Subject: POLITICO Florida Playbook: Congressional candidate’s lobbying problem – Grayson v. Reid – The Biden-Murphy-McAuliffe connection – Zika fears are different in the Keys -- Zimmerman auctions *that* gun
From: Marc Caputo <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 12 May 2016 05:01:59 -0600

05/12/2016 06:58 AM EDT

By Marc Caputo ([email-masked]; @MarcACaputo) with Ali Breland ([email-masked]; @AliBreland) and the staff of POLITICO Florida

Happy Thursday, Florida Playbookers. It's Joe Biden time for U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy at 10 am today as the veep raises coin for the U.S. Senate candidate's campaign at the Orlando home of Richard Swann, a major Democratic fundraiser and father in law of Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. This is the second event Biden has held for Murphy in his Democratic primary against U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson. In March, Biden headlined a fundraiser and then stopped for a brief public appearance at Jackson Soul Food in Miami's Overtown neighborhood.

GRAYSON GROWL -- "Harry Reid to Rep. Alan Grayson: 'I want you to lose'," by POLITICO's Burgess Everett and Seung Min Kim: Rep. Alan Grayson angrily confronted Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid on Wednesday, disrupting a meeting of the Congressional Progressive Caucus in front of dozens of staffers and members of Congress...[He waved] a printout of Reid's searing quote that called on Grayson to drop out of the primary race against Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.).

"Why'd you say that?" Grayson said, insisting Reid's statement was false. Reid calmly faced his inquisitor: "I want you to lose. It's true."...

Grayson made clear that he believes a public battle with Reid - a "smearmonger" in his view - is to his advantage. "Let's face it, I'm not the establishment candidate. The establishment wants somebody who is a callow tool," Grayson said. "As far as I can tell, the only criteria that the Democratic establishment has among Senate candidates this year is obedience. In that regard, perhaps I fall short."...Grayson called Murphy a "Republican sock puppet." Murphy responded that Grayson is acting a lot like Donald Trump and is hijacking the caucus to further his own ends. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74324e2a9dc46165618e4e5af6679fec23f874d17033276677

MORE GRAYSON GROWL -- "Put a plastic bag over your head, Grayson tells climate change skeptic," by Washington Examiner's John Siciliano: "Republicans should try self-inflicted suffocation to grasp the harmful effects of climate change on human health, said Florida Democrat Alan Grayson at a hearing Wednesday.

"Regarding my friend from California, if he thinks [carbon dioxide] doesn't cause any health problems, I invite him to put a plastic bag over his head, tie it tightly around his neck and see what happens next," Grayson said during a House Science, Space and Technology Committee hearing on the Energy Department's clean energy budget. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae742ae31d0c54ec044ca36de5a3441e564c2a11f241fc06d01d 

TEXT ME -- "Congressional candidate Neal Dunn quietly pushed bank fee bill," by POLITICO Florida's Matt Dixon: Republican congressional candidate Neal Dunn has spent considerable time to push back against opponents who have tried to peg him as a lobbyist, but the Panama City physician in the past has at least informally played the part.

Dunn worked to pass bills throughout the 2013 legislative session, including a banking bill that died in the final days of session that would have, among other things, clarified state law to make clear Florida-based banks can charge check-cashing fees, a move that analysts said at the time could result in "more fees for consumers." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74ec299d65cd266d289dff74c070e7cd56a8357ea2a630ec19 

MARCO POST-MORTEM -- "Marco Rubio Is Not Barack Obama," by Soapbox DC's Luke Thompson via Medium: Jeb "Bush functionally monopolized Florida, meaning Rubio had no home base outside of The Weekly Standard break room. Perhaps as a result of this, Rubio maintained a light organizational footprint, refusing to risk his candidacy on winning a single early state. This risk-averse, play-not-to-lose strategy technically kept his campaign alive until Florida. But his collapse on the debate stage in New Hampshire had already driven a stake through his candidacy's core argument: that he was an able campaigner and debater who could face down Hillary Clinton. Thus, despite a second place finish in South
 Carolina, Rubio was really just another casualty of February. His was a zombie campaign for the entire first half of March." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74a54ae3856197ff73dae148b41f61b43d8e0f66da046c17bc 

ONE MORE TIME -- "Rubio explains his logic in backing Trump," by POLITICO's Nolan D. McCaskill: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae744c6e74a881945308601f3943c24f058b4c0df3b5acd649a0

NEVER TRUMP IN MIAMI -- "Will Miami's Republican mayor vote for Trump? 'Of course not'," by Miami Herald's Patricia Mazzei: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae744df538d3d8101658606a9c9007e3784b82be65f78092a0e4

-- "The Latino Media Consultants Are Coming To The Democratic National Convention," by BuzzFeed News' Adrian Carrasquillo: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae7461764c83bfaf451b36ba016593c5b865db5a7b438304c666

