The mystery group trying to repeal Florida's ban on offshore oil drilling is winning converts the old-fashioned way, deploying a battalion of lobbyists and throwing campaign money at state legislators.

Florida Energy Associates, which is basically a front for Big Oil, has already donated about $125,000 to the two major political parties. Nobody turned down a dime, even though the firm won't reveal which oil and gas companies it represents.

That's what makes our legislators so special. They happily sell out without even knowing who's buying them.

Florida Energy Associates has hired about three dozen big-name lobbyists to peddle the idea that drilling in the Gulf of Mexico is perfectly safe, and that it will bring jobs, prosperity and a $2.25 billion annual boost to the state budget.

That dollar prediction is pure fiction, exceeding by sevenfold the maximum yearly drilling revenues from Alabama and Texas combined. But wildcatters are nothing if not optimists.

If you happen to live near a coast, and the majority of Floridians do, the notion of erecting scores of gas and oil derricks in a prime hurricane pathway might seem reckless, especially after what happened to the shorelines of Louisiana and Mississippi when Katrina struck.

Florida Energy Associates wants to assure you that their members -- whoever they are -- would never do anything to foul the beaches, poison the marine life and scare off tourists.

In Tallahassee, the two biggest cheerleaders for offshore drilling are both Republicans. Mike Haridopolos of Indialantic is the future Senate president, and Dean Cannon of Winter Park is the future House speaker.

That's fabulous news for the oil companies, but there's more.

One of the lobbyists hired by Florida Energy Associates is Claudia Diaz de la Portilla, who's married to Senate Majority Leader Alex Diaz de la Portilla, a Miami Republican.

Last month, Alex was named chairman of the Senate's energy, environment and land-use committee, meaning he is positioned to influence any legislation that repeals or weakens the current ban on offshore drilling.

It's not just an inside joke. A senator who will play a key role in the outcome of the oil-exploration controversy is sleeping with a lobbyist for the oil companies.

In a place where ethics actually mattered, this would be denounced as a flagrant conflict of interest. Not in Florida.

Sen. Diaz de la Portilla says he won't recuse himself from the drilling issue because he's open-minded, and he doesn't always vote on the side of his wife's clients.

And while the income she's receiving from Florida Energy Associates presumably benefits the whole family, including her hubbie, we're being asked to believe it won't affect his stance in the drilling debate.

Maybe that's true, but the appearance sure looks bad.

Last spring, the GOP-controlled House voted largely along party lines to end the drilling ban. That bill would have empowered the governor and Cabinet to take bids from energy firms seeking to put drilling platforms as close as three miles from shore.

The measure died in the Senate, where some of the toughest opposition came from other Republicans who weren't swayed by the oil-and-gas lobby's late-session blitz.

Those lawmakers remain skeptical today, and stand as the main bulwark against opening up Florida's offshore waters to energy development. Sen. Durell Peaden of Crestview, who once worked for Texaco, told reporters: ``Once you ruin those beaches, they're ruined forever.''

In 2010, the biggest problem facing Big Oil in Tallahassee is Senate President Jeff Atwater, a Republican from North Palm Beach. He's been unmoved by recent polls -- some paid for by energy interests -- suggesting that Floridians are increasingly open to the prospect of offshore drilling.

Atwater says the subject isn't on the Senate agenda for next year's session, and he wants an independent analysis of the potential risks and benefits before moving ahead.

And while Atwater currently holds life-or-death power over most legislation, Big Oil can afford to be patient. Atwater is running for state chief financial officer, and in any event the senate presidency is slated to go to the pro-drilling Haridopolos in 2011.

When that happens, maybe the faces of Florida Energy Associates will finally peek out of the shadows. If the vote looks to be narrow, they can always pull the Diaz de la Portilla gambit.

Hire the spouses of reluctant legislators to do some one-on-one ``lobbying.''

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