Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorJanuary 19, 2014

Supporters of a medical marijuana initiative had two big reasons to cheer last week. But the real good news might not be what you suspect. The group People United for Care, which is leading the drive to get the medical marijuana question on the November ballot, announced last week that it had collected more than […]

Guest AuthorJanuary 1, 2014

As we venture into the new year, old habits linger. One is the Dec. 31-Jan.1 ritual — the New Year’s resolution. But this will not be a diatribe about personal self-improvement, although my wife will gladly tell you that I am still a largely unfinished project. This will not be a list of vows […]

Guest AuthorDecember 23, 2013

In this season of merriment, each time I hear “There’s no place like home for the holiday,” my thoughts travel thousands of miles southward to the Caribbean. My celebrations are low-key: a decorated artificial tree, Christmas music and for my wife — nonstop Christmas movies on the Hallmark and Lifestyle channels beginning in mid-November. For […]

Guest AuthorDecember 18, 2013

Christmas is a time for merriment, but thin-skinned atheists and secularists are making a mockery of what many hold sacred. Just visit the state Capitol rotunda, which has been designated an open forum, and you’ll see this year’s version of the war against Christmas. By the way, the demonstration looks more like a spitting contest […]

Guest AuthorDecember 12, 2013

The reaction to President Barack Obama’s handshake with Cuban President Raúl Castro this week is an accurate reflection of the wacky Cold War-era relationship between their two neighboring countries. As he walked up to the podium to eulogize former South African President Nelson Mandela Tuesday, President Obama shook hands and exchanged words with Castro. Even […]

Guest AuthorDecember 10, 2013

Almost 150 years after the guns fell silent at the Battle of Olustee, it seemed as if the Civil War never quite ended, that the lessons of the past have been lost on those who claim the legacy of that American misadventure. Just look at the brewing controversy over plans to erect a Union monument […]

Guest AuthorDecember 8, 2013

You couldn’t attend college in the ‘80s without developing a strong distaste for South Africa’s apartheid and immense respect for the political prisoner, Nelson Mandela. Our Washington, D.C, campus frequently erupted with protests calling for the university to divest from companies doing business in the white-minority led country. Groups of students from Howard University made […]

Guest AuthorDecember 2, 2013

Thomas Knight, aka Asakari Abudullah Muhammad, is a poster boy for the death penalty. His case is also a classic study in what’s wrong with the death penalty machinery. By now you might know that once again Knight has cheated death. One of the longest-serving prisoners on Florida’s Death Row, Knight was supposed to die […]

Guest AuthorNovember 25, 2013

In this football-mad state capital, Famous Jameis Winston is so much more important than Rick Scott, and what goes on at Doak Campbell Stadium is more relevant than happenings at the Capitol. There are probably more prayers being offered from pulpits for the Florida State quarterback than for the stricken people of the Philippines. Yes, […]

Guest AuthorNovember 20, 2013

Recent developments in the Florida Panhandle have reinforced the sad fact that we are increasingly becoming two nations under the gun. The divide widens between those who believe the Second Amendment right to bear arms trumps every other constitutional guarantee and those who disagree. Both sides, winners and losers, are keeping score. Liberty County Sheriff […]

Tag: Andrew Skerritt
Matt Gaetz. Image via AP.

Andrew Skerritt: Good news for supporters of medical marijuana

Andrew Skerritt: My New Year’s resolutions call for a better Florida

Andrew Skerritt: Grandmother’s culinary legacy colors my Christmases

Andrew Skerritt: Atheists’ displays take the ‘merry’ out of Christmas

Andrew Skerritt: U.S. foreign policy on Cuba has outlived its usefulness

Andrew Skerritt: Sad battle being waged over Union memorial at Olustee

Andrew Skerritt: For my generation, Mandela was our Dr. King

Andrew Skerritt: Thomas Knight is poster boy for the death penalty

Andrew Skerritt: Football fanaticism skews our sense of right and wrong

Andrew Skerritt: We have become two nations under the gun