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Joe Henderson - page 33

Joe Henderson has 239 articles published.

Joe Henderson has had a 45-year career in newspapers, including the last nearly 42 years at The Tampa Tribune. He covered a large variety of things, primarily in sports but also including hard news. The two intertwined in the decade-long search to bring Major League Baseball to the area. Henderson was also City Hall reporter for two years and covered all sides of the sales tax issue that ultimately led to the construction of Raymond James Stadium. He served as a full-time sports columnist for about 10 years before moving to the metro news columnist for the last 4 ½ years. Henderson has numerous local, state and national writing awards. He has been married to his wife, Elaine, for nearly 35 years and has two grown sons – Ben and Patrick.

Joe Henderson: Unopposed candidates create ‘great void’ in local politics

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Elections are supposed to be about choices, but after candidate qualifying ended in Florida last week, many of the elections are already decided. Voters in 11 districts won’t get to choose their state senator because the incumbent faces no opposition — seven Republicans and four Democrats, if you’re keeping score. And in District 24, Pinellas County Republican incumbent Jeff Brandes faces only a write-in candidate. The theme is the same in the state House, where 29 candidates face no opposition…

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Tom Lee, Bill Galvano to remain powerful GOP voices in Senate

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Two key Republicans will be returning to the Florida Senate in new districts and without opposition. Bill Galvano of Bradenton and Tom Lee of Brandon were the only candidates to meet Friday’s noon filing deadline and thus have been assured of returning to Tallahassee. Lee’s political future had seemed uncertain after court-ordered redistricting could have placed both him and Galvano in the newly drawn District 21, which covers parts of Hillsborough and Manatee counties. Lee declined to run against Galvano,…

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Kathy Castor ‘running on adrenaline’ after 26-hour sit-in House protest

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor said Thursday she is “running on adrenaline” following her participation in an overnight sit-in at the House of Representatives in Washington. The Tampa congresswoman joined other Democrats in a protest against the refusal by House Speaker Paul Ryan to allow a vote on restricting access to military-style assault weapons in the wake of the mass murder June 12 in Orlando. The protest lasted about 26 hours after it began at 11:24 a.m. Wednesday. “The sit-in is…

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Joe Henderson: Rick Scott, Libertarians love TBX; everyone else can suck exhaust

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

An essential part of the Libertarian ideal is a belief that for public services, consumers should pay as they go. The preference is user fees instead of taxes. As we well know, Gov. Rick Scott has strong Libertarian leanings. Keep that in mind while considering the 12-4 vote by the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization to proceed with the next phase of the controversial $3.3 billion Tampa Bay Express transportation proposal, better known as TBX. Protesters outnumbered supporters by about 2-to-1…

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Joe Henderson: It’s not that Marco Rubio reneged; it’s that he did a lousy job in Senate

in 2017/Top Headlines by

The fact Marco Rubio reneged on his vow not to run for re-election to the U.S. Senate isn’t that big of a deal. Politicians change their minds all the time. A much bigger deal — and a reality Marco apologists choose to ignore — is the fact Rubio has done a spectacularly lousy job since elected to the Senate in 2010. And then there is this: Part of his motivation to return to a job he loudly and often claimed to loathe…

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Joe Henderson: When political opportunity knocks, Lisa Montelione gets busy

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

You can never take a moment off in politics, so when Lisa Montelione saw an opportunity Tuesday morning, she got busy. A frisky black bear had climbed up a tree about two blocks from her home in north Tampa. While authorities worked to safely remove the animal, Montelione was thinking ahead. “I told them they better not harm a hair on that bear’s head. That’s a constituent,” she said with a laugh. “When they get him out of that tree,…

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Joe Henderson: Tom Lee’s tough, surprising choice

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

I’m a little surprised by Tom Lee’s decision to run for re-election to the state Senate. Along with just about everyone else in the media and Florida politics, I’ve had lengthy chats with Lee about his future since a judge drew new district lines that essentially forced him to make a tough decision. Because his current Brandon home now lies in a different district than the one Lee represents, he had three choices: Challenge Senate Majority Leader Bill Galvano if…

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