-- "Graham sympathizes with Hispanics on Trump: I get why you don't like us," by POLITICO's Nolan D. McCaskill: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae745163af60593a876958f87fb9adb16359bb585e1cab9fa823

ANSWER: NO -- "Would Hillary Clinton lock up the election with a Latino running mate?," by The Week's Paul Waldman: "Hillary Clinton may be having a hard time picking between all the paths to victory Donald Trump has paved for her. But the most obvious one may lie in Trump's spectacular unpopularity with Latino voters, in some ways the most important subset of the electorate." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae742ab1bf9187d3487bf00bab0fe4a80a83e58a7eb37932c11c

-- Be skeptical of headlines like the one above. No presidential election is going to be "locked" up right now, especially because of a running mate. And while the lead talks about "all the paths to victory" Clinton might have, that doesn't mean she'll travel down them or that Trump doesn't have his own.

'COJONES' -- "Obama's speech in Havana moved Cuban-American critics, poll finds," by POLITICO Florida's Marc Caputo: 81 percent of Cuban-Americans said they liked Obama's March 22 address while just 19 percent said they opposed it, according to a Bendixen & Amandi survey conducted for the Miami Herald and other media organizations. That level of support for Obama's speech matched overall sentiment for all the poll's 600 respondents...

 "This is Obama's greatest foreign policy speech. What the president said hasn't been heard in Havana," Amandi said. "Obama did what every Cuban-American would love to have done: denounce the Castro regime to Castro's face on Cuban soil." For Mike Hernandez, communications director for Miami-Dade Mayor Gimenez, that became clear when his "diehard" Republican grandfather called him - his voice breaking from the tears, he said - and, for once, raved about Obama.

"That's what needed to be said! He had the cojones to say what no one has said to a Castro brother," Hernandez recalled his grandfather saying. "And he did it in Havana." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae746f3c040fdff484338e34ea4e70d10a4b2cb49a4b75833699 

-- "Experts: U.S. and Cuba on verge of historic oil spill accord," by Tampa Bay Times' Paul Guzzo: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74df44523b31e7b310370a7884a2f04703125e0b4425f67d1c

--Biden may go to Cuba to close issue of confiscated properties, source says," by Tampa Bay Times' Richard Danielson and Paul Guzzo: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74d5430952d4f459a93c536c62d131f2706314511f051b2977

P.R. STALL -- "Puerto Rico bill delayed in the House again," by The Hill's Peter Schroeder: "The planned release of a reworked bill to assist the ailing territory was scrapped on Wednesday as the two parties slogged through lingering issues with the legislation. House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) said a bill would likely be coming Thursday, with a markup still on track for the following week. He said his staff and the Treasury Department were still working out details late Tuesday night, forcing the delay." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74e4045209d23c1ff6cbdb422ba9b1d012185f3365aa61a6f3

PAPERING OVER FACTS -- "The Panama Papers? Here's The Real Panama Story," by Forbes' Steve Forbes: "Say 'PANAMA' these days and the word 'papers' quickly comes to mind. Too bad. I recently visited this small Central American country and saw firsthand what is largely unknown: Panama is a huge economic success story, enjoying an average annual growth rate that's about the best in the world in the 21st century. Things have 'slowed' recently: Growth last year was a tad below 6% but is expected to be a bit above 6% this year....Contrary to global headlines, Panama is no sleazy money-laundering backwater. Quite the opposite." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74835e7c06d48d8f101dcce2aab37ae51cd7776b536f50593d

--Here's the real, real story: The original Panama Papers stories about hidden money and shady financial dealings were right. Period. 

ON GARLAND -- "Swing-state poll: Voters want Garland to get hearing," by POLITICO's Nick Gass: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74c531ffb566c6b383350f7585a405d1139723f2c5dcad712c

FRANKEN-SKEETERS -- "Fear Of Mosquitoes Vs. Technology," by WLRN's Nancy Klingener: "While Florida is focusing on the prospect of the Zika virus getting a foothold in the state, the focus in the Florida Keys is on Aedes aegypti, the mosquitoes that carry the disease. That's because the British company Oxitec has proposed its first U.S. trial of a genetically modified version of the mosquito in a Keys neighborhood. The Cayman Islands, site of the first-ever field trial six years ago, recently agreed to go forward with releasing the Oxitec mosquitoes.

"In the Keys, public opposition against the trial has been vocal. An online petition has more than 166,000 signatures - more than twice the population of the island chain. And at recent meetings held by Oxitec and the Florida Keys Mosquito Control Board to answer questions about the technology, opponents filled the meeting rooms, holding signs reading 'No Consent.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae749b5cee9c038474e1cc5dcb1e3cb4dd6ad3f75e06b970171b

GETTING WORSE -- "Zika findings could be 'game changers,' opening doors to research," by STAT's Helen Branswell: Three groups of scientists reported Wednesday that fetal mice infected with Zika showed brain damage, a finding that confirms the prevailing view that the virus can disrupt the development of fetal brains in humans and provides a clearer avenue to study the problem...

