|
03/09/04
E
Messenger
The
Electronic Newsletter of the
Florida
AFL-CIO
New
Members according to the AFL-CIO Work in Progress
This week's WIP: 3,425
Year to date: 27,421
Our
building renovations are done (save a few minor adjustments).
Check out your new face at our website, www.flaflcio.org.
STATE
NEWS
Don’t
Forget to
Vote!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Charter,
airport, tax issues on ballots across Florida
(03/08/2004 © Daytona
Beach News-Journal)
PENSACOLA --
There's no Republican race and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry has taken the
suspense out of the Democratic contest, but many Floridians will have
other reasons for casting ballots in Tuesday's presidential preference
primary.
Legislative Session
A
callous ploy
(
03/07/2004
© Daytona
Beach News-Journal)
Sometimes, we only
see what we want to see. That's clearly the case with state House Speaker
Johnnie Byrd, who can't seem to understand why so many lawmakers are
uneasy about his proposal to write parental "rights" into the
Florida Constitution.
Pay
Up Or Face Consequences
(
03/08/2004
© Ft.
Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)
When Floridians
approved a constitutional revision requiring the state to take over much
of the counties' costs of running the courts by July of this year, they
certainly were not calling for a breakdown in the judicial system.
The
Real Power in
Florida
– READ THESE!
MoneyWorld:
Admission prices are through the roof
A new crop of lobbyists - young, Republican and connected - are having
themselves a time.
By LUCY MORGAN, Times Tallahassee Bureau Chief
Published
March 7, 2004
http://www.sptimes.com/2004/03/07/State/MoneyWorld__Admission.shtml
Tallahassee
s disgrace
(
03/09/2004
© St.
Petersburg Times)
Florida
lawmakers like to blame
the ascendancy of high-powered and high-priced lobbyists on term limits,
as if legislative naivete were somehow to
blame.
Laws
for sale
(
03/09/2004
© Florida
Today)
Remember last
years' nightmare of five sessions of the state Legislature that continued
into October?
Florida
lawmakers were supposed
to do the job in just one gathering, but taxpayers got stuck with the bill
for the extra four at $40,000 a day.
John
Thrasher | Southern Strategy Group of Florida
(03/08/2004 © Miami
Herald)
John E. Thrasher,
who reigned as Republican Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
from 1999 to 2000 and now works as a lobbyist with Southern Strategy Group
in Tallahassee, says his job would be boring if all he did was open doors.
''We become advocates for our clients,'' he says.
Playing
out-sized roles, lobbyists wield power
(03/08/2004 © Miami
Herald)
When we published
stories about the 12 most powerful business people in Miami-Dade and
Broward counties last December, we consciously decided not to include
lobbyists on our list. They weren't excluded because we didn't think
lobbyists are powerful. Far from it.
Young,
connected lobbyists emerge in state capital
(
03/07/2004
© Miami
Herald)
TALLAHASSEE
,
Fla.
- There's a new breed of
lobbyist working in the state capital. Young Republicans with connections
and clients' campaign contributions are helping shape the business of
government.
Lobbying
dollars soar during fund-raising ban
(03/08/2004 © Pensacola
News Journal)
TALLAHASSEE -
Florida's political leaders promise an end to campaign fund raising while
they consider laws but not an end to the cash that flows liberally during
the two-month legislative session.
Education
College
diploma crux
(
03/07/2004
© Florida
Today)
Florida
needs a highly skilled
workforce to sustain its economy, and that means residents need access to
affordable, quality higher education. Yet last year the state Legislature
left the state's public colleges and universities teetering on the brink
of disaster with a dangerously ill-conceived $40 million budget slash and
insufficient dollars to pay for rapid enrollment growth.
Bills
may let parents see FCAT tests
(03/08/2004 © Ft.
Myers News-Press)
Two bills moving
through the Florida Legislature this session could allow parents to see
their childs graded Florida Comprehensive
Assessment Test.
Specifics
of universal pre-K far from settled
(03/08/2004 © Palm
Beach Post)
Parents who
overwhelmingly passed a state constitutional amendment two years ago
creating a universal pre-kindergarten for 4-year-olds now want to know:
Where do they enroll? When does the program start?
