Hey, Florida, remember Jeff Kottkamp, your former lieutenant governor? The mustached politician served alongside Charlie Crist and was chosen mostly because he was a reliable conservative in contrast to Crist’s more moderate stance. Well, after a failed run for state attorney general in 2010, Kottkamp has emerged from political obscurity…
Sometimes a politician introduces a bill that makes you think, Yes, that seems like a very sensible idea, before you realize, How big of a problem could that actually pose anyway? That was our reaction to Florida Rep. Bob Cortes’ “All-American Flag Act,” which forbids Florida or any county, or…
Gov. Rick Scott has never received 50 percent of the vote in Florida. He spent most of his first term with approval ratings that would make Enron executives blush with shame. His personal narrative includes a detour into the largest Medicare fraud penalty in American history. This is a man…
Medical marijuana supporters have officially started to repack their bowls for 2016. Attorney and main supporter John Morgan has officially filed a new amendment with the Florida Secretary of State today with hope of getting it on the ballot in time for the next presidential election. See also: Don’t Worry,…
Even most hard-line Florida Republicans have accepted that gay marriage is here to stay. As thousands of LGBT couples from the Panhandle to Key West have tied the knot and business leaders have trumpeted the economic boost gay weddings will bring, the state GOP’s response has ranged from Attorney General…
You can’t accuse Marco Rubio of self doubt. The Florida senator has not yet made a decision about whether or not he’ll run for president, but he’s seems pretty damn certain that if he did run, he’d totally be sitting in the Oval Office come January 2017…
Remember last year when we reelected Rick Scott as governor? Yeah, crazy stuff. Well, his second term officially begins tomorrow, and it doesn’t seem that many people are that excited about it… including Florida’s former governors. Traditionally, living ex-governors are invited to inaugurations (as is the case in presidential inaugurations…
Marco Rubio doesn’t seem to have noticed that this stock has fallen a bit since 2010. He’s no longer trumpeted as the “Republican savior” or “GOP Obama,” but rather just the second most popular Republican from Florida. Despite that (and a whole lot of polls), he’s still openly talking about…
It’s January 1, 2015 — which means it’s the perfect time to ramp up speculation about the presidential race that’s now only 677 days away! In Florida, of course, that means we’re talking primarily about two Republican heavyweights, the former governor and conservative family dynasty torchbearer Jeb Bush and his…
Rick Scott may be having a scaled-back inauguration this time around, but that doesn’t mean donors aren’t still writing big checks for the event. More than $500,000 has been given to the Republican Party of Florida for the festivities…
In September 2006, the crime that sparked one of the darkest sagas in Miami-Dade Public Schools history happened in a Northwestern High School bathroom. That’s where the school’s star 18-year-old quarterback had sex with a 14-year-old freshman girl. The crime soon began the focus of a mass coverup allegation as…
A federal judge told him to drop the plan. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals told him it was illegal. Then the U.S. Supreme Court refused to listen to his arguments. But despite losing over and over in every court around, Gov. Rick Scott is still fighting for the right…
Jeb Bush has spent the better part of the last eight years denying that he was going to run for president. Now he’s finally confirmed what everyone has long suspected. He’s thinking about making a run. In a Facebook message posted today Bush announced that he will “actively explore the…
There are a few unmistakable signs that a candidate is about to declare his run for the White House. His travel schedule is suddenly peppered with appointments in small-town Iowa and New Hampshire. He’s on Sunday morning talk shows every week trashing the opposition or talking up his narrative. Or…
Finally, some Floridian behavior to celebrate. A new report concludes that Florida has the second lowest smoking rate amongst high school students of every state in the union. In fact, Florida’s efforts to curb youth smoking has been so successful that researchers are actually issuing a “Florida Challenge” to other…
Remember when Florida Senator Marco Rubio was dubbed “the Republican Savior,” and “the GOP Obama?” Yeah, so much for that. Voters in his home state have really, really chilled on the idea of Rubio running for president. Instead, they’re looking back to the past: Jeb Bush…
For the past two years, efforts to legalize beer growlers, the 64-oz. jugs that are container of choice for the craft beer movement, have faltered in Florida’s legislature. One problem is that the change has often been tied up in bills that concern other beer distribution proposals. This year, supporters…
There aren’t many buildings in Miami Beach more iconic than the Blue Diamond Condominium and its sister, the Green Diamond, the tallest structures in town. With a 16,000-square-foot clubhouse, 24-hour valet service, and private tennis courts, the condo is also among the Beach’s most exclusive residences — capped by a…
George W. Bush seemed totally sure that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, but he can’t seem to figure out whether his brother Jeb is going to run for president yet. He does however think that the former Florida governor would totally beat Hillary Clinton in 2016 if…
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi has become the 18th Republican state attorney general to join a lawsuit against President Barack Obama over his immigration executive order…
More than 35 years after Anita Bryant’s crusade to have gays and lesbians denied basic rights in Miami-Dade and following a more recent political battle that saw a once powerful county commissioner defeated earlier this year, the county’s Human Rights Ordinance now finally protects citizens on the basis of gender…
Back in 1963, Birmingham Commissioner of Public Safety Bull Connor turned firehoses on African-Americans who were protesting his virulent segregationist policies. Those tactics, along with the use of attack dogs on protestors, were considered so violent that they actually helped turn public opinion against segregation and lesser civil rights for…
