Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Scott PowersJune 30, 2017

Orange County Deputy Sheriff Frank Bonetti went into a fully-engulfed burning house to pull a man to safety. Orange County Deputy Sheriff Brian Martin, Reserve Sergeant Robert Knight and Sergeant Fred Westerberg went into Pulse. Now the quartet are going into history, named by the National Sheriffs’ Association’s National Deputy of the Year Awards. The National […]

Scott PowersJune 15, 2017

Orlando Democratic U.S. Rep. Val Demings has attached an amendment to a Homeland Security bill hoping for another route to get anti-terrorism money for Orlando and other cities left out of a federal grants program. On Wednesday Demings got the amendment into House Resolution 2825, the Department of Homeland Security Authorization Act of 2017, during a […]

Scott PowersJune 12, 2017

With tens of thousands of people packing Lake Eola Park and countless more watching remotely, Orlando gathered Monday night for a somber remembrance the 49 people murdered at Pulse one year ago, and a celebration of love and unity emerged. This was largely Orlando’s LGBTQ community’s opportunity to come together in a mass remembrance and […]

Scott PowersJune 12, 2017

Democratic U.S. Reps. Darren Soto and Val Demings of Orlando and Stephanie Murphy of Winter Park intend to cosponsor a resolution in Congress Monday night and spend about an hour on the House of Representatives floor paying tribute to the 49 people murdered at Pulse last year. The trio attended the Pulse one-year memorial events in Orlando […]

Scott PowersJune 12, 2017

There are boxes atop tissues on every display case at the Pulse One Orlando Exhibit that opened Monday at the Orange County Regional History Center, and they are being used. From now through Saturday the center is displaying 200-300 items that were offered in the past year at various make-shift shrines throughout Orlando, items curated […]

Scott PowersJune 12, 2017

As Orange County once again unfurled a piece of the Sea-to-Sea Rainbow Flag in downtown Orlando, city and county leaders insisted its values of acceptance, understanding, diversity and inclusion shall forever define Orlando. The anniversary of the catastrophic mass murder at Orlando’s popular gay nightclub Pulse on Latino night, June 12, 2016, began largely in […]

A.G. GancarskiJune 9, 2017

One doesn’t have to go back much farther than a few days to find the latest historical example of mass shootings in Florida: an Orlando workplace shooting that took multiple casualties. It wasn’t the first mass shooting in Florida. It likely won’t be the last. As Orlando and the state of Florida deal with that […]

Associated PressMay 28, 2017

As a law enforcement foundation reviews how the Orlando Police Department responded to a 2016 mass shooting at a gay nightclub, the organization’s staffers say in a paper that police training and protocols may need to change. They suggest that regular patrol officers should be trained in how to respond to a terrorist attack or […]

Scott PowersMay 4, 2017

The owner of the Pulse nightclub announced Thursday her newly formed foundation will seek to develop a national-caliber memorial and museum campus on the site of America’s worst recorded mass shooting. Barbara Poma pushed through the pain of last year’s tragedy to declare her new foundation’s motto, “We will not let hate win,” and announced […]

Scott PowersApril 25, 2017

Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio continued his campaign against worldwide human rights abuses by foreign dictators last night by speaking out against the Chechen terror campaign against gays, and tying it to Russian President Vladimir Putin. On the floor of the U.S. Senate Monday night, Rubio relayed reports of mass arrests, at least three killings of LGBT […]

Tag: Pulse

National Deputy Sheriff awards dramatically detail Orange County deputies’ actions at Pulse and 2014 fire

Val Demings tries new route to get anti-terrorism money for Orlando

Orlando Love: In a community-wide painful remembrance, celebration breaks out

Three Orlando members in Congress to tell Pulse victims’ stories, introduce resolution

History Center exhibit catches love, creativity, faith outpourings following Pulse

Teresa Jacobs, Buddy Dyer, Patty Sheehan: Rainbow flag symbolizes Orlando’s values

On eve of Pulse massacre anniversary, Gwen Graham pushes gun safety plan

Report: After Pulse massacre, police training needs changes

Barbara Poma, foundation, to develop national memorial, museum at Pulse site

Marco Rubio speaks out against terror against gays in Chechnya, ties in Vladimir Putin