Former Democratic U.S. Rep. Tim Mahoney, voted out of office in a 2008 sex scandal, says people have suggested he run again for his old seat. He didn’t unequivocally reject the idea in a phone conversation today, but made it sound highly unlikely.

Mahoney said he’s been doing some business consulting and has helped raise campaign money for U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Miramar, and other unnamed Democrats from outside Florida. (Mahoney’s predecessor in Congress and in scandal-tarnished exits, Mark Foley, has also reemerged recently as a political fund-raiser.)

Mahoney lost in 2008 to current U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta. Democratic hopes of recapturing the seat suffered a major blow last month when St. Lucie County Commissioner Chris Craft dropped his challenge of Rooney. Dems have until April 30 to field a replacement candidate.

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Republican Gov. Charlie Crist just said he would veto any bill that favors the property insurance industry.

That seems to spell certain doom for the bill that would let insurers raise rates without prior approval from the state.

UPDATE: Gov. Charlie Crist reconsidering his support for the controversial bill.

Former Gov. Jeb Bush stepped his efforts today to rewrite the way public school teachers are paid with a recorded phone call urging Floridians to call their local lawmaker. (Thanks to our partners at WOKV for the tip).

Listen to the call here.

In the 55-second message, Bush says the bill will improve education in Florida, but the its the target of “a massive misinformation campaign.”

Bush says the bill will “close the achievement gap once and for all” and tells the listeners to call their lawmaker and tell them to support the bill, which will be discussed on the House floor today and receive a final vote tomorrow.

The proposal has ignited a political food fight between some of the heaviest names in the Florida Capitol: The AFL-CIO & the Florida Education Association on one side (see their television ad here) and Jeb Bush and the Florida Chamber of Commerce on the other (see their ads here and here.).

Republican Marco Rubio announced today he collected $3.6 million in campaign contributions during the first three months of the year.

It’s a huge amount: it doubles his collections from the fourth quarter of 2009, surpasses the $2 million his U.S. Senate rival, Gov. Charlie Crist collected in the final months of last year and and should well exceed Crist’s 2010 total so far.

Gov. Charlie Crist tapped his general counsel Rob Wheeler to fill a vacant position as a judge in Leon County.

Wheeler has been the governor’s chief legal eagle since last summer and has been on board in his legal office since Crist took office in 2007.

“Rob’s patience, insight and careful consideration will make him a fair and unbiased judge, and I am confident he will respectfully hear and regard every case that comes before him,” Crist said in a statement. “His 21 years of practicing law, in both the private and public sectors, ensure his ability to make reasoned decisions in a timely manner and in accordance with the law.”

Wheeler replaced Jason Gonzalez, who went to work as general counsel for the Republican Party of Florida.

Wheeler began his work for the state in Palm Beach County in 1998 where he was assistant attorney general.

At a tea party gathering in Jupiter on Monday night, Republican congressional hopeful Allen West slammed U.S. Rep. Ron Klein, D-Boca Raton, for not holding an in-person town hall meeting to discuss his vote for the sweeping health care overhaul bill.

West told activists they need to “make the fellow scared to come out of his house. That’s the only way that you’re going to win. That’s the only way you’re going to get these people’s attention. You’ve got to put pressure on them and make them understand that you’ve got to come back and live the laws that you establish. Don’t let them be a ruling class elite. You’ve got to let them know that the clock’s ticking.”

Broward County Democratic Chairman Mitch Ceasar replied with a lengthy statement today accusing West of stoking the “violent fringe that threatens our leaders.”

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is circulating Ceasar’s statement as well.

West says Ceasar’s response shows that “the liberals of Broward County are evidencing their fear of the American people, and our campaign, and OUR voices will not be silenced. If Nancy Pelosi’s puppet Congressman Ron Klein will not face his constituents, then yes, he should remain in his gated community home…”

Read the Ceasar and West statements after the jump….

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A tax cut on sales of boats worth more than $300,000 was approved by the Florida House tonight on a 79-36 vote that divided the Palm Beach County Democrats.

Supporters argued that the break, which caps sales tax bills on boat purchases at $18,000, is supposed to help boat builders, who Republicans said are increasingly leaving the state. (The bill is entitled the “Florida Maritime Full Employment Act” and a similar Senate bill includes an identical cap on plane purchases.)

Rep. Tom Grady, R-Naples, even disputed that his bill could accurately be called a tax break. “This bill focuses on a tax that’s not being collected because … you can buy boats in other states and not pay a tax.”

But opponents said the bill would do little to help the 1.1 million Floridians suffering from unemployment and thousands more whose home values have collapsed.

“I’d like to re-title the bill the Florida Working Person’s Protection Act and create a sales tax exemption on underwear,” said Rep. Adam Fetterman, D-Port St. Lucie. “At least then we’ll be doing something that will help every Floridian.”

Three of the six Democrats who helped the Republican majority approve the bill were from Palm Beach County: Joe Abruzzo, Mack Bernard and Kelly Skidmore. The Palm Beach Democrats who opposed the bill were Mary Brandenburg, Mark Pafford, Kevin J.G. Rader and Maria Sachs.

