Newspaper Sues to See 2008 Republican National Convention Bid

Update: The Tampa Tribune is now reporting that the cost of the convention will be $124 million, with about $85 million coming from public sources. Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will be honorary chair.

The Tampa Tribune had to sue to see the city’s bid to host the 2008 Republican convention. And even though the city — which had outsourced the bid work to the Tampa Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau — caved, they still didn’t exactly throw open the gates to the information.

The Tribune’s lawsuit, filed in Hillsborough County Circuit Court, states that Tampa delegated to the visitors bureau the governmental function of preparing the bid and, therefore, the bid is a public record.

Dianne Jacob, senior vice president of marketing for the bureau, said the bid is in a 2.5-inch-thick binder. The bureau will allow reporters to view the document but not photocopy it.

“That’s just our policy,” Jacob said.

What would there be to hide in the bid? If you answered, “Republicans trying to bill the taxpayers for another lavish party,” go to the head of the class. St. Petersburg Times:

According to supporting documents from the city, the convention would cost the city and other governments $12.7-million in direct expenses and in-kind services.

A majority of the expense would be for security, including $5.5-million for police and $3.7-million for barricades.

Tampa is competing with three other cities for this “honor” — Cleveland, Minneapolis, and New York. Tampa was first runner-up for the 2004 convention. New York’s smarm factor, however, was irresistible to Rove and the other 2004 puppet masters, who envisioned Bush wrapping himself in a flag atop smoldering World Trade Center rubble. But rarely are conventions held in the same city twice in a row, especially when New York is becoming more associated with Hillary Clinton.

Republicans stole the 2004 election with help from Ohio’s secretary of state, Kenneth Blackwell, so Cleveland might well be rewarded this time.

“It comes down to Ohio and Florida because they’re the battleground states,” [chairman of the Ohio Republican Party Robert] Bennett said.

Florida’s got one thing Ohio doesn’t, though — hurricanes, especially in September, when the convention is set. And how would it look if Republicans had to evacuate, just as they’re practicing their speeches on the lack of proof of global warming?

Republican Consultant Needs to Consult Dictionary on Meaning of “Integrity”

File this under, “Too Good to Pass Up,” right next to, “Shots We Just Have to Take.”

A prominent Republican consultant is facing a huge $950,000 in fines for violating Florida election laws. He has admitted misusing an issues-oriented political organization — known under Florida law as an “electioneering communication organization — which is not allowed to ask for votes.

And the name of the sham grassroots group? The Committee to Restore Integrity in Politics. Miami Herald:

Rocky Pennington, chairman of the Committee to Restore Integrity in Politics…is well-known in political circles as both a campaign consultant for the Republican Party of Florida and Republican candidates as well as being the owner of a direct-mail firm in Clearwater…

Pennington’s committee spent more than $300,000 with Pennington’s direct-mail firm to send two fliers in October 2004 to nearly 500,000 voters urging them to vote against the amendment being pushed by South Florida dog and horse tracks…

The money for the committee’s effort came almost entirely from companies that offer cruises-to-nowhere that feature gambling, including $475,000 from Palm Beach Casino Line…

In a separate case against Pennington, the commission also ruled there is probable cause that the same committee broke the law when it also paid for fliers urging voters to defeat an amendment to the city charter of Fort Myers.

Hurricane Betting Taking Internet By Storm

Crap shoot: On Hurricane Season Eve it’s appropriate to consider the important variables, like cold-water upwelling, wind sheer, strike probablilities and El Niño, as well as life’s more esoteric unpredictables like chance, fate, karma or divine retribution, whatever you want to call it.

Some might say that Editor Jon is gambling daily that the San Andreas fault won’t open up and swallow him and a couple hundred thousand of his fellow Los Angelitos. By the same token, folks could say that Editor Trish and I are playing the odds — perhaps long ones — that we won’t get blown to hell and gone by a hurricane during the next six months.

Granted, by choosing to live where we live we are figuratively placing a bet that the really big bad things won’t happen to us. Same with folks in the Midwest with tornadoes and folks in the Mississippi River Valley with floods. And you know what? That’s okay because we figure we know the odds and we hunker down and prepare for the worst while hoping for the best.

