevishly told national news outlets that the president should have called him” 

Fla Hispanic poll: Obama 53, Romney 37 [Tampa Bay Times] “Latino Decisions and America’s Voice is out today with a poll (MoE +/- 4.9%) of Hispanic voters in Florida, showing Barack Obama  leading Mitt Romney 53 percent to 37 percent” 

Sen. Bill Nelson decries ‘ideological rigidity’ in American politics at NALEO 2012 [Orlando Sentinel] “Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson on Saturday decried the polarization in Washington, echoing remarks made by other legislators at the annual gathering of Latino lawmakers in Orlando.”

PRESIDENT OBAMA FIRES UP TAMPA, “WE DON’T NEED AN OUTSOURCING PIONEER IN THE OVAL OFFICE” Obama attacks Romney on immigration in Orlando, outsourcing in Tampa [Palm Beach Post] “At Hillsborough Community College, Obama seized on a story in The Washington Post about investments by Romney’s private equity firm in companies that were described as “pioneers” in outsourcing jobs to low-wage countries such as China and India. ‘We don’t need an outsourcing pioneer in the Oval Office,’ Obama said, according to the Associated Press.”

President Barack Obama touts his leadership to Hispanic group in Orlando [Tampa Bay Times]

Obama slams GOP plans at Tampa campaign stop [Tampa Tribune] 

President greeted with cheers, tears [Tampa Tribune] 

President Obama challenges enthusiastic Tampa crowd “it’s up to you” [Bradenton Herald]

Bain Capital ad airing in Florida [Tampa Bay Times] “From a release: ‘Stage’ features Mike Earnest, a former employee at AMPAD in Marion, Indiana, who was tasked with building a 30-foot stage, on which it was announced that and his colleagues had lost their jobs. Hundreds of workers lost their jobs and promised health and retirement benefits while Mitt Romney and his firm walked away with over $100 million in profit.'” WATCH “STAGE” HERE. 

WSJ ON MACK: “STRUGGLED TO EXCITE THE REPUBLICAN RANK-AND-FILE,” A “LIGHTWEIGHT” The Lessons of LeMieux [Wall Street Journal]  “Mr. Mack had struggled to excite the Republican rank-and-file. His fundraising numbers were unimpressive, and his huge lead in the polls—the latest had him up by 33 points—was in large part due to a crowded field. He probably understood as much, which is why he ducked debates…he also deprived himself of an opportunity to practice for the fall when he’ll square off against Democratic Senator Bill Nelson. Democrats have already begun to spin the yarn that Mr. Mack has a Rick Perry problem. And thanks to Mr. LeMieux’s ads portraying Mr. Mack as Charlie Sheen’s doppelganger, many voters perceive the congressman as a lightweight. He’s yet to shake that image”

ON THE CONGRESSIONAL FRONT — BUCHANAN TRIES TO MUZZLE FORMER PARTNER, WEST BLAMES GUN CONTROL FOR HOLOCAUST & SOUTHERLAND SLAMMED 

Buchanan files motion to muzzle ex-partner [Sarasota Herald Tribune] “U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan is trying to muzzle a former business partner who is suing him in Sarasota County over a bad business deal…Kazran is also central to Buchanan’s trouble with the Federal Election Commission, the Office of Congressional Ethics and the Justice Department. All three have been looking into whether Buchanan pressured Kazran to give donations to his 2006 and 2008 political campaigns and whether Buchanan directed an illegal scheme to reimburse employees who worked for Buchanan and Kazran who made donations.”

Powerful congressman accused of campaign finance violations [CNN] 

Vern Buchanan, GOP Rep, Dodges Questions About Ethics Probe (VIDEO) [Huffington Post]

Rep. Vern Buchanan ducks CNN amid federal investigations of witness-tampering, fund-raising[Miami Herald] 

Report: Rep. Buchanan faces probes [The Hill]  

Allen West Also Blamed Gun Control For The Holocaust [Buzzfeed] “Allen West told a crowd at a campaign stop in 2010 that gun control in Germany was essentially responsible for the Holocaust — the same argument made by Joe the Plumber in a video this past week.”

Dems attack Southerland funeral legislation as self-serving [Tallahassee Democrat] “The bill, they said, would benefit the congressman’s business, Southerland Family Funeral Homes. They also noted that the proposal is the only bill Southerland introduced in 2011. They brought up the $5,000 contribution the National Funeral Directors Association gave his campaign last year. And they cited skeptics who question whether prepaid funerals really are a good deal for consumers.” 

OTHER NEWS WE THOUGHT YOU SHOULD KNOW

Liz Alpert back on campaign trail to challenge Ray Pilon [Sarasota Herald Tribune] “But the fire to run for the Legislature never went away. So Alpert is at it again, preparing to challenge State Rep. Ray Pilon, R-Sarasota, for House District 72…Alpert said the Legislature is not doing enough to improve the state’s education system – which is key to attracting good businesses to Florida.”

Navy officer, teacher among Volusia, Flagler citizens targeted on voter purge list [Daytona Beach News Journal] “A middle-school English teacher who became a citizen two years ago, a Navy officer with family in Port Orange and a 76-year-old retiree who’s been casting ballots since the Eisenhower administration are among the registered voters in Volusia County who’ve landed on Florida’s voter purge list.” 

Who does Jeb think he’s kidding? [Sun Sentinel column] “In addition, uncompromising Jeb now has the gall to posture himself as the leading GOP spokesperson for bipartisanship — and against take-it-or-leave-it, my-way-or-the-highway ideological rigidity.”