Bob Graham: Florida — the sad state of our state

[seafan]

This must be heartbreaking for our former Governor and US Senator, and native Floridian, to witness this wanton destruction of our state by this ideological plague of extremist greed and arrogance that has held our state government hostage for the past 15 years.



AP
Bob Graham argues that the current Legislature is on a course to erase decades of investment and progress in education.


He writes in the St. Petersburg Times:

April 3, 2011

As the Legislature enters its second half, there has emerged a disturbing pattern of ignoring many of Florida's core values. Over the last half-century these values have given Florida government — whether in Republican or Democratic hands — a stability and predictability that is now threatened.

.....

Florida has one of America's most esteemed state park systems. Our state has seen dramatic improvements in air and water quality. The Florida Everglades are now the American Everglades with Congress agreeing to partner with the state to preserve this unique treasure for our grandchildren's grandchildren and beyond — a public-private partnership for quality development rather than lowest common denominator.

In the next month all of this will be threatened. The Florida Forever Act and its predecessor land-acquisition programs, which have saved almost 9.4 million acres of our most environmentally sensitive lands for the public is, after 44 years, being zeroed out of the budget. The proposed cuts to Everglades restoration are so deep it is doubtful the crucial goal of salvaging this world treasure and protecting the water supply for more than 6 million Floridians will be realized. If Florida walks out on Everglades restoration, Congress won't be far behind. Comprehensive planning for future land and water use, which has elevated growth to a new standard of quality, is under all-out assault.

.....

All of the tax cuts, particularly the total repeal of the tax on stocks and bonds, primarily benefited the upper 5 percent of Floridians, thus contributing to the enormous disparity in wealth in the United States: The top 5 percent of Americans claim 63.5 percent of the nation's wealth, while the lowest 80 percent get only 12.8 percent. In more recent years, Florida politicians have regressively shifted the cost of state services from the richest Floridians to those working hardest just to make ends meet. If the Legislature remains committed to adequacy, resilience and fairness as the foundation of our tax system, serious reconsideration should be given to these tax cuts and the harm they have done.

.....

I fear that we are a long, long way from stopping this rape and pillage. It is rigidly coordinated by hard right ideologues, funded by billionaires, fueled by right wing media organizations, and is happening all around the country.


We can only pray that Americans wake up to what is happening, and take swift and decisive action to stop it.

[Rhiannon12866]

1. K&R for Bob Graham!

Thanks for posting this! :thumbsup: :patriot:

[FLPanhandle]

2. Always wanted him to run for President

Too old now.

[1monster]

16. Bob Graham did run for President in 2004, but suffered from a personal

health crisis which slowed down his campaign. Unfortuately, by the time Graham was up to full energy again, his campaign was foundering and he pulled out of the race.

I would have voted for him with no qualms at all. He, like Walkin' Lawton Chiles, had his feet in "Old Florida" which, sadly, no longer exists. And the few Old Florida residents of today are too old to run for President.

[elleng]

25. I don't remember a personal health crisis. Thought he just couldn't handle

the rest of the gangs $ raising efforts. Sent him some $.

[1monster]

33. If I remember correctly, it was a triple bypass, but my memory is getting faulty.

Does anyone else remember?

[seafan]

34. He had a heart valve replaced. See this post from 2003.

Oh, how many things would have turned out differently if people had paid more attention to his candidacy.


It was a travesty.

[lib2DaBone]

3. Bob Graham is a good and decent man....

I still have a "Florida" Department of Tourism tie that he gave me as part of his "Work Days" back in the 80's. I was proud to wear it.

Every Day when I go over the Sunshine Skyway "Bob Graham Bridge"... I remember the good that he did for the State.

[AmBlue]

4. The man knows of what he speaks.

I always knew him as "Uncle Bob"... because he is, in fact, the uncle of my high school best friend. Down to earth, smart as a whip, no-nonsense, and a real fighter for Florida and all its citizens. What I wouldn't give to have him or his equal sitting in our Governor's mansion today. We miss you Uncle Bob.

[1776Forever]

5. I have 3 sons in Florida and one is chronically ill. I thank Bob Graham for speaking out. He spoke

with me concerning my concern when Gov. Jeb Bush was trying to change the rules for Medicaid for chronically ill people. He wanted to limited their care back in 2004 and he almost got it through but the Dr's and Specialist yelled so much that he gave it up. Now with this jerk Scott in I pray he is stopped before he lets the chronically ill die without the care they need. How can they be so cruel? It is beyond me.

