Wus

Dodging the press, hiding his tax returns, and fearing the base...

Make Some Noise: FL GOP's Sneak Attack to Outlaw Abortion

Florida is one of only 10 states that includes an explicit right to privacy in its State Constitution. It gaurantees:

"the right to be let alone and free from governmental intrusion into the person's private life."

Sounds like a post from one of your teabag friends on facebook, eh? In actuality, it was a Democratic legislature and Democratic governor that inserted that statement decades ago. That's right, that verbiage came from Democrats... not from an idiot dressed in a tricorne hat with teabags fighting against his own healthcare.



No, that idiot voted in right-wing legislators that are, in fact, DESPERATELY trying to get rid of that statement.



You see, the right to privacy is interpreted in our Federal Constitution, but Florida Democrats wisely enshrined it in our State Constitution. It gives our citizens the right to refuse medical care (which was key in the Terry Schiavo case); and ensures women are protected from government intrustion. Despite the super GOP majority and thier herculean efforts to limit abortion with dozens of bills, they have only been partially successful in limiting access because of our State Constitution and our impartial Supreme Court. (Which is also under attack by Rick Scott and his allies, but that's another post).



The problem, you see, is even if Romney is elected, and he replaces Ginsburg on the Supreme Court with a wingnut who joins 4 of the 5 (or 5 of the 5) conservatives in overturning Roe, Florida still CANNOT outlaw abortion because it enshrined the right to privacy. Furthermore, Florida voters have made it clear they do not want new restrictions on abortions.



So the Florida GOP does it always does. Lies to get what it wants.



This November, you will be treated to Amendment 6, which is entitled "Prohibition on Public Funding of Abortions; Construction of Abortion Rights".



Read through the title again.



Notice anything about taking away your right to privacy? That's right, its not there. Just reading the title, which many voters do, it sounds all well and good.



Even those who bother to read through the text might not get its true intent. Here is the summary they will see this November. First part:

This proposed amendment provides that public funds may not be expended for any abortion or for health-benefits coverage that includes coverage of abortion. This prohibition does not apply to an expenditure required by federal law, a case in which a woman suffers from a physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness that would place her in danger of death unless an abortion is performed, or a case of rape or incest.

This first part is pure and utter BULLSHIT. The amendment is written to seem like it is all about a prohibition on public funding for abortions, which is absurd because that is ALREADY ILLEGAL under state and federal law!



It is to disguise the true intent of the bill, which is vaguely included in the second part:

This proposed amendment provides that the State Constitution may not be interpreted to create broader rights to an abortion than those contained in the United States Constitution. With respect to abortion, this proposed amendment overrules court decisions which conclude that the right of privacy under Article I, Section 23 of the State Constitution is broader in scope than that of the United States Constitution.

It specifies the state constitution can't be interpreted to give more abortion rights, but what it actually does is STRIP AWAY THE STATE'S PRIVACY CLAUSE.







Of course, having an amendment that says "Deletion of your right to privacy granted by the state; with intent to end abortion rights" would not get the 60% required to amend the state's constitution.



The state GOP is counting on the plethora of other issues, including other evil amendments (like Amendment 8) along with the national election to overshadow attention given to the Trojan Horse that is Amendment 6.



Given the apathy of today's Florida voter, they are smart to attempt this. But I still have to try. Please educate your friends on what Amendment 6 is truly about. There already is a prohibition on public funds for abortion, but you are sacrificing your own right to privacy so the state legislature can intrude into your personal affairs.



Even a teabagger should shudder at that.

The Unbelievable Disaster that is Rick Scott's Lt. Gov...

First off, the entire position of Florida Lt. Governor is completely useless. It was created in 1968, and is unique in that no job description for it exists anywhere in state law. The LG literally has no responsiblities whatsoever but to draw a six-figure salary, maintain a massive and equally pointless staff, and step in if the governor dies. (Before '68, it went to the Senate Prez.) For all the whining the state GOP does about the budget, they never consider cutting this position.




So it boggles the mind that anyone with half a brain cell could screw this up. Just sit on your butt and feed at the government trough. How freaking hard could that be?



If you are successful, it means no one has heard of you. Toni Jenning, Jeb Bush's lackey, was successful. She never made the news. Charlie Crist's #2 was a failure: he made headlines for flying all around the state on a government plane for personal outings.



Then there's Rick Scott's fiasco, Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll.



Jennifer Carroll was a state rep who was not known for her legislative record, but was certainly known for her ethical lapses. She was nowhere on par with her boss and his greatest Medicare fraud in history, but an impressive resume of shadiness nonetheless. There was her using a fake diploma; filing bills to benefit her public relations firm, and that memorable time she falsified records to scam a government program.





Still, all she had do as LG was attend state dinners on time, meet and greet some girl scouts, and don't do anything stupid. Unfortunately, that was asking too much. It happened:

A one minute and 20 second recording, captured sometime in the summer of 2011, is at the heart of a controversial criminal case rocking the state Capitol.



The quality is poor, but in it you can hear John Konkus, Florida Lieutenant Governor Jennifer Carroll’s Chief of Staff, and Carletha Cole, a Carroll employee fired in September.



The conversation is about a rift between Carroll’s office and the governor. It was given to a journalist after Cole was fired. After its release, Cole was charged with distributing the illegal recording. She wasn’t charged with making it.



That’s because Cole claims Konkus made the recording. She says he carried around a smart-pen that, with a click, would turn into a microphone, and secretly tape anyone within an ear shot.



