Obama’s Labor Day Executive Order: More Paid Sick Leave For Government Contractors

Obama’s Labor Day Executive Order: More Paid Sick Leave For Government Contractors

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

President Barack Obama signed his latest executive order on Labor Day, which extends the number of paid sick leave days mandated for federal contractors.

“Right now you have parents who have to choose between losing income or staying home with a sick child,” Obama said Monday in a speech at the annual Greater Boston Labor Council breakfast, an event sponsored by the AFL-CIO.

The executive order means that federal contractors will now earn one hour of leave for every 30 hours worked, with a cap at seven days of paid time off per year, the administration said. In total, the new regulations will extend paid sick leave to 300,000 federal contractors who currently do not have such benefits.

“Every day, the president sees the pressing need for policies to support working families,” senior adviser Valerie Jarrett told reporters on a Sunday conference call. “There are letters that come his way from hard-working Americans, who live everyday with the anxiety that comes from being one ailment or one injury away from losing a job, losing their livelihood and ability to look after their families.”

Obama also called on Congress to pass the Healthy Families Act, which would require private-sector employers with more than 15 employees to extend paid sick leave benefits.

“It builds on the growing momentum of people who are answering the call,” Obama said during his speech.

Neither the president nor officials in his administration have specified the price tag of extending paid sick leave, but the order itself portrays the regulations in terms of cost savings.

“This order seeks to increase efficiency and cost savings in the work performed by parties that contract with the Federal Government by ensuring that employees on those contracts can earn up to 7 days or more of paid sick leave annually, including paid leave allowing for family care,” the executive order states. “Providing access to paid sick leave will improve the health and performance of employees of Federal contractors and bring benefits packages at Federal contractors in line with model employers, ensuring that they remain competitive employers in the search for dedicated and talented employees.”

(c)2015 Bloomberg News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at the Greater Boston Labor Council Labor Day Breakfast in Boston, Massachusetts September 7, 2015. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Sanders Calls For ‘Political Revolution’

Sanders Calls For ‘Political Revolution’

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

WASHINGTON –– Sen. Bernie Sanders called Sunday for a “political revolution” that would take on the “billionaire class” and usher in a European-style system that would be fairer to working Americans.

“We need a political revolution in this country involving millions of people who are prepared to stand up and say, enough is enough, and I want to help lead that effort,” Sanders, I-Vt., said on ABC’s This Week when asked why he was running for president.

Asked whether the country was ready to elect an avowed socialist, Sanders said:

“Well, so long as we know what democratic socialism is. And if we know that in countries, in Scandinavia, like Denmark, Norway, Sweden, they are very democratic countries, obviously. The voter turnout is a lot higher than it is in the United States. In those countries, health care is the right of all people. And in those countries, college education, graduate school is free. In those countries, retirement benefits, child care are stronger than in the United States of America. And in those countries, by and large, government works for ordinary people and the middle class, rather than, as is the case right now in our country, for the billionaire class.”

Asked about how he would distinguish himself from Hillary Clinton, Sanders steered clear of attacking the Democratic front-runner in favor of talking about his record as a fighter for ordinary Americans.

“I think it has a lot to do with our records,” Sanders said. “I think at a time when we have seen trillions of dollars shift from the middle class to the top one-tenth of 1 percent, we have got to say very frankly that the wealthiest people in this country and the largest corporations are going to have to start paying their fair share of taxes; profitable corporations can’t stash their money in the Cayman Islands and avoid about $100 billion a year in taxes.”

While Sanders may be an overwhelming underdog to the much-better-funded Clinton for the Democratic nomination, he noted that he raised $1.5 million in the 24 hours after announcing his candidacy, and that the average donation was just $43. Running to the left of Clinton on issues like trade, climate change and financial-sector regulations, Sanders sees his campaign not so much as against the former secretary of state. Instead, his candidacy is meant to pull the country away from being a “battle between billionaires.”

(c)2015 Bloomberg News, Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Photo: Brookings Institution via Flickr

Rand Paul’s First Challenge: Defeat Ted Cruz

Rand Paul’s First Challenge: Defeat Ted Cruz

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

One of the best subplots to the 2016 presidential race will be the Republican Party battle between Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and Texas Senator Ted Cruz.