Sponsor
for governors pre-k plan hard to find
(
03/08/2004
© Palm Beach
Post)
TALLAHASSEE
-- The scene is a
familiar one in
Tallahassee
: the governor pushing a
top priority, demonstrating he has legislative support with the presence
of top lawmakers from the party in power.
Whistle-blower
in Education Department is fired
(
03/09/2004
© St.
Petersburg Times)
TALLAHASSEE
- The state Education
Department fired a whistle-blower whose complaint helped lead to a
criminal charge and several probes of Gov. Jeb Bush's school voucher
programs.
Vote
on KidCare
Florida
s KidCare problems swept under rug
(03/09/2004 © Ft.
Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)
I wrote a column
back in January about the tens of thousands of youngsters from low-income
families who were eligible for a children's health insurance program in
Florida but, instead of being allowed into the program, were diverted by
state officials to a long waiting list.
KidCare
vote offers relief for parents
(03/07/2004 © Gainesville
Sun)
The fastball
glanced off her son's hand, making him yelp in pain and bringing back
Nancy Humbert's all-too-familiar feeling of
dread. Sebastian's relief Wednesday night was a bit of ice; the ball only
bruised him.
More
healthcare for needy children
(
03/08/2004
© Miami
Herald)
In tackling KidCare,
which provides healthcare for poor children, state lawmakers gave with one
hand and took with the other. In a bill that cleared both chambers last
week, lawmakers added $25 million to the popular KidCare
health-insurance program. Bravo.
Bush targets the Bullet
Train…special interest groups all to willing to help.
High-speed
high jinks
(03/08/2004 © Orlando
Sentinel)
In a desperate and
misguided bid to get his way, Gov. Jeb Bush appears intent on using his
considerable arsenal of political weaponry to kill a voter-mandated
high-speed-rail project in the state. Mr. Bush, of course, never has liked
the proposal.
New
Web site allows Floridians to weigh in on high-speed rail
(03/08/2004 © Orlando
Business Journal)
The Derail the
Bullet Train (DEBT) committee announced Monday that a new Web site (www.debtpetition.com)
has been launched where Floridians can download a form to support repeal
of the high-speed rail amendment.
Train
opponents will hire firm to place issue on ballot
(03/09/2004 © Ft.
Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)
Delray Beach Local
supporters of a campaign to stop the statewide bullet train said Monday
they plan to hire a company to help collect the signatures needed to get
the issue on the ballot in November.
Florida
election 2004
Dan
Webster receives endorsements of two congressmen
(03/09/2004 © Northwest
Florida Daily News)
ORLANDO (AP) -
Daniel Webster's U.S. Senate campaign on Monday received the endorsements
of two U.S. congressmen who praised the state senator as one of the people
most responsible for building up the Republican Party in Florida.
Florida
voters leaning toward Kerry
(03/08/2004 © Miami
Herald)
Increasingly
critical of President Bush on his handling of the economy and the war in
Iraq, more Florida voters now say they plan to support Democrat John Kerry
than to help reelect the president, according to a new poll.
Kerry
vows legal challenge to avoid recount
(03/09/2004 © Northwest
Florida Daily News)
HOLLYWOOD (AP) -
John Kerry is determined not to lose Florida's 27 electoral votes in a
swamp of recounts and recriminations this fall, vowing to mount an early
legal challenge in any district that might repeat the problems that
bedeviled Democratic supporters in 2000.
Politicians
show weight of union rallies
(03/08/2004 © Tallahassee
Democrat)
Two mass rallies
by two unions of state employees - 48 hours and 250 miles apart -
illustrate the importance Florida politicians place on them in this
election year.
The
Battle for Florida Heats Up, Stirring Memories of the Recount
(
03/08/2004
© Lakeland
Ledger)
MIAMI
, March 7 ? Democrats
have courted young voters with a 'Donkeys Rock' registration drive,
dangling perks like bottle-opener key chains, as Republicans have scoured
databases to find like-minded voters among sportsmen, real estate agents
and military families
Labor
nod for Deutsch is ruled to be premature
(
03/08/2004
© Miami
Herald)
The Broward County
AFL-CIO ''endorsed'' its hometown congressman in the Democratic primary
race to succeed the retiring U.S. Sen. Bob Graham. Or did it?