According to a motion filed by Cole’s attorney, Steve Webster, the governor’s office instructed staff to “covertly record communications within the Lieutenant Governor’s Office.”

First off, yes... there is a "recording war" going on between the governor's office staff and the LG's staff. They are not getting along well.



Second, Carletha Cole is an African Methodist Episcopal minister, grandmother, and former magazine publisher. She has no criminal record whatsoever and was offered entry to a seminary prograam at Harvard. She instead foolishly took a job with Jennifer Carroll as a senior program analyst. She is now looking at several years in prison for giving a reporter that recording.



The Leon County state attorney has a personal vendetta against her and even said he is going to "war" with Cole.



You see, Cole made several public statements about the awful conditions in Carroll's office before she was fired. She said the infighting in the office made it akin to working in “a juvenile school” where staffers are “conspiring against one another.”



After she was fired, she dropped a bombshell: she claimed that she walked in on Jennifer Carroll and her travel aide, Beatriz Ramos, while they were in a "comprising position" in Carroll's office.



Ramos, according to Cole, carried on a lesbian love affair. Carroll, like her predecessor, had a penchant for excessive travel and according ot the Palm Beach Post, required Ramos to have an adjoining hotel room when they traveled.



Cole said when she discovered the affair she was made a target since that day.



In one incident, Capitol police were called to investigate a fire that had broken out in a trash can beneath Cole's desk after a cigar was thrown in there. Beatriz Ramos admitted to setting the fire:

Ramos has refused comment, but told investigators that she accidentally set the trash can on fire with a cigar she had been given during a St. Patrick’s Day party.

Cole said it was harrassment, but FDLE said the fire was just an accident. (PS, an article about FDLE shennanigans under this governor could stand on its on. Coming soon.) Given the fact there are several trash bins closer to Ramos' workstation, not to mention that the Capitol building is a No Smoking area, why would Ramos throw a lit cigar in Cole's private waste basket?



The court file also includes the results of a 2011 polygraph test that indicated Cole was truthful about everything she saw. The test was conducted by a retired polygraph expert who used to work for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.



Even without the lie detector test, I am inclined to believe Cole over Carroll just based on what I know about the character of both them. However, a compelling arguement could be made that the bombshell she dropped was just a vendetta Cole cooked up to carry out against Carroll for being fired. I'll leave that up to you to judge.



What this unquestionably shows is a chaotic office filled with distrust and unprofessional behavior, to put it lightly, that we are all paying for. Again, getting rid of the LG office, with all of her "travel aides" and webpage builders and whatever else would save the state enough to hire back all the useful public servants it fired; or perhaps go towards reopening the TB hospital Scott shut down during the worst outbreak in 20 years.







I should rephrase my original statement. A compelling arguement could be made against Cole by a COMPETENT person. Never to miss an opportunity to turn a scandal into an insult, Carroll decided to fight Cole by making this statement:

Usually black women that look like me don't engage in relationships like that.

Yes, Jennifer. Only ugly, fat people must be lesbians. You might be a pretty woman, but you are very ugly to me.



The HuffingtonPost asked Florida lesbians to post pictures showing her what lesbians look like.

Another New Low for the GOP: Spring Destruction

Since the 1980s, back when Jerry Falwell declared that respecting the environment was tantamount to worshipping nature, hating our natural resources seems to have rooted into modern GOP dogma. Of course, destroying Gods' creations always had more to do with the mistaken belief that it hurts corporate interests as opposed to blasphaming Christian belief, but nonetheless has persisted to this day.

For those of you not fortunate enough to see one of God's natural wonders, Florida has the most beautiful springs in the world. Florida is home to over 700 artesian springs, more than any other place on the planet. Some are large and popular, like Silver and Wakulla; many others are smaller and hidden. They are not only scenic. They are crucial to our economy (Silver Springs alone adds 61 million a year and supports over 1000 jobs) and, even more importantly, they are critical to our freshwater supply.

Naturally, they must be destroyed.

The photos of several of these springs today are heartbreaking. Yes, there has been unusual drought. Yes population is certainly a factor... but nothing can come touch the damage by our state leadership.

I wish I could say the problem was ONLY inadequate planning and protection. But that would mean the mindset would at least be to help these vital resources. No, the GOP's contempt for regulations has allowed nitrogen, phosphoruous, and other nutrients contained in run-off from storm drains, fertilized lawns, and septic tanks to completely slime them with algae and weeds. This has meant not only a nasty film on previously crystal-clear water, it also means choking the streams. Silver Springs has dropped to its lowest level in recorded history, and now has a green tint due to algae and weeds.

Naturally, Rick Scott and his teabag allies severely slashed funding for the state's water management districts. The limited money they have has so far been used to FIGHT environmental groups trying to reduce the nutrient pollution. Seriously.

If you think that is bad, consider this. The water management district Governing Board Members who hand out the permits are all appointees of Governor Cromedome.

Naturally, in thier zeal to allow as much overdevelopment as possible, we have a foreign company who actually expects crap that this to get through:

Now, a large-scale cattle operation and slaughterhouse is seeking a permit to withdraw over 13 million gallons of water a day from the aquifer -- more water than is used by the entire city of Ocala. Adena Springs Ranch would include up to 30,000 head of cattle in the springshed of Silver Springs, an area prone to runoff and leaching of nutrients and pollutants.

