U.S. House District 9 ………………………………………………….. Bill Mitchell
U.S. House District 10 ……………………………….. Bob Hackworth and Samm Simpson
County Commission At Large District 3 …………………………. Darden Rice
School Board At Large District 1…………………………………… Janet Clark

Download the Pinellas Stonwall Democrats announcement here in .pdf.

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The answer seems to be no. Earlier this year, in January, the remaining dollars in the PAC’s bank accounts — more than 700,000 of them — were spent, leaving less than $8,000 in the PAC that was originally endowed with a $1 million check from Hughes’ Cast-Crete company. The vast majority of the money went back to Cast-Crete, listed as a “prorata return of contribution.” The rest went to state and federal income taxes and accountants.

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• The case for and against Gov. Charlie as McCain’s V.P.
• Meanwhile, the Gov.’s hob-nobbin’ with Prince Charles as Florida languishes in financial crisis.
• Al Gore’s got a 10-year plan that has the conservatives bouncing off the walls.
• “McCain, R-Ariz., the top Republican on the Senate Armed Service Committee, has attended zero of his committee’s six hearings on Afghanistan over the last two years.”
• The LA Times picks apart McCain’s campaign schedule. Brace yourselves folks: He’s basically just out raising money.
• Shoddy work by American contractors in Iraq has lead to hundreds of electrical fires and more than a few deaths.
• Sticks of Fire is already campaigning for a Best of the Bay award. What’s your website doing?
• Hollywood preps the cash registers for a record weekend.

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The Green Party says it doesn’t know who they are and can’t reach them to find out. They smell a rat.

Democrats point out that the five candidates switched parties and, in somc cases, addresses at the last minute before filing to run. Having a Green candidate on the ballot, with that party being more progressive, draws votes from Democratic candidates. They smell a rat.

The Republicans say they know nothing, nooooooo-thing.

The Palm Beach Post lays it out this morning (the St. Pete Times had it first, in late June):

“I’m shocked and I’m suspicious,” said Echo Steiner of Lake Worth, the state co-chair of the Green Party.

Party officials have sent certified letters, e-mails and even tried knocking on doors so they can vet the candidates and officially endorse them. The candidates have until July 21 to fill out a questionnaire.

Democrats, who often lose votes to third-party candidates in competitive races, are accusing Republicans of being responsible.

“If it’s true, this will be the first time in history that a state party has had a coordinated effort to put sham candidates on a ballot to manipulate an election,” said [state Sen. Dave] Aronberg, D-Greenacres.

The mystery candidate running against Aronberg in his district spanning from Palm Beach County to Lee County? Aniana H. Robas of Riverview, which is here in Hillsborough County and, suspiciously, not in Palm Beach County nor Lee.

Another race affected by the mystery greens is House District 69, where Democrat Keith Fitzgerald is running for re-election.

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STATE REPRESENTATIVE MICHAEL SCIONTI ENDORSES KEVIN BECKNER FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY COMMISSION
Kevin Beckner wins the support of yet another local leader

TAMPA: Adding to a growing list of endorsements and supporters, Kevin Beckner can now add state Representative Michael Scionti (D) District 58 to his list.

“The residents of Hillsborough County have a real opportunity for change and true leadership with Kevin Beckner. I am proud to support his candidacy and look forward to seeing him take a leadership role on the county commission,” stated Representative Scionti in his endorsement of candidate Kevin Beckner.

“I am honored to have earned the support of Representative Scionti,” stated candidate Kevin Beckner. “This endorsement and the groundswell of support we have been receiving is a clear signal that the residents of Hillsborough County are hungry for a fresh new voice on the county commission.”

“Representative Scionti and the many other local elected officials and organizations know a winner when they see it,” stated Mitch Kates campaign manager for Kevin Beckner. “Kevin’s message of change and his vision for the future of Hillsborough County are connecting with our local leaders and with the voters. Our campaign is continuing to grow everyday. We look forward to the Primary Election on August 26th and then on to a historical win on November 4th when we defeat Brian Blair.”

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• You know things are bad when oil prices plunge on fears that Americans won’t be able to afford gas anymore.
• State Farm Insurance plans massive 50%-90% rate hike on the homeowners insurance of Pinellas County residents.
• The three biggest myths about offshore oil drilling.
• There seems to be more to that Jesse Jackson “I’m gonna cut Barack’s nuts off” video. Maybe.
• Hollywood stunner: Andy Dick arrested on drug and sexual battery charges!
• Speaking of actors in cuffs, there may be cell phone video of Josh Brolin and Jeffery Wright getting arrested at the W wrap party. Early reports don’t sound too flattering for the cops.
• The Dark Knight is poised to cash in big time. CL critic Lance Goldenberg loved it, by the way.
• “I’m Brett Favre. You may remember me from Super Bowl XXXI.”

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Publisher Sharry Smith informed staff this afternoon in an e-mail that read, in part:

We were recently approached by the St. Petersburg Times to open discussions about contracting with their distribution infrastructure to distribute CL.

After many conversations and very careful deliberation we have signed a distribution agreement with the St. Petersburg Times which will begin with the July 30 issue.

This agreement will affect our distribution expenses in a very positive way ….

Smith said the agreement provided both companies protections in terms of confidential information and would not be a problem despite the Times‘ distribution of what some view as a rival publication, the daily *tbt tabloid.

Smith would not reveal the financial terms of the distribution agreement.

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Bonus cut: DaSilva would agree only to an e-mail interview, and here is her entire exchange with me about the reaction to her blog, which supported Coats’ plan and was seen by some as either naive or uncaring about the reporters who lost their jobs. My questions were, Did you have any hesitation about posting your thoughts on the layoffs and realignments?
Any regrets?
Has management at the paper had any reaction to your blog? In the past, I know from some reporters they have told folks not to discuss newspaper business in personal blogs.
What is your reaction to all the comments and reaction your post attracted?
Are you the incoming Alligator editor? If so, what lessons do you take back to that paper from this realignment?

And DaSilva’s e-mail back to me: (more…)

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Tampa Housing Authority commissioner Karen Peoples responded angrily this morning to a Tampa Tribune report that she is being evicted for violating federal housing guidelines.

“Whoever was responsible for this article, may God be with you when the time comes,” Peoples said near the end of the authority’s monthly board meeting. “This was not necessary.”

The authority this week began eviction proceedings against Peoples, who has been in violation since November 2007 of federal Department of Housing and Urban Development guidelines that dictate the apartment size a resident can occupy.

Peoples is a single woman living in a four-bedroom apartment at C. Blythe Andrews, a north Tampa housing property. She has refused three offers to move to a one-bedroom apartment since January. The authority has more than 200 people waiting for a four-bedroom apartment at her complex, and authority President Jerome Ryans said Peoples has run out of chances.

Reading the story, however, raises an even more important question than who the hell appointed this broad to the board and when are they going to kick her off of it: namely, why doesn’t tbo.com provide ANY hyperlinks in its news stories, even to its own coverage? Why do I have to take 20 minutes searching through the rest of the site to find the initial story that Peoples was bitching about??

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