Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Martin DyckmanSeptember 18, 2014

Voters across Florida cast ballots in November 2000 to say whether they wanted to continue electing most of their circuit and county court judges or would let the governor appoint them. Election was the overwhelming favorite everywhere. In Duval, Nassau and Clay counties, which comprise the Fourth Circuit, it was the choice of 69.3 percent […]

Julie DelegalSeptember 14, 2014

Former and would-be Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has defied this columnist’s prediction. Coming out on a policy that has divided Florida for 16 years was definitely against the odds. The Tanned One has chutzpah. The policy is education reform, and, as governor, Crist stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his predecessor, Jeb Bush, for whom education is now […]

Guest AuthorSeptember 11, 2014

The following commentary about Amendment 2 was signed by seven former justices of the Florida Supreme Court, including five who served as chief justice: Parker Lee McDonald, Leander J. Shaw Jr., Stephen H. Grimes, Major B. Harding, Charles T. Wells, Raoul G. Cantero III, and Kenneth B. Bell: As former Florida Supreme Court justices, we […]

Martin DyckmanSeptember 8, 2014

Every judge gets a robe and a gavel. Until now, it has not been thought necessary to include barbecue mitts in the kit. But it seems some judges need them. Consider the hot-potato handling in the Tampa divorce case of Mariama Monique Changamire Shaw vs. Keiba Lynn Shaw. Married legally in Massachusetts in 2010, they […]

Guest AuthorJuly 29, 2014

Proponents have argued that Amendment 2 is about providing compassionate care for people who have debilitating symptoms, pain, or are dying. But if compassionate care were what the amendment is only about, then the authors would have specifically cited non-euphoric medical weed in the amendment’s language. That’s why this amendment is a fraud. It’s a […]

Guest AuthorJuly 27, 2014

There are three types of politicians: The first works mostly on behalf of the people they serve, by far the rarest of the lot; the second works chiefly on behalf of their own interests, by far the vast majority. The third tries to impose an ideology on others, an aggressive minority. Florida Attorney General Pam […]

Martin DyckmanMarch 18, 2014

The secret to success in politics, like that of real estate (location, location, location), supposedly consists of three simple words: Turnout, turnout, turnout. That would appear to be the short explanation for why the Democrats narrowly lost last week’s special election in Pinellas County’s 13th Congressional District. Republican David Jolly edged Democrat Alex Sink by […]

Martin DyckmanMarch 13, 2014

Should the Florida Legislature want to pay a truly meaningful tribute to former Gov. Reubin O’D. Askew, who died Thursday, here’s how. Not just with fulsome praise, but with concrete action to protect something he cared deeply about: the integrity of Florida’s courts. First, the history. Although it wasn’t precisely a “midnight” appointment, Gov. Claude […]

Julie DelegalJanuary 5, 2014

It’s a principle of our representative democracy that we, the people, don’t weigh in on every bit of minutia entailed in making laws and policy. The oft-quoted maxim, usually attributed to Prussian statesman Otto Von Bismark, posits that lawmaking, like sausage-making, is a process better left unviewed. But at what points in the “sausage-making” should […]

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 […]

Tag: Florida Supreme Court

Martin Dyckman: How the First District Court of Appeal ignored Florida voters

Julie Delegal: Charlie Crist and the Voucher Factory

Former Florida justices: Why those who are both for and against medical marijuana oppose Amendment 2

Martin Dyckman: Same-sex divorce too hot to handle for many Florida judges

Barney Bishop: Amendment 2 isn’t about medical marijuana; it’s about getting high

Stephen Goldstein: Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is out for herself

Martin Dyckman: Congressional District 13 was drawn to assure a GOP victory

Martin Dyckman: How to honor former Gov. Reubin Askew’s memory

Julie Delegal: Voters benefit when the ‘sausage’ is made in public

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