Environment A Winner in Governor's Race

In their continuing coverage of the Florida Governor's Race, the Tampa Tribune has written an article about the four major candidates’ environmental records.

"'This is the first election I can really remember that the environment can't really lose," said David Gluckman, longtime lobbyist for the Florida Wildlife Federation. "We've got four candidates that are reasonably good.'"

Click the link in the title bar for the full article.

District III Candidates Forum

The Candidates in the County Commission District III race will appear together for a community forum on Tuesday, August 1st at 7:00 PM in the St. Luis Catholic Church on Fred George Rd. This forum will allow the candidates the chance to answer questions submitted by a variety of local organizations.

This is an excellent opportunity for a side-by-side comparison of the three candidates for the District III seat; John Paul Baily, John Daily, and Chip Sellers. This event is free and open to the public.

For more information email Nancy McGrath at nancymcgrath5@hotmail.com.

Congratulations to Newly Elected Executive Board

Thanks to everyone who has served for the last year, and congratulations to the new year's officers.

President: Elizabeth Kennedy
Vice President: Christian Ulvert
Vice President of Community Affairs: Phillip Perry
Vice President of Political Affairs: Corinne Rubin
Treasurer: Alan Brock
Secretary: Sarah Smith


May you all continue to fight the good fight!

Was Jesus a Democrat or a Republican?

I have heard Sen. Max Cleland speak at least a half dozen times now, and tonight was the speech I have ever heard him give. He told some of the best jokes I had heard in a long time too, my favorite of the evening, that is simple enough to repeat, was when he asked the question, was Jesus a Democrat or a Republican?

For his answer, he said:

I don't know, I do know that he was a carpenter, and every carpenter I know is a Democrat. I know he was also a teacher, and ever teacher I know is a Democrat, and I know that it sure wasn't an elephant that Mary rode into Bethlehem!

I laughed.

Congrats to the Leon DEC for a great fundraiser

The Leon County DEC fundraiser was awesome. You could sense the new energy among Democrats. Including the politicians whose speeches were reinvigorated. New energy and strength coming from them too.

It was a much needed motivational evening.

Good Job to John Fleming and his committee, and former LCYD President Rick Minor, who is the now the Leon DEC Chair.

Summer Elections

Today's post is two fold:

1) I hope that you are following the ongoing battle for a locally elected Supervisor of Elections to have decision making authority. Ion Sancho, Leon County's Supervisor of Elections, and one of the best election experts in the country, continues to be targeted by the Republican lead leadership of Florida. The title bar links to a story in yesterday's paper regarding how Cobb, the Jeb Bush appointed Secretary of State, is trying to change state law to give the state the power to approve how Election Supervisor's test there machines. Why, after all these years, would the State need this power? Because Ion Sancho has found flaws, with the machines the state is requiring him to use, that allow the results of the elections to be tampered with and changed.

2) Don't forget that this Monday is an LCYD meeting, and that we will be holding officer elections for the next year this Monday. Rules and procedures have been sent out over our Yahoo Group (There is a link to join ---------->). I hope to see you there!

Where Does Faith Belong? Right Here In My Blackberry

It appears the county commissioner on the extreme right knows where faith belongs in a public meeting - in his Blackberry.

More and more often, people are distracted from meetings by sending text messages or checking email on their Treo or Blackberry. I have seen this during group votes, in front of guest speakers, and even at dinner. However, this is the first time that I know of someone has been self-absorbed and insensitive enough to type away during an invocation.

The person on the extreme right has set a new low.

Where does faith belong in a public forum?

Yesterday's Tallahassee Democrat ran an article about prayer at County Commission Meetings. And Yesterday the St. Pete Times Blog "The Buzz" ran a post on Sen. Rod Smith reaching out to the faith community. Both implied that religion and politicians don't mix.

I disagree. I belief that a ecumenical prayer at the start of a public meeting helps remind everyone that there is something greater then they are, be it God, or be it the citizens that you are trying to represent.

I want to know your thoughts on God, Faith and Public Service. Does the fact that Sen. Rod Smith reached out the faith community somehow make him to conservative to vote for in the primary? DECs are suppose to start each meeting with a prayer and the pledge, some have cut the prayer out of their meeting, Why? I don't know.... But I don't think it is helping the DEC.

Prayer is a good thing. As a young democrat, I am glad that there are still public forums where it is welcome.

Help Stop Conservative Extremists

Florida's Best Senator, Senator Bill Nelson, is being pushed by extremists in Congress to change his vote on the discriminatory Federal Marriage Amendment. Senators will vote on this outlandishly awful amendment as early as this coming Monday, June 5.

Please contact Sen. Nelson and encourage him to again vote No on the Federal Marriage Amendment. Nelson's Office number is (202) 224-5274.

You can also send an email by clicking here.

Miss Rotunda

You may have noticed Jamey Turner around the capital during session. She is a 21 year old student at FSU, and she is a registered Democrat!

The article in title bar links to a story in the St. Pete Times on how lobbyist use attractive interns to pass legislation. You can learn more about sex in the capitol city from that article then I would have thought the people of St. Pete wanted to know.

We Leon County folk, we understand the capital, we are in its shadow, its inner workings affect us and our local economy, this is a story we already know.

Reckless Development Bills Will Cost Us

Two bills that would promote reckless development are now waiting on Governor Bush's approval.

The "Hazard Mitigation for Coastal Redevelopment Bill," HB 1359, will excuse developers from current restrictions on building residences in High Hazard coastal areas. This will increase the taxpayer funded infrastructure and subsidized insurance that will be at risk when Hurricanes inevitably hit Florida in the future.

The "Agricultural Economic Development Act," HB 1015, will promote urban sprawl, land speculation, and preempts the power of local governments to make decisions about their community's growth. Sprawl leads to longer average commutes and heavier traffic, two things Floridians should be opposing as gas prices continue to rise.

Please contact the Governor and ask him to veto HB 1359 and HB 1015. Encouraging developing responsibility now will save Floridians' money, and possibly Floridians' lives, in the future.

Please Call Gov. Bush at 850-488-4441
or email at jeb.bush@myflorida.com

Governor Bush has vetoed irresponsible development bills in the past. Let's encourage him to do so again. For more information visit follow the link in the title bar to valuable information posted by the 1000 Friends of Florida.

Next Tuesday: Union Leaders Forum

Too many LCYD members, including myself, don't fully understand the importance of the Labor Movement. I have a couple talking points, but would like to better justify the importance when I am talking with friends. I have members that question why buying union made is important. There are also members who question if the Labor Movement is still needed. I am hoping that this hour presentation can better educate us on the issues, so that we can better educate others.

Please join us for our Modern Union Leaders' Forum this Tuesday, May 23, 2006 at 7PM at the Florida Education Association (FEA) Building (213 South Adams Street ~ Across the street from Andrew's Downtown). We have a impressive panel featuring speakers who are leaders in the labor movement and the state Democratic Party.

Featured Speakers Include:

Cynthia Hall, President of Florida AFL-CIO
Luis Navarro, Executive Director of the Florida Democratic Party and former national political director of SEIU.
Eric Riley, with Florida Education Association

Other Labor Leaders have been invited and may join our line up that evening. LCYD forums are opened to the public. There will be light snacks and drinks available at the forum. I hope you can join us for what promises to be an interesting and fun evening.

