Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Peter SchorschJanuary 12, 2015

The first full week of January brought lawmakers and politicos to Tallahassee for a round of legislative committee meetings and the inauguration of Gov. Rick Scott. This provided quite a clash of cultures at local institutions where the natives mix with the out-of-towners. On one side were the legislators, lobbyists and staffers still hung over […]

Peter SchorschJanuary 5, 2015

A surefire way for a player to enter the Baseball Hall of Fame is to bat .400 or better in a season, although no one has done so since Ted Williams in 1941. Still, if you get a hit every two times out of five in professional baseball, you will be more than an All-Star, […]

Peter SchorschDecember 29, 2014

If only the Rick Scott we got to know during this past election year had been the one who first entered the Governor’s Mansion in 2011. Remember that guy? The former health-care exec with a chip on his shoulder who bragged he was a Tea Partier before the Tea Party was cool. He was the novice politician […]

Peter SchorschDecember 21, 2014

As much as we would like to think otherwise, in politics not everyone can be a winner. To put it another way, as Judge Smails did in the eminently quotable Caddyshack: “The world needs ditch diggers, too.” Few will disagree that 2014 was a particularly fertile political year, one that produced a bumper crop of political winners – […]

Peter SchorschDecember 18, 2014

Jeb Bush’s announcement Tuesday that he is setting up an exploratory committee for the 2016 presidential race may be his most decisive move yet, but it was anything but a surprise. However, since it has been more than 150 years since a successful candidate had a 14-year gap between his last election and winning the White House, […]

Peter SchorschDecember 8, 2014

She’d outpester any pest Drive a hornet from its nest She could throw a whirling dervish out of whirl She is gentle! She is wild! She’s a riddle! She’s a child! She’s a headache! She’s an angel! She’s a girl! How do you solve a problem like Maria? For whatever reason, that Rodgers and Hammerstein […]

Peter SchorschDecember 4, 2014

For a moment there, it looked like it was time to pull the plug. It was time to call the priest and ask him to deliver the last rites. For a moment there, state Sen. Jack Latvala’s ambitions to be president of the Florida Senate in 2016-18 were in their death throes. This past November, […]

Peter SchorschNovember 23, 2014

The first sign of trouble for Adam Hollingsworth arrived via email one year ago yesterday, when Miami Herald reporter Marc Caputo emailed Gov. Rick Scott’s communications director, Melissa Sellers, with a pointed question. “I’m hearing Hollingsworth was fired from CSX for lying about his academic credentials. True?” With Rick Scott away in Arizona for a […]

Mitch PerryNovember 17, 2014

This is my debut column for SaintPetersblog and FloridaPolitics.com, and thanks for being part of it. It’s only been a little over a week since I penned (or more accurately, typed) my last “MPR” for Creative Loafing, but it seems a lot longer than that. It’s certainly been an interesting 10 days or so since […]

Peter SchorschNovember 13, 2014

Imagine you are a Vietnam veteran, a hunter, and an NRA member. And imagine that in your retirement you set up a remote homestead and you buy – yes, you buy – 60 acres of solitude where you can live peacefully and raise your horses and dogs. Sounds like you found your own slice of heaven. But […]

Tag: Peter Schorsch

Peter Schorsch: Insights from the inauguration

Peter Schorsch: A reluctant Rubio and four other bold predictions for 2015

Peter Schorsch: Refurbished Rick Scott is Florida’s politician of the year

Peter Schorsch: Florida’s political ditch diggers of 2014

Peter Schorsch: Did Jeb Bush wait too long after his last election for a White House run?

Peter Schorsch: It’s time for Scott’s new chief of staff to turn on the charm

Peter Schorsch: State Sen. Jack Latvala’s ambitions to become Senate president still have life

Peter Schorsch: For now, prospects not bright for Scott’s former chief of staff

Mitch Perry Report – 11.17.14

Peter Schorsch: The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s inexplicable refusal to stop deer-dog hunting where Florida families reside