Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorAugust 24, 2014

The neon green flyer was stuck into my driver’s side door of my pickup truck. Such material usually meets one fate – the trash can, unless it’s the last Sunday before the start of early voting. The Environmental Caucus of Florida’s list of endorsed candidates: Nan Rich for governor. There was no website listed. There […]

Guest AuthorAugust 6, 2014

My daughter’s report card arrived home last week. Belatedly. She had been out of town and her charter school refused to mail it. My daughter collected it in person. For her, the news was good but somewhat ambiguous. But for us, the parents, it meant more questions than answers. For her classes, my daughter earned […]

Guest AuthorJuly 28, 2014

Earlier this month, Tallahassee was rocked by the high-profile shooting of a Florida State law professor. Dan Markel was gunned down in his own house on the nice side of town. As news of the killing spread, the Tallahassee Police Department moved quickly to reassure the residents of Markel’s neighborhood: He wasn’t the victim of […]

Guest AuthorJuly 20, 2014

What’s good for U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown is not necessarily good for Florida voters, black or white. That much is clear from Circuit Judge Terry Lewis’ recent ruling that the redrawn district maps were flawed, unconstitutional and benefitted the Republican Party and incumbents. In his 41-page ruling issued last week, Lewis also found that political […]

Guest AuthorJuly 9, 2014

Maybe columnist Ann Coulter was on to something when she wrote: “No American whose great-grandfather was born here is watching soccer.” Maybe the Molly Pitcher of the Extreme Right had a notion of what she was talking about when she sought to rain on the red, white and blue FIFA soccer World Cup love-fest of […]

Guest AuthorJune 3, 2014

When some voices are stilled, a chorus must sound in their honor. Maya Angelou falls in that category. The woman who gave a spectacular lyricism to a childhood under Jim Crow stepped off stage last week. Her shadow will linger for a long time. For me, an immigrant, a man of color, I discovered Maya […]

Guest AuthorMay 10, 2014

This Mother’s Day the temptation is to get sentimental, to write about fond memories to erase painful ones. But another instinct prompted me in a different direction. It forced me to write about a different type of mother, the ones who struggle not just to provide for their children, but to protect them so the […]

Guest AuthorMay 6, 2014

Whoever limited the length of the Florida legislative session did so wisely. There’s no telling how much damage earnest but ideological politicians can do in 90 days. Too often we saw legislators proposing bills to suit constituents with narrow interests. Exhibit 1: The Growler bill pushed by major beer distributors but one that could have […]

Guest AuthorMay 1, 2014

Heisman trophy winner Jameis Winston is in the news again — starring in the clichéd role of troubled star athlete. Winston was caught on camera this week walking out of a Tallahassee Publix supermarket with $32.72 worth of crab legs and crawfish he now admits he shoplifted. He must send a Thank You note to […]

Guest AuthorApril 27, 2014

I’m privileged to live in the congressional district served by Mr. Anti-Poverty himself, U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland. The second-term congressman and former funeral home director, you should know by now, has made fighting poverty his No. 1 priority. In doing so, Southerland has embarked on a crusade to overhaul (some would say gut) the food […]

Tag: Andrew Skerritt

Andrew Skerritt: For a party desperate for a gubernatorial winner, Nan Rich’s progressive credentials might not be enough

Andrew Skerritt: Parents are the X-factor in the calculus of public education

Andrew Skerritt: The capital city confronts gun violence, belatedly

Andrew Skerritt: Ruling prompts questions about Rep. Brown’s role in redistricting

Andrew Skerritt: World Cup links us to a piece of our immigration heritage

Andrew Skerritt: Maya Angelou helped black women find their voice

Andrew Skerritt: One mother’s mission – fighting sexual abuse

Andrew Skerritt: Ideological politicians run amok during legislative session

Andrew Skerritt: It appears that Winston has not learned from recent events

Andrew Skerritt: Southerland’s stance on Obamacare inconsistent with his poverty campaign