NOTE: A debate reared up in a suburban Northeast Florida county where a citizen tried to question the county commission chairman about the campaign contributions he received from developers. The chairman refused to allow the citizen to continue his statement. Here is a report on a related issue from Tampabay.com.

By Mary Ellen Klas, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau 
In Print: Tuesday, March 31, 2009

TALLAHASSEE — No legislator is immune when it comes to the influence of the gambling industry in Florida.

All 160 members of the Florida Legislature have either accepted a campaign check from the industry or benefited from its contributions to their parties. In the 2006-08 election cycle alone, horse and dog tracks, jai alai frontons and the Seminole Indian Tribe gave nearly $5 million to legislators and political parties — more than double the $2.2 million gambling interests contributed to lawmakers in the previous election.

Some legislators have worked closely with the industry or have allies who do. And in every corner of the state, ailing parimutuels are promising something lawmakers are hungry for in this perilous economy: new jobs, if legislators give them new games.

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