‘What’s sad about this is essentially people are placing bets on an issue that affects people’s lives.’
— National Weather Service’s Greg Romano

But, according to the Miami Herald, there is a class of individual out there who is gambling on my potential misfortune. These are people placing what are called “proposition bets” on Web sites, playing the odds and trying to predict whether Florida will get clobbered by a Category 3 or higher hurricane this season.

Weather forecasts, which are based on probability, lend themselves easily to oddsmaking. But professional forecasters, who view their job as a public service, say that’s not what they have in mind when they issue predictions.

”What’s sad about this is essentially people are placing bets on an issue that affects people’s lives. That’s kind of sad,” said National Weather Service spokesman Greg Romano.

”Forecasts are there for people to help protect themselves, their lives and their property,” he said.

But wait, before we write off the owners of these sites as a life form on the level of, say, slime mold, they claim to have feelings and standards.

Mickey Richardson, CEO of BetCris.com, a Costa-Rica based site offering several hurricane-related propositions, said the idea of betting on calamities seemed depraved at first. But customers demanded the wagers.

”We had to wrestle with it, some people view it as a morbid thing to offer,” he said of his site’s storm-season bets. “But we can’t stop hurricanes. There’s been a true interest in it from the public.”

Richardson, along with CEOs of other sites, including wagerweb.com, said they’ve refused to take bets on the amount of destruction or casualties.

Well that’s a relief. At least they’re not betting on whether I’ll be maimed or killed, just how badly my hair will be mussed.

Look, I don’t really care if these idiots are betting on whether we’ll get pasted this summer or autumn like we got pasted last year — I’m gambling, too. But I’m placing my bets on 3/4-inch plywood, Duracell batteries, Coleman camping gear and FEMA. Okay, not FEMA, but on having a plan and being prepared and making sure the liquor cabinet is stocked.

So I might get whumped again this year. There’s a 1 to 5 probability that I will. But if it happens, I can take some small comfort in knowing that the dolts who bet $5 that I would get whacked will only get a payout of $1. Small vengeance, perhaps, but on Hurricane Season Eve, we are grateful for any source of comfort, no matter how small.

God Sez: Charlie Crist Next Florida Governor

Dear Lord: First, thank you for all your blessings upon me and my family and friends. But can I ask you something? Why are you always giving the inside scoop to rightwing ministers like Pat Robertson and the Rev. O’Neal Dozier? You told Pat about hurricanes and now you’re tipping Jeb crony Rev. Dozier about Charlie Crist.

Lord, you know I live in Florida. I’d appreciate a little direct communication from time to time too. That’s all I’m saying. Southwest Florida Herald Tribune:

“The Lord Jesus spoke to me and he said ‘There’s something I want you to know. Charlie Crist will be the next governor of the state of Florida.'”

A reverend who introduced Republican gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist during a breakfast with other pastors Monday said the Lord came to him in a dream two years ago and told him Crist would be the state’s next governor.

The Rev. O’Neal Dozier said that before the dream he did not know Crist, nor had Crist made known his plans to run for governor.

“The Lord Jesus spoke to me and he said ‘There’s something I want you to know,'” said Dozier, pastor of the Worldwide Christian Center in Pompano Beach. “‘Charlie Crist will be the next governor of the state of Florida.'”…

“It’s the most amazing thing anyone’s every told me,” Crist said. “It’s beyond overwhelming, but the reverend has a very strong faith in his heart and he’s a good man. I’m very grateful for his help and his support and his belief.”

Gov. Jeb Bush, who appointed Dozier to a group that nominates judges in South Florida, didn’t directly respond to the remark, but praised Dozier.

“Far be it from me to judge about people’s faiths and what occurs because of it,” Bush said.

As you know, God, none of this has prevented some of your people from speculating that Crist will be undone once he’s exposed as a homosexual who, according to people like Rev. Dozier, you have condemned to hell. It also hasn’t stopped rightwingers who think Crist is too liberal from putting up cheesy anonymous web sites ridiculing him, like SorryCharlie.com

Two Candidates Challenge Harris, One Picked by Rove; Meanwhile Katherine Gets Her Gun

In literally the final hour before today’s qualifying deadline, two candidates surfaced to challenge U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) for the opportunity to beat U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) this fall.

