Peter Schorsch - page 477

Steve Schale. Dylan Sumner. Steve Vancore. Ashley Walker. Screven Watson. These are five of the biggest names in Florida Democratic politics. If they were NFL quarterbacks, they’d be Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Andrew Luck, Peyton Manning, and Phillip Rivers, although not in any corresponding order. Trouble is, the only Super Bowl winners on that list are Brady and Manning. Yet a two-time Super Bowl winner, Eli Manning, is not mentioned enough as one of the best quarterbacks in the league.…

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Ballard Partners announced the addition of a new partner, Genaro “Chip” Iglesias, who will serve as the chair of the firm’s local government practice and will be based in the Miami office. Iglesias brings more than 30 years of experience working in one of Florida’s largest counties, Miami-Dade. Iglesias has served as Deputy Mayor of Miami-Dade County since 2011 where he oversaw the Office of the Mayor, and more than 9,000 employees in the Police, Fire-Rescue and Emergency Management, Corrections…

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David McKalip, the most vocal opponent of the Greenlight Pinellas transit proposal, is calling for the resignations of Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority CEO Brad Miller and Pinellas County Commissioner Ken Welch from the PSTA Board of Directors. Writing on Sunbeam Times, McKalip accuses Miller and Welch of “betraying” the public trust, failing to oversee operations properly as “good stewards” of public dollars. “They have both participated in the abuse of anti-terrorism grant funds and lied about the abuse,” he says. “They…

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Tampa Bay Times columnist Ernest Hooper gives a strong shout-out to State House District 67 candidate Chris Latvala and you may believe the reason why. Hooper is commending Latvala, the son of State Senator Jack Latvala, for NOT debating. In a campaign season in which one of the dominant themes has been Charlie Crist’s refusal to debate his Democratic rival Nan Rich, it’s surprising to see someone in the media support a candidate’s decision not to debate his opponents. Actually, Latvala…

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Authorities say lightning apparently struck a man who had taken refuge from the rain under the awnings at a St. Petersburg gas station. But the man appeared to be OK, though shaken up after the Sunday afternoon incident. The Tampa Bay Times reports a group of motorcyclists stopped to take shelter from the rain when store owner Matt Yaghoubi heard a loud, crashing sound. A moment late two bikers walked inside the station. The victim was slowly shaking his head.…

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All Aboard Florida has begun airing 30-second television commercials in communities along its planned route, with the goal of having residents write letters of support for the proposed passenger rail service. The media push is part of an ongoing public education campaign, according to company representatives. The commercial, which began airing last week, comes after opponents to the train service produced its own TV ads critical of the project, reports Jennifer Sorentrue of the Palm Beach Post. All Aboard Florida…

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For the first couple of days after the Tampa Bay Times reported that top Republican officials, including Governor Rick Scott, have enjoyed hunting trips to South Texas’ historic King Ranch thanks to the Sunshine State’s sugar industry, Charlie Crist’s campaign was notably quiet. The Times analysis shows that in the last three years, U.S. Sugar paid nearly $100,000 to the Republican Party of Florida for at least 20 weekend fundraising trips. The destinations were not made public, but they all occurred…

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