"Let me put it bluntly: These are game changers," said Vasilakis, an associate professor of pathology at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. "We need to move forward now." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae742f745cd756de975ca3e825f7b4e337b1b2cb8ee8a38d9df5 

 -- "Mice experiments show how Zika invades placenta, fetus," by Yahoo News' Jean-Louis Santini with Marlowe Hood: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae746b8783caad8e039a36538a2373341086447a583b358a4f85

 -- "Canadian professor: Olympics should be postponed due to Zika," by AP Photo's Maria Cheng and Stephen Wilson: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae7407f12c295545099bb7ec591cabb74e81b271a90be3f19cbd 

-- @WhiteHouse: ".@Surgeon_General breaks down what you need to know to protect yourself from the #ZikaVirus: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae740c683f133ce384c33205f808ec0559e2aca0b772b3c73825

NO-HELP CONGRESS -- "Scott in Washington: Fund Zika efforts 'now,'" by Tampa Bay Times Alex Leary: Gov. Rick Scott made the case on Capitol Hill for Zika funding but took no position on how much should be appropriated. "The president and Congress need to come to a conclusion now. We cannot wait," Scott told reporters. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae744f57fbff153c7855d1a075391aa622fc51a542b92a2b251a 

-- "Scott continues to take aim at California Gov. Jerry Brown," by Miami Herald's Jeremy Wallace: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74fa86a15af196e4431f4e86ee88635e60bd8469bb16938f18 

DECK SHUFFLING -- "Major VISIT Florida shift proposed," by Orlando Sentinel's Gray Rohrer: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74f46f8e371ffe60a98c454bb5cafb7cdafb6ebc436d5c5376 

PBA GOES POE OVER FORMER CHIEF- Bob Poe, a Democratic candidate for CD 10, was endorsed Wednesday by The Central Florida Police Benevolent Association. It could have tangible benefits, as the chapter's president, Paul Smalley, said in a letter that "we will ask our members, their friends and families' -- and all citizens in the district who respect the strong and efficient enforcement of our laws, to cast their ballots in support of Bob Poe." And there's a bragging-rights advantage as well: Poe's opponent, Val Demings, was Orlando's police chief and her husband, Jerry Demings, is Orange County's sheriff.

TRADE SECRETS -- "Insurers file rate requests for Obamacare plans, but info not yet public," by POLITICO Florida's Christine Sexton: Insurance companies were required to submit their rates for Obamacare compliant health plans on Wednesday, but Floridians won't know what those plans will cost in 2017 until August. The rate submission deadline for insurance companies that sell plans in states such as Florida that did not establish their own health insurance exchanges was May 11. But that information will be suppressed from public scrutiny as insurance companies filing rates with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation marked their proposed requests for 2017 "trade secret." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae742fd721ed47b74666c40663433610e3fda369725a54e90430

THE FIGHT CONTINUES -- "Re-entry nonprofit was 'backed into corner' with DOC deal, CEO says," by POLITICO Florida's Daniel Ducassi: The Florida Department of Corrections and a nonprofit that runs prisoner re-entry programs reached a deal Wednesday, after the agency's earlier decision to close down a Broward re-entry center drew criticism from prominent state lawmakers. But the head of the nonprofit isn't pleased. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74a3f2946f2a0b23c3c8d7697b652940696e1535887ab7ca10

NO FLOW -- "Diversion of Lake O discharge cut despite Scott's request for extension," by POLITICO Florida's Bruce Ritchie: A water diversion for Lake Okeechobee discharges is being reduced, despite Gov. Rick Scott's request for an extension to protect coastal estuaries. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in January began discharging maximum flows from Lake Okeechobee after record rainfall raised water levels, threatening the dike around the lake that prevents flooding. Those discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers harm coastal estuaries, state officials said. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74ef64a3665264888716b3e18bc85606c4df91e64bf64f5976

SAVE THE TURTLES, BAN BALLOONS? -- "Balloon ban proposed to protect sea turtles," by News 6's Ashley Harding: "The proposed ban centers around helium balloons commonly bought in stores. If ingested, the balloons can be deadly to sea turtles, according to wildlife experts.

A state law already forbids releasing 10 or more balloons at a time, however, this ordinance would go a step further in targeting vendors to protect the turtles.

