Mitch Perry Report 9.13.12 - Romney forces camping out in Pinellas County

While the presidential campaign now is faced with an international crisis that could redefine its current trajectory, Pinellas County seems to be one of the most sought over areas in the country where the contest is being fought on the ground.

What else to make out of the fact that the Romney campaign announced last night that VP nominee Paul Ryan will be speaking in Oldsmar on Saturday morning. That will come just a couple of days after Ann Romney's appearance yesterday in Largo.

And of course we had President Obama making his 10th appearance in Florida this year in the Pinellas County town of Seminole last Saturday morning.

As that campaigning continues, it was announced yesterday in Florida that an agreement has been reached between voter advocacy groups and the state regarding the purge of noncitizens instituted earlier this year by Governor Rick Scott.

The upshot? Some 2,625 people who had been initially ruled as ineligible to vote are now back on the rolls. However, state officials are not conceding the fight to purge other voters who shouldn't be on the rolls. They say they'll soon begin using that Homeland Security database they had to sue to gain access to earlier this summer to look for more noncitizens on the rolls.

Meanwhile, Mitt Romney has been getting some severe criticism for his strident response to the violence in the Middle East - but some analysts speculate that his tough guy persona is a way to reignite the passion of conservatives who have been bashing in recent days. Some pundits say that the GOP is still haunted by the ghost of George W. Bush.

Did you know that registered Florida voters this fall can vote for Roseanne Barr for president?

And with Hillsborough County transit officials frustrated that they lack funding to provide more services, they'll have great interest in a discussion taking place next week on creative approaches to funding transit in St. Pete.

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