As both are seen as conservatives just outside the mainstream of the party, Paul and Cruz will compete for support from the same voter demographic during the GOP primary, meaning that only one of these men will likely have a realistic shot at challenging establishment candidates like Jeb Bush. Splitting a voting block could leave both candidates vulnerable to their challengers, so these ideological allies have already begun trying to distance themselves from one another.

“We kind of come from the same wing of the party,” Paul told Fox News’ Megyn Kelly on the day that Cruz announced his presidential bid, “and if you look at our voting records you’ll find that we’re very, very similar. I guess what makes us different is probably our approach as to how we would make the party bigger.”

In order to distinguish himself from Cruz, Paul has tried to portray himself as the candidate who can breathe new life into the party, arguing that “people will also have to make a decision: which is the Republican who can not only excite the base, but can also bring new people into the party.”

For his part, Cruz has made his case that he is best suited to excite the Republican Party’s conservative base. His strategy largely focuses on the primary rather than Paul’s big tent vision for the general election. By choosing Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University for his campaign launch, and in his first campaign ad, Cruz has also targeted the religious conservatives, a group that could help him pull away from Paul in Iowa.

But Cruz has also taken aim at Paul since launching his presidential campaign, focusing on Paul’s foreign policy positions, which have been criticized as out of step with many GOP voters.

“I’m a big fan of Rand Paul; he and I are good friends. I don’t agree with him on foreign policy,” Cruz said on ABC’s “This Week” in March.”I think U.S. leadership is critical in the world, and I agree with him that we should be very reluctant to deploy military force abroad, but I think there is a vital role, just as Ronald Reagan did.”

Cruz has also gone after Paul on an issue championed by the Kentucky senator: reforming the NSA’s data collection program.

While Cruz voted last week to pass a reform bill, Paul voted against the measure, saying it would not solve the problem. That left Cruz with enough daylight to launch an attack.

“Unfortunately, Rand voted no,” Cruz told voters in Iowa last Thursday. “He did say it didn’t go far enough, but it failed by one vote.”

Paul has accused Cruz of mischaracterizing his foreign policy positions, and, back in November complained about the NSA bill sponsored by Cruz and Utah Senator Mike Lee.

“They put something good in a bill that I find objectionable,” Paul told The Daily Beast. “They could take out the (Patriot Act) reauthorization, then I’ll vote for the bill.”

Recent polling averages show Cruz and Paul tied, with both receiving 8.7 percent support from Republican voters. At this early stage in the developing race, Bush receives 16.8 support in the Real Clear Politics polling average, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker earns 16.2 percent of the vote. In other words, more political attacks between the two second-tier candidates are sure to follow.

Photo: Rand Paul via Facebook

Rand Paul’s First Challenge: Defeat Ted Cruz

Rand Paul’s First Challenge: Defeat Ted Cruz

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

One of the best sub-plots to the 2016 presidential race will be the Republican Party battle between Kentucky Sen. Rand Pauland Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

Both seen as conservatives just outside the mainstream of the party, Paul and Cruz will compete for support from the same voter demographic during the GOP primary, meaning that only one of these men will likely have a realistic shot at challenging establishment candidates like Jeb Bush. Splitting a voting block could leave both candidates vulnerable to their challengers, so these ideological allies have already begun trying to distance themselves from one another.

“We kind of come from the same wing of the party,” Paul told Fox News’ Megyn Kelly on the day that Cruz announced his presidential bid, “and if you look at our voting records you’ll find that we’re very, very similar. I guess what makes us different is probably our approach as to how we would make the party bigger.”

In order to distinguish himself from Cruz, Paul has tried to portray himself as the candidate who can breathe new life into the party, arguing that “people will also have to make a decision: which is the Republican who can not only excite the base, but can also bring new people into the party.”

For his part, Cruz has made his case that he is best suited to excite the Republican Party’s conservative base. His strategy largely focuses on the primary rather than Paul’s big tent vision for the general election. By choosing Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University for his campaign launch, and in his first campaign ad, Cruz has also targeted the religious conservatives, a group that could help him pull away from Paul in Iowa.

But Cruz has also taken aim at Paul since launching his presidential campaign, focusing on Paul’s foreign policy positions, which have been criticized as out of step with many GOP voters.