The president kept so far away from Harris, “it could have been a public-service announcement on bird-flu-greeting protocol.”

Jeb’s first choice, Speaker of the House Rep. Allan Bense (R), kept everyone guessing wrong until the last minute that he would decide to run. The seat is just too coveted — and the Bush brothers just too contemptuous of the woman who prostituted herself to put W. in power — to let it go without a fight.

Indeed, the president’s visit to Florida earlier this week should have provided Harris a photo opp to counter the governor’s constantly voiced doubts about her ability to beat Nelson. Instead, as Orlando Sentinel Columnist Mike Thomas put it, the president kept so far away from Harris, “it could have been a public-service announcement on bird-flu-greeting protocol.”

Today two dark horses appeared, one hand-picked by Karl Rove. According to the Lakeland Ledger, Harris’ hometown newspaper, they are William McBride, an Orlando personal injury lawyer, and Peter Monroe, a developer. McBride — a family friend — is Rove’s choice.

Meanwhile, Harris grabbed the spotlight back with her oddly timed announcement that she will spend the weekend in a class to renew her concealed weapons permit, lapsed after she first obtained it in the wake of death threats during the 2000 election theft.

“For me, I just want to have a permit in an overabundance of caution,” she said. “I want to go ahead with getting it for practical purposes.”

…The visit to the gun range will double as a photo op, with media invited to broadcast images of Harris that could play well with gun rights advocates.

The range is at the aptly named Hallelujahland Ranch, “owned by James F. Griffin III, a member of the local Republican Executive Committee.”

Don’t let Harris’ firepower scare you, boys. I doubt she’ll pull down on you unless it looks like you’re going to shoot first. Or win.

Florida GOP Pol Who Could Beat Katherine Harris Opts Not to Run

Dodging the bullet: Florida House Speaker Allan Bense announced today that he would not run against Katherine Harris in the Republican primary to determine the challenger for Democrat Bill Nelson’s U.S. Senate seat from Florida. Many Republican leaders, including the hapless Jeb Bush (who can’t even get a pet bill passed in the Florida legislature, let alone influence a Senate race), have been trying for weeks to draft Bense into the race as Harris’ campaign stumbles, bumbles and fumbles toward almost certain, ignominious defeat.

In a statement published by the “St. Petersburg Times,” Bense gave the trusty and prosaic excuse of not wanting to be separated from his family for many years to serve in the Senate.

‘After much thought and prayer, I realized the answer to that question is “No.” ‘

While the challenge of running a successful campaign over the next several months was exciting, and while I am confident we would have been successful, ultimately my decision came down to the fundamental question of whether I was willing to spend the next six, 12 or possibly 18 years of my life away from my family and my home serving Florida in the U.S. Senate. After much thought and prayer, I realized the answer to that question is “No.”

I do think Bense would have been “successful” in a run against Harris, but Nelson looks almost unbeatable at this point. He’s got money, a moderate track record and is running a pretty clean campaign. Basically, all he has to do is sit back and watch Harris self-destruct.

Bense might have made a difference insofar as he could have hastened Harris’ exit from the political stage and maybe given Nelson a run for his money. But perhaps he was put off by the prospect of being drafted into a campaign by a party that didn’t necessarily want HIM, but absolutely doesn’t want HER. It would have been a politically weak position from which to campaign, and while the state’s rabid Repugs probably would have backed him in support of the party, Bill Nelson still would have won.

Common Cause Wants Justice Department to Investigate Katherine Harris

This shouldn’t take long.

Common Cause, pain-in-the-GOP-ass extraordinaire group that Jeb once referred to as a bunch of “secret squirrels” is at it again. This time, they’re going after beleaguered Senate candidate U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.), asking the Justice Department to do its job and investigate the skanky ho bag.

“Bribery takes two…We know Mitchell Wade has been guilty of bribery. The question is, ‘Is Katherine Harris guilty?’

