The AARP says a poll it did of its members nationally and in Florida shows they support the health care reform bill passed by the U.S. House.

AARP has sustained criticism for backing the move for health care reform, but AARP officials said in a conference call today that the poll shows they’re in sync with most of their membership on the issue.

Among national respondents, 63 percent said they supported the health care plan either “strongly” or “somewhat”; 66 percent of Florida respondents did.

Before being asked whether they support the plan, respondents were read a list of statements about the health care plan which AARP officials said described its major policy elements.

Most were about positive effects of the plan:

—“It would ensure that people can see the doctor of their choice.”
—“It would prevent insurance companies from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions.”
—“It protects Medicare benefits for seniors.”

Pollsters say questions or statements at the beginning of a polling questionnaire can influence respondents’ answers to later questions. But the AARP officials said those statements didn’t bias the poll, because they also included some that conservatives would be likely to oppose, including:

—“It would require everyone to have some form of health insurance, with subsidies for those who can’t afford it.”
—“It would provide people a choice of affordable private insurance options and a public plan administered by the federal government if
they don’t have health insurance or can’t afford it.
—“It would be paid for in part by a tax on married couples who earn at least $1 million a year or individuals who earn at least $500,000 per
year.”

The Washington Post recently reported that 40,000 to 60,000 of AARP’s nearly 40 million members had quit the organization because of objections to its stance on health care reform, but AARP officials have been widely quoted as saying opponents were distorting the contents of the legislation.

AARP claims about 3 million members in Florida.

An organization that bills itself as “a new Tallahassee-based news service with a commitment to reporting Florida politics in a fair and balanced manner” is looking for reporters and editors.

The organization, which doesn’t identify itself in its ads, posted recruiting notices on JournalismJobs.com last week seeking an online editor, a reporter/assistant editor, stringers and bloggers.

The ads don’t mention anything else about the nature of the news agency or when it intends to start up—only that the deadline to apply is Dec.4.

Florida gun rights advocates appear to be splitting up between Republican candidates for governor, Bill McCollum and Paula Dockery.

Marion Hammer, influential state NRA lobbyist, endorses Dockery—a fact Dockery trumpeted at some length in her first campaign speech at a kickoff rally Tuesday night.

But Bill Bunting, influential Pasco County Republican Party official and informal head of a statewide network of gun enthusiasts, backs McCollum.

Both McCollum and Dockery have histories of supporting gun rights. Bunting says McCollum’s work has been more valuable, noting that as attorney general, he filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in support of a case that seeks to establish that owning a gun is an individual right under the Constitution that can’t be abrogated by state law.

Hammer “should butt out,” Bunting said bluntly.

Hammer, meanwhile, cites Dockery’s “perfect A+ record on Second Amendment issues,” and says she “has been and continues to be an outstanding leader in our fight to protect and preserve gun rights in Florida.”

Both Hammer and Bunting have large email lists of avid supporters eager to vote for pro-gun candidates.

The dissatisfaction with state Republican Party Jim Greer, fueled largely by supporters of Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate GOP primary, is breaking into the open with a demand by a large group of high-level party leaders for an “emergency” board meeting that could lead to Greer’s removal.

That’s another pollitical blow to Gov. Charlie Crist, who chose Greer for the party post. Some of the dissatisfaction against Greer stems from the perception that he has steered the party toward favoring Crist in the primary against Rubio, which Greer denies.

Wednesday, 20 members of the party’s executive board—a majority of the 38-member board—sent a letter to Greer demanding that he “convene a special emergency closed meeting of the Executive Board as expeditiously as possible.”

The signers, many but not all of them Rubio backers, said such a meeting is necessary before the regularly scheduled board meeting in Tallahassee in December.

One of the signers, former Pinellas County GOP Chairman Tony DiMatteo, said the “triggers” for the letter were recent revelations that a political consultant linked to Crist and the party had set up an anti-Rubio web site, and that a party staffer was responsible for setting up a fake Twitter account to damage the reputation of Brevard County Chairman Jason Steele, who backs Rubio.

But the party officials have grievances going back months, including revelations of abuse of party credit cards by elected officeholders.

DiMatteo said Greer responded to the letter by offering to hold a conference call with the board members this morning, adding that any issues left unresolved could be discussed at the December meeting.

But DiMatteo doesn’t think that will satisfy the party members. “I believe the board will pick a time and place and call the meeting,” he said.

DiMatteo said it’s possible the board could start a process to remove Greer as chairman, but he’s not certain how likely that is.

“There’s some sentiment in the board that he has to go, but I don’t know if that’s the majority,” he said.

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