Which Florida lawmakers have missed the most committee meetings?
by Michael C. Bender | January 22nd, 2010
SENATE:
16: Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton; 13: Larcenia Bullard, D-Miami; 10: Rudy Garcia, R-Miami; 9: Charlie Justice, D-St. Petersburg; 7: Charlie Dean, R-Inverness; 6: Al Lawson, D-Tallahassee; 5: Alex Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami, Frederica Wilson, D-Miami.
HOUSE:
9: J.C. Planas, R-Miami; 6: Doug Holder, R-Sarasota, Eddy Gonzalez, R-Miami, Geraldine Thompson, D-Orlando, Juan Zapata, R-Miami; 5: Yolly Roberson, D-Miami.
Tags: attendance, Ted Deutch, voting records
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January 22nd, 2010 at 9:03 pm
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January 22nd, 2010 at 10:42 pm
Not only will Robert Wexler’s crowned prince continue to miss meetings, he’ll also follow Wexler’s example and move out the district.
We don’t need TAXERS and SPENDERS. We need fiscal conservatives who will stay out of our lives.
Vote out democrats. Starting at the local level…from mayorships to councilpeople to school board members to state reps.
Did Deutch speak up about the LACK of TORT REFORM?
Did Deutch speak up about the LACK OF PORTABILITY?
Did Deutch speak up about staggering Medicare cuts?
NO Deutch walks in LOCKSTEP with democrats. Not an independent voice for all his constituents.
What’s Deutch’s view on the Haitian refugees? Will he endorse Immigration REform? Where does he stand?
Will Deutch vote with the democrats on EVERY vote?
Will Deutch abandon his seat and run off to get more money and keep any political contributions?
Deutch=Carpetbagger Wexler
Deutch= Alan Grayson
OUT with democrats. We want our country back.
January 22nd, 2010 at 11:50 pm
Is this the kind of absentee representative you want in Washington? Didn’t the people of his district elect him to serve a full term? Isn’t he violating the public trust by pursuing a higher office while serving on a lower one? Is he being paid to campaign? Fight the machine candidate. Get involved. Flip the House.
http://www.southflorida912.org
January 23rd, 2010 at 1:41 am
Vote for Ben Graber!
January 23rd, 2010 at 3:04 am
Ted Douche must NOT be elected. We need independent thinkers who will not just tote their party line. Smaller government equals better life and more liberties. Lets show Mass. voters we love our country too and beat back the Marxists trying to steal our country.
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:14 am
Massachusetts election shows how you can’t sit out & expect people to vote for you – you have to ASK people for their vote if you expect them to put their trust in you! That is what Senator Deutch has been doing. The posts here are unfair. As for the post that says we need independent thinkers – that is EXACTLY why we NEED to elect Ted Deutch as our next Congressman – remember, this is the man who in spite of DOZENS of tobacco lobbyists in Tallahassee still passed a tax on cigarettes – money which is going to cancer research & will prevent our young people from starting this harmful habit in the first place. If we have a chance of lowering our health care costs we have to stop them from smoking – fact!
He also was the first one to have Florida divest it’s funds from any company who did business with Iran – following his example, many states have followed suit. This helps keep money out of the hands of those who would do us harm.
Finally, this is truly a person who believes in public service for all the right reasons. He is a decent & hard working man who will make all of us in his district proud.
There was a time constraint for this special election. Ted Deutch has always looked out for Floridians & will continue to do so in DC.
He will NOT move out of Boca Raton – his family & his wife’s family life here.
Anyone who thinks voting for Republicans means smaller government is denying facts – Bush’s war in Iraq & his prescription drug bill (written for & by the drug companies!) put us into deficits unlike we have ever seen before!
Vote for Ted Deutch for Congress – he’s going to be an amazing Congressman!
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:21 am
Deutch has represented this district better than anyone, and I for one, would be happy to have a member of congress that cared enough about his constituents that he spends time in the district meeting with them. I attended a meeting with Ted Deutch recently and there were over 250 seniors. He took time to answer every question, and stayed to speak with whoever stayed after. He is an honorable man who cares about the people he represents. So he missed a few meetings! they all do. Obama, Clinton and McCain missed plenty of votes while running for President.