Updates will be posted over the next week.

"Won't Dent his Tan!"

The sorrycharlie.com website made news again in the Tampa Tribune. The article's author was not impressed with the site's content:

"Oh, one more thing. If the anonymous poltroons want to vilify... for not joining the sleazy chorus of pols like Gov. Jeb Bush who practically tried to hook up with Terri Schiavo on
eHarmony.com, could they at least spell the poor woman's name correctly?

'Teri Shiavo'? So much for opposition research."

Click the title bar for a link to the full article.

What is going to happen in District Four?

The article in the title bar links to the growing number of people who are discussing running for the District Four Seat that is being left open after the resignation of Tony Grippa, and that without even knowing if there will be an election or just an appointment.

The article names nine people and I know of other names that have been tossed around as possible candidates. Well politics are local and it is going to be interesting to see how this race starts to draw attention.

May Day

Today, as I was preparing for tonight's meeting, I did a quick yahoo search on May Day. I found what I expected, that it is the historic start of Spring. But I also found out a lot about the Labor Movement's embracing of this holiday. It seems there was a big riot at the end of the 19th century and many people and countries embrace this day as a true Labor Day. Here is an section from the first, incredibly biased, website I found.

It is not surprising that the state, business leaders, mainstream union
officials, and the media would want to hide the true history of May Day,
portraying it as a holiday celebrated only in Moscow's Red Square. In its
attempt to erase the history and significance of May Day, the United States
government declared May 1st to be "Law Day", and gave us instead Labor Day - a
holiday devoid of any historical significance other than its importance as a day
to swill beer and sit in traffic jams.....By covering up the history of May Day,
the state, business, mainstream unions and the media have covered up an entire
legacy of dissent in this country. They are terrified of what a similarly
militant and organized movement could accomplish today, and they suppress the
seeds of such organization whenever and wherever they can. As workers, we must
recognize and commemorate May Day not only for it's historical significance, but
also as a time to organize around issues of vital importance to working-class
people today

.

So you can see feelings run strong on this issue. And most people writing on the internet about the Labor Movement all seem to use similar language.

But today as the day that immigrant community should stage a walk out now makes more sense. What are your thoughts?

The R's are starting to play

Most of you probably check out the St. Petersburg News blog "The Buzz". But this morning they posted a new link to a new website www.sorrycharlie.com. A flash website that is making fun of Charlie Crist and his secret... And not the one that you think. It seems that whoever makes this website thinks that Crist is a flaming liberal and is in bed with the trail lawyers! The first one, the one that will open if you click on the link, shows him in a photo with former Attorney General Janet Reno, and the next puts him in a flash video with Sen. Kennedy, Sen. Clinton and Sen. Kerry. Computers are fun that way.

I am excited about the R's starting to cause problems for each other... The need to spend their millions in the primary... To help even out the field before the general election. Trial Lawyers as we know protect the citizens, at the same time usually donating money to the Democrats. Unfortunately, they often are involved in suing big business, who unfortunately are usually exploiting citizens, and give money to Republicans. For some reason that I cannot fully understand many trail lawyers are aligning themselves and their money with Charlie Crist and making big business angry.

Let's see how they self destruct.

Worst President Ever?

Rolling Stone has published a cover story where they predict that President Bush might be the worst American President in history. I just wanted everybody to know.

What if the Simpsons were real

Check out this link to the see the Simpsons come to life.

From Wikipedia:

The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening. It is the longest-running American sitcom and longest-running American animated program of all time, with 17 seasons and 373 episodes since it debuted on December 17, 1989, on FOX. The Simpsons is the highest rated cartoon of all time, at one point in time averaging higher than 25 million viewers.[1] The television series is a spin-off of a series of animated shorts originally aired on The Tracey Ullman Show.

and if you Yahoo the Simpsons you get over 25 million hits!

No nothing really political about this, but I wanted to share this neat clip with you.

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Statewide Press for the LCYDs

The Smith Campaign is hosting the radio interview that played on Florida Public Radio last week on their website...

Hear our organization's name, hear the vice president of the LCYDs Thure Caire speak and earn himself statewide name recognition.

Check out the link: http://www.rodsmith2006.com/flpublicradio

Walk with Will

Have you given to the March of Dimes yet? The Leon County Young Democrats want to help Rep. Ausley reach her goal of 10,000 online in the next week. How do we do that? We forward this page to our friends and relatives and let them know that we appreciate the hard work of the March of Dimes and we hope that might be able to help out with a small donation.

They can click on the title bar or this link here: www.walkamerica.org/IronWill

Rep. Ausley has been good to us and the citizens of her district, and now is one way to show our gratitude and respect.

The People Have Spoken

Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz is working hard to help keep our smaller classrooms. The state of Florida overwhelming supported smaller class size, and in a year where we have over $5 billion budget surplus the Governor's argument that we cannot afford to implement the plan rings false to everyone.

Click the title bar to be taken to a website to sign this petition:

Dear Legislator,
As a Floridian, I believe our state should be
committed to smaller classes for better neighborhood schools.

Because of this, I fully support the class size reduction amendment
that voters passed in 2002.
Today, seventy percent of Floridians want smaller
classes. The people have spoken -- loud and clear.

Now it's time for the legislature to listen.

Please, for the sake of Florida's future, vote against this misguided
repeal.

Thank you,
The People of Florida

Time to Get Your Learn On!

The Leon County Young Democrats are committed to having a minimum of 25 members at this training so mark your calendar now! I would like to see us have twice that number there!

North Florida Activist Training -- Hosted by the Florida Democratic Party Get ready for the 2006 campaign!The Florida Democratic Party Coordinated Campaign will hold a one-day activist training camp in Tallahassee for North Floridians who want to help elect Democrats in 2006!

Local and national experts on campaign management, field organizing, communications, grassroots advocacy, and organization building will be on hand to instruct and work with you one-on-one to develop your ability to promote progressive values and Democratic Party-building skills.

We need YOU (and ALL of your Democratic friends) in order to win in November!
Date: May 6th (Saturday)
Time: 9:00 am- 4:30 pm (Check-in opens at 8:45 am)
Location: Tallahassee Community College Legislative Research Center and Museum 444 Appleyard Drive Tallahassee, Florida

Requirement: You must be a registered Democrat or Independent. Please sign up before May 3, 2006.

To sign up for training: Call 850-222-3411 or log on to
www.fladems.com/CCTraining/CCTrainingform.php BEFORE May 3, 2006.

For more information, please call State Party Headquarters at 850-222-3411.

Capitol City GLBT Democrats

The Florida GLBT Democratic Caucus, the official gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender caucus of the Florida Democratic Party, is excited to announce the first organization meeting for a chapter in Tallahassee and Leon County. We are building on our state-wide network of chapters to turn out the GLBT community to the polls like never before in Florida's history.

From the Republican Party contributing $300,000 to the state constitutional amendment that would ban marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships for gay and lesbian Floridians, to stopping legislation that would protect students from bullying or allow gay foster parents to adopt, we must fight back by electing progressive, common sense Democrats.