Poll:
Florida favors Kerry
(03/08/2004 © Northwest
Florida Daily News)
Massachusetts Sen.
John Kerry is ahead of President Bush by 6 percentage points in a new poll
of Florida voters, a majority of whom question the president's handling of
the economy and the war in Iraq.
Another
State Vote Debacle Feared
(03/08/2004 © Tampa
Tribune)
LAKELAND - His big
rig idling at a truck stop off Interstate 4, Charles Griffin flashed a
gold front tooth and chuckled at memories of ``Flori-duh!''
That's what tabloid newspapers and late-night television comics dubbed
Florida
four years ago after its
widely mocked ballot designs and recounting disputes threw the
presidential election into turmoil.
International
monitors will watch election
(
03/09/2004
© Tallahassee
Democrat)
They've monitored
voting in
Haiti
; now they're on their
way to
El Salvador
. Their
next stops?
Jacksonville
,
West Palm
Beach
,
Fort
Lauderdale
and
Miami
.
For the first time, international monitors will be in the
United States
to make sure votes are
cast and counted correctly.
Florida
Democrats wish they had more say in picking nominee
(
03/08/2004
© Miami
Herald)
MIAMI
- Florida Democrats will
be backing Sen. John Kerry for president. They just wish they had more of
a say in the nomination.
Wexler
files new printer suit
(03/09/2004 © Ft.
Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)
U.S. Rep. Robert
Wexler took his crusade for voting machine printers back to court Monday,
filing a federal lawsuit in West Palm Beach that claims having no way to
manually recount votes from touch-screen machines is a violation of
federal law.
2004 ballot initiatives
Citizen
initiatives a hot topic
(
03/09/2004
© Orlando
Sentinel)
A divided House
committee Monday endorsed a broad set of changes to make it much more
difficult for voters to amend the state constitution. 'I think we have
tightened up a very lax system,' said state Rep. Sandra Murman,
R-Tampa, a member of the committee.
House
panel votes on recommendations to change petition drives
(
03/08/2004
© Gainesville
Sun)
TALLAHASSEE
,
Fla.
People who want to
change the state constitution by petition drive could be limited to issues
dealing with the structure of government or individual rights under a
recommendation approved Monday by a House panel.
Petition
Seeks Basic Fairness
(03/08/2004 © Ft.
Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)
A convicted felon
deservedly pays a heavy price: loss of freedom for an extended period,
harm to personal reputation, the need to make restitution and, for many,
difficulty in obtaining employment after release from prison. This is as
it should be.
Doctors,
lawyers trade jabs
(
03/08/2004
© Orlando
Business Journal)
TALLAHASSEE
-- It's back. Sixteen
years after a bitter statewide referendum on capping fees for trial
lawyers flopped at the ballot box, the 16,000-member Florida Medical
Association is gathering support for a similar measure.
Scripps watch
Some
fear Scripps funding could cut into monies from Legislature
(03/08/2004 © Ft.
Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)
TALLAHASSEE For
some Palm Beach County leaders, getting The Scripps Research Institute was
akin to striking gold. The
Florida
branch of the
California
biomedical research
institute is to open doors on a permanent campus in 2006, bringing with it
what state and local officials expect
Workers’
Comp struggles…as predicted
Sinking
in red, injury fund gets $15M
(
03/08/2004
© Orlando
Business Journal)
TALLAHASSEE
--
Florida
's fund of last resort
for businesses seeking workers' compensation insurance has been thrown a
$15 million life preserver.
Workers
comp fund deficit alarms many
(03/08/2004 © Daytona
Beach News-Journal)
TALLAHASSEE --
With Florida businesses staggering from some of the highest workers'
compensation insurance costs in the nation, state lawmakers cut a deal
last spring they hoped would solve the problem.
The Governor supports farmworkers?
Or is it an election year?
Protecting
Farm Workers
(
03/09/2004
© Capitol
News Service)
In a surprise
announcement at the state Capitol today, the Governor unveiled a new plan
to protect migrant farm workers from labor abuses.