Common Cause wants to know whether Harris broke the law when she and Mitchell Wade met at an exclusive Georgetown restaurant in early 2005. At that dinner — which cost Wade up to $2,800 — Wade offered to hold a fundraiser for Harris and sought her help obtaining $10 million in federal money…

“Bribery takes two,” said [Common Cause Director of Ethics Campaign’s Mike] Surrusco. “We know Mitchell Wade has been guilty of bribery. The question is, ‘Is Katherine Harris guilty?’ “

It’s a violation of Congressional ethics codes to accept anything worth more than $50. Harris didn’t do too well recently explaining this whole $2,800 dinner deal to reporters. One can only imagine how she’ll hold up under Justice Department questioning.

In her interview Wednesday, Harris acknowledged for the first time that Wade had paid for the dinner at Citronelle, reversing a statement from her congressional spokeswoman earlier this year.

But in the interview, Harris also said her campaign had, at some point, “reimbursed” the restaurant.

When asked how she could have reimbursed a business that was owed no money — Wade paid the bill that evening — she abruptly ended the interview and walked off. […]

Florida War Vet Refuses to Swear Support for Government

A newly elected 76-year-old Korean War veteran in Florida is refusing to take the oath of office because he doesn’t support the current regime.

Basil Dalack is suing Tequesta, near Miami, to rewrite the oath.

… the oath requires him to “support, protect and defend” the government…

Dalack said he believes the U.S. war in Iraq is unjust and “an abomination.” He said he could not sleep at night if he took a pledge implying blanket support for the U.S. government.

“Those dead kids in Iraq, American kids and Iraqi kids, would haunt me,” Dalack said.

Good man.

FL-11: Castor Gets Schiavo Endorsement

TerriPAC, the political committee created by Michael Schiavo in honor of his late wife, Terri, whose linger coma caused controversy last year, has endorsed Hillsborough County Commissioner Kathy Castor (D) in Florida’s 11th Congressional District:

Castor is vying for the seat left vacant by Rep. Jim Davis (D-Fla.), who is leaving Congress to run for governor. Castor is leading in money with $392,089 on hand. Her closest rival, state Sen. Les Miller (D) had $173,209 on hand at year’s end.

Michael Schiavo recently met Castor and came away impressed, prompting the TerriPAC endorsement. In a statement, he said, “Kathy Castor has proven she will take the lead and stand up for our privacy and freedom and against powerful interests.”

TerriPAC is due to endorse candidates in the Florida governor’s race soon, as well as congressional races in California, Pennsylvania, Colorado and elsewhere.

Santos Would Have Won Florida

I was surprised to see the folks at NBC award Florida to Vinick in the West Wing presidential election, even before Leo’s untimely death.

This only shows how pervasive the whole red state/blue state stereotypes have become, and how, like most generalizations and simplifications, they are both wrong and self-perpetuating.

Gore won Florida in 2000 – BEELEEVE it! The final result — the absolute best you could say for Bush, even with all the revisionist shenanigans — was 48.8% for Bush to 48.8% for Gore.

This only shows how pervasive the whole red state/blue state stereotypes have become, and how, like most generalizations and simplifications, they are both wrong and self-perpetuating.

In 2004, even with the world’s worst Democratic candidate on the ticket (sorry Jon), for whom I myself could just barely stand to cast my vote, and could only do so by reminding myself repeatedly just how bad Bush was in comparison to Herman Munster-Kerry, a minimum of 47.1% of Floridians were able to force themselves to do the same, depending on whether you believe exit polls or Diebold machines.

Kerry lost Hispanic votes nationwide, and I think that had less to do with Bush’s appeal than with Kerry’s awkward, New England Yankee elitism. It’s the same reason all those people said they would rather quaff a beer with Bush — Kerry just wasn’t one of us.

But the fictional Santos is, and despite slanted redistricting, real-life Republicans aren’t a slam dunk in the Sunshine State. And even though in the 2000 census only 2.3% of the total 16.8% of Floridian Latinos were Mexican-American, you can depend on Florida to line up behind a legitimate Latino/Hispano/Cubano/and even Mexicano candidate.

Santos would have won Florida. I hope in 2008 we have a real choice again, and I am proven right. And Diebold is out of the picture.