“I’m a big fan of Rand Paul; he and I are good friends. I don’t agree with him on foreign policy,” Cruz said on ABC’s “This Week” in March.”I think U.S. leadership is critical in the world, and I agree with him that we should be very reluctant to deploy military force abroad, but I think there is a vital role, just as Ronald Reagan did.”

Cruz has also gone after Paulon an issue championed by the Kentucky senator:reforming the NSA’s data collection program.

While Cruz voted last weekto pass a reform bill, Paul voted against the measure, saying it would not solve the problem. That left Cruz with enough daylight to launch an attack.

“Unfortunately, Rand voted no,” Cruz told voters in Iowa last Thursday. “He did say it didn’t go far enough, but it failed by one vote.”

Paul has accused Cruz of mischaracterizing his foreign policy positions, and, back in November complained about the NSA bill sponsored by Cruz and Utah Sen. Mike Lee.

“They put something good in a bill that I find objectionable,” Paul told The Daily Beast. “They could take out the (Patriot Act) reauthorization, then I’ll vote for the bill.”

Recent polling averages show Cruz and Paul tied, with both receiving 8.7 percent support from Republican voters. At this early stage in the developing race, Bush receives 16.8 support in the Real Clear Politics polling average, and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker earns 16.2 percent of the vote. In other words,more political attacks between the two second-tier candidates are sure to follow.

(c)2015 Bloomberg News, Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

Photo: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

New York Governor Bans Non-Essential Travel To Indiana Due To ‘Religious Freedom’ Act

New York Governor Bans Non-Essential Travel To Indiana Due To ‘Religious Freedom’ Act

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

New York is hoping on board the Indiana travel boycott.

Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday that he was banning New York state employees from traveling to Indiana because of the passage of that state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which critics say can be used to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

“Today, I direct all agencies, departments, boards, and commissions to immediately review all requests for state funded or state sponsored travel to the State of Indiana and to bar any such publicly funded travel that is not essential to the enforcement of state law or public health and safety. The ban on publicly funded travel shall take effect immediately,” Cuomo said in his statement.

New York now becomes the third state to ban its employees from enjoying non-essential “Hoosier hospitality.” On Monday, Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy signed an executive order banning state-funded travel to Indiana, as didWashington state Governor Jay Inslee.

“I find Indiana’s new law disturbing, particularly at a time when more and more states and people in America are embracing civil rights for everyone,” Inslee said in a statement Tuesday.

The mayors of San Francisco and Seattle have also banned official travel for government employees. On Tuesday, Indiana Governor Mike Pence called on the state’s legislature to amend the legislation to make it clear that it does not allow for discrimination.

“We’ve got a perception problem here,” Pence said during a news conference at the Indiana Statehouse on Tuesday. “We intend to correct that.”

Those assurances were not enough for Cuomo, however.

“New York State has been, and will continue to be, a leader in ensuring that all LGBT persons enjoy full and equal civil rights. With this action, we stand by our LBGT family members, friends, and colleagues to ensure that their rights are respected,” Cuomo said in his statement.

Photo: OZinOH via Flickr

Jeb Bush Praises Mike Pence For ‘Religious Freedom’ Law

Jeb Bush Praises Mike Pence For ‘Religious Freedom’ Law

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has no problem with Indiana’s Religious Freedom Act.

In a radio interview Monday night with Hugh Hewitt, Bush praised Indiana Gov. Mike Pence for signing the legislation into law.

“I think Governor Pence has done the right thing,” Bush said. “Florida has a law like this. Bill Clinton signed a law like this at the federal level. This is simply allowing people of faith space to be able to express their beliefs, to have, to be able to be people of conscience. I just think once the facts are established, people aren’t going to see this as discriminatory at all.”

Since Pence signed it into law on last Thursday, the Religious Freedom Act has come under withering criticism, sparked a boycott of Indiana, and ignited a national debate about whether such legislation sanctions discrimination against homosexuals.

“These bills rationalize injustice by pretending to defend something many of us hold dear,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said Monday in an op-ed in The Washington Post. “They go against the very principles our nation was founded on, and they have the potential to undo decades of progress toward greater equality.

During his interview with Bush, Hewitt said he did not believe that such laws, including one in the nation’s capitol, actually led to discrimination. “I do not know of a single incidence of the sort that Tim Cook was warning about occurring in the District in the last 22 years,” Hewitt said.