It will be allowed, that much I assure you. Why the hell shouldn't it? Horsby Springs at Camp Kalaqua was healthy and beautiful until a Walmart distribution center was permitted to be built in it's spring-shed.

And of course, do you guys remember this other GOP fiasco with Nestle not so long ago:

Nestle came into Florida and managed to pull off quite the coup.

The company got a permit to take water belonging to Floridians — hundreds of millions of gallons a year from a spring in a state park — at no cost to Nestle.



No taxes. No fees. Just a $230 permit to pump water until 2018.

Nestle bottles that water, ships it throughout the Southeast — much of it to Georgia and the Carolinas — and makes millions upon millions of dollars in profits on it.

Madison Blue Spring was already stressed... so the GOP allowed Nestle to pump millions of gallons from it... for $230... for the right to sell it back to us.

That's GOP leadership.

Time to Get Involved is NOW!

I never have any shortage of material for the My Stupid State series.

We are facing an unprecedented amount of money from the other side coupled with voter suppression we haven't seen since Jim Crow.

If you haven't ever gotten involved, I urge you to do so now.

Registering new voters and GOTV is critial.

League of Women Voters, Obama's FL Team, Fla Dems or your local party are just a few avenues. Whatever it is, for however long it is, just please... Do Something.

Rick Scott Rejects All Branches of Government; Appoints Self Dictator

Ever since Gov. Smeagol took office, he has made a nasty habit of making arbitrary decisions. One of the first things he did was to announce that he himself would stop all pending regulations for his "personal" review, even routine and necessary ones. He had no authority to do so and our state Supreme Court handed him his ass.

Rick Scott responded the way one would expect him to: with not one, but two schemes to dismantle the Court. (One last year to literally dismantle it that failed, and one this year that goes after all Democratically-appointed Justices.)

But the state Courts were not alone: he showed no regard for any other state institution. Not the Cabinet, the media, and certainly not the citizenry.

You may recall during the budget signing ceremony at the Villages, several residents who dared to wear anti-Scott T-shirts in a PUBLIC square were threatened with criminal charges of "tresspassing" by the Sumter County Sheriff's Office on the orders of one Rick Scott. He said he was justified by being the "chief law enforcement officer"; which I guess doesn't require knowing the law.

And so on... he tried to push through a horrible plan to force drug testing on all state employees (but himself). He decided to kill thousands of jobs by single-handedly killing high speed rail. And most recently, you might have heard, he is attempting to purge thousands of eligible voters while even daring the Justice Department to do anything about it.

Now, we see it with Health Care.

The Affordable Care Act was passed in Congress, with a supermajority in the Senate, signed by the President, and now UPHELD by a very conservative Supreme Court. It has been the "law of the land" since it passed; now it is confirmed.

Rick Scott promised last November, in talking with the Palm Beach Post, that if the Supreme Court upheld the law he would implement it:

"It's my job, if it's the law of the country, to be ready when it's the law … when it's the law of the land, we'll implement the law.''

As early as last Wednesday, he said he acknowledged that he would have to comply with the law "if it’s declared constitutional" by SCOTUS.

But now? After spending millions of taxpayer dollars to fight it in Court; after turning down more than $100 million in federal funds to set up health care exchanges; after promising repeteadly to implement it if its "the law of the land"; Rick Scott said yesterday that Florida WILL NOT implement the health care law.

Just like that.

Because he hates it and he says so. So there.

He is Dictator, after all. With a compliant right-wing legislature, who are we, the citizens, to complain?

Scott also said he is not going to expand health insurance through Medicaid, regardless that the federal government is paying almost entirely for the plan and a million people need it.

Of course, he has NO PLAN for the 4 million people in this state without insurance, although he has been in office for 1.5 painful years. (Actually, he sort of has a plan, but can't come up with a formal way to say "screw 'em".)

All he does is make the rounds on right-wing talk shows and lie, lie, lie. Just yesterday on Fox "News" he relayed a phony story about a mysterious "business owner" who told him he has to lay off 20 employees because he can't afford health care. Nevermind that the law specifically exempts any company with fewer than 50 people. This is Greta's Fox crowd he was talking to.

Dictators don't care about truth. They also don't care about the rule of law, much less the plight of suffering people.

The only good news is that Rick Scott is not actually a dictator... he only thinks he is. We do still have elections. Granted, they are MUCH more difficult with all the registration restrictions, handwriting analysis, purging and other roadblocks put in place the past 1.5 years, but they still exist. No matter how much money the Kochs give to Rick, no matter how many restrictions they place at the ballot box, there is no amount of pressure or suppression that is going to keep that bastard in office past 2014.

Maybe then Floridians can get the health care they deserve.

Democrats: U have a 2nd chance. Try to tout the healthcare law this time!

The GOP opposition to "obamacare" was always phony. Obama based it on the Heritage Foundation's idea (adopted by Mittens Romney who defended it vigorously until 2010) because he thought it would get bi-partisan support in Congress. Afterall, the conservatives loved the independent mandate: conservative, free-market, and "no free riders".




Only after Obama pushed for it did it suddenly become socialism.



Once Obama scored the big victory in 2010, many House and more than a few Senate Dems did their typical squishiness and let the GOP define the law. This was in part due to a "messaging conference" that did anything but help.





A "messaging conference" was held by Families USA based on polling by the Herndon Alliance for Democrats in 2010. What they told Democratic officials should be the central theme of the law was the following:

"The law is not perfect, but it does good things and helps many people. Now we'll work to improve it."

