Florida Legislature is poised to stick it to the Governor even if it means sticking it to Floridians in the process. Some say the Governor is grandstanding, others say it is an example of rank opportunism. Perhaps. But just because you don't like the motives of the person that calls for the idea (or the person himself), doesn't mean you should demur to do what's right. That would be childish.
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While these times may have their challenges, the truth is we are a truly fortunate people. We live in a nation where we can disagree with the government or each other civilly and without fear, where ideas and innovation are celebrated, and where during our darkest hours and toughest times we always show our best face.
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Throughout my career, whether as a long-time federal prosecutor, a counter terrorism chief investigator in the United States Senate or as a state legislator, I have tried to stay true to the principle that standing on the side of what's right is always better than standing on the side of what's right for me. When the BP oil spill hit, I immediately went on the offensive, drafting proposals to protect the state and its taxpayers, calling on Governor Crist for a special session on oil drilling, and just last week, suggesting the state give the Attorney General criminal jurisdiction so that he might go after BP and other wrongdoers for potential criminal misdeeds.

And I did one other thing last week, I resigned from my law firm upon learning after the fact that they had signed up to represent BP in court. Although lawyers do not assume the virtues or defects of their clients, I have been the leading and harshest critic of BP and of off-shore oil drilling for many years, and believed if I am to run for Attorney General I should not have any association with the company.

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My own Dad grew up in the Great Depression where the family challenges were immense. His father was often gone trying to scrape together a living, while boarders occupied their home. He grew up fast, ultimately spending a good part of his youth in the Army Air Corp in WW II. It was those hard lessons that shaped his desire to be an attentive and devoted father. I thank him for making sure I had that role model for me.
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Pearson's failure and the resulting mess are what happens when you substitute testing for teaching, and make testing companies the high priests of public education. Commissioner Smith should conduct a full investigation with a view toward firing the company. The Board of Education should also investigate the Department which obviously failed to hire a company with the core competencies necessary, or manage and oversee the contract adequately.
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It is not too early to begin preparing. I recognize that the BP spill has come at a time when so many state leaders are involved in the vortex of a political campaign. That's a challenge but not an excuse. The truth is that our response must transcend politics as this event may straddle more than a couple election cycles, if not, generations.
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Perhaps that is the challenge we are facing. Imagining the unimaginable. Floridians know hurricanes. We can plot coordinates, know how to prepare our homes and families, and have cleaned up the mess left in the wake of some real monsters. A hurricane is a body shot from nature and we know how to brace ourselves for the hit. But an oil spill does not have the forensics of a blunt trauma; it's more like a cancer. It is subterranean, quiet and unpredictable.
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The Republican response has been interesting. First, the Republican leadership ripped the idea as "political." (Ironic coming from the same people who are using their power to populate the November ballot with a series of proposed amendments that read like the Republican Party's talking points)
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At a luncheon last month, a woman asked me a question I have heard countless times before. "Are you related to Edith Gelber?" I nodded and responded as I always have. "She was my Mom. Where did she teach you?"
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When Big Brothers & Sisters matched me with Travis 21 years ago, he was 6 and I was not quite 30. Our backgrounds couldn't have been more different; our communities more opposite. But we found common interests. Watching Hurricane football, going to bad Steven Seagal movies (are there any good Steven Seagal movies), and washing my 66 Mustang Convertible. (OK, a slight fringe benefit of the Big Brothers program)
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