Bush then rallied to the defense to those who he said the laws were meant to protect.

“But there are incidents of people who, for example, the florist in Washington state who had a business that based on her conscience, she couldn’t be participating in a gay wedding, organizing it, even though the person, one of the people was a friend of hers. And she was taken to court, and is still in court, or the photographer in New Mexico,” Bush said. “There are many cases where people acting on their conscience have been castigated by the government. And this law simply says the government has to have a level of burden to be able to establish that there’s been some kind of discrimination.”

Bush was not the only Republican mulling a 2016 White House run to rally to Pence’s defense on Monday. Ben Carson called the Indiana law “vital,” while Texas Sen. Ted Cruz issued his own show of support late in the day.

“I want to commend Governor Mike Pence for his support of religious freedom, especially in the face of fierce opposition. There was a time, not too long ago, when defending religious liberty enjoyed strong bipartisan support. Alas, today we are facing a concerted assault on the First Amendment, on the right of every American to seek out and worship God according to the dictates of his or her conscience,” Cruz said in a statement. “Governor Pence is holding the line to protect religious liberty in the Hoosier State. Indiana is giving voice to millions of courageous conservatives across this country who are deeply concerned about the ongoing attacks upon our personal liberties. I’m proud to stand with Mike, and I urge Americans to do the same.”

The Indianapolis Star, meanwhile, called on Pence and the state Legislature to formally issue protections to gay and lesbian residents.

“Gov. Mike Pence and the General Assembly need to enact a state law to prohibit discrimination in employment, housing, education and public accommodations on the basis of a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity,” the paper stated.

(c)2015 Bloomberg News, Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

Photo: Former Governor Jeb Bush of Florida speaking at the 2015 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland. (Gage Skidmore/Flickr)

Study: Political Ads Dwarfed News Stories About Actual Political Issues In 2014

Study: Political Ads Dwarfed News Stories About Actual Political Issues In 2014

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

Politics has become all about the ads.

A new study by Philly Political Media Watch finds that during evening newscasts leading up to the 2014 midterm elections the airtime given to political ads dwarfed stories about political issues by a ratio of 45:1.

The study — paid for, in part, by the Democracy Fund and the Rita Allen Foundation, and with analysis provided by the Sunlight Foundation — examined newscasts in the Philadelphia viewing area for the last two months of the 2014 campaign and found that the vast majority of political advertising aired during local nightly news programs. But while those broadcasts may have been packed with political ads, the news segments were largely devoid of political issues.

“In the final eight weeks before Election Day 2014, six broadcast television stations that serve the Philadelphia metro area benefited from a $14.4 million bonanza in political ads. Over that same period those stations aired fewer than 19 minutes of substantive political stories — those devoted to actual campaign issues as opposed to news of candidate appearances,” the study’s authors wrote in their executive summary.

The Philadelphia market dominates three regions: Pennsylvania, Delaware and southern New Jersey, and the study found that even in non-competitive races in that area, candidates continued to spend heavily throughout the course of the last few weeks of the campaign. The big winner of this trend? The companies that own the television stations.

“The Gannett Company controls 46 stations and its political advertising revenue was over $92 million in the fourth quarter of 2014, part of an 117 percent increase in broadcast revenue (Fox, 2015),” the authors said in their conclusion. “Sinclair is the largest local television station group. It owns, or controls through service agreements, 167 stations in 79 different media markets. In the fourth quarter of 2014 its political ad revenue reached over $80 million as part of its $130 million political ad revenue in 2014. To put that into perspective, its political ad revenue in 2006 was $30 million. The 2014 revenue represented a 433 percent increase (Fox, 2015).”

While reaping the financial benefit from a flood of advertising dollars, however, the stations did not feel the need to substantially increase the political content of their news programs.

“This study reveals that when people watch local news broadcasts prior to an election, they are being exposed to far more political advertising during the commercial breaks than political journalism during the news programs themselves,” Travis N. Ridout, a professor of government and public policy at Washington State University, said in a press release. “And little of the news about political campaigns is focused on policy issues. These findings should make us rethink the role of local news in today’s campaigns.”