The first meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 18 at 7:00 PM in the Family Tree Community Center located at:

310 Blount Street, Suite 205
Tallahassee, FL 32301

Take Gaines Street to Bronough Street (you can only go one way on Bronough) and turn Right on Blount Street. It's the first building on the Right.

You can learn more about the Florida GLBT Democratic Caucus by going to http://www.floridaglbtdemocrats.org or contacting me at phillip@floridaglbtdemocrats.org.

Tomorrow Night Walk with Will Kick Off!!!

Here is an invite from Rep. Ausley to help kick off her son's team for the local March of Dimes:

APRIL 11th KICK-OFF PARTY: PARADISE GRILL AND BAR

Iron Will invites you to join us on Tuesday, April 11th from 5:30 - 7:30pm at Paradise Grill and Bar. If you are participating in the walk, you can bring donations already collected and pick up your t-shirt. If you cannot participate in the Walk, but would like to support our team, t-shirts will be for sale at Paradise.

This promises to be a fun evening. Refreshments will be available, and entertainment will be provided by Frank Douglas and the Fried Turkeys . Please pass this along to your friends and neighbors to encourage them to come out and support our efforts on behalf of the March of Dimes! We would love to see everyone there. However, if you are not able to make it to the kick-off, you can still mail us your donation! Please make checks payable to March of Dimes and write Walk With Will on the memo line. Checks can be mailed to PO Box 786, Tallahassee, FL 32302.

Many thanks for your friendship and support over the past three years. We hope to see you in the coming weeks as we join together to support this worthy cause.

Loranne, Bill and Iron Will

Relay for Life Report

This past Friday and Saturday the Leon County Young Democrats participated with the TCC Relay for Life. I am glad to report that our team out raised any team online and placed third overall. I have loaded some pictures from the evening to share with everyone, starting with a stock photo of the fundraising champion Phillip Perry, who was the number one fundraiser for the event!

I apologize you will probably quickly note that the photos from the evening are not in any particular order. Blogger is awesome and free, but I haven't quite managed loading photos yet.

Here is a picture of the Luminaria Ceremony, a candle lit ceremony in honor of those affected by Cancer.
Michele Straw and Corinne Rubin after setting up the tents take a much deserved rest on the blow up toys.
The 3AM round of Dominos.
The Post Midnight pictures begin, from left to right Leah Ellington, Beth Kennedy, Chris Petley, Steve Schale and Jesse Roaza, all fresh from walking a half hour shift on the track.
Jesse Roaza fighting off sleep around 5AM.
Beth Kennedy and Leah Ellington around midnight. Still looking bright eyed and bushy tailed.
As you can see all of the LCYDs had a great time and we look forward to help out Relay for Life again next year! If you would still like to donate to the American Cancer Society you can click on the title bar for this post.

Next up we will be helping out Representative Ausley and the March of Dimes.

The Day After Tomorrow

For all of my environmentalists Young Democrat Friends, Al Gore has made a movie for you.

An Inconvenient Truth
Opens: May 26, 2006
What the Movie's About: This captivating documentary chronicles former Vice President Al Gore's career-long crusade to raise awareness about -- and stem the tide of -- the potentially catastrophic effects of global warming.
Here's the Buzz: The positive hype surrounding 'Truth' has caused something other than the climate to heat up, namely Gore's political career. Although Gore officially retired from politics in 2000, pundits are already speculating that the ex-Veep could ride the film's coattails into the 2008 Presidential race. Nothing 'Inconvenient' about that.

Check out the Trailer!

LCYDs in the News

Democrat's homespun style wows 'em
Smith seeks primary win for governor

By Brendan Farrington
AP Political Writer
The Associated Press April 2, 2006

TALLAHASSEE · Cindy Satur changed parties when Ronald Reagan was president, switching from Democrat to Republican.But two weeks ago, the Port St. Lucie woman received a new voter registration card listing her as a Democrat again. The reason she switched back? Rod Smith.

She saw Smith and the other three major gubernatorial candidates speak in Orlando in January and was immediately impressed. "I felt that he offered more solutions and he didn't have the canned political response. I felt an honesty," said Satur.

She's a good example of why many people believe Smith, a state senator and former prosecutor from Alachua, can steal votes from Republicans and win the governor's seat -- if he can beat U.S. Rep. Jim Davis in the Democratic primary.

While Davis has the backing of Bob Graham, a former governor and U.S. senator, and Rhea Chiles, the wife of the late governor Lawton Chiles, Smith evokes the spirit of the popular Democrats. He has a folksy charm and an appeal that could win over some Republicans, conservative Democrats and independents who have supported Republican candidates in recent years.

"Smith reminds me of people like Bob Graham and Lawton Chiles and Reubin Askew," said Aubrey Jewett, a University of Central Florida political science professor, who watched Smith, Davis and Republicans Charlie Crist and Tom Gallagher at a Tallahassee event. "Just as sort of an image, the more the Democratic candidate can get people to think about earlier popular Democratic governors, the better chance they have to win."

Smith keeps pushing that message on his campaign stops. While speaking to Leon County Young Democrats this past week, Smith was asked how to stop rural north Florida Democrats from voting for Republicans."I don't know if I planted that question, but if I didn't, thank you," Smith said. He then went on to say people in his community trust him because of his law enforcement background and because he comes from a farming family.

And, as he often says, Republicans can't attack him on God and guns."I come from a part of the state where most folks have guns. They hunt. I've never had any real concerns about gun control until the vice president," Smith said, joking about Dick Cheney recently shooting a friend on a hunting trip.

Electability has been a campaign theme for Smith. He points out that there are still more Democrats than Republicans in Florida even if the GOP has won every statewide vote since U.S Sen. Bill Nelson's win in 2000.

"We have a 400,000-plus advantage in registered voters. Why aren't we winning?" Smith said. "We cannot lose if we hold our voters, but we've not been attracting independents, we've not been holding what some used to call the Reagan Democrat. There are a lot of blue collar workers who we lose over a lot of issues."

Satur knew nothing about Smith when he spoke alongside the other three candidates. Yet she was moved by what he had to say and how he said it, finding substance instead of a political rhetoric, she said.

"He represents the new Democrats, not so far left, not so liberal as they seem to be in the past," Satur said. "If there was an issue where he truly believed the Republican Party had a better solution or a better answer, that wouldn't bother him to support that.

Smith, though, has a long way to go if he wants to replace Gov. Jeb Bush, who can't seek re-election because of term limits. Davis has more money and, as a congressman from Tampa, is better known. He's also leading in polls, though most Democrats are still undecided.

Smith uses the underdog status to get crowds to warm up to him. He jokes about how he was introduced at one stop as Rod Stewart and at another a man named Smith forgot Smith's last name. Then there's his standing in the polls.

"The first time I saw a poll in this election they had me at 4 percent. That's the good news," Smith told one group. "The bad news: The margin of error was 5 percent."

The humor, combined with a rapid-fire, passionate delivery when discussing issues, has a way of winning people over. The same style worked well for him as a Gainesville area prosecutor, said Johnny Kearns, a public defender who faced Smith in many cases.

