AMBLER IN THE NEWS

Republicans should ignore the phony distinctions being tossed around about which candidate is more conservative. They should focus on who is able to tackle serious issues, from jobs and taxes to property insurance. Rep. Kevin Ambler has a stronger record of thinking on his own and conducting public business in a transparent way.

In the Republican primary for Senate District 12, the Times recommends Kevin Ambler.

...ultimately, Ambler conveys a firmer grasp on the need to deal creatively with Florida's fiscal crisis. And Norman's failure to deal more openly with the Arkansas matter gives us pause. For the Florida Senate, District 12, the Tribune endorses Kevin Ambler.

State Senate candidate Jim Norman touts himself as "A New Voice In Tallahassee." But the shadowy groups beating up his opponent, Rep. Kevin Ambler, are trafficking in the same old sleaze. Hills- borough County Commission candidate Josh Burgin has a helping hand, too, from an Orlando political group attacking his opponent, incumbent Commissioner Mark Sharpe. The common thread for these groups: targeting conservative Republican candidates who have the gall to think for themselves and casting them as liberals.

Norman is a career politician who in his 18 years as a county commissioner presided over one of the largest spending binges in Hillsborough history. Yet he has the nerve to paint himself as a fiscal conservative. That's rich from a commissioner whose anything-goes development stance had the effect of shifting the tax burden from newcomers to existing area residents. Meanwhile, the people behind Norman are depicting Ambler as liberal. It's a ridiculous accusation against a state House member who has faithfully backed the GOP agenda during his time in Tallahassee.

TAMPA - A shadowy group is attacking a Tampa state Senate candidate for allegedly voting to give illegal immigrants free hospital care and in-state tuition. But both claims are either inaccurate or incomplete.

As the race for the Hillsborough/Pasco county seat heats up between Rep. Kevin Ambler and Hillsborough County Commissioner Jim Norman, so has the negative campaigning.

Recently, a series of mailers put out by an organization called the Florida First Initiative accused Ambler of voting to provide benefits to illegal immigrants.

Cracking down on illegal immigration has been one of Ambler’s main talking points. He has sponsored an immigration bill similar to that passed by the Arizona legislature.

“I feel that we have a huge problem here that threatens the economic safety as well as the actual safety of our citizens,” Ambler said during an interview with Fox 13.

State Rep. Kevin Ambler, R-Tampa, who’s running for state Senate, says he’ll introduce a measure to expand the Legislature’s special session, intended to deal with oil drilling, to include consideration of an “Arizona-style immigration law.”

Ambler said today he’ll announce and introduce the measure Monday.

Tampa - Illegal immigration has become such a big problem in Florida, lawmakers cannot wait until next year to come up with a solution Lutz Representative Kevin Ambler said. They want action taken to secure Florida's borders as early as next week.

Ambler and Sen. Paula Dockery (R) Lakeland say they will file legislation to curtail public benefits for undocumented immigrants, and crack down on people who are illegally in the country and living in Florida. The lawmakers want their colleagues to vote on the measures in next week's special session to discuss offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

TAMPA — Two Florida Republican legislators unveiled Arizona-like immigration bills Wednesday that would make it easier for law enforcement to identify illegal immigrants and more difficult for those here unlawfully to get public benefits or a state job.

Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, and Rep. Kevin Ambler, R-Tampa, said they hope to introduce the three bills during a special session next week on oil drilling.

Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, and Rep. Kevin Ambler, R-Tampa, called a press conference this morning to ask that their bill to control illegal immigration be heard in next week’s special session called to consider a ban on near shore oil drilling.

BRADENTON — Tampa lawmaker Kevin Ambler, like Sen. Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, is drafting a bill to enforce immigration checks in Florida and the state representative wants it discussed during a special legislative session this month.

The bill proposed by Ambler, R-Tampa, is similar to Arizona’s immigration enforcement bill and he is requesting to have the bill added to the special session Gov. Charlie Crist called for July 20-23 to discuss a Florida oil drilling ban. Read more: http://www.bradenton.com/2010/07/13/2427438/businesses-support-immigration.html#ixzz0tnxSyLKb

On April 30th, the House and Senate unanimously voted passage of the Entertainment Industry Incentive Bill into legislation, which will instantly put Florida's film industry back on the map. After recent months of debate, the Senate surprised many with the unanimous vote. Numerous pleading from the bill's co-sponsors, Rep. Kevin Ambler, Rep. Steven Precourt, and Rep. Jennifer Carroll, to the film community in reaching out to the Senate about the importance of this bill has obviously paid off.

State lawmakers passed a sweeping measure Friday to strengthen the state's property insurance market by making it easier for insurers to raise rates.

The bill, SB 2044, now goes to Gov. Charlie Crist, who can sign or veto the bill. He has said that he doesn't support anything to allow rate increases but he hasn't made a decision on the bill, according to his staff.

TALLAHASSEE - Rebekah Morffi recalls riding in a car at age 5 while her grandmother drove and smoked. "I remember sitting in the back, suffering, coughing and not being able to do anything about it," she said.

Now she is doing something about it, and smoking while driving with a child could become illegal in Florida.

On Wednesday, the Bloomingdale High School student, along with seven other students from Hillsborough County high schools convinced a Senate panel to approve their proposal to prohibit adults from smoking in a car carrying any child under age 16.