"We have problems, not just with the sea turtles mistaking the balloons for jellyfish, which is their primary food source. But also the ribbons that are attached to the balloons or the little plastic anchors that can suffocate or strangle," said Jane West, the attorney proposing the ordinance. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74c42242e7dab02b81a855451265cead04626d92962811cd0a

BOOM -- "NRA backs Angela Corey's opponent," by POLITICO Florida's Matt Dixon: Melissa Nelson, a Republican running for state attorney in the judicial circuit that covers Jacksonville, secured the endorsement Wednesday of the National Rifle Association and Unified Sportsmen. It's a big endorsement from Marion Hammer, the group's powerful Florida lobbyist. Hammer is known for having a feared campaign email program that can blitz political opponents and boost those she supports. Her group's followers are very loyal, which makes her endorsement a coveted one. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae744237a74919abd527ba8ca4e03c17d32d5b392395ae98888f

WILD CARD -- "Casino company sues Miami-Dade to authorize casino permit," by Miami Herald's Mary Ellen Klas: Genting Group, the Malaysian casino operator whose plan to build a massive gambling resort in downtown Miami has been stalled by legal and political setbacks, is suing Miami-Dade County and Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle in what appears to be a last-ditch effort to force the state to allow card games and slots at its property in the old Omni mall. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae744f57fbff153c7855d1a075391aa622fc51a542b92a2b251a 

FOOD-STAMP FRAUD -- "Largest food stamp fraud bust in US history announced after flea market raid in Hialeah," WPTV: "The announcement came just hours after federal and local law enforcement officers, including members of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, raided several kiosks at the Opa Locka Hialeah Flea Market.

"This case did originate with a complaint of identity theft that involved an individual who lived in Palm Beach County," said Jack Heacock with the Florida Division of Public Assistance Fraud. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae749d2a238b9262db99a5ee62ced974c28e921d694f63a1856d

-- "Hundreds Of Thousands Have Lost Food Stamps In Florida," by Health News Florida's Wilson Sayre: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae7496fb90d7d0fb53c4e3bd982df483f3b6e0701f9775f5f463

ODDS, ENDS & FLORIDA MAN...

-- "Gov. Hickenlooper, Jeb Bush, address Denver senior living conference," by The Denver Post's Kieran Nicholson: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae7413f981b43cdac0958d43ac2308a74b39e5efb302a696e875

-- "Most expensive Florida island now just $95 million," by Local 10's Jeff Tavss: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74dd949f6ccb03d58789508e836414338dd3e063b3bc632439 

-- "Fort Pierce manatee center's statue disappears," by TC Palm's Nicole Wiesenthal: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74247fc1f580c601811d4e5dd0e410777626e7010f70a8a8e0

-- "Victim Confronts Suspected Thief on Cell Phone Video: BSO," 6 South Florida: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae749f0773f13712fe5910cd78d9b543a90185ffc988193ff305

--@NewRepublic: "From Puerto Rico to racial discrimination, #SCOTUS has a lot on its plate right now. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae74d81fc87ee267f00ba1d41f1d99e63d7cdcc57132849221e5

HONKED OFF - "State worker injured in goose attack," by the Tallahassee Democrat's Jeff Burlew: A Canada goose that's taken up residence outside state offices in Southwood recently charged at a Department of Management Services worker, leaving her shaken and injured. A manager for DMS was returning to her office on Esplanade Way the afternoon of April 29 when the goose attacked. "(She) was walking toward her car and a goose came out of the bushes toward her hissing," a witness said in a workers' compensation report. "(She) tried to avoid the goose and lost her footing and fell backward and hit her head hard on the pavement." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae7466a6f9f6736d6f6028f8e695555521e1351de0d0b6085b51

FLORI-DUH, THE GUNSHINE STATE - "Zimmerman to auction gun that killed Trayvon Martin, might use cash against Clinton," by POLITICO Florida's Marc Caputo: George Zimmerman, the former Florida neighborhood watchman who was found not guilty in the shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin in 2012, is auctioning off his handgun Thursday morning and might use the proceeds against Hillary Clinton and the prosecutor who tried him.

"I'm a free American. I can do what I like with my possessions," Zimmerman told WOFL Fox 35 in Orlando on Wednesday night. "It's time to move past the firearm. And if I sell it and it sells, I move past it. Otherwise, it's going in a safe for my grandkids and [is] never to be, you know, used or seen again."

Bidding for the Kel-Tec PF-9 9mm semi-automatic pistol starts at $5,000 and begins 11 a.m. Thursday on the website gunbroker.com. It's advertised as "George Zimmerman's PF-9 used on 2/26/12." The handgun's make and model can be bought for as little as $200 on some other websites. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae7465b3de0c09a8756ae9ab1b0bf94d14b9d83bb2f1500968ae

FOR MORE political and policy news, check out Politico Florida's home page: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=8b2bd5331c55ae7473b8dbd64b251905e03d5ff14120958216186a2a41deb520 And please follow out staff @mdixon55, @christinesexton, @dducassi, @jessicabakeman and @bruceritchie on Twitter.

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