Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Danny McAuliffeMarch 27, 2018

Philip Levine, former mayor of Miami Beach, holds the ideology that local governments should be in charge. And if he’s elected to the statewide office of Governor, he said those beliefs won’t change. Tailing off a suggested early lead in the four-way Democratic gubernatorial primary, Levine spoke Tuesday to Tallahassee’s Tiger Bay Club, a group […]

Scott PowersMarch 21, 2018

Gov. Rick Scott condemned the boycott-Israel movement as anti-Semitism as he signed House Bill 545 in Orlando Wednesday, outlawing Florida governments from doing business with any entities boycotting Israel. Scott’s bill-signing ceremony Wednesday at the Orlando Torah Academy, a Jewish day school, also served to allow him to tout the $2 million that was included in the state […]

Associated PressApril 19, 2017

Richard Rodrigue stood in the back of a banquet hall, watching his blond-haired, blue-eyed daughter mingle among her high school classmates. These teenagers speak dozens of languages, and hail from a dozen African nations. They fled brutal civil war, famine, oppressive regimes to find themselves here, at an ordinary high school pre-prom fete in this […]

Scott PowersApril 18, 2017

Taxes that Florida and many local governments collect on phone, cable and other communication services are in steady decline for the same reasons as land-line telephones: people are finding different, better, and cheaper ways to consumer communications. An explosion in popularity of Internet video services such as Netflix and Hulu, combined with other technology and consumer choice advances, […]

Associated PressApril 3, 2017

After their humiliating loss on health care, Republicans in Congress could use a quick victory on a big issue. It won’t be an overhaul of the tax code. Overhauling the tax code could prove harder to accomplish than repealing and replacing Barack Obama‘s health law. Congressional Republicans are divided on significant issues, especially a new […]

Guest AuthorFebruary 24, 2017

As private citizens, most of us are trying to make the best financial decisions for our family, which starts with where we bank and who we trust with our money. And, it stands to reason that, as taxpayers, we would want our local government entities to do the same. Yet, Florida law does not allow […]

Associated PressNovember 26, 2016

Fidel Castro, who led a rebel army to improbable victory, embraced Soviet-style communism and defied the power of 10 U.S. presidents during his half century rule of Cuba, has died at age 90. With a shaking voice, President Raul Castro said on state television that his older brother died at 10:29 p.m. Friday. He ended […]

Associated PressJuly 23, 2016

Tim Kaine has an Election Day tradition when his name is on the ballot. The avid outdoorsman votes early, then goes hiking in the woods with friends and family for a few hours of calm away from the nervous last-minute energy of political campaigns. It’s a ritual that’s so far served him well: He’s never […]

Ryan RayMarch 11, 2016

A compromise between Republican lawmakers and ride-hailing firms like Uber was on thin ice Friday afternoon as Session raced to a close, until finally, the bill hit a brick wall. Sen. David Simmons, the Senate Rules Chair, had worked on the bill (SB 1118) for months. It would have mandated minimum commercial insurance requirements for drivers with Uber and […]

Guest AuthorJune 26, 2014

Polls show only 7 percent of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, and frankly, most of us want to know what is wrong with those 7 percent. However, as dysfunctional as Washington can be, most governments in America function just fine because they are led by caring citizens who are motivated not by […]

Tag: local governments

Philip Levine: Minimum wage, vacation rentals should be local decisions

Rick Scott condemns Israel boycotts as anti-Semitism

How communities shaped by refugees became Donald Trump country

Communications technologies, consumer choices, could end-run taxation

Congress seen as not likely to pass tax overhaul quickly

Patrick La Pine: Make 2017 the year for depository choice

Cuba’s Fidel Castro, who defied U.S. for 50 years, dies at 90

Self-assured, Tim Kaine brings a steady hand to Hillary Clinton ticket

Uber legislation finally flames out

Kevin Sweeny: Local elections are the ones that affect your life the most