Wow. That showed confidence.



They continued with what NOT to say:

”Keep claims small and credible; don’t overpromise or ‘spin’ what the law delivers,” it advised. Its “to don’t” items include offering “a long list of benefits” or claims that “the law will reduce costs and the deficit,” even as “Voters are concerned about rising health care costs and believe that costs will continue to rise.”

Somehow, that didn't work. Bill Clinton, who knows something about winning elections, argued the opposite: To tout the damn benefits of the law. And there are MANY:

-No more denial of claims after paying premiums for decades



-No more denial of health insurance for PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS



-Coverage for your kids until 26 years old



-Free health checkup every 6 mopnths



-Free preventative health screening procedures for cancer and heart like mammograms, colonoscopies etc.



-Lower seniors' prescription-drug prices by beginning to close the donut hole.



-Moving forward means insurance companies can no longer charge a woman more just because of her gender.



-It saves money. (When Republicans threatened to repeal health reform, the CBO determined that a repeal would increase the deficit by $147 billion!)



-No lifetime caps anymore.

There are many, many more... I just picked a few to focus on.



Not many times in politics do you get a second chance to make a first impression. But for the next several days or even weeks, all the talk will be on health care.



WE CANNOT DECLARE VICTORY AND LEAVE. The fight is just beginning!



The GOP is going to be throwing everything at this. Hundreds of millions will go to TV ads saying "death panels" and "skyrocketing costs" and "government takeover" BS. They don't shy away from their opposition and are willing to lie to win in November.



Democrats in office only need to tell the truth. But it helps if you have a spine and actually stand up for it. Some tried even running from it in 2010, and you see how will that worked.



Democrats: There are A LOT of great things about the AHCA, not the least of which is that for the first time in our nation's history, everyone has a modicum of protection.... and it didn't cost us anything extra. You should be screaming about this from the pulpit.



This isn't just our victory, this is a victory for every American. Don't be afraid to talk about it and run on it. Own it. I'm proud of it, hell, I'm elated. I would love the opportunity to talk about it, and you should be too.
9:17 AM PT: PS... I can't WAIT to see what Rick Scott has to say about this...

REST EASY FLORIDA: New Bill Prevents UN-World Government Takeover of Our State

Don Gaetz is the not just another Florida politician, he will be the new Senate President in 2013.

He was the chair for the powerful reapportionment committee. You know, the one responsible for the legendary gerrymandering maps that give an overwhelming GOP edge to a state with more Democrats? (Also where he told black leaders who complained they were drawn unfairly that "Some people would complain if you hung them with a new rope".)

That guy.

So powerful is he that he actually got donors to give tons of cash to his completely idiot son, soon after he finished college, so his fellow FL teabaggers could elect him to the state House. (Here's the dumb kid's mug shot).

Don Gaetz is what passes for leadership in the GOP.

Power abuses, insentive bigot, and slightly loony.

His top priority as incoming Senate prez seems to be a bill he has been touting, which is finally a jobs bill bill that caters to the underrepresented paranoid, conspiracy nuts:

Expect a bill that shelters private property in Florida from takeover by a United Nations-led world government effort, Senate President-designate Don Gaetz said Tuesday.

And expect that bill to receive favorable support.

Appearing on Fort Walton radio station WFTW 1260 AM, Gaetz said he expected Florida lawmakers to introduce and approve a bill similar to Senate Bill 477 that has been approved by the Alabama Legislature.

Yes, let's follow Alabama. That's a recipe for success.

Gee, if ONLY our Constiution provided some sort of protection against seizing private property, something like this:

Private property shall not be taken for a public use, without just compensation.--5th amendment

Teabaggers who claim to be experts on the US Constitution must have skipped that over that one.

So your state has birthers? I just wish our legislators where that grounded.

Funny: Romney Tells Rick Scott To Downplay Job Gains

From Bloomberg:

Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign asked Florida Governor Rick Scott to tone down his statements heralding improvements in the state’s economy because they clash with the presumptive Republican nominee’s message that the nation is suffering under President Barack Obama, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Scott, a Republican, was asked to say that the state’s jobless rate could improve faster under a Romney presidency, according to the people, who asked not to be named.

Don't worry, Mittens. It's nothing Rick Scott can take credit for anyway. Not at all.



What has happened is part of a national trend, the jobless rate is slowly improving. But I challenge you to tell me anything the state GOP has done to help with that.



Here is what the Tea Party legislature has given us since last year: 17 bills to restrict abortion, the largest cuts in education and health care in our state history (along with thousands of government jobs cut), and then passed a slew of voter suppression laws you've heard about.



On top of that, Rick Scott turned down High-Speed Rail last year, instantly costing us 48,000 jobs which were desperately needed in the construction industry where unemployment was at an all time high of 20%...for the sole reason that Obama was behind it. It was our only Democratic Senator, Bill Nelson, who was fighting OUR OWN governor to KEEP those jobs in Florida.





Not ONE jobs bill in two years, unless you count that one dwarf-tossing bill as job creation. (Yes, they really did say that.) So they can take credit for the 10 people who got work out of degrading themselves.



Everything else is Obama's recovery, who seems to be the only one fighting at all for the middle class. Naturally, Rick Scott, who is now ferociously backpedaling his claim that he would create 700,00 jobs, is nonetheless trying to take all the credit for the uptick in growth:

The state Republican party ran a television ad in March crediting Scott, who is a year and a half into a four-year term, for drops in the unemployment rate.



