ROD SMITH SHOWS AFFORDABLE CARE ACT IS PERSONAL Convention Winner of the Week: FDP Chairman Rod Smith [Tampa Bay Times] “The Florida Democratic Party chairman also made the ACA personal, announcing that his 25-year-old son, Dillon, was recently diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma, a form of cancer that usually strikes children. He has undergone one round of chemotherapy, the family is optimistic, and Smith noted that without the ACA Dillon would not be on his family’s insurance plan and would have his coverage capped. ‘The richest country in the world cannot survive without universal, affordable, available health care. Every Democratic president since Harry Truman has recognized that, and every Republican presidential candidate has opposed it,’ Smith thundered. ‘And if there’s one reason we ought to win this election, and there are so many, we need to take the message out there: Affordable Health Care will affect your life. It’s happened to me. Take that message out there.'”

Rod Smith: My son has cancer, and we Democrats need to spread the word about ObamaCare [Tampa Bay Times] “Florida Democratic party chairman Rod Smith this morning told hundreds of Florida Democrats in Charlotte that three weeks ago today his 25-year-old son, Dillon, was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma, a form of cancer that usually strikes children. He has undergone one round of chemotherapy, and the family is optimistic. But Smith said it brought home the importance of the Affordable Healthcare Act”  

A fathers plea for Obamacare [The Ledger] “Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod Smith told the Florida delegates to the Democratic National Convention today a personal story about why he supports the federal Affordable Care Act _ otherwise known as Obamacare.”

Health care law becomes personal for Florida Democratic chairman [Palm Beach Post] “Florida Democratic Chairman Rod Smith told the state’s delegates at a breakfast this morning that his 25-year-old son, a law school student, was diagnosed three weeks ago with a rare form of cancer and just completed his first round of chemotherapy.”

PRESIDENT OBAMA FIRES UP FLORIDA  Obama kicks off Florida tour at fired-up rally in Pinellas [Tampa Bay Times] “Obama drew a raucous crowd of about 3,000 at a civic center in Kissimmee. The sleeves of his white dress shirt rolled up, he talked up his goals to increase exports and reduce jobs sent overseas, to gain more control of the country’s energy needs, to reduce the deficit, and continue to improve the nation’s education system. He also embraced the GOP’s denigrating term for the Affordable Care Act.”

President Obama fixated on Florida for next two months [Miami Herald] “President Barack Obama — buoyed by higher poll-numbers after his Democratic party’s convention — journeyed to Florida for a two-day swing, bouncing from Tampa Bay to Central Florida on Saturday, and then the Space Coast and West Palm Beach on Sunday.”

‘Go forward with me,’ President Obama urges supporters in West Palm Beach, Melbourne [Palm Beach Post] “Invoking Bill Clinton and touting a new Medicare study by a Democratic-leaning group, President Obama wrapped up a two-day Florida campaign swing Sunday by urging an energetic crowd of about 6,000 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center to ‘go forward with me.'”

Obama tells Central Florida crowd: ‘Choice between two different paths’ [Naples Daily News] ” A laid-back President Barack Obama stopped Saturday in two key Central Florida regions that propelled him to victory in 2008, reiterating his economic plans and championing his health-care overhaul while criticizing Republican opponents for offering too few details on jump-starting the job market.”

Former president Bill Clinton to speak at FIU on Tuesday [Miami Herald] “Fresh from his well-received speech at the Democratic National Convention, former president Bill Clinton will campaign in Miami-Dade on Tuesday for President Barack Obama.”

Video: Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan won’t answer the most basic questions [OFA] “Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan won’t answer the most basic questions about their tax plan.”

ON THE SENATE FRONT: MACK’S TASK A “TALL ORDER,” GOP PROS “FRETTING”  Forecast for GOP Senate takeover: More clouds [Politico] “Mack’s task in the Sunshine State against Nelson is a taller order. The Republican congressman trails Nelson in fundraising and is seen as less likable, according to polls. Mack has been dogged by controversies surrounding his history of personal debt and bar fights, as well as his recent crusade against a top political reporter in Florida. Privately, some GOP pros are fretting about Mandel and Mack.”

ON THE CONGRESSIONAL FRONT — HIGH STAKES MYSTERY IN FL-26, BUCHANAN EMBROILED IN YET ANOTHER FINANCIAL SCANDAL

In FBI probe, Rep. David Rivera’s pal goes on lam, has computer seized [Miami Herald] “A key witness in a federal investigation involving U.S. Rep. David Rivera failed to show up for an interview with prosecutors and the FBI one day after agents raided her Miami apartment and removed her computer, cellphone and other items. Ana Alliegro’s whereabouts are a mystery — even to her lawyer.” 

U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan of Sarasota secures large loan using Habitat for Humanity mortgage as collateral [Tampa Bay Times] “By 2009, Florida’s real estate market had plunged, dragging with it a Bradenton project being developed by the brother of U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan…Yet in the depths of the financial crash, Cortez Landings LLC found a buyer willing to pay $1.4 million for some weedy vacant lots. Manatee County Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit group that builds homes for the poor, is now stuck with undeveloped land worth less than $500,000, about a third of what it paid…Buchanan has been using the Habitat mortgage as collateral for a multimillion dollar loan he got from Bank of America.”

Investigation Raises Questions about Vern Buchanan Land Deal Involving Habitat for Humanity [WUSF] “A Tampa Bay Times investigation is raising questions about Congressman Vern Buchanan of Sarasota and a land deal involving a nonprofit that helps low-income families get new homes: Manatee County Habitat for Humanity.” 

Why Southerland is Ocean Enemy No. 1 [Tallahassee Democrat] “Southerland has yet to introduce any bill to help fishermen. But let’s look at some bills he has introduced in his two years in Washington.”

OTHER NEWS WE THOUGHT YOU SHOULD KNOW 

Scott hurting Floridians by being a sore loser on health care law [Palm Beach Post editorial] “It’s Gov. Scott who is refusing to give the people of Florida a voice in customizing the Affordable Care Act to meet the state’s needs. As Democrats do a better job defending the law, Florida’s obstructionism should become more and more unpopular.” 

Stop the erosion [Gainesville Sun editorial] “Last year, state universities alone lost $300 million. And that came on top of five years of steady reductions in state per-student support for both universities and community colleges.”

Medicare Vouchers Would Shatter Safety Net [Florida Voices] “Should Romney and Ryan win, it’ll mean the retooling of our own future health care. Based on Ryan’s numbers and assumptions, it won’t be for the better.”

Tuition double standard deserves to fall [Tampa Bay Times editorial] “Now a federal court in Miami has appropriately ruled that the tuition double standard creates an unconstitutional ‘second tier of U.S. Citizenship’ and has to end. The state should accept the court’s decision, because it removes an obstacle to ambitious young Floridians pursuing higher education.”