JJ Corbett is a hero of World War II, but, more importantly, he is a hero of the human spirit. He served on a mission kept so secret that only in the last decade or two have the American citizens known of it. And he was injured on that mission. But Corbett, now 92, from Bartow, was never allowed to fight overseas because of his color and the political climate of the time. He was a member of the 555th…
The president of the Florida Federation of Republican Women said that the League of Women Voters, whose proposed congressional and state Senate redistricting maps were adopted by the courts after it and other groups sued, is liberal in its policies and its membership is largely from Democrats. Dena DeCamp of Lakeland said the Florida Federation intends to become a “conservative alternative” to the league and begin to push a conservative agenda and counter the league’s issues. “We are going to…
A hearing late this afternoon before the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee could mark a session-long fight over Florida’s consumer protection laws as they relate to bill collectors harassing private citizens and hospitals finding themselves perhaps caught in a scam and paying a high penalty for a purposefully mismailed complaint. A bill by Sen. Kelli Stargel, a Lakeland Republican, Senate Bill 562, would shield hospitals from liability when bill collection demands continue to harass private citizens over their unpaid bills. But the bill creates more harassment…
The state of Florida is sitting on a building it cannot sell, but won’t give it to a local municipality which says it needs it. In his final year in the Florida House due to term limits, Winter Haven Republican Rep. John Wood said he and members of the Polk County delegation will be fighting to get the state to give (or sell at an affordable price) Nora Mayo Hall to the city of Winter Haven. Part of the Florida…
Polk County business leaders and legislators are readying for a possible end run around the Florida Department of Transportation’s decision to postpone and perhaps even stop support for the Central Polk Parkway toll road … maybe a half-end run. Rep. John Wood, a Winter Haven Republican who has chaired the Central Polk Parkway Working Group, plans to discuss the creation of a Polk County Expressway Authority that will plan ways to keep the project alive. The working group meets 9…
After the announcement Tuesday of the new numbered districts following a court-ordered redistricting because the Florida Senate couldn’t or wouldn’t do its job, Polk County still will have three state Senate Districts. But it could have at least two new senators after the 2016 elections. The districts won’t be in the same positions in the county. The seat with eastern portion of Polk County occupied by Orlando Democrat, Sen. Darren Soto, is moved completely out of the county, but for…
The most fun places for political junkies are the diners and coffee shops of small towns where lots of good rumors and speculation seem to be served up along with the eggs and pancakes. And the most speculation recently has been over state Sen. Denise Grimsley, a Sebring Republican, and her 2016 re-election campaign in Senate District 21. Rumors ask is she thinking of leaving? Grimsley has no trouble in funding her re-election campaign. She had a campaign war chest of $338,291…