Notes For Thursday, January 30, 2003

DARK AGES. Daytona Beach News Journal columnist Mark Lane reminds us that "[i]n his inaugural address, Gov. Jeb Bush sketched a utopian vision of a time when the state would, to use Karl Marx's phrase, wither away. There would be no greater tribute to our maturity as a society than if we can make these buildings around us empty of workers, silent monuments to the time when government played a larger role than it deserved or could adequately fill,' he said.

"There was a time when Western civilization just about achieved that goal. Liberals and biased academics persist in calling it 'The Dark Ages.' Government buildings were silent monuments to a time of bigger government. If there were schools or libraries, it was because churches and monks maintained them. Talk about faith-based initiatives!" Read the column. 7:00 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

"DEATH ROW FOLLIES". Tamba Trib columnist Daniel Ruth writes that "Florida had achieved its prior status as the national leader in death row commutations the old-fashioned way - by botching one case at a time. . . . You would think that if you lead the nation on a case-by-case basis of death row commutations, it might be just a bit of a tip to the political intelligentsia that something is rotten. Who could possibly blame Gov. Jeb Bush, an ardent pro-life pol, if he ordered a moratorium on future executions until the state is sure it is killing the right people?"

"If ever there was a `duh' moment, this would have to be it."

"Yet Bush has proposed eliminating state money for lawyers representing death row inmates, arguing that taxpayers would save $4 million a year. Talk about being penny-wise and body bag foolish!"

6:54 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

BUSH - BROGAN: NOT ALL SMILES. "Despite Bush's disavowal of an eroding relationship, friends say the governor was stunned and upset when, during a December trip to New York to meet with bond financiers, he learned that Brogan planned to apply at FAU. Brogan had not mentioned it. The frostiness between the two men has become more apparent over the past few weeks. At their inauguration earlier this month, Brogan was not mentioned in the governor's speech, a departure from past appearances when the lieutenant governor usually drew at least a warm acknowledgment from Bush." Sun Sentinel.
6:47 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

SECRETARY OF STATE HOOD LEAVES ORLANDO WITH A BUDGET MESS AND SWEETHEART DEAL WITH BILLIONARE DEVELOPERS. Mike Thomas complains that "Mayor Glenda Hood reveals a city budget deficit she kept under wraps until after she got the secretary of state job from Jeb Bush. Hood is the one who gave the Navy base away for less than a song. . . . The Pritzker family, which is developing the site, took full advantage of one of Florida's biggest real-estate scams -- the Community Development District. It raised almost $76 million through bond sales to pay for the infrastructure and parks."

6:44 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

JUST TAP INTO YOUR TRUST FUND INSTEAD. "Prepaid plan for tuition could vanish" 6:36 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

POSSIBLE CANDIDATES FOR SENATE 30. "[E]merging frontrunners could be District 30 Rep. Mike Haridopolos (R-Suntree) and District 80 Rep. Stan Mayfield (R-Vero Beach). . . . Bush set a primary for the special election on March 11, followed by the general election March 25. The Florida Legislature begins March 4 and will be in full swing by the time the late senator's replacement is sworn in, well past the deadline for filing bills." Florida Today.
6:34 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

A MAN OF COURAGE AND INDEPENDENCE. Charlie Crist. like so many in the Florida GOP, is hitching his wagon to the Bush train. "Crist said Wednesday he agrees with Gov. Jeb Bush's recommendation to close the state offices that represent death row inmates." Then again, what do you expect from someone who says things like this: "'We had a system that let bad people out of prison early, treated them very kindly when they were in prison,' Crist said. 'It was like going to a health club. They worked out, had three squares a day. ... We needed to reintroduce punishment to our criminal justice system.'" St Pete Times. 6:31 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]