"I used to tease him that he was the reincarnation of Will Rogers because he talked like Will Rogers and he had those amusing anecdotes," Kearns said. "None of that stuff is prepared. Rod will assess a situation and he'll get on a roll and he's unbelievable. He's amazingly amusing and at the same time he has a point to all of his stories."

Before serving as a prosecutor, Smith worked as a labor lawyer representing unions. During that time he earned the respect of Peter Hurtgen, a Republican who was appointed by President Bush to serve as chairman of the National Labor Relations Board.

"I found him to be a very fine lawyer, very honorable, very trustworthy, reasonable and frankly an outstanding person as well," said Hurtgen, who now practices in California. "I can't frankly imagine a guy better suited as far as background and personal skill set to be a public official at high level."

Smith is very talkative and not afraid to speak off the top of his head about almost any subject. Smith, who like Rogers was born in Oklahoma, says his parents were both quiet people, so he had to supply both sides of the conversation. He also said growing up, his minister was the only public speaker he saw, so the style rubbed off.

"He definitely is loquacious. He's outgoing. He's quick with a smile and a joke. It is endearing," said Sen. Dave Aronberg, D-Greenacres. "We always encourage him to talk slower, but it's his nature to get as much information out there as possible."

Smith also has a reputation of being able to work with Republicans. He helped then-Senate President Jim King, R-Jacksonville, negotiate a compromise on a law that placed caps on medical malpractice lawsuit awards. The Senate succeeded in pulling Bush and the House away from the lower limits they wanted. He also helped form a coalition that stopped the House and Bush from passing a law to intervene in the Terri Schiavo right-to-die case."

Sen. Smith has a good track record of working with Republicans in the Senate, in part because he's a conservative Democratic," said Senate President Tom Lee, R-Brandon. "He's the last of the north Florida conservative Democrats."
Copyright © 2006, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Sunday's Doonesbury Comic

The title bar will link to the comic for two weeks past its original run. If you click on the photo it will reopen larger in a new page.

A message from Young Democrats of America

We get emails from lots of groups about the failed Republican agenda (Social Security, Iraq, Medicare), and the weak leadership of the President (Harriet Miers, Katrina, Ports deal) and all of his corrupt friends (Jack Abramoff, Scooter Libby, Jack Boehner) but this weekend we got to wondering, where is the positive agenda?

One place is at www.OurTenWords.com.

This site is dedicated to asking Democrats to submit the ten words they believe best represent the Party’s message. It’s not often young people are asked to offer input on the Party’s message-- take ten minutes and submit your own ten words:

http://www.ourtenwords.com/user/register

One of the keynote speakers for the upcoming YDA conference in Vegas , Governor Vilsack of Iowa, created this website to get all of us thinking about our hope for America and the Democratic Party. We all know why we are Democrats. As YDA members, we often share the same ideals and values which tie us together. Making sure each of us expresses that and show that young people are leaders in our Party is what OurTenWords.com is about. Take a minute and join the site, offer your own ten words, or simply vote for the entries you like:

http://www.ourtenwords.com/user/register

The Republicans give us plenty of material to make fun of, in fact we pasted of our favorites below. But the fact is, it is not enough to make fun of the Republicans, we must have a positive agenda if we want to continue to get more young people involved in politics and voting for Democrats.This online community is an innovative way for all of us to get involved and to get our peers involved in creating a positive message. The next five days the OurTenWords.com community will vote on the top 100 entries on OurTenWords.com as we all narrow the submissions down to the final three – I hope we can get some Young Democrats in that group:

http://www.ourtenwords.com/user/register

Thank you for joining us as we write our Ten Words and as we commit to a positive agenda for the 2006 election cycle. Our peers need to continue to be engaged and encouraged to be part of the Democratic Party, help us do that today by submitting your ten words and by forwarding this to a few of your friends.

Keep it blue,
Chris and Jane

P.S. After you submit your ten words, here are a few new classic Republican videos you've got to watch for a good laugh:

Bush's Nephew the future of the GOP "You Feeling Me"

John Stewart clip about Bush's new chief of staff

a Republican candidate's ad for election- you have got to watch it

Second LCYD Forum Continues Success

State Senator and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rod Smith spoke last night to about thirty attendees at the Leon County Young Democrats second forum. Senator Smith spoke about the plight of public education in Florida, making healthcare more accessable for all Floridians, and his plans to fix those problems if elected. Folowing his talk, Senator Smith took time to answer several questions from the audience and pose for pictures.

The LCYD thank Sen. Smith for participating in our forum series and for giving a great talk. The success of the LCYD forums will continue late next month. Details will be announced on this web log.

[Picture: Sen. Smith holding one of the Union made LCYD T-shirts.]

Meet Your Candidates: Rod Smith

Make sure you join us this Wednesday at Jasmine's Cafe and Lounge while we meet with Senator Rod Smith. Our Forum starts at 7PM. Join us at 7 and have some of the best Sushi in Tallahassee, followed by stimulating conversation from one of our state's premiere Senators and political leaders.

Senator Smith will update us on session and on his campaign for Governor. I am looking forward to hearing the Senator discuss how he plans to outreach to Young Democrats and Rural Voters and then I hope to hear the same from Congressman Davis in the future.

I have already had one LCYD member tell me that he believes that he will be deciding on who he votes for in the primary off of the LCYD forums. I hope that you will attend be able to join us and develop a better insight in to this candidate.

A new type of "Political Science"

A recent article titled "How to Spot a Baby Conservative" discussed the results of research by a UC Berkeley professor into the origins of personality and a possible correlation between personality and political ideology. Below is an excerpt from the article linked in the title bar:

"Remember the whiny, insecure kid in nursery school, the one who always thought everyone was out to get him, and was always running to the teacher with complaints? Chances are he grew up to be a conservative."

It's not the soundest science, but I think it's worth a read. Enjoy!

Show Your Respect

Legislative Aides are some of the hardest working and least appreciated people in politics. They ensure that our elected Representatives are able to better serve the people of Florida. Last year the Leon County Young Democrats chose to partner with the Florida Young Democrats and recognize these people and their hard work.

Tomorrow, at 7:00 PM, we are doing it again! Tomorrow we will host our second annual Legislative Aides Appreciation Reception. This was the Florida Young Democrats Event of the Year last year, and this year we are working hard to raise the bar.

I hope all LCYD members will be able to attend. If you are interested in helping out with the event please send an email to info.lcyd@gmail.com .

"Happy Sunshine Week - slam!"

The Florida Sec. of State Sue Cobb showed a lack of commitment to the spirit of "Sunshine Week,” a week for recognition of Florida's open-government law, before yesterday's meeting. This excerpt is taken from a Tallahassee Democrat Article available Online through the link in the title bar:

"Tallahassee Democrat Political Editor Bill Cotterell, Associated Press reporter Brent Kallestad and cameraman Dave Heller also were threatened with eviction from a hallway outside Cobb's closed conference room by Capitol Police for trying to attend the meeting with Cobb, Leon County Commission Chairman Bill Proctor, Supervisor of Elections Ion Sancho"

Please click on the title to view the full article, where you may share your views on the article, and download video clips of Sec. Cobb, Com. Proctor and Sup. Sancho.