[Snoutport]

6. My thoughts for your family. It is criminal what they are doing.

[louslobbs]

7. K&R Thank you Bob Graham for the eloquent way in which you use "facts" to express the truth about

what is happening "all around the country". When corporations own the government, when billionaire Koch brothers can buy state and federal politicians seats in government, buy judges, buy the Supreme Court and buy people to scrub the internet and sing their praises, when the discussion is hijacked by Republicon, corporate owned "news" and radio, and when we get distracted by propaganda and lies, this is the result. This is what can be expected from those who want to dictate and rule, rather than govern. The attempt to bust our Unions and the movement it has started, is our final chance I'm afraid, to beat them back to their swamps and gutters. We will win this battle, because we must win, at the very least, this Union busting war if we are to maintain any power to change things for the better in an America that is under attack from the rigid, authoritarian, and extreme Republicon terrorists within.

[okieinpain]

8. man Carl Hiaasen is going to have a field day with this period of

time.

[greymattermom]

9. maybe unions should organize

a boycott of Florida tourism. There are beaches and a Disney in other states.

[elias49]

10. What 'swift and decisive action' can Americans take?

National tax resistance?
We don't have the balls.

Vote the idiots out of office?
That's been tried: too many to take their place.

Armed revolt?
Forget about it! (See #1)

[ctwayne]

11. About 'swift and decisive action'

The voters of Florida have already taken 'swift and decisive action'. They elected a veto-proof Republican legislature, a teabagging governor, a teabagging US senator, and lots of teabagging Republican congressmen. The Florida electorate was highly ideological and extremely right wing. Elections have obvious consequences.

[seafan]

13. 'Florida electorate was highly ideological and extremely right wing'? Hardly.

Since you are not in Florida, you might be forgiven for not noticing information like this in the week before the election.


As pointed out in that piece, Rick Scott had continuously abysmal ratings leading up to the election.


And I suppose you aren't familiar with the fact that registered Republicans in the state of Florida are outnumbered by Democrats by several hundred thousand.


And that fact has made it necessary for these Republicans to gerrymander themselves into permanent power by drawing contorted voting districts to allow them to choose their voters (and not for the voters to choose their leaders). They have done this for the past decade and a half, since the Senate, House and Governorship successively fell under GOP occupation beginning in 1994, and was complete in late 1998 with the coronation of Jeb Bush.

It is virtually impossible as it stands to 'vote them out', when they have assured themselves of staying in power in this way. It's also why the voters overwhelmingly passed legislation called "Fair Districts Florida" last November, to stop political parties from drawing voting districts to favor their permanent grip on power.

And now, this same GOP is doing everything they can to thwart the will of the voters on this amendment, by trying to stop its implementation.

They tried inserting a poison pill into the amendments last November, but the Supreme Court threw those attempts off the ballot. Now, this hard right GOP wants to break up our Supreme Court in retaliation.


As was reported earlier this week:

But as Republicans began to take control in the 1990s, the computer age made the tool far more precise and powerful.

Today, said elections law expert Gerald Hebert of Alexandria, Va., gerrymandering is the reason Florida has some of the nation's most competitive presidential elections, but also has 2-1 or greater GOP majorities in its Legislature and congressional delegation.

After the 2000-02 redistricting, Hebert said, Republican legislators acknowledged in court that they drew their maps to maximize their partisan advantage. That was legal then, but the amendments now forbid it.

"The 2010 map will have to change substantially simply because the criteria that were used in 2002 are now illegal," said Hebert, a lawyer who testified in a 2002 redistricting case and now represents supporters of the new redistricting amendments.

Legislative leaders including Senate redistricting Chairman Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, have promised sincere efforts to obey the amendments.

At the same time, though, Gaetz has said he considers them almost impossible to implement. Before becoming redistricting chairman, he contributed $10,000 through a PAC to a lawsuit to overturn the amendments.

Hebert said it's "extremely likely the Republican Legislature will attempt to circumvent the Fair Districts requirements to hold onto the power they've achieved," which will lead to litigation.
.....

Remember this fact above all else:

Republicans control almost two-thirds of the Legislature and three-fifths of U.S. House seats, but registered Republicans are about 36 percent of the electorate.

This means that these Republicans have engineered and solidified their grip on power for the past 15 years, in a state where they represent only 36% of the electorate.



It ain't because of a 'Florida electorate (that) was highly ideological and extremely right wing' who voted for them.


It's because of tyranny.

[ctwayne]

15. I Wasn't Aware of All These Problems

I wasn't aware of the gerrymandering problems in Floria. However, in the same 2010 election, Connecticut elected a liberal Democratic governor, a liberal Democratic senator, a heavily Democratic state legislature, and an all Democratic delegation to Congress. Now Connecticut has many problems, including a huge budget deficit, but the voters picked a different path to solve them.
P.S. Yes, I admit we do have to take the rap for Joe Lieberman.