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:27 am
“Vote for Ted Deutch for Congress – he’s going to be an amazing Congressman!” From Jayne Chapman
I AGREE 100% With Her-
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:39 am
Besides, thanks to gerrymandering the likes of which hasn’t been seen in any state other then Texas thanks there to Tom Delay, our state is controlled by a corrupt Republican legislature – this, in spite of the fact that there are over 400,000 more registered Democrats in Florida! Remember to vote for Fair Redistricting in November. It shouldn’t matter whether you are a Republican or Democrat – districts should be drawn based on area & population not on how Representatives want to draw them!
Vote for people who want to look out for you – not for those who make empty promises! Ted Deutch speaks from his heart & will work every day to help improve the lives of his constituents just like he has done as our State Senator. Anyone who spends any time at all around him knows he isn’t in this for power or for money. He truly does want to make a difference in people’s lives. What a concept!
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:42 am
Ben Graber can claim he hasn’t missed any meetings, but lets remember he hasn’t held public office or accomplished anything on behalf of this community since the early nineties!
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:55 am
You folks are “amazing”. The article is flat out saying that he doesn’t do what he was elected to do, and you’re all so star-struck, all you can say is he will be “an amazing representative”! If you hire someone to babysit your kids when you go out, and sometimes they show up, and sometimes they don’t, would you recommend them to a friend to watch their children? See if he would support a law saying that public servants shouldn’t be able to run for one office while holding another. The special election “domino effect” from Wexler resigning will end up costing us over $1 million. If he was so inclined to serve his district during the last election, why should you believe him here? When a higher office becomes available, he will yet again shirk his responsibility and run for it. “Amazing!”
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:59 am
Ted Deutch is doing exactly what he should be – talking to voters about the critical national issues on which the next Member of Congress must vote. This is a lightening fast special election and Ted should spend as much time with the people so he can best represent them when he gets to washington.
January 23rd, 2010 at 11:01 am
Ben Graber was the mayor of Broward county in 2006–what do you mean he hasn’t done anything since the early 90′s that is blatantly false–he was a county commission and mayor for several years.–check your facts Harry… not only that, but he had an excellent attendance record and yo u can always be sure his priorities are straight. he is always honest and reliable and isn’t corrupt–that’s why the establishment is always trying to keep him out–he is the one who calls the corruption out!
January 23rd, 2010 at 11:03 am
By the way, i was at a democratic club meeting recently and he was a no-show, he’s been a major no show. he wasn’t in tallahassee and wasn’t at the clubs…now we know where he was–collecting money. that’s caring about your constituents? not!
January 23rd, 2010 at 11:04 am
Ben Graber is not even a Democrat! He left the party a few years ago – and now he lies about it. Why is he running in the Democratic Party Primary. He endorsed Clay Shaw (R) against Ron Klein (D), he considered running as a Republican candidate for Congress. He trashes Robert Wexler and Barack Obama. Graber should is more like a Tea Party member than a Democrat.
January 23rd, 2010 at 11:05 am
when i say he was a no show, i’m of course talking about Deutch.
January 23rd, 2010 at 12:29 pm
It seems to me that the Palm Beach Post could more effectively capture the worth of a State Senator if they analyzed who has actually passed legislation rather than who has attended the most meetings. Ted Deutch passed the first divestment law in the country, passed new protections for women and children from domestic violence, passed new protections for homeowners against property insurance hikes, and so many other bills. If he can get that much done in Tallahassee then he will be a great Congressman.
January 23rd, 2010 at 12:54 pm
Voting record and attendance record obviously aren’t the same thing.Ted Deutch has accomplished more in his short tenure in the state senate than peers who have been there much longer. He has a record of great accomplishment and I’ll be proud to call him my US Congressman.
January 23rd, 2010 at 1:18 pm
Why do I have to read this every time a politician runs for higher office? What is the author trying to prove?? It’s a special election! Should that disqualify every member of the state lege from running? It’s articles like these that keep good people like Ted from running for Congress.
January 23rd, 2010 at 2:12 pm
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January 23rd, 2010 at 4:39 pm
You all are crazy. The article pointed out that the people (voters) and Tallahassee members are made because he is too busy campaigning to govern. Anyone reads more into that is just well dumb.
Deutch was good when he was working as my Senator but he is not now. He should step down or choose to be a State Senator. You can’t have your cake and eat it too on my tax dollar.
Or give me my money’s worth.