“Companies are hiring, expanding, putting more Floridians to work,” the ad narrator said. “Florida’s unemployment rate continues to get better.”

Unfortunately, this causes Mittens some problems:

“The first time I saw that ad I initially thought it was an Obama ad,” said Brad Coker, managing director of the Washington-based Mason-Dixon Polling & Research. “They’ll have to tamp it down.”

Yes, they will have to tamp that down to help poor Mittens. My God, if people get back to work, how we will ever justify giving extra tax cuts to billionaires that has worked out so well?



Nobody is buying that Monty Burns impersonator Rick Scott can take any credit, including Mittens himself. Rick Scott remains wildly unpopular and Mittens refuses to campaign with Rick Scott when he visits Florida. But he can't avoid him forever:

This is unwelcome news for Mitt Romney: Florida Gov. Rick Scott expects a high-profile speaking slot at the Republican National Convention...



Nothing says "Elect Mitt Romney!" like an unpopular multimillionaire awkwardly making the case on national TV.

Ha!

Owned by the FL NRA: Shooting neighborhoods up "for funsies" now legal

#37 of My Stupid State

An incident happened recently in a nearby neighborhood... a man fired at and killed some Muscovy ducks at a retention pond. (The ducks are pretty but not a protected species.) He fired repeatedly, surrounded by houses and children playing. No one called the cops this time. It is extremely dangerous, but thanks to the new law signed by Rick Scott, not illegal. In fact, if he was even to shoot across a road or "over any occupied premise", it would only be a misdemeanor.

The new law is forcing all counties and cities to repeal ALL of their gun ordinances by October 1 of this year. If they don't, they will be fined up to $100,000 for each ordinance that is stricter than Florida's (an EXTREMELY low bar--shooting at my house is only a midemeanor?). Orange County employees have already taken down the "no firearms" signs at county parks. In Groveland, they repealed an ordinance that banned firing a gun into the air. You can now do that in downtown Orlando as well. And the Orlando Sentinel added this nugget:

During the hurry, local governments also quietly rescinded ordinances that made it illegal to whip out the AK-47 and blast away for funsies in populated areas.

That same article talks about a poor woman who is forced to listen to rednecks shooting at her neighbor's property for 12 straight hours in an east Orange County subdivision. Certainly what our founding fathers had in mind.

Many people to thank for this genius-ness. But primarily, you can thank the second most hated person in Florida right now after Rick Scott. This person is someone you may not have heard of. She is a 4-foot-11, 73-year-old grandmother... and a sweet, little thing according to her gushy wikipedia page. But she is as close to evil as you might ever see.

She has also done more to enable the killing of innocent Florida citizens, and put many more lives in danger, than any other person in this state. She is Marion Hammer, the top lobbyist for the National Rifle Association in Florida.

Florida has the dumbest and most lax gun laws in the nation. We are a breeding ground for gun stupidity and danger. Yes, we were the first in the nation to try "Stand your Ground/Castle doctrine", which was used by Zimmerman to hunt down and kill Trayvon Martin. (Apparently, your "castle" includes any sidewalk or street.) Justifiable homicides have skyrocketed, which is JUST WHAT WE PREDICTED would happen when asshat Jeb legalized Marion's shoot first law:

Not be content with the extra killing, Marion went on a rampage when a Tallahassee pediatrician asked her granddaughter about having a secured gun in the house. (Those pediatricians like to ask standard "invasive" questions like if a pool is fenced in or if dangerous chemicals are locked up.). Her minions in the legislature worked to restrict doctors from asking about guns in the home: “Docs versus Glocks” law. Leading Marion's call was my own state rep, idiot and complete liar Jason Brodeur, a Sanford Republican, to sponsor a bill where a doctor who dared to ask if a gun was locked up would be thrown in prison for five years and fined ... up to $5 million freaking dollars! Thankfully, the Courts sided with the physicians, but Rick Scott promised to appeal. (Might as well, since he'll be in Court fighting the Justice Dept. on the purge anyway.)

On average, the legislature passes 1-2 gun friendly laws a year, each one crazier than the last. Many are to blame: the subjugated legislators, apathetic voters, and cowardly candidates for local office who are now for the first time being forced by Marion to fill out intimidating questionnaires with loaded questions like this:

"Do you agree that no victim of crime should be required to surrender his life, health, safety, personal dignity, autonomy, or property to a criminal, nor should a victim be required to retreat in the face of an attack from any place he or she has a right to be?"

a. "Yes, I believe the 'Castle Doctrine/Stand Your Ground' is appropriate and victims have a right to fight back without a duty to retreat."

b. "No, I oppose the 'Castle Doctrine/Stand Your Ground' and believe victims should surrender to criminals or retreat to avoid fighting back."

Answer the question their way, or be a target. And don't think about not answering: "Questions that are not answered will be graded as a response against Second Amendment rights."

SO thank you Marion and Rick, for your strong advocacy for the 2nd amendment. I hope there is a retention pond near your houses so someone can show off the sounds of freedom to you as well.