Light at the end of tunnel for Sancho

There's breaking news in the Leon County Voting Machines Issue. This excerpt is from a Tallahassee Democrat Online article (available through the link in the title bar):

"After a two-hour meeting with Leon County officials, Secretary of State Sue Cobb said today she is 'slightly more confident' that the county can work out problems with providing handicapped-accessible voting equipment.

Elections Supervisor Ion Sancho and County Commission Chairman Bill Proctor said they were pleased with the closed-door session."

Although this news is encouraging, this issue is not yet resolved. "Today's article about Sue Cobb's and Ion Sancho's meeting is encouraging, but in no way does it diminish the importance of attending tomorrow's events," said Rick Minor, Chair of the Leon County Democratic Executive Meeting. For details about tommorrow's activites visit the comments.

Light at the end of tunnel for Sancho

There's breaking news in the Leon County Voting Machines Issue. This excerpt is from a Tallahassee Democrat Online article (available through the link in the title bar):

"After a two-hour meeting with Leon County officials, Secretary of State Sue Cobb said today she is 'slightly more confident' that the county can work out problems with providing handicapped-accessible voting equipment.

Elections Supervisor Ion Sancho and County Commission Chairman Bill Proctor said they were pleased with the closed-door session."

Although this news is encouraging, this issue is not yet resolved. "Today's article about Sue Cobb's and Ion Sancho's meeting is encouraging, but in no way does it diminish the importance of attending tomorrow's events," said Rick Minor, Chair of the Leon County Democratic Executive Meeting. For details about tommorrow's activites visit the comments.

Legislative Aides Reception Date Confirmed!

I'm happy to announce the date for the Second Annual Legislative Aides Reception has been set. This year our award-winning event will take place on Wednesday, March 22nd at Paradigm Downtown. The doors open at 6:30 PM.

Although the Leon County Young Democrats we happy with the turn out last year, we have taken numerous feedback into account and hope to have an even more successful event this year. Hope to see you there!

Monitoring Environmental Bills for the 2006 Session

The Florida chapter of the Sierra Club has posted a very nice tool for tracking the bills that will affect sprawl, public lands, air & water quality, and other issues of interest to the Sierra Club and environmental community in Florida in 2006.


One bill is already making its way through committee, and there are more on the way -- lots more. This session looks to be one of the busiest in terms of conservation issues, so check out this new site for the Sierra Club's perspective on what we can do.

http://www.florida.sierraclub.org/tracker/

LCYD Women in Politics Forum

It is with great excitement that I announce that Rep. Anne Gannon has agreed to be the key note speaker at our first Leon County Young Democrats Forum. Rep. Gannon is going to share with us what brought her into Democratic Politics, how she has seen the role of women change in Democratic Politics since she first got involved and what her vision is to get more more young women involved in the political process. She will also share with us what role the her vision of what the Young Democrats can and should be.

Representative Gannon was the Statewide Co-Chair of the Mississippi Young Democrats (1977-1979). She has been where we are today, recruiting Young Democrats to get involved, and active with the day to day inner works of a YD Chapter.

Since 2000 she has been serving as a State Representative, where she has been recognized as one of the best Representatives of women in politics. A few of her awards for her support of women and children's rights include: Planned Parenthood's Friend of Roe Award; Florida National Organization for Women, Women's Equality Day Award; Florida Women's Political Caucus, Rep. Elaine Gordon Award for Advocacy for Women and Children's Rights and she was on the Center for Women's Policy Studies National Honor Roll of State Legislators.

I know I am excitedied to hear what Representative Gannon will share with us this Tuesday evening.

What: LCYD Forum Women in Politics

When: 7:00PM Sharp

Tuesday: February 21, 2006

Where: Jasmine Cafe Downtown

I hope to see you there! Show up early if you would like good seats and if you are planning on odering dinner.

DC Interships Aviable

"This summer: June 10 - August 5, 2006

Make a difference this summer by attending the Institute on Philanthropy and Voluntary Service (IPVS)! This dynamic program is intended for students who are involved in volunteer activities and are excited about exploring professional opportunities in the non-profit sector. "

INSTITUTE ON PHILANTHROPY AND VOLUNTARY SERVICE
This summer: June 10 – August 5, 2006
Georgetown University, Washington, DC
www.dcinternships.org/ipvs

**PRIORITY DEADLINE FOR SCHOLARSHIP FUNDING – MARCH 1, 2006**

The Priority Deadline for scholarship funding is quickly approaching for the Institute on Philanthropy and Voluntary Service, a summer program for undergraduate students active in service and interested in nonprofit careers.

A substantial amount of scholarship funding is still available and over half of all students accepted to the program receive a scholarship. Students are encouraged to apply by the priority deadline of March 1, 2006 as acceptance, internship placement and scholarship decisions are made on a rolling basis. Scholarships are awarded based on academic excellence, leadership ability and financial need. The final application deadline is March 31, 2006.

This face-paced Institute offers a rigorous combination of professional experience, academic learning and service projects that will provide students with an unparalleled experience in the nation’s capital.

· Internships – Competitive placements with national & community nonprofit organizations
· Classes – Up to 9 credit hours from Georgetown University
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· Service – Variety of hands-on community projects
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· Guest Lectures – With Washington’s top nonprofit executives and scholars
· Scholarships – Over half of all students receive full or partial funding

For more information on this exciting opportunity, please visit the website at www.dcinternships.org/ipvs or contact Shane Goldsmith, Program Director, by phone at 1-800-741-6964 or via email at sgoldsmith@tfas.org.



Ms. Shane M. Goldsmith
Director, Institute on Philanthropy & Voluntary Service
David R. Jones Center for Leadership in Philanthropy
The Fund for American Studies
1706 New Hampshire Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20009
Phone: 202-986-0384 Fax: 202-986-0390
sgoldsmith@tfas.org
www.dcinternships.org/ipvs

Congratulations to Thure Caire

It is with great pride that I share with you news regarding the Leon County Young Democrats Vice President Thure Caire. Today Thure Caire was officially appointed to the Ochlockonee River Soil And Water Conservation District, filling the position vacated by the resignation of Green Party member Kim O'Connor. Thure is now the youngest person in an elected countywide office in Leon County.

Kim O'Connor has done a great job of representing the people of Leon County and I am sure that she will continue advocating on our behalf. I know of no one who is better suited to serve in her stead then Thure - I am sure that he will take this position seriously and excel.

Part of the role of the Leon County Young Democrats is to help train tomorrow's leaders. This is the first step for what I believe will be a promising future for Thure Caire. This is also exciting for the LCDEC as this seat is once again held by a Democrat, bringing us closer to our eventual goal of returning every seat in Leon County back to the Democratic aisle.

More Coverage of Wakulla Springs Issue

Today's Tallahassee Democrat (1/27/2006) featured another article exploring the potential effect of the Southeast Spray field's impact on the regional natural treasure Wakulla Springs. More than $600,000.00 is being spent to explore the suggested link between the spray field and Wakulla Springs.

"We don't know very much about the direction or velocity of flow in this groundwater region," said [Dr.] Todd Kincaid, a hydrogeologist from Reno, Nev., who is involved in [the current] dye study.

