If you guys think that Jeb has nothing to with your state think again, many of his toadies are using Florida as a spring board to market their goods in your state. The first two links are just a couple of Jebs protégés that are coming to your neighborhood, mind you there are others that are already out there!
Donna Arduin: Arnie's Budget Advisor Has Jeb's Seal of Approval
Well, she currently Director of Jeb Bush’s Office of Policy and Budget in Florida, who was previously deputy budget director in both New York (under Pataki) and Michigan. She is considered a tough conservative who cuts pork out of budgets so that taxes don’t have to be increased, but she is also deemed autocratic by her critics.
As Florida’s Budget Director, she is an advocate of supply-side tax policy, and has already come under fire for her economic growth and revenue assessments in Florida, while flacking Jeb Bush’s accomplishments. She has also earned the wrath of Florida GOP Senators for a lack of credibility in touting the soundness of Bush’s tax and economic policies, with the senators claiming that neither she nor Bush fully and accurately account for the insufficient revenues base Florida has to meet future needs, instead touting how swell things are in the here and now.
She is apparently a party to Bush’s refusal to close sales tax exemptions for certain groups in order to fully fund Bush’s education reform promises, something which rankles the Florida GOP Senate moderates, who claim that Bush underfunds his education reform program. Ominously, she has a track record already of someone who is more willing to raid special funds and trust fund surpluses to redirect revenues into the general fund to finance deficits, rather than raising taxes.
And to cap it off, she is a strong supporter apparently of former Florida Secretary of State Kathleen Harris.
http://www.theleftcoaster.com/archives/000646.htmlENVIRONMENT
State agency chief resigns his post
David Struhs, who has led Florida's Department of Environmental Protection since 1999, says he is leaving his job to join International Paper, a firm his agency regulated.
BY MARC CAPUTO AND CURTIS MORGAN
mcaputo@herald.com
TALLAHASSEE - Florida's environmental chief said Wednesday that he is leaving his job to work for International Paper, a company his agency regulates for its pollution of Perdido Bay.
David Struhs, appointed to his post in 1999, was one of Gov. Jeb Bush's longest-serving agency directors and a one-time front-runner to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
A spokeswoman for International Paper said Struhs will lead the company's environmental affairs division based in Memphis.
In a resignation letter, Struhs did not say why he is leaving the Department of Environmental Protection and the $122,000-a-year job, but he praised Bush for the opportunity to run the department.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/state/7819808.htmAnd here is some interesting reading about Florida and what to expect in the future, I know it seems like a long list, but trust me, it only scratches the surface.
Driven by Byrd, House may end up in the ditch
The Florida House of Representatives is becoming an island that talks only to itself.
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/03/29/Columns/Driven_by_Byrd__House.shtmlGraham: Privatization not always better
Senator criticizes Bushes' many outsourcing initiatives
By Bill Cotterell
DEMOCRAT POLITICAL EDITOR
Sen. Bob Graham, who did some selective privatization of state services as governor more than 20 years ago, said Friday that Gov. Jeb Bush and his brother, President George W. Bush, have shown a "naive" belief that the private sector can do things better than government.
"Privatization has a role, but it can't be done indiscriminately," Graham said in a meeting with the Tallahassee Democrat editorial board. "You can't just privatize something and walk away from it."
"It seems like a general philosophy of Jeb Bush in Tallahassee and President Bush in Washington," Graham said. "They believe anything is better done by the private sector than by government. That seems naive."
Repeated efforts to reach the governor's office for comment were unsuccessful.
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/news/local/8005488.htmDMS reviewing Convergys contract
Democrats assail privatization efforts
By Bill Cotterell
DEMOCRAT POLITICAL EDITOR
Hoping privatization will be an election-year embarrassment for Gov. Jeb Bush and his brother, Democratic legislators said Thursday that the state's $278 million Convergys contract is "a disaster" for taxpayers and state employees.
Bill Simon, head of the Department of Management Services, said for the first time that lawyers are "reviewing" Florida's largest privatization effort in case the state has to bail out. But he assured members of the Legislative Budget Commission that the system is "in the final throes of testing" and that the state won't start paying the company $3 million a month to handle personnel, payroll and benefits until the system works.
"We kind of burned that bridge behind us before we're completely over it," Simon told the Tallahassee Democrat after he left the meeting.
The deal with the Ohio-based management consulting firm was signed in August 2002, eliminating 900 state jobs and avoiding the $40 million cost of upgrading the state computer system used to handle personnel functions.