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"Truly Terrible": Daily Show Hits Rick Scott Hard

Every now and again, a politician comes along who is just truly terrible and really deserving of more scorn than even we can go out with our nightly 21 min, 30 second wise-ass-athon. I give you Fl governor and Mr. Clean impersonator (if Mr. Clean had for some reason reduced his caloric intake for a period of time) Rick Scott. --Jon Stewart

I'm not as good at this as BruinKid is, so I won't transcibe much. Jon Stewart really hit Rick Scott hard. He has hit him before, such as when he tried to make state employees (with the exception of politicians like himself) perform expensive, unnecessary drug tests. But this was in the context of other horrible governors. But last night Jon really took the gloves off and focused on our nightmare that is Rick Scott. He mentions Scott's dehumanizing campaign to test welfare recipients, which he pointed out saved our state government.... NEGATIVE $45,000. Then pivoted to why Rick Scott is making news today. His campaign to purge voters from the voting rolls, which has ensnared thousands of eligible people, (mostly Hispanic, Democrat, and Independent) to go after that small segment that Jon described perfectly:

Those people who live in fear of deportation but insist on voting.. there must be tens of those.

Noting that black Floridians were not forgotten: besides cutting down early voting, our legislature eliminated the Sunday RIGHT BEFORE ELECTION DAY for one reason: that particular day is the largest day that African-Americans vote because it is the day that black Churches organize drives to get out the vote. They didn't even try to hide it. Which brought Jon to the last target: newly registered voters, which overwhelmingly skew Democratic. Again, if you have paid attention at all in Florida, you realize that it was made a crime to turn in a registration form after 48 hours. This had the effect of all nonpartisan registration outfits like the League of Women Voters and Rock the Vote leaving Florida. (Thankfully, there is an injunction against that madness and most returned, but the effect the GOP wanted succeeded... registration is down over 20% from last year). John Oliver talked with Fox News contributor and writer for American Spectator John Fund, who tries like hell to spin the 48 hour time limit law as a good thing and gets his ass handed to him. John Oliver nails him several times...It's worth the watch.

Next up for Rick Scott: Handwriting analysis for voter signatures (no snark)

If you are not paying attention in Florida, you need to. If you are, you will forgive the quick rehash of what has happened up till today. It is important in the context of what this diary is about: Right now, under Rick Scott’s Florida, you can be declared a "non-citizen" with no repercussions... and the onus is on YOU to prove otherwise. The self-proclaimed superpatriot TeaBags in the Legislature are surprisingly unconcerned about the trampling of our fundamental Constitutional right to vote. However, today in Florida, an eligible Democratic voter who has voted his entire life, such as a 91-year old war hero, is declared a "non-citizen", given a few days to drive to the Supervisor of Elections office and “request an administrative hearing to present evidence”. (Good thing Obama is not from here, since Birth Certificates don’t count anymore with the GOP.) The 2012 voter purge we are all discussing is the middle step of a highly coordinated effort. (Google “voter purge” and see Florida in all its glory). Rick Scott was obsessed with creating a “non-citizen” database soon after he took office. Don’t take my word for it: his own former Secretary of State, Ken Browning, admitted as much when he turned from the Dark Side and resigned rather than comply. The purge is based on old driver’s license data with the excuse that if you are snagged, you can just make a lot of unnecessary effort and get your Constitutional right back again. (JEEBUS... we're only talking your right to vote! not your right to carry a gun!) An analysis by the Miami Herald showed that the list was predominantly made up of Democrats, independents and Latinos. Coincidence, no doubt, but there are also plenty of "helpful" private efforts to purge legitimate voters coming from Republican hate groups. Now, Rick Scott could have done a database over a year ago, but the idea is to purge people as close to an election as possible. Besides, last year was the FIRST step of the process: Voter Suppression. In 2011, Scott disenfranched 100,000 previously eligible ex-felons who'd been granted the right to vote under GOP Governor Charlie Crist and signed the most sweeping voter suppression bill in our state’s history. You know, the one that shut down non-partisan voter registration drives; levied thousand-dollar fines for turning in registration forms late (something a teacher found out when she tried to criminally register her students), shred early voting, force provisional ballots to those who changed their name (women) and moved (college students), and allowed vote-caging operations. Which brings me to today. There are plenty of diaries and a lot of outrage on the voter purge, as there was a lot of anger with the voter suppression efforts last year. But I wish to talk a bit more about what I see as the final bullet coming from last year's law that received little attention. The one bullet that alters the standard for review of the voter signature. From a recent article by Adalia Woodbury:

Florida Concocts Signature Test to Purge Democratic Voters Even if you survive seriously flawed basis by which Florida is purging people from the rolls, you still need to contend with the signatures please law. This law requires voters to register their signatures with the government because signatures change with age…. ...let’s consider who will be deciding IF your signature matches the one on file. I’m guessing the same people who have done such an awesome job in the battle of nonexistent voter fraud so far will also be assessing your signature. Will they have the training needed to assess whether your signature is a match with the one on file with the Scott regime?

Folks, there will be thousands upon thousands of provisional ballots cast this election year. Before the teabag takeover of 2010, if you had changed your address or changed your last name you could sign an affidavit and vote normally. The 2011 Voter Suppression law changed that and now forces you to use a provisional ballot, which are not counted the majority of times. However, if we are in a tight election, these provisional ballots, along with the thousands of absentee ballots, might be pivotal. The GOP already succeeded in getting these likely Dem voters off the regular voter rolls... so what would be the best way to stop the provisional ballots from tipping an election? You can prove new residence or new name... but how can you stop someone from saying your signature doesn't match? Granted, I'm being cynical. Voter abuse here in Florida? Perish the thought. Okay...so lets assume everybody who works at SOE is above reproach and will simply honor the new law requirements for my signature and the upgraded standard for review. It begs the question, who deemed these people experts in handwriting analysis? I doubt most of them have a Graphology degree. Heck, I'm not even sure I have a signature on file with the SOE… and I know for a fact that I never "update" it. It's a fact that signatures change as we age, and I don't think anyone has ever thought to visit an SOE office just to "update" a signature. Yet any SOE website has the fine print: Volusia Co. SOE:

Signatures on your registration record are used to verify signatures on petitions, absentee ballots and provisional ballots. If your signatures do not match, your petition or ballot will not count. To update your signature, submit a Florida Voter Registration Application Form to the Department of Elections.

