Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiMay 23, 2017

On Tuesday night, the Jacksonville City Council passed a trio of bills designed to close the books on a conflict between neighborhood activists in Springfield, disability rights groups, and ultimately, the federal Department of Justice. Two Jacksonville City Council bills (2017-68 and 2017-69) closed the book on an issue that first emerged during the Alvin Brown […]

Associated PressMay 12, 2017

President Donald Trump, in an apparent warning to his fired FBI director, said Friday that James Comey had better hope there are no “tapes” of their conversations. Trump’s tweet came the morning after he asserted Comey had told him three times that he wasn’t under FBI investigation. “I said, ‘If it’s possible, would you let […]

Associated PressMarch 2, 2017

Attorney General Jeff Sessions talked twice with Russia’s ambassador to the United States during the presidential campaign, the Justice Department confirmed, communications that spurred calls in Congress for him to recuse himself from an investigation into Russian interference in the U.S. election. Sessions, an early supporter of President Donald Trump‘s candidacy and a policy adviser […]

Associated PressFebruary 23, 2017

Attorney General Jeff Sessions signaled Thursday his strong support for the federal government’s continued use of private prisons, reversing an Obama administration directive to phase out their use. Stocks of major private prison companies rose at the news. Sessions issued a memo replacing one issued last August by Sally Yates, the deputy attorney general at […]

Peter SchorschNovember 14, 2016

After marijuana amendments passed in eight of the nine states where it was on the ballot Tuesday, now nearly a quarter of all Americans live in states where recreational use of marijuana is legal. Voters in California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada approved recreational marijuana amendments last week, giving nearly 50 million more Americans the right […]

Peter SchorschSeptember 15, 2016

Democrat Patrick Murphy wasted little time in finding the fatal flaw in a bill by Republican Marco Rubio to prevent suspected terrorists from purchasing firearms, while attempting to protect the rights of lawful gun owners. On Thursday, the Florida senator submitted the “Terror Intelligence Improvement Act of 2016,” which requires federal agencies to flag anyone attempting […]

Associated PressSeptember 7, 2016

The U.S. Department of Justice has dropped its legal case against the release of 911 calls from the massacre at a gay nightclub in Florida, saying Wednesday that withholding the recordings is no longer necessary to the federal investigation. The reversal by federal prosecutors keeps the freedom of information fight in state court. About two […]

Associated PressJuly 5, 2016

Despite two intense days of negotiations, a settlement remained elusive Tuesday in a lawsuit filed against the U.S. government by two women who claim their rights as victims were violated in a case involving abuse of numerous teenage girls and a wealthy, well-connected South Florida sex offender. U.S. Magistrate Judge Dave Lee Brannon said after […]

Mitch PerryApril 5, 2016

There were reports on Tuesday of college students waiting in long lines to vote in Wisconsin’s presidential primary election, amid concerns that the Badger State’s convoluted voter ID law signed by Gov. Scott Walker could ultimately disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of voters. That comes on top of the report that the U.S. Department of Justice will […]

Associated PressApril 4, 2016

A federal judge in New Orleans granted final approval Monday to an estimated $20 billion settlement over the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, resolving years of litigation over the worst offshore spill in the nation’s history. The settlement, first announced in July, includes $5.5 billion in civil Clean Water Act penalties […]

Tag: Justice Department

Jacksonville closes book on disability rights dispute with settlement bills

Donald Trump to James Comey: Better hope there are no ‘tapes’ of talks

Jeff Sessions spoke with Russian envoy in 2016, Justice Dept says

Jeff Sessions: U.S. to continue use of privately run prisons

Marijuana reform went 8 for 9 on the ballot; is it at a tipping point?

Patrick Murphy quick to blast Marco Rubio’s flawed terrorist gun bill, says it ‘accomplishes nothing’

DOJ drops fight over release of 911 calls from club massacre

Still no deal in rich financier teen sex victims’ lawsuit

GOP wants to stymie “inconvenient” voting groups at polls, says Democratic Chair

Federal judge OKs $20 billion settlement from 2010 BP oil spill