Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorMarch 12, 2014

In case you have been on another planet and haven’t heard, David Jolly beat Alex Sink for the District 13 congressional seat. Jolly is preparing to go to Washington and Sink is cancelling her Feather Sound lease and returning to her mansion on the shores of Lake Thonotosassa to let the gardener and housekeeper back […]

Guest AuthorFebruary 25, 2014

Earlier this week, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel announced an initiative by the Obama Administration to significantly reduce military spending over five years. Described as “draconian,” Hagel’s proposal is surely just the beginning of an acrimonious debate over how big our military should be in a 2020 world, how much our military should depend on […]

Julie DelegalJanuary 20, 2014

There is a middle-aged man I know who lives in a small structure — not the “main house” — on his family’s rural property. The man is fond of alcohol, which might have something to do with why he lost his job and his marriage. In his eyes, though, the troubles in his life trace […]

Guest AuthorJanuary 12, 2014

So there stands the big guy. Smartly tailored suit, hair with just the right errant wisps. Emotive facial twitches and a stand-up guy winsomeness. Could easily have been the former Illinois governor, Rod Blagojevich — now serving time for corruption — a couple years ago as he pleaded his case on the national stage. Surely […]

Guest AuthorDecember 15, 2013

You have to admire the profile in courage that Florida Republicans are setting. Florida is standing up to all those whiny kids, pregnant women and disabled people and rejecting $51 billion in extra Medicaid funding over the next 10 years. “We don’t need no stinkin’ $5 billion a year for health care,” say the Republicans. […]

Daniel TilsonDecember 5, 2013

It’s time the tide turned on the wave of anti-Obama rhetoric that washed across America like a toxic red tide of disinformation and distrust in the wake of the problem-plagued rollout of Affordable Care Act health insurance exchanges. There’s no need to be ignorant of or blind to the mistakes our president and his administration […]

Guest AuthorNovember 26, 2013

In these days of warring ideologies, red vs. blue, it’s comforting to know that officeholders from either party can agree on something. Too bad it’s the wrong thing, keeping secrets from the public. The pages of our newspapers are not big enough to record the daily violations of our open-government laws, so the public only […]

Darryl PaulsonNovember 21, 2013

Last of a four-part series on political humor In the first article in this series, I mentioned that most political humor focuses on a dominant trait of a candidate. Dan Qualye and George W. Bush were accused of not being the sharpest knives in the drawer; Clinton jokes focused on womanizing; McCain jokes were about […]

Guest AuthorNovember 17, 2013

Some years from now, perhaps sooner, perhaps later, the Affordable Care Act will be a universally accepted part of our health-care system, and decent, affordable medical insurance for all citizens living in the richest country in the world will be woven into the American fabric. Most certainly, the law will not be the same as […]

Guest AuthorNovember 10, 2013

When Rick Scott ran for governor in 2010, he campaigned primarily against President Obama, even though his Democratic opponent was actually Alex Sink. Using more than $70 million of his own money, the relatively unknown newcomer flooded homes daily with two or three colorful fliers that either bashed Obama or linked Sink to the president’s […]

Tag: Barack Obama
Family members appear behind a pile of debris outside their home in Steinhatchee, Fla., Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, after Hurricane Helene slammed Florida's Big Bend as a Category 4 storm Thursday night. (Ashleigh Lucas/WUFT News)

John Grant: It’s a Jolly victory for the GOP in congressional district 13

Steve Kurlander: We’re overdue for a discussion about military spending

Julie Delegal: America has too much anger and too many guns

Linda Cunningham: It helps to be a psychopath to succeed in politics

Mark O’Brien: Florida is a Medicaid Santa — for other states

Daniel Tilson: It’s time for the latest anti-Obama tide to turn

Doug Clifton: Expect dark days ahead for government in the sunshine

Darryl Paulson: Presidential humor

Steve Robinson: Obamacare will survive, but bungled rollout will take toll

Rick Outzen: Will Scott bash Obama to win re-election in 2014?