Florida Democratic Party News Clips – August 24

FLORIDA VOTERS REJECT ROMNEY-RYAN PLAN TO END MEDICARE AS WE KNOW IT Voters in Florida reject Ryan Medicare plan [Sun Sentinel] “most voters rejected Ryan’s plan to turn Medicare into a voucher-type system for people now 54 and younger when they reach eligibility age.” 

Poll: Floridians Not Down With Paul Ryan’s Medicare Plan [Broward Palm Beach New Times] “the same Floridians polled say they like Medicare just the way it is, and don’t want it to turn into a voucher program, as Ryan’s plan proposes.”

Medicare programs may split household [Gannett] “Indeed, even a majority of Republicans — 55 percent — prefer the idea of keeping Medicare as it is, according to a recent Washington Post/Kaiser Family Foundation poll.”

Listen to Todd Akin and you hear Paul Ryan [Palm Beach Post column] “Rep. Akin, who is seeking to unseat Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., is not an outlier. No less than Paul Ryan shares his views. Rep. Ryan has sponsored legislation with him that also sought to distinguish between types of rape: Instead of “legitimate,” it used “forcible.” On social issues, the difference between Rep. Ryan’s views and Rep. Akin’s could fit on a Post-it note.”

Things looking even better for the 1-percenters [Sun Sentinel guest column] “Mitt Romney really stepped in it this time. His only saving grace is that no one noticed…yet. In a recent interview with Fortune magazine, Romney indicated that, under his tax plan, ‘high-income people would continue to pay the same share of the tax burden that they do today.’ This quote doesn’t sound like a gaffe until you put it together with the rest of Romney’s promises. Under his tax plan, those “high-income people” would face much lower tax rates.

 

THE CHARLIE SHEEN OF FLORIDA POLITICS Thanks to LeMieux, Democrats have ‘Charlie Sheen’ attack ad against Connie Mack [Tampa Bay Times] “Remember that snarky George LeMieux attack line calling Connie Mack the “Charlie Sheen of Florida politics?” Well, it’s back, only now as the hook for a new TV ad by Majority PAC, which seeks to elect Democrats in the Senate.” WATCH “TIGER BLOOD” HERE. 

Rep. Mack’s ‘Penny Plan’ Disguises Painful Choices [Center for American Progress] “Then there are pretend budgets. The most egregious example may be the “Penny Plan” introduced in 2011 by Rep. Connie Mack (R-FL), which now has more than 70 co-sponsors, including Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), and is not really a budget at all. It contains the numbers but not the choices. Worse, it attempts to conceal from the public the kind of pain it would endure, particularly in states such as the one Rep. Mack represents, Florida.” 

Mack Cosponsored “Forcible Rape” Bill With Akin, Who He Now Criticizes [Beach Peanuts] “Mack himself has a bit of a hypocrisy problem in common with Akin. Actually more than that.”

 

ON THE CONGRESSIONAL FRONT — NEW DETAILS ON DRUNKEN ISRAEL TRIP, RIVERA FACING INCREASING INCREASING SCRUTINY 

Was Southerland Drunk, and Who paid the GOP bar tab in Galilee? [Politico] “After several hours of drinking, Rob Bassin, AIPAC’s national political director, paid the tab for the entire evening, which included several hundred dollars for drinks, in addition to the earlier meal. The GOP group racked up a tab of $340 to $500 on booze, ranging from vodka to wine, sources familiar with the trip said.”

Southerland has become Ocean Enemy No. 1 [News Herald LTE] “Southerland is using smoke and mirrors to court several thousand recreational fishermen to get their votes at the expense of the few hundred commercial fishermen” 

Facing FBI scrutiny, former Democratic candidate files amended campaign finance report [Miami Herald] “An ex-Democratic candidate whose campaign may have had links to Rep. David Rivera filed documents saying he loaned himself $64,000.” 

David Rivera just can’t stay out of trouble [MSNBC Maddow Blog] 
Feds Probe Candidate With Possible Ties to Rep. Rivera [NewsMax] 
Report: FBI, State Officials Investigating David Rivera’s Involvement With Democratic Spoiler [TPM] 
Florida congressman under investigation for alleged shadow campaign [WBEZ] 
FBI probing whether GOP lawmaker gave funds to Democratic candidate [AP] 

Fitzgerald to deliver over 1,000 petitions calling on Buchanan to drop support for forcible rape bill [Manatee Politics] “The Keith Fitzgerald campaign for Congress is taking it right to incumbent Rep. Vern Buchanan later today, delivering 1,200 petitions demanding that Buchanan withdraw his support for legislation — co-sponsored by Rep. Todd Akin and more than 200 lawmakers — Fitzgerald says would redefine the meaning of “rape.”

Tentative agreement for congressional debate between Murphy, West [Palm Beach Post] “U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Palm Beach Gardens, and Democratic challenger Patrick Murphy have set aside Oct. 19 for a one-hour debate on WPTV Channel 5 if their campaigns can agree on the format for the showdown.”

Val Demings and Dan Webster agree to debates in 10th District  [Orlando Sentinel] “U.S. Rep. Dan Webster readily accepted opponent Val Demings‘ challenge to hold a series of debates in Florida’s 10th Congressional District today.” 

 

ON THE STATE LEG FRONT: Democratic House candidates make their Tallahassee debut [Florida Current] “‘The Democratic Party right now has a great opportunity to show everybody that we’re pro-business and we’re pro-worker. We can coexist and work together for the benefit of everybody,’ said Dennis Mulder, a former Deltona mayor more accustomed to nonpartisan municipal government. ‘Sometimes Democrats get the rap of being anti-business. It just is different here than it is there. Where I come from, Democrats are pro-business.'”

 

OTHER NEWS WE THOUGHT YOU SHOULD KNOW 

Florida lawmakers seek to block redistricting testimony [News Service of Florida]  “Republican leaders have quietly asked a Leon County judge to shield lawmakers and their aides from having to testify during a trial to determine whether the state’s congressional redistricting plan runs afoul of new standards for drawing the state’s political maps”

Over objections, state asks court to approve early voting plan [Times/Herald] “Democrats criticized Scott for the state’s latest legal move. Rep. Perry Thurston, D-Plantation, the incoming House Democratic leader, said the eight-day, 12-hour plan ‘fails to give adequate flexibility to meet the real-life needs of voters. … Once more, Gov. Scott is trampling on the rights of Floridians.'”

The rains came [Gainesville Sun]  “Beyond that, however, there is an urgent need to nurture and instill a permanent water conservation ethic in our region of Florida; not only with regard to lawn care but with respect to agricultural, industrial and utility consumption. That will only happen with an orchestrated degree of cooperation between water management districts, local governments, utilities and big water consumers that we haven’t even begun to witness.”