Live Video Coverage of Paula Dockery Event in Orlando Florida. CENTRAL FLORIDA POLITICS EXCLUSIVE!!!! Event runs from 11 AM – 1 PM

Looks like Melony has picked up http://www.melonybell.com Currently the site is under construction.  The URL was picked up on 06-09-2009 Melony filed to run for County Commission District 2 as a Republican on the same day as well.  She did use a Florida based company for the development of her site

Heath Whiteaker was the first to file and run for the seat being vacated by term limited Randy Wilkinson.  Whiteaker filed to run as a Republican on 11/26/08 Heath launched his site http://www.heath2010.com on 12/01/08.  His site was developed using a local Polk County company.

Jacki Smith has also filed to run.  Jacki will be running as a Democrat.  She registered to run on 5/29/09 however she registered her URL http://www.jackismith.net on 09/01/08 before she had filed to run.  It is possible that this was the URL she had used previously for her failed attempt against Sam Johnson.  Smith seems to have used a company out of Denver, Colorado for her site development.  One has to wonder why she didn’t choose to go with a Florida or Polk County based web design company.

It seems as though everyone right now is having hard times.  Family’s are scraping by and stopping non-essential spending.  Think about this. About two years ago if you went out to eat the restaurants were packed.   People had to wait at least 20-45 minutes for a seat.  I can’t say that is so anymore.

It does seem that the Government Cities, County, and State still have money to spend.  Our own Polk County Board of County Commissioners is handing out money faster than you can say Lake Weohyakapka.  Let’s recap some of the spending in just the past few months.

• $1 Million to Florida Southern College for a welcome center (for tourist to come look at buildings)
• $1 Million to USF Polytechnic, Money to be used as seed money
• $200,000 for an Off-Road park, Even though the market already determined a need and a private enterprise opened in Lake Wales.
• $1.8 Million Pedestrian Bridge over Highway 60 in Bartow to connect Fort Fraiser trail

Why just these four projects? Easy, these are just the ones that are handy and I know of that I think are frivolous waste.  Don’t get me wrong I think education is important. However the county is facing severe budget issues and they are not taking proactive actions to avoid the consequences.

Right now we need our commissioners to be fiscally responsible.  Not to be “YES” men to everything that comes across the agenda.  The county is facing issues such as laying off employees, forcing them to take furloughs, and pay cuts.

One item that Michael Herr (General Manager) introduced was pay cuts for employees making $100K or more.   No word yet if he will include himself in that pay cut.  You see in just 6 years the Polk County budget has went from $557 Million to $1.7 Billion.  Herr gets paid representative to the budget that he oversees.  So the larger the budget the more he makes.  So he really has no incentive to save county taxpayers money.

I know that persons at The Ledger may twist these words out of context so let me be a straight shooter with you.  I am not against education, recreation or anything else covered in this post.  However I am against WASTEFUL SPENDING & EVER EXPANDING GOVERNMENT!

Thank You.
Heath Whiteaker

Dennis Ross has received the endorsement of Republican Whip Eric Cantor of Virigina.

Redstate.com, in endorsing Congressman Cantor for Vice-President in 2008, described him as,

“pro-life without reservation, a strong supporter of gun rights, a fiscal conservative and a loyal advocate for the war on terror.” In addition, Redstate calls Congressman Cantor an, “organizer, an innovator, and a natural leader…Above all, though, Cantor is a good man – ethical, motivated and hard working. He is the kind of choice who best represents the face of the conservative movement in the decades to come.”

Congressman Cantor has made it his mission to, as he said, “reclaim the mantel of reform to change the way we do things in Washington.” He has demonstrated clear leadership in developing solutions and thinking outside of the box when it comes to problems facing our nation.

Dennis Ross stated “I am honored and humbled to have his support and look forward to working with Congressman Cantor to reduce government, revive the mantel of reform we lost, and work for solutions regardless of where they come from.”

It is interesting that Congressman Cantor would endorse Dennis Ross.  Congressman Cantor is the only GOP hold out in his state of Virginia to co-sponsor one of the most popular pieces of legislation, HR-1207 is the Audit the Federal Reserve bill.  This bi-partisan piece of legislation would single handily expose the Federal Reserves secretes. Currently it has more than half of Congress co-sponsoring it.

Adam Putnam who is not seeking re-election and is currently campaigning for Commissioner of Agriculture currently holds the seat that Dennis Ross is seeking.  Incidentally, Putnam has Co-Sponsored HR-1207.