For the full article click the title bar.

LCDEC gets mentioned in the news

Article published Jan 26, 2006

Open meetings don't guarantee information

By Bill Cotterell CAPITAL CURMUDGEON


The Democratic and Republican parties have different attitudes about open meetings, but they have a couple of things in common.
Both parties are legally right and politically unwise, when deciding whether to let the public watch them celebrating the glories of the recent past and predicting great victories in the near future.
The Republicans are reflexively secretive, but they don't need to be. The Democrats should be, but aren't.
Oh, sure, they all have private things to discuss. Any self-respecting political organization, big-business conglomerate or organized-crime family does. But nobody thinks what happens in a ballroom full of people is the important story.
The Democrats are justifiably proud of opening almost everything. Under their party bylaws, they have to. But as much as I like open meetings, they really ought to keep some of their more bizarre members and peculiar ideas out of sight.
You can almost hear the jaws tightening as the party flaks struggle to keep smiling during some Democratic debates.
Take last Monday night in the Tallahassee City Commission chamber. Members of the Leon County Democratic Executive Committee argued over accepting the minutes from the December meeting, how many vacancies were available for at-large appointments to their committee, approval of the treasurer's report and whether to continue talking or move on.
That's right: They actually argued about whether to argue.
And that's just a mid-sized county confab with a routine agenda. At the state level, a Democratic conference can resemble pro wrestling, but with fewer men wearing makeup.
The Republicans tend to be serenely like-minded, even monolithic. By the time they convene an official meeting, the leadership has made all the important decisions and the membership enthusiastically endorses them.
GOP delegates then hurry out to the lobby in hopes of having their pictures made with Jeb Bush or Katherine Harris before they get away. At Democratic meetings, the halls and lobbies are filled with merchants hawking T-shirts and bumper stickers proclaiming President Bush a dolt, a criminal, or both, along with souvenirs of the 1972 George McGovern campaign.
Republican business sessions are often closed, like they were handing out checks from Jack Abramoff as door prizes. For some reason, the GOP doesn't want people to know about all that solidarity.
At Walt Disney World last weekend, Florida Republican Chairman Carole Jean Jordan reported that the party is in terrific financial shape, has trounced the Democrats in voter registration and is ready for a tough campaign year. Then the governor came to lunch and urged everybody to stay unified and run on the record of his administration.
Hot stuff. If that information fell into the wrong hands, it could mean - well, nothing.
The Democrats sometimes close meetings, or parts of them. In Orlando last year, candidates for the Democratic National Committee chairmanship made public speeches to Florida party officers, followed by a private question-and-answer session.
A party that elects Howard Dean as its national chairman makes a strong argument for closing more meetings. But the great gaffe meisters of our time have been Republicans - Vice President Spiro Agnew, Interior Secretary James Watt, Agriculture Secretary Earl Butz, a handful of mostly Southern senators and congressmen.
That may be why the Republicans like to discuss the public's business in private. Rank-and-file Republicans, speaking unscripted, are statistically more likely to say something insensitive - and the GOP knows it won't get the media free pass that Democrats enjoy.
With Democrats, it's usually not a slip of the tongue but something they say on purpose that raises eyebrows. Sen. Hillary Clinton's recent "plantation" remark at a Martin Luther King Day observance, for instance, was no gaffe - it was said in a public meeting for a tactical purpose.
The media play a role in this open-or-closed Kabuki, whenever politicians get together. It's no coincidence that the open-meeting requirement in government, as well as in party rules, grew more pervasive as television gained importance. TV needs pictures, not documents or dozens of discrete lobby conversations.
If it weren't for media pressure to open things, the government and political parties would close every meeting and hand out sanitized official announcements afterward. But we in the media often show a naive belief that important decisions get made at meetings rather than well beforehand -and that if we somehow force our way into a meeting, we'll still see the real thing.

Leon County DEC Meeting News Coverage

The title bar links to a story that for the first 3/4 spins will for the local DEC, and the last 1/4 discusses the problems with last night's meeting. Chair Rick Minor's first meeting went well and hopefully his next few will go a little smoother as everyone adjust to the changes.

Here are the closing remarks to today's Tallahassee Democrat article that provide a little insight into some of the issues with last night's meeting:

"We have to stop fighting each other," Minor said. "While we're here, fighting among each other, I guarantee you the Republicans out there are thinking of how they're going to beat us."

Ausman called out at one point, "I'm disappointed that the 'new' Democratic Party, that you purport to represent, is running over the rights of the membership and ignoring them."

Progressive Jobs Available!

Kimberly Fountain called me yesterday to tell me that the company she works with is looking to hire people to work on campaigns! Here is an excerpt from the email she sent me following our conversation:

"(here are) the job descriptions for both Field Organizers (MoveOn.org) and Canvass Directors (Environmental Action). I have also included "A day in the life" for both jobs, so people know what the jobs truly entail. We are looking to hire over 300 people this spring in order to really Take Back Congress!"

What was attached to the email is now in the comments of this post. Good luck to all interested parties!

Local Resolution Reached for Wakulla Springs

City of Tallahassee and Wakulla County officials recently worked together to protect Water Quality at Wakulla Springs. There has been friction between the two local governments regarding the Southeast Sprayfield's (SESF) role in the recent decline of water quality at Wakulla Springs.

Some points of contention have been the presence of cattle and the use of fertilizer on the SESF, and the spreading of residual sewage sludge at the Tallahassee Regional Airport. The recent agreement was regarding the City's announcement they would discontinue the use of fertilizer and remove all cattle from the SESF. "The purpose of the proposed city action is to be proactive and in the best interests of the region- and specifically our friends in Wakulla County," Said City Commissioner Debbie Lightsey, "The city is taking due diligence with this proposal despite the Florida Department of Environmental Protection not requiring such action."* The City stopped the spreading of sludge at the airport some time ago.

Over $800,000 has been spent researching the change in water quality at Wakulla Springs. The City of Tallahassee is currently funding an over $300,000 study to map the flow of groundwater in Southern Leon County. Unmentioned septic tanks in our region may contribute to the woes of Wakulla Springs, but no studies have been proposed to explore that source. Septic Tank studies are very difficult and costly to conduct because of the dispersed nature of septic tanks.
*quote taken from "The Wakulla News" Jan 11th 2006 issue

Our Logo, Their Logo

Last week, the Leon County Young Democrats (LCYD) Executive Board voted unanimously to allow the Leon County Democratic Executive Committee (DEC) to borrow design elements from the LCYD logo for the development of a new DEC logo. This process has been in conjunction with the development of a new website for the DEC.

It is rumored that the new DEC webpage will be presented for the first time at tonight's DEC meeting. As one of Minor's campaign promises, the development of a webpage will receive attention from parties interested in the DEC. Check this Blog for continuing updates.

Chair's Race Contested

Article published Jan 20, 2006
Party leader post in dispute
Bloc of Democrats want Ausman back
By Bill Cotterell
DEMOCRAT POLITICAL EDITOR

Just when he thought it was safe to take over the Leon County Democratic Party, newly elected Chairman Rick Minor faces a palace coup by backers of veteran political strategist Jon Ausman.