(Just by way of reminder – another Palm Beach County Democrat, U.S. Rep. Ron Klein, pushed to include breaks for the yacht industry in the federal stimulus package.)

Gov. Charlie Crist vetoed a campaign finance measure pushed by GOP lawmakers that would have given powerful legislative leaders the ability to open “leadership funds” to influence elections.

Crist said in his veto letter that the accounts, done away with by lawmakers more than two decades ago, “allowed legislative leaders to solicit and accept campaign contributions during the legislative session from lobbyists and interest groups outside of the public view.”

The bill (HB 1207) also would have shed light on electioneering communications organizations, or ECOs, that advertise against candidates or issues without having to identify who they are.

Crist, who is running for U.S. Senate, liked that part of the proposal and asked lawmakers to send him back a revised version.

Democrats praised Crist’s veto while his partisan colleagues blasted it.

“If Governor Crist was serious about giving the people of Florida real election reform and providing accountability for the campaign activity of leaders in the Legislature and at the state’s political parties, he would have made this the law of our great state,” Senate Majority Leader Alex Diaz de la Portilla said in a statement.

“Instead, the veto indicates he may be more interested in protecting the status quo and scoring points in his quest for higher office, than he is in providing the people of Florida real and meaningful election reforms,” Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami, said.

But Sen. Dan Gelber lauded Crist’s action.

“It was the right thing to do. Floridians are tired of the shenanigans that are increasingly defining state government. The bill was a step in the wrong direction, and I think Gov. Crist recognized so. We need to put an end to cash register politics, not enable it,” Gelber, D-Miami Beach, said in a statement. Gelber is running statewide for attorney general.

Flanked by key lawmakers, Gov. Charlie Crist and leaders of the Seminole Tribe of Florida announced they have reached a gambling deal that would reap the state up to $1 billion over the next five years.

It’s the second time Crist and the Seminoles closed a gambling compact but the difference today is that lawmakers – who twice rejected those plans – played a major role in the negotiations leading up to today’s announcement.

“This cleans up and resolves a controversy that has been festering for the last two decades,” the House’s chief gambling negotiator Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, said.

The latest deal would allow the Seminoles to continue banked card games – blackjack, baccarat and chemin de fer – at five of their seven casinos. Cards would not be allowed at the Brighton and Big Cypress facilities.

If lawmakers must sign off on the compact, it could rake in an extra $435 million for this year’s budget and help lawmakers struggling to fill a $3.2 billion spending gap for the year that begins July 1.

In return, the tribe will pay $150 million a year to the state for two years and a minimum of $223 million for three years that.

The agreement with the tribe also lets them keep running Las Vegas-style slot machines at each of their facilities for the next 20 years.

But the deal on the cards expires after five years. Then, lawmakers would have to renew it for it to stay in effect.

Gov. Charlie Crist is remaining mum as the clock ticks down on the midnight deadline to act on a bill that would allow legislative leaders to revive campaign accounts known as leadership funds to impact elections.

Crist can sign the bill (HB 1207) into law, veto it or do nothing and allow it to become law on its own if he does not act by midnight tonight.

Crist’s response to what he will do with the bill was to ask a reporter if he should sign it.

“I’m not sure yet. What would you advise? You’re a citizen too,” Crist asked Jim Ash, Capitol bureau chief of the Tallahassee Democrat and Gannett News Service.

“I’m not allowed to say,” Ash demurred.

“You’re not allowed to say?” Crist asked.

The exchange took place in an elevator en route to the 22nd floor where Crist was scheduled to give a speech to chiropractors.

When pressed, Crist said he hasn’t made up his mind.

“No, not yet. Not yet. Sort of focused on the chiropractors now. Trying to compartmentalize,” Crist said.

Republican lawmakers in both the House and the Senate quickly pushed the measure through both chambers and sent it to Crist last week. Most Democrats, including Sen. Dan Gelber who is running for attorney general, object to the funds.

Gelber repeated his request of Crist to veto the measure in a letter sent this afternoon.

“I don’t believe this is or should be a partisan issue. These committees fell into ill repute years ago when Democrats were in control of the legislature and that is why they were outlawed. Now, with voter confidence in their government at a frighteningly low level, is not the time to bring them back. These leadership funds would allow staff working for legislators to actually fundraise during the legislative session. That sends the wrong message and I believe would result in the kind of cash register politics that justifies the dim view of government that Floridians seem to have,” Gelber, D-Miami Beach, wrote.

The proposal would essentially renew a law barred two decades ago that permitted the House Speaker, Senate President and minority leaders in both chambers to have “leadership funds” used to dole out money to candidates without oversight by political committees.

Early and absentee voting statistics show there’s more interest in next Tuesday’s special congressional election to replace Robert Wexler than there was for the special Feb. 2 primaries in Palm Beach-Broward congressional District 19.