Alls I know is that I nor anyone else voting in this election here in Florida is going to have any chance to fight an injustice, such as having a provisional ballot thrown out because it didn't match a signature block. Since that awful day in Nov. 2010 you'd think we'd be used to this by now. What the GOP is doing is beyond brazen, and here I am on Dkos being asked to petition Obama's own DOJ to even bother to fight these efforts. (It's here if you want to.) But what really teas me off is my state Dem party won't even attempt a citizen initiative to reverse the Voter Suppression law or for that matter, do a damn thing about anything, except make crappy web ads. If we are ever gonna win here in Florida, we have only ourselves to count on.

Enough!

Seminole's "Senator" Deserved Better

Having the oldest and largest Cypress tree was a source of pride for us in Seminole County. We don't have a lot of landmarks, but that tree could compare to any of the natural wonders of the world. It certainly did for those blessed to see it for the first time.

My sadness of the loss is almost matched by my anger for the apparent incompetence in the investigation. Almost immediately, an investigator from FL Department of Agriculture ruled out arson, saying it was likely either a lightning strike or "friction". Really? Does anyone remember any lightning the past few days? So out of nowhere there was a lightning bolt that happened to hit only the Senator in the middle of the night and nothing else? The other explanation is equally preposterous. We are supposed to believe a tree that stood 3500 years spontaneously combusted?

Maybe they did happen, but I would bet targeted arson is a heck of a lot more likely, and it certainly should not have instantaneously been ruled out. If it was arson, I'm sure the perpetrator is laughing his head off... and pondering now if he can get away with attacking the sister tree, Lady Liberty.

Hopefully our officials will realize the danger and at the very least have a motion sensor around Lady Liberty to alert if someone gets close at night. Unlike man-made national monuents, these can never be rebuild.

Mitt Romney and Rick Scott Have a LOT in Common

Medicare fraud and corruption run hand in hand with these guys. No wonder they endorsed each other...

Sandy Adams Screws Us on Payroll Tax Cut

The Senate passed a payroll tax cut extension with 90% approval. However, the House GOP, including my own representative, Sandy Adams, just walked out knowing inaction will cause a big cut in my take-home pay next year.

I note the GOP had no trouble passing the Bush tax cut, which unlike the payroll tax cut, wasn't paid for and primarily benefitted the upper crust. But the payroll tax cut only helps working families, and has been labeled a “gimmick” by GOP members for weeks. And now we are to believe they really did want it but are rejecting it because it isn’t long enough?

We are not stupid. There are many reasons for the GOP to oppose this tax cut. Maybe they think working families don’t deserve it, or maybe it’s their misguided belief that a bad economy will help them this November, or maybe it’s just because Obama dared to support it. But don’t dare tell me you are giving me a tax hike because you are fighting for me.

If you hate the tax hike as well Contact Sandy Adams and let her know.

House GOP to REJECT payroll tax cut...Admits because it will help Obama!!

The Orange one, Boehner, as you may recall, gave his counterpart in the Senate, Mitch, the proxy to negotiate a compromise on the payroll tax cut extension and promised to support it. The Senate finally reached a compromise with 89 votes in favor.

Boehner described the Senate vote as "a good deal" and "a victory". All's good... until he talked with Cantor and other teabaggers on a conference call yesterday.

CNN:

"The rank-and-file members are extremely opposed to it," said the GOP source, adding that most members were concerned with the uncertainty caused by just a two-month extension, as well as the political benefit the White House could gain in the national dialogue over taxes.

MOTHER-F REALLY!??

Let's read that one more time..,.

...most [teabag] members were concerned with the uncertainty caused by just a two-month extension, as well as the political benefit the White House could gain in the national dialogue over taxes.

I can't believe I am reading that. The House GOP is admitting their big concern is that the middle-class will get a tax cut, and Obama will get credit for it... so let's JUST F- them!!

Anybody in the middle-class who votes GOP is insane or not paying any attention.

There was NO problem whatsoever passing the Bush tax cuts, which overwhelmingly benefitted millionaires and billionaires. Those cuts didn't even have to be paid for... and we all know how they worked out. The Bush years dragged our economy down into the gutter... and ran our deficit into the stratsosphere.

Cutting taxes on the top 1% is the only kind of tax cuts the GOP likes. The payroll tax cut only benefits the middle-class (GASP) and will give the working families much needed relief that will actually HELP our economy because the middle-class has no choice but to spend on items they need. But because it primarily helps the middle-class, and because it is OBAMA who dares to ask for this tax cut, the GOP is fighting tooth and nail against it!

The same people who rail about tax cuts can't come up with any reason to oppose it... so they actually ADMIT that their main beef is that this will help Obama and the Democrats.

In case you had any doubt the GOP wanted to sabotage the economy to help themselves, look no further.

Now, obviously, the Weeper of the House reversed position right after that call and now opposes the payroll tax cut extension... making him not only a coward but a liar since he originally promised to back the deal by Sen. McConnell.