Screenshot: YouTube

Cheney Says Obama And Holder Have ‘Played The Race Card’

Cheney Says Obama And Holder Have ‘Played The Race Card’

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

Former Vice President Dick Cheney continues to play his cards against President Barack Obama.

One of the president’s fiercest antagonists over the past six years, Cheney added more fuel to the rhetorical fire this week in an interview with Playboy magazine by accusing Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder of “playing the race card” to deflect criticism.

“I think they’re playing the race card, in my view,” Cheney told the men’s magazine. “Certainly we haven’t given up — nor should we give up — the right to criticize an administration and public officials. To say that we criticize, or that I criticize, Barack Obama or Eric Holder because of race, I just think it’s obviously not true. My view of it is the criticism is merited because of performance — or lack of performance, because of incompetence. It hasn’t got anything to do with race.”

Cheney did not cite any specific instance of Obama or Holder complaining about the alleged racist motivation behind any of the former vice president’s frequent criticisms of the president’s administration. Sticking with the subject of race, Cheney then went on to blast Obama over the death of Michael Brown and subsequent protests in Ferguson, Mo. Officer Darren Wilson was not indicted in Brown’s death by a grand jury, and the Justice Department declined to bring charges against him. Still, Cheney faulted Obama for not speaking out more forcefully in support of Wilson.

“Well (pauses) what I see is disturbing. It’s always a tragedy when there is a death involved and so forth,” Cheney said. “But it seems to me it’s a clear-cut case that the officer did what he had to do to defend himself. … And I’ve been disappointed, I guess, in the Obama administration’s response. … I don’t think it is about race. I think it is about an individual who conducted himself in a manner that was almost guaranteed to provoke an officer trying to do his duty.”

Conducted by Fox News reporter James Rosen, the interview did not delve into the Justice Department’s Investigation of the Ferguson Police Department, which found not only widespread instances of racism, but an institutional conspiracy to shake down the African-American residents of the town where Brown was killed. Instead, Cheney blasted Obama over his handling of foreign and domestic policy, arguing that he believes Obama is a worse president than Jimmy Carter.

Cheney was especially bitter, however, when discussing the ways he sees Obama as having rolled back the Bush administration policies, especially with regard to ending the war in Iraq.

“Where do you start? I think with respect to the situation in Iraq, his precipitous withdrawal and refusal to leave any stay-behind forces, to negotiate a Status of Forces Agreement with the Iraqis, was a huge mistake; we are paying a price for it now,” Cheney said. “He’s having to go back in now, and the guy who campaigned on the basis of bring the boys home and get out of Iraq is now redeploying forces to Iraq. I think his apology tour, when he went to Cairo in the summer of 2009 and said the U.S. overreacted to the events of 9/11 was a huge mistake. I don’t think he ever bought the notion that we’re at war, in terms of a war on terrorism.”

Photo: Former vice president Dick Cheney addresses CPAC (Gage Skidmore via Flickr)

Analysis: So Far, Chris Christie’s Presidential Bid Has Been One To Forget

Analysis: So Far, Chris Christie’s Presidential Bid Has Been One To Forget

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

Can you feel the momentum? Neither can Chris Christie.

Little more than a month has passed since the New Jersey governor started a political action committee to help him raise money for a prospective presidential campaign, and in that time Christie has not exactly set the political world on fire. As he embarks this week on what the Weekly Standard has dubbed the “Chris Christie comeback tour,” beginning with his 130th town hall meeting since being elected governor, Christie is in dire need of some good news.

On Sunday, an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll found that just 32 percent of Republicans said they could seem themselves voting for Christie compared with 57 percent who could not.

Those numbers were released one day after Christie’s appearance at the Iowa Ag Summit was marred by hecklers.

Last week, Christie’s approval rating in New Jersey dropped to a new low of 35 percent.

“It may be a different day, but it’s the same dismal story. The state’s problems are taking their toll on the governor’s ratings,” Krista Jenkins, professor of political science and director of PublicMind, Fairleigh Dickinson University, said in a release accompanying the poll. “His budget address attempted to hit the reset button on the gaping pension hole, but did little to assuage the broad concerns of the public.”

The month of February proved difficult for Christie, starting with a trip to England in which the governor made headlines not for his command of foreign policy issues or economic smarts, but after whiffing on a question about whether parents should vaccinate their children.

