FLORIDA DIGEST - June 16, 2008

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Miami Herald
http://www.miamiherald.com/
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-Qualifying period kicks off a busy Broward political season
Political hopefuls for more than two dozen county and state races will start qualifying Monday. Broward voters can soon expect campaign literature cramming mailboxes, signs cluttering roadways and grinning candidates eager to bend your ear at community festivals.
http://www.miamiherald.com/516/story/571574.html


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Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
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-Do you think you could live on $275 per week?
Florida ranks as one of the lowest-paying states in the nation in what itpays unemployed workers. Whether you lose a $30,000-a-year job or one thatpays six figures, Florida's maximum unemployment compensation, which hasn'tchanged in 10 years, breaks out to just $6.88 an hour.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/sfl-flzunemployment0616sbjun16,0,3011625.story

-Coral Springs church's generosity pays off in many ways
ISSUE: Church provides a lesson in giving. At a time when controversial -and in some cases criminal - pastors make headlines, it is truly upliftingto see what has taken place at Church by the Glades in Coral Springs.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/sfl-editgsgivingpnjun14,0,6006790.story

-Category: Obama's Fave Five (7)
Is she the second coming of Alex Pinellas? The reaction from last week's"Obama Fave-Five" series seemed to single out one Democrat in particular --U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. The Weston Democrat (pictured right) wasfeatured as the final selection among those Democratic heavyweights whoshould be going all out for the frontrunner and likely nominee if he isindeed the party's choice. Unlike the others, she drew the most ire fromreaders.
http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/theslant/blog/barack_obama/obamas_fave_five/

-Broward County: Gay pride grand marshal will be county tourism czar
Broward County's tourism czar will be the grand marshal of this year's gaypride parade in Wilton Manors. Nicki Grossman, president of the GreaterFort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, will lead the Saturday parade,which for the first time will be at night. Under Grossman's leadership, thetourism bureau has aggressively marketed the area as a destination for gayvacationers.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-fl_bb3bdigest06161sbjun16,0,2510180.story


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Palm Beach Post
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/
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-FCAT track record mixed
They are the FCAT generation. Raised on FCAT pep rallies, FCAT prep booksand FCAT songs, this year's sophomores are the first class of students whohave taken the test every year since third grade. But after eight years ofan all-FCAT-encompassing education, they can read no better than sophomoresdid before the test became the overriding focus in Florida's classrooms.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/epaper/2008/06/15/m1a_fcatgeneration_0616.html


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Fort Report
http://www.fortreport.com/
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-Florida Dems to build new HQ in Tallahassee
Florida Democrats began a $3-million campaign Saturday to build a permanent eadquarters in Tallahassee. House minority leader-designate Franklin Sands of Broward County and ex-Rep. Sam Bell, a Tallahassee lobbyist, said the party is paying $8,000 a month for rented space in the shadow of the Kleman Plaza high-rises. They said fundraising efforts will be low-key until after the elections, so as not to compete with Democratic candidates and groups involved in fighting or supporting constitutional amendments on the Nov. 4 ballot.
http://tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080616/CAPITOLNEWS/806160325

-Misleading ballot proposals
Panel's voucher plans get deserved legal challenge
The Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission, which wrapped up its worklast month, did a shoddy job of carrying out its mission to examine thestate's fiscal structure. Indeed, the commission barely considered Florida'swobbly financing of state government at all. Instead, it went on anideological tear. The worst of its proposals: A pair of proposedconstitutional amendments that, if approved by voters, could take spitefulaim at destroying the long-established wall between church and state.
http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/Opinion/Editorials/opnOPN52061608.htm

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