This column is a vehicle for a number of items in a bits-and-pieces, strictly opinion, sometimes irreverent format. Look for "Just Sayin'" to run once a week in this spot.
RPOF's Eager-Beaver Home Boys Ready to Run in 2018
Maybe the inspiration came from RPOF past Vice Chair Joe Gruters, who won the District 73 House seat in 2016. But all of a sudden raring-to-go candidates for 2018 are popping up like tarts in a bakery -- all from Republican committees around the state.
Consider these, so far:
-- Bruno Barreiro, high-profile Miami-Dade County Republican Executive Committeeman, will run for Ileana Ros-Lehtinen's congressional seat in District 27.
-- Chuck Brannan, chairman of the Republican Party of Baker County, is running for the House District 10 seat held by Republican Elizabeth Porter. Porter is term-limited.
-- Nick DiCeglie, chairman of the Pinellas County Republican Party, has announced for the House District 66 seat vacated in 2018 by Republican Larry Ahern. DiCeglie will have opposition in the primary from former state prosecutor Berny Jacques, running as a Republican, he says, to preserve the opportunities he's encountered since his family fled political unrest in Haiti in 1994.
-- Jeremy Evans of Pensacola, Escambia County Republican Executive Committeeman, is said to be weighing a run in House District 1, where Clay Ingram is term-limited. I couldn't nail this one down because I was unable to reach him. But that's the word at RPOF HQ.
-- Toby Overdorf, chairman of the Martin County Republican Party, has filed for term-limited Rep. Gayle Harrell's seat in District 83.
-- Paul Paulson, new Orange County Republican Executive Committeeman, is running to succeed Adam Putnam as commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
The election is still more than a year away.
How is this happening?
Party Chairman Blaise Ingoglia, a state representative himself, claims the state party has turned into a breeding ground for leaders. "At our quarterly meetings we have seminars for candidates, and I think our committee people already have a head start because they're already active. The bottom line is, we teach them how to win."
Punishing Visit Florida Looks Stupider and Stupider
What legislators considered Visit Florida's $1.25 million indulgence in bad judgment, is about to look like a stroke of genius for the creative talent at Visit Florida. Oh, wait a minute. It won't anymore. The two-year sponsorship deal that meant the Fulham Football Club would wear "Visit Florida" jerseys wasn't renewed.
Bad time to cancel, lawmakers. Florida's about to be a day late and a dollar short.
Fulham is likely to be in the four-team Championship playoffs in another week. In fact, they're favored to win by many. If you don't know what that means, here it is: Win and Fulham will be promoted to the Premier League, where the Big Sports Money lies in the United Kingdom. All Premier League matches are televised. Not only do 40 million Brits watch wall-to-wall Barclay's Premier League matches every weekend for nine months, but now 1 million Americans watch them too.
And soccer fans are no different than American football fans: They buy jerseys. They wear them on game day, whether they go to the stadium or not. Consider the exposure.
Forbes magazine says in 2014 1.6 million British tourists visited Florida. Increasing that number to 1.7 million or 1.8 million could be worth up to $200 million for Florida. Here's what the magazine said in 2015 when the deal was struck: "The Fulham FC deal goes beyond the jersey sponsorship in assisting Visit Florida in spreading its message to British tourists. Visit Florida will also have signage on the roof of the club's stadium, Craven Cottage. The added bonus? It's under a landing approach into Heathrow Airport."
I'm a soccer fan who once lived in London, so the jersey contract was always an easy "deal" for me to like. But I also know how rabid soccer fans are, and I would bet the farm, as long as Florida is on their team's jerseys, the Sunshine State is on every Fulham fan's bucket list.
You might want to go online and buy yourself a Fulham "Visit Florida" jersey soon, if you're so inclined toward nostalgia. They're probably already out of print.
Reach Nancy Smith at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or at 228-282-2423. Twitter: NancyLBSmith