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/news/local/7995318.htmBush getting a game plan for privatization
By Bill Cotterell
DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER
It may seem a little like Bobby Bowden's deciding he needs a game plan five minutes into the third quarter, but Gov. Jeb Bush is ready to map out a businesslike approach to this privatization stuff.
"As you are aware, I have long promoted outsourcing as an alternative to providing government services," Bush wrote in a memo to Department of Management Services Secretary Bill Simon last week. "I am proud of our successes, but recognize that we can do better."
Contrary to popular misconception, Bush did not say in his inaugural address last year that he wanted to move state government to a double-wide on Blountstown Highway. But by saying he'd like to reduce the need for services provided in some of those downtown office warrens, Bush triggered shock and awe in Tallahassee.
This is the chief executive who, in his first term, oversaw the breakup of the old Labor Department, brought in Convergys to take over state personnel systems and farmed out many other "non-core" functions of executive agencies. Last year, he even tried to run off the State Library.
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/news/local/7963441.htmHuge incentives lure research group to Fla.
The deal brokered by Gov. Jeb Bush to entice the Scripps Research Institute to expand is expected to cost taxpayers at least $400-million.
By ALISA ULFERTS, Times Staff Writer
Published October 10, 2003
Click here to find out more about the Scripps Research Institute.
TALLAHASSEE - Gov. Jeb Bush boarded a plane July17 and headed to California with an audacious idea.
Behind closed doors, Bush told one of the world's largest private research companies that he was prepared to make a deal.
Open a facility in Florida, he said, and taxpayers will build you a brand new lab and spend millions of dollars on high tech equipment.
We'll even pay your employees' salaries for eight years, he said. The cost to taxpayers: at least $400-million.
The Scripps Research Institute hadn't seriously considered expanding, until they heard the offer. They quickly agreed.
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/10/10/State/Huge_incentives_lure_.shtmlCritics say Scripps Research Institute will have wide discretion in what it reveals as it spends taxpayers' money.
By ALISA ULFERTS, Times Staff Writer
Published October 25, 2003
TALLAHASSEE - Florida taxpayers could have a hard time keeping track of how their money will be spent to bring the world's largest private research center to Florida.
Legislation to spend $369-million in tax money on a Florida branch of the Scripps Research Institute gives the company broad discretion in what it discloses, open government advocates say.
Democrats initially opposed exemptions to the public records law, but wound up supporting them in exchange for millions of dollars in pet projects. The money was later killed, but the exemptions stand.
"It's not as good as what we'd like, but it is a lot better than it was," said House Democratic Leader Doug Wiles, D-St. Augustine.
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/10/25/State/Florida_s_369_million.shtmlThis school investment isn't so sound
When it looked like Florida voters were going to mandate caps on class size in public schools last year, Gov. Jeb Bush joked that he had some "devious plans" - which turned out to be simply asking voters to repeal the costly constitutional amendment.
Bill McBride and the teachers unions that had made him the Democratic nominee against Bush howled that the governor secretly was scheming to thwart the will of the people. But now the teachers, the public-employee unions and the Florida AFL-CIO are learning - not that they ever doubted it - how clever Republicans can be at post-election payback.
The state pension fund plans to sink $182 million into Edison Schools Inc., which operates 150 schools in 23 states. In addition to buying up more than 96 percent of Edison's stock, the money would pay off the company's debts and create a line of credit for operating expenses.
The employee pensions are guaranteed by the $92 billion Florida Retirement System, which can afford to take another Enron-sized bath if it has to. That doesn't make the idea any less galling to the employee organizations.
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/news/local/6942100.htmBush fully embraces class size amendment
"TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Jeb Bush has put aside any "devious plans" to shelve the class size amendment. ... "I'm governor of everyone," Bush said.- Even those who disagree with him.
"Republicans, we're going to have to think differently than in the past," King told senators.-- "An increase in taxes, though certainly not what any of us wants, will have to be considered," he added." ...
Stop the flow of bad water ideas
By CHARLES PATTISON
Published September 17, 2003
Recently, an elite business group made known its intentions to convince the Legislature and Gov. Bush to radically alter Florida water law so that limited drinking water supplies in Central and South Florida don't impede future growth and development there. A different perspective, which puts people and the environment first, is the preferred approach if we want to maintain the environment and quality of life now and in the future. Here's why.
Since the 1970s, state water policy has prohibited moving water from one area to another with canals or pipelines. Then as now, the correct and fundamental concept is that our climate, geology and landscapes have limited water budgets. When you move that water outside those natural limitations, the result is damage not only to the area from where the water is taken, but receiving areas become artificial, unsustainable places where water is manipulated for the benefit of a few. This practice means that the donor area sacrifices future opportunities to make choices regarding economic development, recreation, environmental quality, and eventually, low-cost drinkable water. In effect, these areas subsidize growth and development in areas that have grown beyond their means. Rather than pay their fair share to provide water, they ask you to pay in the false name of economic growth and prosperity.
