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

Peter SchorschMay 9, 2017

The he-said, he-said-what? between medical marijuana proponents Ben Pollara and John Morgan has captivated political aficionados during the epilogue phase of the 2017 Legislative Session. On Friday night, the Legislature killed HB 1397, a bill to enact the medical marijuana amendment approved by 71 percent of voters in November. Morgan, who spearheaded and bankrolled much of […]

Peter SchorschMay 9, 2017

Time to say goodbye. The Florida House Speaker’s Office, which has produced video after video this Legislative Session, it closed out 2017 Session with a three-minute video narrated by House Speaker Richard Corcoran. “I’m often asked, where are the leaders worthy of the title and I tell them they’re right here, in the Florida House,” Corcoran […]

Peter SchorschMay 9, 2017

Now that the 2017 Legislative Session is in the rearview mirror, state Sen. Jeff Brandes looks back on some big wins from the past two months. The St. Petersburg Republican is celebrating his top eight successes, which include a diverse range of issues such as renewable energy tax exemptions, statewide regulation for ridesharing, flood insurance […]

Peter SchorschMay 8, 2017

Even after meeting dozens of times throughout the 2017 Legislative Session, the House GOP freshman caucus failed to adopt new rules on how to pick a leader. A caucus to ratify rules — drafted by Reps. Ralph Massullo and Michael Grant — to guide the freshman class’s decision-making process met Friday during a break in the […]

Peter SchorschMay 8, 2017

Dysfunction seems to run in Tallahassee like a sine wave. We went from the collapse of 2015 – the House going home early, no budget, a Special Budget Session – to the trains-on-time Session of 2016, to the no-budget-at-the-end-of-regulation Session in 2017. We saw another Session in which we got oh-so-close to a gambling bill, […]

Peter SchorschMay 8, 2017

Sunburn – The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics. By Peter Schorsch, Phil Ammann, Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster, Mitch Perry and Jim Rosica. The work of the people ended with a whimper Friday, as lawmakers agreed to extend the 2017 Legislative Session to complete the budget, killing a host of other legislation. As the Legislature turned […]

Peter SchorschMay 7, 2017

The headline writers had an easy job Friday night after the Florida Legislature failed to agree on rules to enact the medical marijuana amendment supported by 71 percent of Florida voters last November. “Medical marijuana deal goes up in smoke,” blared the Tallahassee Democrat. “Up in smoke: Legislature can’t agree on medical marijuana,” read The […]

Peter SchorschMay 6, 2017

Officials associated with the University of South Florida this weekend are fervently seeking to change the language in an education conforming bill that will keep the university from achieving ‘pre-eminent’ status next year. A loss of the pre-eminent status for USF could result in losing much as $15 million in state funding. “The amount of people who are upset about […]

Peter SchorschMay 6, 2017

Josh Cooper is more than a skilled Florida politico; he’s also a widely respected Tallahassee grillmaster. And now Cooper, a founding partner of Strategic Information Consultants and a competitive barbecue chef, is hoping to become the next “MasterChef.” MasterChef, in its eighth season on the FOX Network, is a reality cooking show hosted by award-winning […]

Peter SchorschMay 6, 2017

Editor’s note: FloridaPolitics.com comprehensive list of the Winners and Losers emerging from the 2017 Session will be published after Sine Die. Arthenia Joyner may no longer be in the Legislature, but she finally was able to see a prized piece of legislation pass. This week, the House unanimously approved the “Compensation of Victims of Wrongful […]

Peter Schorsch

John Morgan wrong to insult Mayernicks, lobbying profession

In final video from Session, Richard Corcoran says its time to say goodbye

Jeff Brandes celebrates long list of legislative wins in 2017 Session

House GOP freshmen fail to adopt rules for Speaker’s race, putting leadership battle into chaos

Winners and losers emerging from the 2017 Legislative Session

Sunburn for 5.8.17 – Sine Die

John Morgan after medical marijuana legislation dies: Ben Pollara ‘f*cked’ the patients

USF community outraged after last-minute budget language is inserted to keep it from achieving ‘pre-eminent’ status

Political consultant, competitive grillmaster Josh Cooper competing to be FOX’s new MasterChef

Takeaways from Tallahassee — Arthenia Joyner’s bill delayed, but not denied