Minor would rather talk about rebuilding the once-dominant party, which fell on hard times after Ausman ended his 20-year stint as county chairman six years ago. But his 66-59 victory over Ausman on Dec. 15 is being punted to the Florida Democratic Party on parliamentary points by nearly two-dozen members of the Leon County Democratic Executive Committee.

"It seemed to me to be a God-awful, confused mess," Richard Merrick, who joined the protest, said Thursday. "Jon called and asked me to sign on, and it seemed to me that there were several issues involved, the biggest being whether people who had legitimate proxies should have been allowed to vote and whether people whose terms had expired should still be allowed to vote."

Minor, who will preside over his first county party meeting on Monday, called the complaint a distraction from his work setting up the county party's first Web site, moving into an office, raising money and recruiting Democratic activists for the coming elections.

"I was elected by the Leon Democratic Executive Committee to produce results," he said. "Frankly, we haven't got time to fight among ourselves."

Ausman said he didn't think the protest would further splinter the struggling party - that he could be an effective chairman if he ousts Minor. He compared last month's party vote to the 2000 presidential race between President Bush and Al Gore in Florida.

"At least 22 members of the committee think the election for chair was stolen," said Ausman. "Just as Bush stole the election from Gore, Rick wants to pretend the improper and extra-legal events that occurred on election night are in the past. The Florida Democratic Party has a process to review tainted elections, and we are in that process."

Ausman and Minor, a former state party field organizer, were the only candidates for the county post. But the protest said procedural rules still required a call for nominations from the floor and three-minute statements by each candidate, which didn't happen.

"Appointed at-large members, the terms of which expired on Dec. 1, 2005, were improperly allowed to vote and voted overwhelmingly for Rick Minor," said the letter to State Democratic Party Chair Karen Thurman. "The appointed at-large members do not represent the demographics of Democrats in Leon County, as they are all white and more than two-to-one male over female."

The complaint said Thurman has several options, ranging from just admonishing the county party to ordering a new election. Thurman said she had received the letter and referred it to her judicial panel.

Ausman ran the party from 1980 to 2000, when he stepped aside in favor of former chairman Rick Eggers - who yielded to then-Mayor Scott Maddox in 2003. When Maddox ran for governor last year, he passed the county chairmanship to his longtime aide, Paige Carter Smith, but she quit after Maddox dropped his state campaign.

In the past few years, the Democrats have lost two county commission seats and have not fielded viable candidates for two Republican-held legislative seats. The county party was also fined $10,500 last year for improper filing of a financial report.

While Ausman campaigned on a promise of bringing back happier days, Minor said "a whole new day" has already dawned.

"The word around town is: 'It's a new DEC,' " said Minor. "We're moving forward, not looking back."

Vampire for Governor of Minnesota

Jonathan "The Impaler" Sharkey Jonathan Sharkey is running for Governor of Minnesota and he is a vampire, and a Satanist.

Until August of last year Jonathan was very active with the Republican Party in New Jersey and Florida, including running against Jim Davis for Congress in 2002. He has been elected in Florida:

"From July 1992 until April 1996, I was very active in Hillsborough County (FL) Republican Party. I was elected as City Chairman for Temple Terrace in November 1992. In 1994, I was blessed to work on Jeb Bush's first campaign for Governor. Though Jeb did not win, he showed me the true meaning of a man of character."

You can read his interesting political life here. He is now running with his own party, theVWP Party. VWP stands for: Vampyres, Witches and Pagans.

The title bar links to an MSN clips of him on the Tucker Carlson Show.

What a world we live in.

LCYD Member's Letter to Editor published today

Use science research toprotect Wakulla Springs
Re: “Changes to come to spray fields” (news article, Jan. 4).

It's great to see the city of Tallahassee and Wakulla County are communicating about the spray field. I hope the recent announcement is a sign of more and better thought out changes to come soon.

Suspending fertilizer application seems to be a step in the right direction, but there is no evidence to support that the removal of cattle will reduce the total nitrogen loading to the groundwater below the spray field.

Cattle will always defecate less nitrogen than they ate. Additionally, as nitrogen travels through the cattle's medley of stomachs, greater than half of it is converted into a volatile form, which means that more than half the nitrogen plopped down as cowpies won't enter the ground water.
Cattle were an effective and inexpensive way to move nitrogen completely out of the Wakulla springshed. Mechanical harvesting will be more expensive, which takes money away from other potential treatment options. Let's start really protecting Wakulla Springs by using science research instead of "common sense" notions.

THURE CAIRE

EVENT THIS THURSDAY

Dear Leon County Young Democrats:

You are cordially invited to attend the Democratic Law Student Association presentation of:


Alito Nomination: What’s at Stake?

Featuring:
Guest Speaker: Dan Tokaji
&
Prof. Steve Gey

Thursday, January 12th
7:00-8:30

Florida State University College of Law
425 West Jefferson St. Tallahasse FL 32306
B.K. Roberts Hall, Room 101

Refreshments (FOOD!!) served at 6:30

This event will feature Dan Tokaji, Assistant Professor of Law at the Ohio State University Mortitz College of a Law and the Associate Director of Election Law at Mortitz. His areas of expertise include election law, civil rights, freedom of speech, disability rights, federal courts and civil procedure. His writings address question of racial justice and political equality. His most recent publication addresses the controversy over voter technology and the issue of whether to require a contemporaneous “paper trail” for electronic voting.

Professor Gey is the David and Deborah Fonvielle & Donald and Janet Hinkle Professor at Florida State University College of Law. He has been widely published in leading law reviews and edited volumes and is regarded as one of the nation’s foremost Constitutional theorists. He is considered one of the country’s leading scholars on religious liberties and free speech.

The Democratic Law Student Association hopes you will be able to attend this enriching and informative event. There will be time for questions and answers. I look forward to seeing you there.

Sincerely Yours,

Doris Galindo
Vice-President
Democratic Law Students Association ,
FSU College of Law Chapter

PS---Feel free to forward this invitation to anyone who might be interested

Tallahassee's Leaders Forum

As of today, nearly a quarter million people have joined the "Stop Global Warming Virtual March on Washington," which ends on Earth Day, this April. Add your name and help the numbers grow to a million. This is one of the most important issues of our generation. Visit www.stopglobalwarming.org

Amend This

Changing the rules

(Friday,01/06/2006 © Orlando Sentinel)

The clock is ticking for groups that want ballot amendments.

Jason Garcia
Tallahassee Bureau

January 6, 2006

TALLAHASSEE --

A group that would force the Legislature to spend more money fighting smoking among young people and another that would change the way political districts are drawn both said Thursday they have collected enough signatures to get their proposals on the November ballot.

But the leader of a third high-profile petition drive, which aims to close many of the state's corporate-friendly sales-tax loopholes, said his group would likely fall short.

A fourth group sponsoring an amendment to ban same-sex marriage remains well short of the 611,009 signatures needed to put measures to a vote in a statewide referendum.

The news comes as a state-imposed deadline for citizen initiatives is bearing down. Groups must collect all the necessary signatures -- and have them certified by local elections offices -- by Feb. 1.