Monday’s opening of early voting drew 1,192 voters in Palm Beach County — a 136 percent increase over the first day of early voting before the Feb. 2 special primaries, when 504 people voted. A total of 2,825 people ended up casting early primary ballots in Palm Beach County between Jan. 25 and Jan. 31.

Broward County had 305 early voters Monday, compared to 650 early voters for the entire seven-day period before the primaries.

With a week to go, both counties have already received more absentee ballots than they did for the primaries.

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The spot, released today, is from Foundation for Florida’s Future, the education group former Gov. Jeb Bush formed after leaving office. The ad is at least partly in response to this commercial, which hammers Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, for pushing the measure.

Gov. Charlie Crist officially asked for a federal investigation into possible wrongdoing at the Republican Party of Florida today.

Crist asked U.S. Attorney Thomas Kirwin, located in Tallahassee, to look into misspending at the state party under Crist’s hand-picked chairman, Jim Greer, who was forced out of his position earlier this year.

“The alleged conduct appears to raise a number of federal law issues, including but not limited to potential credit card abuses and financial irregularities that may have IRS implications,” Crist wrote in a letter to Kirwin today.

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UPDATE: Republicans voted down all nine Democratic amendments, most along party lines. Rep. Faye Culp, R-Tampa, joined Democrats on two amendments that would have let districts base pay raises on advanced degrees and length of service.

For background, here’s our story after the merit pay proposal passed the Florida Senate last month.

An advertised appearance by Gov. Charlie Crist at tonight’s Republican Club of the Palm Beaches powwow in Jupiter has been canceled. Crist’s U.S. Senate campaign cited a scheduling conflict.

Republican congressional hopeful Allen West will instead be the featured speaker at the club’s regular monthly meeting tonight at 5:30 p.m. at the Abacoa Golf Club at 105 Barbados Drive in Jupiter. Admission is $10 for GOP club members, $15 for non-members.

In an AOLNews column, Florida Attorney General and Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum makes the case for the 13-state federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the individual insurance mandate in the new health care bill.

Taking the opposing view is Kentucky’s Democratic AG, Jack Conway.

Democratic state Senate hopeful Peter Burkert says he’s merely offering some legitimate, issue-based criticisms of his primary rival, state Rep. Kevin Rader, D-Delray Beach.

But after Burkert rapped Rader for an insurance vote and for failing so far to fulfill his promise of Acreage tax relief legislation, Rader’s campaign accused Burkert of “desperate…vicious and misleading” attacks. And some of Rader’s big-name backers — former U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler, Palm Beach County Commissioner Burt Aaronson and state Rep. Mark Pafford, D-West Palm Beach — accused Burkert of endangering the party’s chances of hanging onto the seat now held by Sen. Dave Aronberg, D-Greenacres.

Read about it in this week’s Politics column.

I swear I’m not picking on state Sen Joe Negron. The second blog post (after this one earlier) about him today is just a coincidence…

The Sun-Sentinel reported this week that the Stuart Republican criticized President Obama’s health care bill because it would let “middle class” people enroll in Medicaid, a health care program designed for the poor. (Negron opposes the health care bill: He encouraged Attorney General Bill McCollum to sue over it and offered a budget amendment this week to counter some parts of it.)

The federal health care reform does expand Medicaid eligibility to 133 percent of the poverty line, which is about $29,326 for a family of four.

Just a couple of weeks earlier, however, Negron told the Senate Finance & Tax Committee that his own plan to expand the state voucher program is aimed at “the poorest of the poor.”

How does Negron define “poorest of the poor”? Well, Negron’s bill (SB 2126) would let families at 230 percent of the federal poverty level — or $50,517 for a family of four — keep half of their voucher to attend private schools.

The Florida Medical Association announced today that it supports legislation to help shut down so-called pill mills in Florida. From FMA President James B. Dolan:

“The Florida Medical Association is appalled by the unscrupulous and deadly ‘pill mill’ clinics, the vast majority of which are not owned by physicians. We are also saddened by and extremely concerned about the growing number of tragic deaths that continue to occur as a result of these clinics.

“That is why the FMA strongly supports efforts, including a legislative proposal in Tallahassee, to assist local governments such as Palm Beach County to enforce laws that prevent the operation of these clinics. Additionally, we continue to support efforts to give the Florida Department of Health the tools it needs to shut the clinics down.

“To suggest that Florida’s physicians are not doing enough to police their own not only misses the mark; it is blatantly untrue. Unlike the Florida Bar, the FMA does not have the authority to penalize or otherwise discipline physicians. That authority rests with the Board of Medicine.

“We look forward to continuing to work with the Florida Legislature and the Department of Health to assist local governments as they shut these clinics down, once and for all.”

Republican Gov. Charlie Crist says Democratic CFO Alex Sink has made a “resonable request” for Republican Attorney General Bill McCollum to transfer a criminal investigation of the Republican Party of Florida away from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Crist, in a letter, says the U.S. Attorney’s office should be brought in because of potential IRS implications.

Sink said it was inappropriate for the FDLE to investigate the Republican Party because it reports to the Cabinet, which includes McCollum.