County commissioners voted 4-1 todayto commit $1 million to help build a visitor center at Florida Southern College for its collection of Frank Lloyd Wright-designed buildings.

The funding will still depend, however, on developing an agreement between Polk County and the private Lakeland college to ensure the money is spent for a public purpose.

State Rep. Seth McKeel, R-Lakeland, told commissioners he supports the project, whose plans have been circulated in recent months for support, and he pledged to get marketing money from state tourism funds.

Commission Chairman Sam Johnson, who had to step down from the chair to second the motion, said he had struggled with the request before realizing the historic significance of the Wright buildings and their potential to attract more tourism.

Commissioner Bob English, who moved to approve the money, said the complex will make Polk County more attractive culturally to the faculty that is expected to move to Lakeland in connection with the planned development of the USF Polytechnic campus east of town.

Commissioner Ed Smith, who said he was uncomfortable committing $1 million in tax money when it was still unclear how commissioners are going to deal with the expected $49 million deficit in next year’s county budget, though he says he thinks the visitor center is a worthwhile project.

County Manager Michael Herr has asked county employees to take pay cuts, furloughs and other cost saving measures.  However it seems the county still has money to spend even though they are facing a budget shortfall. If they keep spending like this we are going to have problems similar to California.

County Commissioners just gave the approval on May 20th to buy 200 acres of land to create an Off Road park.  Even though a private off road park was just opened in Lake Wales SEE LINK

Seems as if the county just likes spending tax payers money needlessly.  It is yet another example of ever expanding government.

Portions of this article came from The Ledger

Congratulations to State Sen. Paula Dockery (R-Lakeland), who has proven herself to be a champion and tireless worker for the people of Florida and “more powerful than a locomotive.” For two years she worked to uncover details of the almost unknown plan for SunRail with CSX railroad.

This plan would provide commuter rail service from DeLand through Orlando to Poinciana and serve an estimated 3,500 riders. However, it would also include building a new freight yard in a Polk County residential area, increase freight train travel through downtown Lakeland, and make the taxpayers of Florida liable for the expense of damages and deaths happening on the line, even if caused by CSX. The cost of the total project was estimated to be at least $1.2 billion.

As Paula began to research and bring negative details of the plan to light, powerful forces in the state started to work against her – everyone from Gov. Crist to lobbyists. In the beginning, Polk and Lakeland officials and the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce supported and applauded her efforts. Then, when it appeared that Paula would not win the battle against the proposal, they turned their backs on her. Only City Commissioners Howard Wiggs and Justin Troller and County Commissioner Jean Reed continued to support her efforts. Our thanks to them for their steadfast support and shame on the other commissioners for backing away. Also, shame on the Lakeland Chamber, especially for the tactics they used to put pressure on Paula to try to stop the very work they had earlier asked her to do.

Paula Dockery is an example of what is best in our political system. She is someone who is not self-serving and who is willing to “fight the good fight” even against overwhelming odds, because it is the right thing to do.

EUGENE L. ROBERTS / Lakeland

Original Post

Longtime Fort Meade Commissioner Melony Bell has announced her candidacy for the District 2 County Commission seat in 2010. She is running as a Republican.

Bell, 47, has served on the Fort Meade City Commission, including three years as mayor, for 13 years.

“What I carry from experience with the city can make a great impact for the county,” she said.

Bell said she will formally kick off her campaign Monday at 4 p.m. with a reception at Fort Meade City Hall. Bell, a Winter Haven, native, has lived in Fort Meade most of her life.

She works as a compliance officer and auditor for the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, where she has been employed for 28 years.

She said she plans to retire from her state job and devote herself to the commission job full-time if she is elected.

Bell has a degree in business and professional leadership from Southeastern University in Lakeland, which she received in 2008. She and her husband, Robbie, have two adult daughters.

District 2 covers southern Polk County from Lake Wales to Mulberry. She is the second Republican to enter the race. Heath Whiteaker of Lake Wales announced his candidacy in January.

The race has also drawn Democrat Jacki Smith of Kathleen, who said she is planning to move to the district.

The winner of the election will succeed County Commissioner Randy Wilkinson, who is leaving office because of voter-imposed term limits. County commissioners are elected countywide, but must reside in the district they represent while in office. Commissioners serve four-year terms and are paid $41,328 a year.

[Tom Palmer can be reached at tom.palmer@theledger.com or 863-802-7535. Read more views on county government at http://county.theledger.com.]  ORIGINAL LEDGER POST