Chuck Schumer has had enough:

"This is a test of whether the House Republicans are fit to govern, and it is a make-or-break moment for John Boehner's speakership," Schumer said in a statement. "You cannot let a small group at the extreme resort to brinksmanship every time there is a major national issue and try to dictate every move this nation makes."

According to Schumer,

"This compromise was good enough for Mitch McConnell and Marco Rubio. It was good enough for Jon Kyl and Tom Coburn. It should be good enough for Speaker Boehner," Schumer said, naming conservative Republican senators who supported the plan. "The speaker needs to put the Senate's bipartisan compromise on the floor and let House Democrats and the remaining sane members of the House Republican caucus vote for it."

I've had enough too....

FL GOP Legislature: Rich Men Who Cheat Will Be Protected

Because if there is ever an oppressed class, its unfaithful wealthy men...

This is also an example of how bad gerrymandering has gotten in this state. Even during the large red wave of conservative activism last year, a constitutional amendment to end the practice was passed with a supermajority of voters. (Although the FL legislature is spending millions to overturn it.)

They are angry that idiot legislators like Ritch Workman (R-Melbourne) are very, very safe and win big.

SO safe, he can pitch DWARF-TOSSING as a jobs bill.

So safe, that this SOB is now putting forth a horrible bill with the sole purpose of protecting rich men who cheat on their wives.


The bill would:

-Forbid judges from considering adultery when they determine alimony.

-Put a cap on the amount and the length of time its paid.

-Allow any and all PREVIOUS divorce agreements to be reopened and renegotiated.



I'm sure this is completely unrelated... but Rich Workman just finalized his own divorce 8 DAYS after filing this travesty of a bill. Any guesses the reason for that divorce? Anyone?

Don't think for a second this doesn't stand a chance of passage. We have a super majority Republican legislature that backs this stupidity... with many of them from the "moral values" crowd who are either currently divorced or even going through the process right now.

Divorce lawyers stand to make a fortune in reopening claims--and there is a niche industry in Central Florida that cater to wealthy men who don't want to support their wives or children. (If you live here, you've seen the bill boards). And then, of course, you need to understand the powerful lobby groups, such as Fathers and Family, Florida Alimony Reform, etc., who represent rich, divorced fathers. (I hear Newt is a fan.)

Last year's session of the FL legislature served only to make the vast majority of us suffer. Forced ultrasounds, schools cut to the bone, and voting rights destroyed just to name a few.

Unfortunately, this awful bill, which even Workman admits he didn't think through, will likely be one of many torture sessions we must endure before election next November.

Christmas 2011: Ebeneezer Scrooge is the GOP Hero

Bill Maher:

And finally, since it's our last show before the holidays, New Rule: someone needs to explain to the Republicans that Ebenezer Scrooge is supposed to be the bad guy. And before conservatives start whining about another "War on Christmas", they must admit they hate everything about Christmas. Because brotherhood, good will toward men, and especially charity make their skin crawl.
Now this week, Michele Bachmann proposed cutting huge holes in the federal safety net, demonstrating a total misunderstanding of the concept of a net. Here's what she said.

MICHELE BACHMANN (11/7/2011): Self-reliance means if anyone will not work, neither should he eat.

Merry Christmas to you too, crazy lady. Yeah, that's the first thing I think whenever self-reliance comes up: punishment by starvation.

Honestly, who could hear that statement, and not think of Scrooge, who in A Christmas Carol, suggests that if the poor don't want to go to the workhouse, they should get on with dying as a service to population control. Now if Herman Cain said that at a Republican debate, he would get a standing ovation. And say what you want about Ebenezer Scrooge, he never shoved Bob Cratchit's head into his groin and said, "Look, you want Christmas off or not?"

(wild audience applause)

Newt Gingrich refers to Obama as the "Food Stamp President", because Obama doesn't want children to starve to death, fuckin' commie.

Mitt Romney says we should let all the people about to lose their homes, lose them. And they can just become renters. Ownership society? Meet "No pets, no waterbeds". Mitt said the same thing a few years ago when the automobile industry was tottering: "Let it die".

I find it ironic that Republicans have such disdain for the lazy, and yet their solution to every problem is "do nothing".

Their answer to wealth inequality? Do nothing.

Health care? Do nothing.

Climate change? Nothing.

Racism? Doesn't exist.

For a group of people so head over heels in love with self-reliance, they sure do recommend a lot of sitting on their ass.

If A Christmas Carol was performed by the Tea Party Dramatic Society, it would be a cautionary tale about how the hero, Scrooge, a blameless job creator, is turned into a socialist through the corrupting influence of Tiny Tim. And the play would end with a simple plaintive question from Mr. Scrooge: "Just how much of my wealth does Mr. Tim think he's entitled to?"

And that is the great Republican fallacy of this election, that our economic problems are due not to Wall Street's gambling, but because too many Americans are lazy. But there are 16 million unemployed, and we only created 80,000 jobs last month. The problem isn't laziness, it's math.

But this is where the Republican Party is now.

In favor of people dying, because they don't have health insurance.

In favor of letting people go unfed if they won't work.

And if they want to work, but are Mexicans, in favor of putting up a fence that electrocutes them.

Even Scrooge is thinking, "Look, I hate the poor, but I'm not a fucking psychopath."

But that's where this party is. It simply has no bottom. Except Marcus Bachmann, he's a bottom.