Since 2001, the Florida Water Coalition has been meeting to sound the alarm that our waters are at risk, and to provide thoughtful, reasoned ways to deal with existing water issues while making sure that clean, plentiful water is appropriately available for environmental, agricultural and development needs. The key is re-establishing this relationship, and ending current process that makes this balance "work" by taking water from the environment that sustains us all. FWC is an alliance of the state's leading environmental, public health and public interest groups, formed to educate citizens and decision-makers on water policy, analyze and evaluate changes to water law, and to speak out and mobilize the public voice necessary to protect our shared water resources that are under threat.
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/09/17/Opinion/Stop_the_flow_of_bad_.shtmlPalast Reveals Florida Vote Purger is Now Behind Florida's 'Matrix' Surveillance System
Greg Palast interviewed: "It's De Ja Vu all over again, I can't believe it. My good friend Hank Asher is back with another alias...For those who read my book or Michael Moore's book, Database Technologies, his old company, came up with the list now up to 97,000 names of supposed felons in Florida who are scrubbed off the voter roles before the 2000 election, it turns out almost every name on that list was an innocent person, they were named as felons by this company, by Hank Asher's company, they weren't felons, they lost their vote and, surprise, most of them were African Americans. And that fixed our election. Hank is back. Now Hank was thrown off the board of the company he founded by the U.S. Drug enforcement agency. Because of his connections to Bahamian drug dealers...he is back with a different costume on...up to the same tricks...of course first thing he's doing is jumping on the 911 war on terror bandwagon to see if he can suck a few bucks out that have one, too."
http://democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=03/08/07/1427223#transcript State's tech office to be privatized
"Up to 150 jobs in the State Technology Office will be privatized in an "alliance" with two computer giants to improve service and cut the costs of running an increasingly automated government. ..." (This BC puff press release has another side that hasn't been told ... and an old one that's being forgotten: i.e.. the State Technology draft audit... what happened to all the unaccounted $$? Are these some of the same players? It was a bad idea before, and it's a worse one now. The question of the day: How safe is this new building? Stay tuned... )
Bush signs bill that could raise basic phone rates
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Jeb Bush signed a bill Friday that could raise basic phone rates, saying it will increase competition and ultimately give the public access to new technology and greater choice of telephone companies.
The bill (SB 654) would allow phone companies to raise rates for basic services by $3 to $7.25 over the next four years while reducing long-distance charges. It was opposed by Florida AARP and Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports.
The opponents said the increases would hurt customers, particularly those who make few long-distance calls, while failing to guarantee competition.
"It's going to be disastrous to the citizens of the state," said Mike Twomey, a utility consumer activist who heads Florida Utility Watch. "What it can do is result in, by far, the largest rate increase in the history of the state." 5/27/03
State workers left out of bill on travel-expense payments
Employees of local governments, school boards and state courts could get more relief from expenses incurred while traveling on government business - but state employees would not - under a bill advanced by the House on Tuesday.
Bush wants to muzzle and kick OPPAGA watchdog for barking
Legislation is rolling in the Capitol to abolish the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA) and merge its duties and staff back into the Auditor General's Office, where it was as the "Performance Audit Division" until 1994. The Legislature wanted stronger and clearer recommendations in 1994 for eliminating ineffective programs and couldn't get anything responsive and actionable from the Auditor General. So the performance audit division was taken out, OPPAGA was formed and it has done its job admirably for eight years.
But the Governor fears and loathes OPPAGA. The Governor's Budget Director, Donna Arduin, gets visibly ill when OPPAGA is mentioned.
KAPOW! On Monday, March 31 Rep. Ray Sansom (R) and Senator Jeff Atwater (R) introduced a bill to keep the Auditor General basically as it is, abolish OPPAGA and make its function a policy analysis division headed by a deputy auditor who could be more easily fired. Atwater and Sansom are chair and vice chair of the Legislative Auditing Committee, which oversees OPPAGA. Atwater is a rising star in the Senate who has been uncharacteristically fooled by Bush and his budget director, Arduin; numerous lobbyists who want OPPAGA "gone;" and Rep. Sansom who has an ulterior motive.