[Tatiana]

21. I'm so sorry. Given the huge gerrymandering in FL (and TX too), I really wish Dean was in charge

of the DNC. He really was trying to make inroads into the southern states like Florida and Texas. He didn't write them off as hopeless. Florida needs resources and serious investment on behalf of progressive Democrats to compete with the corporate Republicans. We need to reach all those registered Democrats (at least the ones that haven't been unjustly thrown off the voter rolls).

[tsuki]

30. My section of Florida was always a dependable Democratic section until

the 1990's when we started being overwhelmed by the retirees that "moved to paradise" on one day, and started bitching and moaning, pissing and groaning, the next day.

Today, most of my Floridian friends have sold to developers and moved out of state. We are left with a base that cares nothing for Florida. They have no interest in anything other than their taxes (always to high) and their property values (now under water).

[Enrique]

12. how did we get from Bob Graham to Rick Scott?

talk about a fall in quality...

[xxqqqzme]

14. That is my huge question.

How did this happen? I don't know much about Graham before he was Senator. But it seems he was a good governor for Florida. What happened to cause this seismic shift from Graham to the jebster and downward. It was not a huge span of time was it?

[tsuki]

31. A huge influx of retirees whose entire agenda is not to pay taxes. NWFL

has been overwhelmed by them. I talked to a group of about 10 before the election and laid out HCA and Solantic. I changed one vote, and that person did not vote for Scott, but would not vote for the Democrat.

He said "tax cut". They did not care how big a crook he was, or how much money he stole.

But, it goes further than that. They actually agree with Scott. On policy, sticking it to the evil public workers, throwing the lazy disabled into the streets, drug testing the unemployed, cutting taxes for the rich, cutting property taxes, reversing the automatic restoration of civil rights, they absolutely 100% agree because no one helped them, they pulled themselves up by their own strap on.

They look at me and lie now, say they think Scott is awful, but they don't. They have convinced themselves that they don't like Scott, but if an election were held today, they'd vote him back in. And I truly believe that Scott's numbers are low because they lie to the pollsters.

[xxqqqzme]

35. OK, huge inlux of retirees

living on pensions? social security? Does Florida tax pension incomes? I know some states do. I would think goodly portion of those retirees would be public employees, teachers, etc, who else can afford to live there?

[tsuki]

36. No state income tax. We have 6% sales tax and a property tax which

if you are homesteaded, the first $50,000 is exempt and the tax is capped at an increase of no more than 3% per year on the property value.

I don't see a lot of public employees. Most of the retirees are either military, or industry with larger pensions, social security and medical care.

[1monster]

17. Sniveling Jeb Bush (who whined that he was ROBBED, ROBBED, I tell you!!

when the savvy Floridians relelected our beloved Walkin' Lawton Chiles for governor).

Jebby and the whole BFEE came in like gangbusters to change the face of Florida politics for worse (and now worst).

Have you all forgotten Election 2000 already? I haven't believed our election results since. We will probably never know who actually got the most votes for sure again.

[peace frog]

24. RIP Lawton Chiles

The last decent governor we had in this benighted state. Damn, I'd take Charlie Crist again if it meant banishing Rick Scott from the statehouse.

[Dappleganger]

27. A weak democratic party in FL certainly doesn't help.

But the pseudo-teabaggers have taken over the once more moderate republican party and left us with an even sadder state of affairs.

[Scurrilous]

18. K & R

:thumbsup:

[Snotcicles]

19. Bob Graham IMO was one of the most honorable people of the Senate. nt

[BzaDem]

20. K & R. It's really a shame Alex Sink couldn't have gotten just 1 more percent of the vote.

[Pacifist Patriot]

22. Pass my tinfoil hat, but I'm not convinced she didn't.

I remain unconvinced our election process is secure here in Florida. Besides the vulnerability of electronic voting, I just find the closeness of several key races too coincidental, especially when the results don't match polling within the margin of error. I'm still of the suspicion Betty Castor had more people show up at the polls intending to cast a vote for her back in 2004. Maybe it's wishful thinking on my part, but I live in a red area of Florida and know soooo many Republicans who said they couldn't stomach voting for Scott so they just didn't vote for governor at all. Hard to believe this used to be the Florida of Chiles and Graham.

[MasonJar]

23. Bob Graham is a great man...a true statesman.

[RagAss]

26. As I've said several times...Florida will be a Police state by June.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

28. Good man. Would have voted for him in '04.....

...had he made it that far into the primary.

[Bryn]

29. Too late for me to rec'd. So I'm giving this a kick

I am from Tallahassee, FL and had met Bob Graham. Still admire him.

Very disgusting that Rick Scott is squatting in Florida, destroying the State that he's not even from nor raised in Florida. Ugh!

[watercolors]

32. A great govenor , also Lawton Chiles!

Two two the best Fl has had, unfortunately we no longer have a strong Dem. party here anymore!