From there, a New York Times piece hit Christie over his apparent taste for luxury travel. The Washington Post detailed how Christie is losing home state donors to the likes of Jeb Bush, and Politico followed up that several party operatives now no longer consider the governor to be a top-tier candidate.

It’s not as if Christie hasn’t been trying to reverse the narrative. He has delivered largely well-received speeches at CPAC and the Lincoln-Reagan Dinner in Concord, N.H., and held more town hall meetings in New Jersey. But for a candidate whose brand is authenticity, an image makeover is proving especially difficult.

“There’s only one Chris Christie, everybody, and this is it,” Christie said in New Hampshire, adding, “There will be some times I will say things that will make you shake your heads. But what you’ll never say is that I don’t know who he is and I don’t know what he believes, and I don’t what he’s willing to fight for and who he’s willing to fight to get there.”

In the Real Clear Politics average of polls for the Republican primary field, Christie is stuck in sixth place, behind Scott Walker, Jeb Bush, Mike Huckabee, Ben Carson, and Rand Paul. At CPAC, Christie did his best to brush off the poor polling data.

“If I decide to run for president, I’m not worried about what polls say 21 months before were going to elect the president of the United States,” Christie said. “I’ll take my chances on me. I’ve done pretty well so far.”

So far, it appears that few Republicans are willing to take their chances on Christie, and a National Review cover story released Friday that is largely critical of the governor’s recent moves to try and turn around New Jersey’s flagging economic fortunes is unlikely to attract more conservative support.

“As Christie has scrambled to pay off the state’s debts and balance its books, he has employed questionable budget tactics himself, including sweeping monies dedicated to specific purposes — such as funds from a national mortgage-fraud settlement and road tolls that should be used for highway maintenance — into the general budget,” Steven Malanga wrote in the piece. “He has also ‘reduced’ spending in some cases simply by pushing expenditures from one fiscal year into the next, which is not a true long-term reduction.”

While Christie avoided direct blame for the Bridgegate scandal, the constant headlines took their toll on the governor’s popularity in his home state. A string of positive headlines could help bolster his image over the coming months, of course, but absent a swell of positive news stories, it’s difficult to see how Christie can, once again, assert his standing as a front-runner.

Meanwhile, Democratic groups like American Bridge are working hard to keep Christie right where he is. Sensing his vulnerability, they remain focused on sending every one of the governor’s gaffes or misstatements viral.

“We’re not going to pull resources from Christie, we want to kill him dead,” said American Bridge president Brad Woodhouse.

Photo: Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey speaking at the 2015 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland. (Gage Skidmore/Flickr)

Don’t Say ‘Climate Change’ Or ‘Global Warming,’ Florida Officials Were Told

Don’t Say ‘Climate Change’ Or ‘Global Warming,’ Florida Officials Were Told

By David Knowles, Bloomberg News (TNS)

Florida’s government may have figured out a way to beat climate change: ignore it.

A report by the Florida Center for Investigative Reporting published Sunday details the claims by employees of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, who say that they were ordered not to use the terms “climate change,” “global warming” and “sustainability” in official communications.

“That message was communicated to me and my colleagues by our superiors in the Office of General Counsel,” said Christopher Byrd, an attorney with the department from 2008 to 2013.

The unwritten policy went into effect shortly after Governor Rick Scott, a global warming skeptic, took office.

The Florida policy is reminiscent of a 2012 law passed by lawmakers in North Carolina that prohibits the state from basing coastal policies on scientific predictions regarding sea level rise. Scientists have warned that, like much of Florida’s coastline, North Carolina’s outer banks are at particular risk from climate change.

As January’s votes on amendments to the Keystone XL Pipeline bill, and Senator James Inhofe’s tossing of a snowball on the Senate floor last week have shown, the semantic aspects of the debate over global warming often show the level of mistrust between the opposing sides of the issue.

Florida’s DEP is, in part, charged with planning for how to try and combat what could be the catastrophic sea level rise due to the very thing that its employees say they are not supposed to mention by name.

Photo: Governor Rick Scott visits with FWC staff and Commissioners Yablonski and Roberts on November 17, 2014 at the Bryant Building in Tallahassee. (Tim Donovan, Florida Fish & Wildlife/Flickr)