Sansom requested and received an appointment to the audit committee, which is not considered a plum appointment. Why? OPPAGA recently offended Sansom's boss, Okaloosa School Superintendent Donald Gaetz (R), by recommending elimination of a costly data processing service contract that Gaetz personally negotiated. So, Gaetz boasted that he was going to "get OPPAGA." Rep. Sansom is Gaetz's Director of Community Affairs--a phony job that allows Sansom to be Gaetz's flack while making speeches to the public, campaign for his state representative job, and lobby for Gaetz Tallahassee. Why hire a lobbyist when you have a legislator on your payroll. This should be impossible for taxpayers to stomach. Where is the outrage?
Don't believe that this OPPAGA/OAG merger will save money. Sen. Atwater was quoted in a Tallahassee Democrat article on April 15, "This isn't a cost savings exercise." The administration and some duped legislators want to muffle OPPAGA by burying it and putting it under control of shy and retiring, exacting and ethical, but not bold or brave management. The current OPPAGA Director can only be removed now by a majority vote of both the House and Senate and is required to be independent in every way.
... anonymous, 4/20/03
Swept away by a lobbyist's wave of influence
Every now and then in Tallahassee, a small sleazy moment occurs that exemplifies the disdain of some lawmakers for the citizens they're supposed to represent.
Recently, a bill was submitted that would repeal a law allowing the state to reserve groundwater for enhancing the environment. Though the measure is almost never used, builders and developers fear that it might someday limit their extravagant ambitions.
Enter one Baxter Troutman. Though his name sounds like it belongs in a Kurt Vonnegut novel, Troutman is a freshman Republican legislator from Winter Park...
On March 19, Rep. Troutman presented his repeal of the groundwater bill to a House committee for preliminary approval. Though the outcome was never in doubt, fellow lawmakers went through the drill of asking a few simple questions.
Not simple enough for Troutman, apparently.
Right away it was obvious that he knew next to nothing about his own legislation. According to The St. Petersburg Times, his most frequent response was: ``I'll have to defer to Jim Garner.''
There was an excellent reason why Jim Garner knew more about Troutman's bill than Troutman did. Garner wrote it. He is a Fort Myers lawyer and a big-shot lobbyist for home builders and golf-course developers. He's also an expert on the politics of water, having once served on the South Florida Water Management District while simultaneously offering legal services to sugar barons, citrus farmers and other thirsty interests....
etc. etc. etc...
Jeb is in a position to make the Bushes a true dynasty
Despite the ostensibly modest symbolism of a barbecue and a blue-jeans ball to celebrate the inauguration of Gov. Jeb Bush's second term, Tuesday's swearing-in carries grand implications for a governor who is more than ever one of the Republican Party's most important national leaders...
Another suspect deal, another Bush brother in the mix
The new year begs for a fresh start. But business accusations of international bribery, nefarious investors and a Bush brother awkwardly involved in a troubled company all have a too-familiar ring.
Here's the latest Robert Ludlum-style financial spat.
Former investors in South Florida's Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. recently filed a $60-million lawsuit accusing... ( more family history here...)
Bush's early promise was empty promise-- When Jeb Bush took office nearly four years ago, I was hopeful. His politics were to the right of mine, but his inaugural speech on Jan. 5, 1999, made me question whether my fears about him were unfounded.
He stressed themes of compassion and generosity of spirit. He urged Floridians to ask "What's best?"
He talked about faith, family and friends - not in the language of Phyllis Schlafly conservatism, but in the vernacular of values that give meaning to our lives and make our communities better. Make us better. ...
While he said the right things, I wondered whether he'd put his words into action. I was cautiously optimistic and eager to give him the chance.
He's had his chance. Florida politics are more mean-spirited and bitterly partisan than I can remember, and I've lived here for all 47 of my years. Most people I know, including Republican friends and a Democrat who worked in his administration, are disheartened. Many folks are so confused by the disparity between what the governor says and how he says it, and what he does and how he does it, that they don't know what to believe. ...
DCF going to Hell in a handbasket.
Gov Jeb is ready to chop DCF into little pieces, and then flush them down the toilet. The proposed plan is to eliminate 1200 DCF employees in 2004, then another 700 in 2005, then finally 3600 employees in 2006. All this in the name of privatization. In addition, create 'zones' whereby all existing districts will be combined into much larger areas. Between the zoning and reduction in staff, and privatization to corporations that are only interested in millions of dollars from the state - you can be assured that the children, elderly and less fortunate will have less support than ever. Don't forget about DCF Secretary Jerry Regier who only wants to be campaign manager for his buddies in Oklahoma while paying little attention to Florida most needy. Jeb poo-pooed this idea, but now Jeb agrees to be his brothers campaign manager for next years presidential election. My my, it's okay for the Governor to shirk his responsibilities to the citizens of Florida, but his DCF secretary can't do it. What do we pay these people for anyway?
J - DCF Employee
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