Guest Author, Author at Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorMay 17, 2016

By the time you read this, all the presidential candidates, presumptive or otherwise, may have chosen their vice presidential running mates. You will have read or heard the term “vetting” or “to vet” many times. It refers to the detailed investigation of a candidate’s background to ensure that he or she will not blow up […]

Guest AuthorMay 17, 2016

When my daughter graduated high school, she took her talents to the University of Central Florida where she majored in musical theater. As patrons, my wife and I love the arts. As parents, not so much. We worried that four years hence our daughter would strut across the stage to “Pomp and Circumstance” only later […]

Guest AuthorMay 16, 2016

Religious liberty is a foundational right in the United States of America. Its pursuit brought the pilgrims to the New World in 1620. Our Founding Fathers enshrined the right to religious freedom in the Constitution. And yet today, we find religious freedom under assault. From political correctness dissuading businesses from saying “merry Christmas” to Obamacare […]

Guest AuthorMay 15, 2016

“When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean – neither more nor less,” said Humpty Dumpty in “Through the Looking Glass” by Lewis Carroll. A perplexed Alice responded, “The question is whether you can make words mean so many different things.” Politicians using language to mean many things is […]

Guest AuthorMay 15, 2016

For the past decade or more, Americans have heard this mournful tune: “The middle class is disappearing. Workers’ children will never be able to climb into the middle class. Without a strong middle class, our democracy will crumble.” And so on. All of which raises the question: just what is the middle class? How do you […]

Guest AuthorMay 15, 2016

I know a lot of opinionated people. Sometimes I get it (issues dealing with war and peace, perhaps a thought about which shoes go best with which blouse.) Other times I’m perplexed. Is Sia the next coming of Barbra Streisand? Who did more to damage the Batman franchise: George Clooney or Ben Affleck? Did Tommy […]

Guest AuthorMay 12, 2016

Blame Hurricane Wilma for your rarely seen Key West neighbor who is illegally renting his cottage by the week to rowdy folks from Minnesota and other points coldly north. Wilma surged into town in October 2005, smack in the middle of a decade of real estate island hot flashes. The Category 3 hurricane brought second-story […]

Guest AuthorMay 12, 2016

In the election of 1840, Abraham Lincoln served as a Whig presidential elector in Illinois. In his push to elect the “Tippecanoe and Tyler, too” ticket, he sent a ten-point edict to all committee members containing a field plan of operations. Much has changed in the landscape of political campaigns since 1840, but the importance […]

Guest AuthorMay 11, 2016

Some people are born to greatness; others achieve it on their own; still others have it thrust upon them by fate. The rest of us just sit on the curb and cheer as the Big Boys and Girls march by to Valhalla, Cooperstown or wherever great folks go. That’s my customary reaction each year when […]

Guest AuthorMay 11, 2016

Now that Donald Trump is nearing the number of delegates necessary to assure him the GOP nomination and super delegates all but guarantee Hillary Clinton the Democratic nod, the 2016 presidential race is set. Are you excited about the choice? Bet you are not. “Annoyed” is more like it. It’s a sure bet the next […]

Guest Author
Now it's time for Florida to start cleaning up.

Bob Driver: The vetting of prospective veeps

Darryl E. Owens: Good teachers at poor schools deserve a fair shot at bonuses

Matt Gaetz: Protect Bayview’s Cross

Ed Moore: Where fantasy is fact

Bob Driver: Just how middle class are you?

Catherine Durkin Robinson: Let me and my kids drink our almond milk in peace

Linda Cunningham: Wilma blew apart Key West real estate market

Kevin Sweeny: Ground game — do or die

Bob Driver: Why am I not included on TIME’s list of most influential people?

Steven Kurlander: We need to change the qualifications for seeking the presidency