January 24th, 2010 at 1:11 pm
Let’s not discriminate; make both party members, who flip their fingers at the electorate, resign.
Is a time log kept for the duration of the meetings…clocked in and OUT!?!?
Sick of both party members who do this.
It’s an INSULT! Resign, we don’t want ‘politicians’ who run out for their own causes.
Sick? Resign from the committee, if you can’t COMMIT get off the COMMITtee!
‘
Out with Deutch!
January 24th, 2010 at 9:45 pm
To respond to Harry,
While you may think Dr. Graber has not accomplished anything in this community since he has not been in office, let’s not forget that he saves womens lives everyday as a physician, including my own. I would not be here today if he did not diagnose my cancer and catch it early. It is his time to get back into office and save this country from the metastasis of cancer it has created.
January 25th, 2010 at 8:18 am
Hum…I see a trend with Senate Black Democrats…is that profiling?
January 25th, 2010 at 9:14 am
Last time I checked Frederica Wilson was a Democrat…
January 25th, 2010 at 9:31 am
What is wrong with someone trying to make a difference? Senator Deutch spoke at my house at a PDA meeting and while I do not agree with all his views he speaks from his heart & I believe he is honest in his convictions to help out the common folk who have lost there ability to get representation that is in the peoples interest. We need more people in Congress that have the tenacity to go up against the corporate interests that are robbing everything from our freedoms to our health. Ted has! I think Ted would do the same in Congress. It’s a special election. He didn’t schedule it. Stop complaining. We need people to step up to make a difference. He’s trying…what are we all doing to help?
Russell Parker
January 25th, 2010 at 10:08 am
Russell –
It’s one thing to have a guy over your house for a meeting and say you like him; it’s quite another to lend them your voice to all your neighbors in FL19. Do yourself a favor; check out Teddy on the Federal Election Commission’s web-site, and see who has been sending checks to his campaign –
http://www.fec.gov
Quite a cast of characters; $5K from SEIU, $5K from UAW, $5K from AFSCME, $5K from the IBEW, $5K from Postal Workers Union, Wexler, Pelosi, and Steny Hoyer have all thrown in $2K from their own campaign funds to support him!! Do you think the People of San Francisco or Maryland had that in mind when they sent them a contribution? To donate it to someone’s house race 3K miles away!? That’s just a handful from the big government crowd — check out the big business crowd, too; Greenberg Traurig, Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, and Dickstein Shapiro (three of the world’s biggest law firms), Teco Energy, General Dynamics, Southern Wine and Spirits, all for THOUSANDS of dollars. This guy is bought and paid for 3 months before he’d even set foot in the office. Choose wisely, Russell.
Get Involved. Make History. Flip the House.
http://www.southflorida912.org
January 25th, 2010 at 12:51 pm
Thanks, E. Typo has been fixed.
January 25th, 2010 at 1:01 pm
Michael C Bender -
Nice job with these articles!
Way to garner excitement on such a critical issue the public and government really needs to address!
Job very well done!
January 25th, 2010 at 5:02 pm
What Mr. Bender should have stressed was that both Aronberg & Gelber have races that aren’t scheduled for an election until September 2010. Senator Deutch is in a Special Election, with a very short time span. The Special Session never should have been scheduled to accommodate people from central Florida. Ted Deutch has been an excellent Senator for our state. Dr. Graber can’t decide from one election to the next which party he belongs to; and he did endorse the Republican against Congressman Ron Klein, when I believe he was supposed to be a Democrat; or was that an Independent; or was it him saying he may run as a Republican at one time. I wish I were fortunate enough to be able to vote for Ted Deutch for Congress. I can’t, but my children can, and did by absentee.
January 25th, 2010 at 11:06 pm
How come some Americans are so afraid to go outside their safety zone? Do you have to vote only Democrat because you decided at one point you are a democrat? Do you have to side with every view of your party? of course not, unless you have no mind of your own. It is about the person, not the party. Good for Graber who once supported a Republican. It is about sticking to what is right and what is best for the people. He’s not some puppet follower. I admire that courage and the strength to do what is best for the people. I don’t want a Congressman who is going to vote only democrat. I want someone who is going to look at the issue and decide what is best for the people and what is going to get us out of this mess.
“Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
January 28th, 2010 at 3:34 pm
[...] absences will not be tolerated in the chamber. The note comes five days after The Palm Beach Post noted the rise in absences in the [...]