Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

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, […]

Christine Jordan SextonNovember 18, 2014

Barring a major shift among Republicans it remains unlikely that Florida will move ahead with an expansion of Medicaid, a key component of Obamacare. Florida Gov. Rick Scott two years ago did a turnabout and came out in support of a limited Medicaid expansion for the working poor so long as the federal government paid […]

Gary FineoutSeptember 29, 2014

A two-year voter fraud investigation that centered on a company once aligned with the Republican Party of Florida has wrapped up with the arrest of a former employee. Four people, including William T. Hazard of Boynton Beach, wound up getting up charged over allegations of submitting false voter registration forms. State investigators looked at questionable […]

Martin DyckmanJuly 30, 2014

In one of Bill Mauldin’s many memorable World War II “Stars and Stripes” cartoons, two Army officers stand on a cliff overlooking a picturesque French valley as sunlight streams through the clouds. “Beautiful view,” says one to the other. “Is there one for the enlisted men?” That cartoon came to mind the other day as […]

Peter SchorschJune 18, 2014

By the time whoever is chosen to serve as Speaker of the Florida House in 2020-21, there will be a new occupant of the White House and a new governor of Florida. The Sunshine State’s population is expected to be over 21 million by the time of the next census. By 2020, there will be two […]

Guest AuthorJune 10, 2014

Florida’s state-run insurer, Citizens Property Insurance Corp., is due for another investigation. This review is needed following the report “Revolving door of Citizens executives to companies with contracts raises questions” by Mary Ellen Klas of the Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times. The Herald/Times report found that at least three senior executives at Citizens went to work […]

Guest AuthorMay 8, 2014

I was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2000 and quickly participated in my first session — a special session called to determine which candidate for president would be awarded Florida’s electoral votes. There were 14 sessions during my first three years in office. Many of those sessions were special sessions needed to […]

Bob SparksMay 6, 2014

Another legislative session is behind us. A host of bills, some more significant than others, await a signature and possibly a made-for-media signing ceremony by Gov. Rick Scott. With one party leading two branches of government, the governor’s veto pen will require precious little ink. A surge in “member projects” (some say pork, some say […]

Peter SchorschMay 4, 2014

Winner: Will Weatherford With the passage of the immigration tuition bill, Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford is the single biggest winner of the 2014 legislative session. He has completely silenced his detractors by accomplishing something few of the old silverbacks could have pulled off, and it is the capstone on the first phase of a political […]

Guest AuthorApril 28, 2014

Florida legislators demanding more “accountability” as a condition for expanding the state’s premier school-choice program could learn a very valuable lesson from the example set by the late, great Mary McLeod Bethune. When Bethune opened her Daytona School for Negro Girls in 1904, she knew success would depend on satisfying two different constituencies — parents […]

Tag: Will Weatherford

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

Medicaid expansion not likely, legislative leaders say

2 year voter fraud probe results in arrest

Martin Dyckman: King Ranch scandal shows why you need newspapers

Peter Schorsch: Here’s everything you didn’t know about the 2020-21 Speaker race

Dan Krassner: Citizens Property Insurance due for another investigation

Jeff Kottkamp: Low-key legislative session was a lull before election fireworks

Bob Sparks: Real people must trump ideology

Peter Schorsch: The winners and losers in the 2014 legislative session

William Mattox: Private schools must pass the ‘Mary McLeod Bethune’ test