Bush
says migrant labor laws needed
(
03/09/2004
© St.
Petersburg Times)
TALLAHASSEE
- Gov. Jeb Bush called
for new laws Monday to protect
Florida
farmworkers
from exploitation and to aggressively punish "the few in the industry
who don't play by the rules."
Governor
defends policy moves
(03/09/2004 © Ft.
Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel)
TALLAHASSEE Gov.
Jeb Bush predicted on Monday that the presidential election battle for
Florida will be a close one -- and he bristled at questions he's making
policy decisions aimed at helping his brother's re-election in November.
Other
State news
Business
group fights outsourcing backlash
(03/07/2004 © Gainesville
Sun)
With overseas
outsourcing a hot U.S. election-year issue, big business is quietly
mounting an offensive against state and federal efforts to keep jobs at
home and otherwise restrain globalization.
Political
trends across state tracked
(03/07/2004 © Gainesville
Sun)
More than 50 years
ago, political scientist V.O. Key aptly described Florida as a state whose
politics was driven more by regional interests rather than any unifying
themes. Or as he put it succinctly, in
Florida
, it was ''every man for himself.''
Redial
on rate hike
(03/08/2004 © Daytona
Beach News-Journal)
The giant
residential phone-rate hike approved last year by the Florida Legislature
and rubber-stamped by the state Public Service Commission was a mistake.
Florida
's leaders have the
chance to make it right.
NATIONAL
NEWS
Military
Spending Sparks Warnings (washingtonpost.com)
The
Washington
Post
3/8/04
Long-Term
Joblessness at 20-Year High
Reuters
Job
Growth Weak With 21,000 Feb. Hires
Growth
in Jobs Is Still Sluggish Despite Forecast
The
New York
Times
3/08/04
Labor
Is Forced to Reassess as Union Leaders Convene
The
New York
Times
3/09/04
Union
leaders visit Florida beach resort to finalize political efforts
AP
03/09/04
USATODAY.com
- Domestic issues lift Kerry in new poll
USA
Today
03/09/04
Jobless
unionize to publicize plight
Miami
Herald
03/09/04
NO
TAX $ FOR OFFSHORE JOBS--The
fight against moving jobs offshore is heating up on Capitol Hill. The
Senate on March 4 passed 70-26 an amendment that would bar some federal
contract work from being performed overseas. The amendment to S. 1637 was
introduced by Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.),
and, among other things, would stop contractors from moving government
work offshore that once was done by federal employees. S. 1637, backed by
the Bush administration, would expand tax breaks that encourage companies
to move offshore. The AFL-CIO has called for the bill to be recrafted
to give additional incentives to keep domestic manufacturing in the
United States
. On March 5,
hundreds of union members joined Sens. Byron
Dorgan (D-N.D.) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.)
for a Capitol Hill hearing and rally against shipping jobs overseas.
SHOW
US THE JOBS--The
nation's economy generated only 21,000 net new jobs in February, and
unemployment remained unchanged at 5.6 percent, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS) reported March 5. The official unemployment number does
not include 392,000 discouraged workers who gave up looking for jobs in
February. The economy again lost manufacturing jobs--3,000--for the 43rd
consecutive month for a total of 2.9 million manufacturing jobs lost since
President Bush took office, according to BLS. The economy remains nearly
2.2 million jobs short of the more than 2.4 million new jobs the
administration projected the economy would create by this time. Over the
past six months, the economy has added only 364,000 jobs, which falls
nearly two-thirds short of what is needed just to accommodate new
workforce entrants, much less help workers who remain unemployed. A new
report by the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute (http://www.epinet.org)
released March 4 finds that long-term unemployment--when a jobless worker
has looked for work six months or more--rose by 198.2 percent between 2000
and 2003. "The statistics clearly show the crisis is not being
addressed and our country's leaders are oblivious to the suffering of the
unemployed," AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said.
If you have suggestions on how we may improve this online
publication or have information you would like to see posted please
contact our communications director at (850) 224 – 6926 or at rtemplin@flaflcio.org.
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Rich
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Communications Director
Florida
AFL-CIO |
