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Naked Politics

• Long before FBI raid, Sen. Menendez boosted donor's D.R. port business

  Sen. Bob Menendez used his influence to advocate for a Dominican Republic business deal that helped a longtime friend and donor whose South Florida office was raided by federal agents this week.
  
  Menendez questioned Obama administration officials at a July hearing about what it was doing to help U.S. [...]

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• State loses attempt to have Sansom suit dropped

  A Leon County circuit judge on Thursday denied a motion by the state to dismiss a suit by former House Speaker Ray Sansom, who is seeking more than $800,000 to cover his legal defense against corruption charges that were later dropped.

  Calling it a “fascinating case,” Judge Kevin J. Carroll said the suit should [...]

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• After 25 years, financial woes at Collins Center force it to shut its doors

  The Collins Center for Public Policy, one of the state's most well-respected think tanks, announced Thursday it is closing its doors after 25 years as a non-partisan policy center based in Miami.

  A roller coaster period of growth, followed by recession-induced decline over the last two years, led to [...]

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• How Sen. Menendez undercut an ethics probe -- and spared himself some extra FBI scrutiny

  Just weeks before the FBI raided his friend’s South Florida business, U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez put another legal issue to rest by cutting a $58,500 check to cover the cost of two air-charter trips to the Dominican Republic.

  By reimbursing Dr. Salomon Melgen for the flights, the New Jersey Democrat effectively [...]

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• Ad touting Florida oversells state’s language skills

  From Doug Hanks and the Miami Herald's Economic Time Machine:

  [UPDATE: Around 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Enterprise Florida wrote to the Economic Time Machine to say the ad had been revised to fix the error we pointed out earlier in the day. The version of the commercial on the campaign’s website, [...]

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• Gov. Rick Scott proposes $74.2 billion budget

  Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday unveiled details of a $74.2 billion budget proposal — the largest in Florida history.

  Scott, who is seeking re-election in 2014, proposes to increase spending statewide by $4 billion, including $1.25 billion more for education. Much of that would cover a $2,500 teacher pay raise and a pension [...]

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• Amid IRS probe, The Villages developer hires Al Cardenas to lobby on tax issues

  Open Secrets:

  One of the Republican Party's biggest donors -- a Florida real estate developer who apparently is facing a federal investigation over the use of special tax districts for his retirement complex -- hired a lobbyist in the last quarter of 2012 for the purpose of "contacting the federal government" [...]

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• Scott launches new 'business brand' for Florida. Orange neckties and sand sculptures

  Gov. Rick Scott joined top business leaders Thursday to unveil a new “business branding” campaign, the latest initiative in a multipronged effort to cast the state of Florida as an attractive place for commerce.

  The branding campaign will feature orange-colored neckties, strategically-placed sand-sculptures and the slogan: “Florida: The perfect climate for business.”

  “To help achieve my goal [...]

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• Florida university presidents push for immigration reform

  Saying the need for comprehensive immigration reform is as much about economics as it is fairness, four Florida higher education leaders are joining forces with a national organization lobbying for change.

  Florida State University President Eric Barron said “now is the time to act” on the Immigration Innovation Act of 2013, calling it a bipartisan [...]

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• Court upholds legislature's ability to set university tuition, rejects challenge

  Florida Supreme Court on Thursday affirmed the authority of the state legislature to set university tuition and fees, rejecting an appeal by former Gov. Bob Graham and other advocates who contended that the power resides in the board that oversees the schools.

  In an opinion written by Justice Barbara Pariente, with [...]

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