"I don't think we're going to make it by that deadline," said former Senate President John McKay, the chairman of the group sponsoring amendments that would force state lawmakers to justify sales-tax breaks for everything from skyboxes in sports stadiums to limousine rides. "I think it'll be very difficult based on the last report we have."

McKay and other supporters have been fighting for several years to eliminate many of the hundreds of exemptions and loopholes that dot Florida's sales tax, breaks they say mostly benefit narrow special interests but which drain more than $20 billion from the state budget. Opponents argue that it could upset the state's economy and hurt efforts to recruit more businesses.

But McKay said Thursday that his group, Floridians Against Inequities in Rates, has nearly abandoned hope of getting the amendments on this year's ballot. Instead, he said, supporters would likely soon shift their focus to the 2008 elections.

"Anyone that offers the opinion that it's too easy to amend the constitution has never tried to do it," McKay said, though he added, "I've still got folks out there working on it."

Anti-smoking activists, however, were buoyant Thursday, as the group Floridians for Youth Tobacco Education Inc. announced that it had submitted more than 830,000 signatures. The roughly 220,000 extra signatures mean backers should have enough wiggle room if election officials are unable to verify some during the next few weeks.

The amendment would require that the state spend 15 percent of the annual payment Florida receives from cigarette companies as part of a 1997 lawsuit settlement on its youth tobacco-control program.

Supporters say the amendment would have generated $56 million this year for the program -- once a national model which has been cut back to $1 million annually. Opponents point out that smoking rates in Florida have continued to drop despite the cuts.

"We will immediately begin a broad, statewide effort to educate voters about this amendment and build on the public support we've already garnered," said Cheryl Forchilli, the group's campaign manager.

The Committee for Fair Elections, meanwhile, said it has turned in even more signatures -- close to 870,000 so far, said campaign manager Paul Dunn. That group is sponsoring an amendment that would strip the power to draw to political districts from lawmakers and give it to an independent commission appointed by lawmakers from both political parties and the chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court.

Amendment backers contend that self-interested lawmakers, using sophisticated computer and voter databases, tailor districts to favor incumbents and the party in power. Opponents counter that drawing district maps is better left to elected officials who answer to voters and that creating a commission would not make the process less partisan.

But Dunn said his group has decided to set aside a second amendment for which it had also been collecting signatures. That measure would have forced the state to draw new maps almost immediately, instead of waiting until the next regularly scheduled round of redistricting after the 2010 census.

Dunn said supporters don't want to risk allowing opponents to seize on that amendment as evidence that redistricting changes are merely an attempted power grab by Florida Democrats, who currently hold far fewer seats in the Legislature and the state's congressional delegation.

"I think we decided, at the end of the day, that we didn't want any distractions," Dunn said.

Perhaps the highest-profile petition drive is racing the clock.

Supporters of the amendment to prohibit same-sex marriages remain short of the required signatures, said John Stemberger, chairman of florida4 marriage.org, which is sponsoring the measure. Dubbed the Florida Marriage Protection Amendment, the proposal would also ban civil unions that offer identical rights and benefits to those of marriage.

Supporters say the amendment is necessary in case a court strikes down an existing state law that already bars gay marriage. But opponents warn that it could cut off other rights for gay couples, such as health-care benefits.

Stemberger estimated his group has collected between 200,000 and 250,000 signatures so far. But he also said the total is growing by tens of thousands of signatures each day.

Backers have ramped up their efforts, he said, making frequent appearances on local talk-radio shows and sending word to churches that they have only three Sundays remaining to gather petitions.

"It's a tough goal," Stemberger said. "But it's a goal that we think we're going to be able to make."

Collecting the necessary signatures does not guarantee any amendment will appear on the ballot. Each must still survive scrutiny from the state Supreme Court, which evaluates proposed amendments to ensure that they are limited to a single subject and that the ballot summaries are clear and accurate. Those hearings begin next month.

Claudia Zequeira of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Jason Garcia can be reached at jrgarcia@orlandosentinel.com or 850-222-5564.

Florida's Rising Stars

I usually try to comment on stuff I copy and paste, but the NJ did a good job. A great look at those who we should keep an eye on....From the Hotline:



FLORIDA: Speed Demons
Several sources we talked to in FL emphasized the speed with which state legislators move through the ranks, thanks to term limits. That certainly holds true, as one of the stars to watch is already in line (albeit six years down the road) to be Speaker of the State House -- just one session into his first term.
The stars we've been watching since '03:

• State Sen. Jeff Atwater (R): Considered a strong candidate for Senate Pres.
• State Sen. Paula Dockery (R): FL's GOP is said to lack strong female candidates. "If she makes some right moves," she could see her stock rising.
• State Sen. Mike Haridopolos (R): We met him in the State House. Right after we mentioned him, he was elected in a special election to the Sen. A staunch conservative, Haridopolos is one of the leaders of the fiscal conservative wing of the party.
• U.S. Rep. Connie Mack (R): Just a State Rep. when we first laid eyes on him, Mack beat out a crowded primary field in '04 to win election to the House. "I think he's going to be" running for U.S. Senate "down the road."
• State Sen. Ken Pruitt (R): Incoming Senate Pres. "Rapidly rising star."
• State Rep. Marco Rubio (R): Incoming House Speaker, first Cuban-American speaker in FL.
• South Bay Mayor Clarence Anthony (D): "It's not a name that bounces up as much anymore."
• State Rep. Loranne Ausley (D): A new mother, Ausley is considered "a rising star, but she may choose to put family before politics."
• State Sen. Dave Aronberg (D): "He's on everybody's short list" for LG. May also run for Congress or State's Atty in S. Florida. Aronberg founded the Mainstream FL Dems, which recruits Dem candidates in rural counties. He's "already building himself a statewide base."
• Ex-FL Dem Chair/Ex-Tallahassee Mayor Scott Maddox (D): His aborted Gov bid this year reminded people that "he just can't get away from fumbling the ball." "He's done."

And the stars to watch in the future:

• State Rep. Joe Negron (R): Running for AG. If he makes it out of the primary with ex-Rep. Bill McCollum (R), "he'll be on his way."
• State Sen. Pres. Tom Lee (R): Running for CFO in '06. "Could be a real up-and-comer."
• State Rep. Andy Gardiner (R): The House Maj Leader. "He's in the right part of the state to make a real impact."
• State Rep. Dean Cannon (R): A freshman, Cannon is already in line to be Speaker of the State House in 6 years.
• State Rep. Dan Gelber (D): The new House Min Leader and former CoS to Sen. Sam Nunn (D-GA), Gelber is "on the escalator."
• Hillsboro Co. Commissioner Kathy Castor (D): "Assuming she puts together a good Congressional effort," she'll have a strong future, though "at this point her campaign is a little sketchy."
• Ex-FL Bank of America Pres. Alex Sink (D): Running for CFO in '06, her husband is '02 Dem GOV nominee Bill McBride. She "may be our best statewide chance this time" because "there's no part of the state where she doesn't have friends."
• Mike Scionti (D): Running for State Rep. in West Tampa. An Iraq war veteran and former prosecutor, Scionti inspires some Dems to get very excited. People are already talking about his future as a statewide candidate.