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

Michael MolineNovember 22, 2016

House Democratic leader Janet Cruz confessed surprise Tuesday at Speaker Richard Corcoran‘s vehement call for members to urge the Florida Education Association to drop its lawsuit against Florida’s tax-credit scholarship program. “Wow! It was aggressive,” Cruz said of the speaker’s remarks. “I didn’t expect to hear any of that today, and I don’t know that I expected […]

Michael MolineNovember 22, 2016

Richard Corcoran assumed the speakership of the Florida House during its organizational session Tuesday, promising a new era of good government enforced by unprecedentedly stringent ethics rules and controls on lobbyists. “Good government isn’t a process; it’s a struggle for its leaders to do the right thing,” Corcoran said. “We have to put aside the rhetorical devices […]

Michael MolineNovember 21, 2016

Florida House Democrats formally elected Janet Cruz of Tampa as their leader Monday, but the vote hadn’t even happened before she faced her first setback — reportedly placing Minority Staff Director Joe McCann on leave for unspecified reasons. Cruz is the first Hispanic leader of the caucus and will serve through 2018. The Democrats elected Rep. Bobby Dubose […]

Michael MolineNovember 15, 2016

Darryl Rouson went and said it. He referred to the Florida Senate as the Legislature’s “upper house.” He did it Tuesday while introducing himself to new colleagues during an orientation session for freshman senators. Members of the Florida House of Representatives, where Rouson served before winning the Senate seat for District 19, have been known to […]

Michael MolineNovember 15, 2016

Newcomers to the Florida Senate were met with a dose of reality Tuesday, in the form of a warning about the state’s iffy revenue forecasts. They also got a dose of optimism from Jeff Atwater, the state’s chief financial officer, who told them Florida is in relatively good shape compared to other big states like […]

Michael MolineNovember 14, 2016

Citrus greening may chase one of Florida’s largest landowners out of that industry. “We’re going to shift out if it and transition, probably, to cattle production,” Erik Jacobsen, president of Deseret Ranches, said in a speech in Tallahassee Monday to the Economic Club of Florida. Deseret, owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter […]

Michael MolineNovember 14, 2016

State officials trying to nail down how much money Florida government will have to spend next year confronted two major uncertainties Monday: Whether and when a long-expected surge in housing construction will arrive. And whether Donald Trump will govern as he campaigned. “It’s really too early to build in anything that’s unique to the Trump […]

Michael MolineNovember 10, 2016

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The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation is having trouble retaining actuaries, aides to Gov. Rick Scott learned Thursday, as a raft of state agencies presented their budget requests for the next fiscal year. The office is asking for $31.6 million for FY 16-17, including $488,651 to boost its actuarial firepower, agency budget director Richard Fox said. […]

Michael MolineNovember 9, 2016

It’s the morning after you watched the Republican Party extend its control of the government beyond the legislative to the executive branch and almost certainly the U.S. Supreme Court. If you’re Neal Dunn, the newly elected GOP member from Florida’s Second District, and therefore a not insignificant factor in the new political wave, “it’s a […]

Michael MolineNovember 9, 2016

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Gov. Rick Scott said Wednesday he has no interest in a job in the Trump administration. “No,” he said when asked about it during a news conference. “I’ve got 789 days left in this job. I ran to get this job twice, both hard-fought races. I believe in this state,” Scott said. “I’ll do anything […]

Michael Moline
Pam Bondi. Image via AP.

Richard Corcoran blasts teachers union, taking Democrat Janet Cruz by surprise

Richard Corcoran installed as House speaker promising ‘struggle’ to do right

Florida House Democratic caucus elects first Latina leader

Darryl Rouson arrives in the Legislature’s ‘upper house’

Freshman state senators learn the ropes in Tallahassee

Blaming greening, Deseret Ranches foresees the end of its citrus production

Florida budget forecasters sweating housing starts, ‘Trump effect’

State agencies outline spending hopes with tight budget looming

Neal Dunn: ‘Nobody’s ever associated me with the tea party’

Rick Scott prefers to remain in Tallahassee rather than join Donald Trump administration