Tag: Florida
Why Did Gov. Rick Scott Attend Washington Insider Event?
Much has been made of how the White House Correspondents’ annual dinner has become a celebrity fest. Everyone from Cee Lo Green to Bristol Palin to Paula Abdul attended, along with journalists. But can someone please explain to me why Tea Party Republican Gov. Rick Scott felt he needed to leave Florida to be there? Scott can be clearly seen checking to see if it’s O.K. with Donald to laugh at the Trump jokes, at about 1:40 on the right of the screen. Is this what Florida hired Scott to do?
As a side note, while Trump and Scott certainly share the crazy, their hairstyles offer an interesting contrast. Who says the GOP isn’t full of diversity?
LeMieux, Le Loser
Looks like George LeMieux’s just not on the list
To remain a Senator, as he wished.
For try as he might,
His association’s too tight
With the loser who appointed him, Charlie Crist.
BP: Turning Adversity to Triumph
$10 billion
Tax break rewarded BP for “losses” from its massive oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico
$4 billion
Amount paid out so far from BP’s Victim’s Fund
$8.97 billion
Entire proposed FY2012 budget for the Department of Environmental Protection. The figure is a 13% decrease from FY2011’s budget of $10.3 billion.
Their Team Winning is More Important to Florida Republicans Than Their Constituents Are
19 of 19
Number of Republican members of the House of Representatives from Florida who voted for the Ryan budget plan, which would expand tax cuts for rich people while canceling the current Medicare program. The vote seems odd in a state known for its high number of retirees, who were apparently not on the minds of their elected representatives.
Because Your Uterus Is Your Business
We’ve been telling you how the Florida legislature, which is currently pushing through 18 different bills to restrict abortion, is making women’s uteruses their business. And how State Rep. Scott Randolph (D-Orlando) pointed out that if his wife’s uterus were incorporated, the big-business fat cats in the legislature would leave it alone (and, I might add, give it tax breaks). Republicans were so upset at Randolph’s casual use of the correct name for his wife’s lady parts that they formally scolded him, citing the delicate ears of legislative pages.
Randolph recently appeared on Rachel Maddow’s show, and she was particularly taken with the new web site, www.incorporatemyuterus.com, which seeks to establish exactly whose business a woman’s uterus is. The site even offers articles of incorporation. Before you visit, be thinking of the official name for your incorporated uterus, as you will need to supply it on the form.
Do Tax Cuts Work? Former Sen. Bob Graham Shows That in Florida They Didn’t
“We’re broke” is the meme Republicans and tea baggers cite when they claim tight budgets force us to reshape social policies, such as collective bargaining agreements, or to siphon public funds and redirect resources to corporations only too happy to pocket the largesse.
In Florida, Gov. Rick Scott, with full support of the Republican legislature, is using “we’re broke” to justify everything from deregulating nail salons to defunding services that save taxpayers money, like group homes for the developmentally disabled.
To Rick Scott and the Republicans, government is a weapon best used to punish enemies and intimidate friends. The only goal is to protect and shore up their interests.
Former Democratic Gov. and Sen. Bob Graham knows whether the emperor has clothes. He shows that tax cuts, rather than improving the business climate, are moving Florida away from its goals.
Before you read further, please note that Florida has no state income tax for its residents, and that Jeb Bush was governor from 1999 to 2007, followed by Republican Charlie Crist, and now Republican/Tea Bagger Rick Scott. Republicans have held a majority of both chambers of the Florida legislature since 1994.
…Since 1999 there has been a stream of tax reductions to make the state more attractive for investment. Absent these cuts, state revenue in 2011 would be $4 billion greater. This would have avoided the need for the deep cuts now being considered by the Legislature.
The stunning truth is that on virtually all fronts — the Legislature, the executive budget office, academics — there has been a failure to subject these cuts to the basic question: Did they work?
Boos for Bozo: Rick Scott Strikes Out with Ceremonial Pitch
A movement was spawned last month, after boos erupted for Florida Gov. Rick Scott at a Florida spring training camp game between the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays. Floridians who still haven’t totally given up on the idea of a recall election found a shorter-term strategy: boo at the governor every chance we get.
And so a Facebook page was born. “Boo Rick Scott on Opening Day (even if you’re not going to the game)” had 1,211 likes before Scott took the field to throw the opening pitch at the first regular season game for the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday.
Scott was throwing the ball a day after announcing devastating cuts to services to the developmentally disabled that will force many out of group homes and into much more expensive — and depressing — nursing homes. It also came the same week that consumer advocates and industry experts called for an investigation into Scott’s dismissal of nursing home ombudsman Brian Lee, widely seen as a payback to the nursing home industry for its deep pockets in support of his campaign.
Check This List Before Addressing the Florida Legislature
We could not possibly let this one go by. When Florida Rep. Scott Randolph (D-Orlando) was scolded by Republicans for using the word “uterus” on the House floor, the push-back was inevitable. In Randolph’s words:
I always say their philosophy is small government for the big guy and big government for the little guy. And so, if my wife’s uterus was incorporated… maybe they (Republicans) would be talking about deregulating. It’s not like I used slang.
Randolph’s wife contributed the analogy, to illustrate how to get Republicans to stop trying to restrict access to abortion. Randolph said Republicans voiced concern about young pages hearing the word.
The Democratic Underground has come up with a list of acceptable euphemisms to use around state legislative pages. We quote:
Women’s Body Parts
Uterus – Baby Bed
Vagina – Hoohoo or Cooter
Clitoris – Little Man in Boat
Crotch – Swimsuit Area
Buttocks – Cushions
Breasts – Gazongas
Ovaries – Egg Crates
Nipples – PacifiersMen’s Body Parts
Penis – Whopper or Peewee (as the case may be)
Testicles – Family Jewels
Scrotum – Jewelry Bag
Foreskin – Turtleneck
Crotch – Swimsuit Area
Buttocks – Rear End
Remember, if you’re a Republican, outlawing abortion is the decent thing to do. Discussing it like grownups is just bad taste.
Nasty Old ‘Uterus’
In Florida’s legislature, owned by the GOP,
Free speech ain’t a right, it’s a theory.
By loosing an utterance
That included the word “uterus,”
Scott Randolph learned what prudes they can be.
