Notes For Tuesday, February 04, 2003

DYER WINS, GOES TO RUNOFF WITH PETE BARR. Democrat Buddy Dyer bested a field of eight Orlando mayoral candidates with 33% of the vote, followed by Republican Pete Barr with 22%. Former state representative Bill SUblette finished fourth with only 13% of the vote; Lawyer Tico Perez finished just ahead of Sublette with 16%. The sole Black candidate, Democrat Derrick Wallace garnered 10%. Complete results. The other three candidates were in single digits.

Although the race is nonpartisan, Barr ran a sub silentio partisan campaign, claiming in mailings (to all but Democrats) to be the conservative Republican candidate. It will be interesting to see how voters who supported the relatively moderate Sublette and Perez shake out. It is expected that most of Sublette's and Wallace's support (some 23% of the voters) will go to Dyer; likewise, many Hispanics who supported Perez can be expected to support the Democratic candidate, Dyer.

Barr's voters, to the extent they encompass country clubbers and Christian Coalition types can be counted on to turn out in force; Dyer's Democratic base will, as always, be tough to get out. 8:40 PM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MIAMI HERALD? Please read Florida Blog's post on the Miami Herald's decline. 6:53 PM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

ALTERMAN BOOK AVAILABLE IN BOOK STORES TODAY. Eric Alterman, author of "Sound and Fury: The Making of the Punditocracy", and the excellent Altercation Web Log, today releases the long awaited "What Liberal Media? The Truth About Bias and the News". Alterman is an outstanding writer and researcher, and, if the first chapter is any indication (it is available online in pdf format), he exposes with relish the canard that the media is liberal, and demolishes the right wing purveyors (notably Goldberg and Coulter) of this false argument. You can learn more about the book at "What Liberal Media?". 5:22 AM [Go to current Florida Politics site (no popup ads)]

GOV. BUSH DEFENDS BROTHER, CRITICIZES SENATOR NELSON, ON COLUMBIA ISSUE.

In an early sign that partisanship will play a role in the post-Columbia debate over national space policy, Gov. Jeb Bush on Monday criticized U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida for his highly publicized assertions that the White House has 'starved' NASA and jeopardized safety." In politicizing the issue, Bush was apparently unaware that Nelson has been out front on this for years: "Nelson, who grew up on Florida's Space Coast, [has] accused the Bush White House ''bean counters'' of failing to fund adequate safety programs for the shuttle, even accusing them in a 2001 congressional hearing of allowing memories of the 1986 Challenger destruction to fade."

Gov. Bush claimed that '''[t]here have been increases in funding'" (although it is unclear as to the source of the Governor's information information). Bush then compared "Nelson's remarks about NASA's budget to those by Democrats in the state capital who use per-capita numbers and the inflation rate to accuse him of failing to boost education funding while, in fact, real dollars have increased."

"Bush also took a swipe -- without specifically referring to Nelson -- at politicians who have been dominating the airwaves since Saturday. Nelson, who flew aboard Columbia as a congressman in 1986 and now sits on key space-related committees, has appeared on virtually every major TV talk show to press the case that NASA is vastly underfunded."

"Nelson, the state's junior senator . . . is . . . viewed as a potential Democratic vice presidential contender in 2004."

Bush claimed he (apparently unlike Nelson) was ``not the kind of person that wants to get out front if it's not appropriate." Bush then proceeded to do just that, saying that "[r]ight now is the time to show our respect for incredible heroes, courageous men and women who take these risks knowingly, provide support and love for their loved ones and show solidarity with the employees.''

Sources: "Gov. Bush criticizes Sen. Nelson . . ."
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