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Morning briefing: Warm and muggy; lots of politics from N.H. to Tallahassee to Tampa and Zika virus prep

 
[10Weather WTSP]
[10Weather WTSP]
Published Feb. 3, 2016

It'll be a foggy, humid morning with low visibility, then a muggy afternoon with an unseasonably warm high near 80 degrees, according to 10Weather WTSP. A cold front is heading for the Tampa Bay area, though, potentially dumping some rain this evening.

• Tampa residents and business leaders will get an up-close lesson in modern terrorism and the threat of mass shootings during a forum this morning at Port Tampa Bay. The program, which will include security officials from the port and the Tampa Police Department, will include a "live active shooter demonstration." Officials said the presentation "includes graphic content." The event sold out soon after it was announced. For a story about the event, check tampabay.com/money around 10 a.m.

• Look for the Florida House to vote this afternoon on a pair of controversial gun bills: one that lets holders of concealed-weapons permits carry their firearms in the open and another that lets them carry guns on public college and university campuses. Before that, the Florida House and Senate will huddle to start drilling into the state's $80 billion budget. Outside on the Capitol grounds, Gov. Rick Scott has set up a cornhole game to make a political point: that he wants $250 million carved out of that spending plan for Enterprise Florida to use in luring jobs to Florida. Follow all the action at tampabay.com/politics.

• Political editor Adam C. Smith and Washington bureau chief Alex Leary are on the ground in New Hampshire. Today the focus is New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who has put a lot of emphasis on this state. Follow our live blog for the latest news from the presidential campaign trail.

• President Barack Obama will visit a U.S. mosque for the first time since he was elected, part of the administration's push to promote religious tolerance at a time when rhetoric linking Islam with terrorism is growing. He is expected to hold a roundtable discussion at the Islamic Society of Baltimore.

• Former President Jimmy Carter will make a rare address to Britain's House of Lords to discuss his work to eradicate Guinea worm disease. His office says the eradication of the painful disease spread by contaminated water is now within reach, with just 22 cases reported last year, down from an estimated 3.5 million cases in 1986 when Carter joined the fight.

• Hillsborough County commissioners will discuss Zika virus preparations, the Florida Legislature's fracking legislation and the correlation between animal abuse and human violence when they meet this morning at 9.

• Today is national signing day, when high school football players across the country sign binding commitments with colleges. Follow all the area developments on our live blog.

• On the occasion of Shatner's World: We Just Live in It coming to St. Petersburg's Mahaffey Theater tonight, our pop culture critic talked to the former Starfleet commander. He opened up about his one-man show, his 50-year career and why he didn't go to his friend Leonard Nimoy's funeral.

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