Top Headlines – Page 2845 – SaintPetersBlog

#4 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Jeff Brandes

Published on March 5, 2015 in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by Peter Schorsch

If Rand Paul is the most interesting man in politics (as he was labeled last fall by Time magazine), then Jeff Brandes is definitely on the short list for the most interesting lawmaker in Tallahassee. Though he skews right (sometimes extreme right, as when he was the only state senator who opposed the Joe Negron “hybrid” proposal on Medicaid expansion in 2013), he’s also got a strong libertarian bent that distinguishes himself from the majority of his GOP brethren. He…

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St. Pete City Council moves on three measures aimed at keeping Rays baseball in town

Published on March 5, 2015 in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by Janelle Irwin

St. Pete City Council voted unanimously to approve three measures related to the Tampa Bay Rays continuing to play baseball in St. Petersburg. Council member Wengay Newton was absent for the vote. The first measure is a symbolic resolution showing council’s intention to work with the Major League Baseball team to keep them in St. Petersburg beyond the terms of their current contract that requires the team to play ball in Tropicana Field through 2027. “I hope the Rays understand…

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#5 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Kathy Castor

Published on March 5, 2015 in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by Peter Schorsch

The four-term congresswoman who represents Tampa and parts of St. Petersburg had a good year in 2014. Not only did she win re-election without drawing an opponent, but her behind-the-scenes effort working with President Obama on normalizing relations with Cuba reached fruition with the president’s dramatic announcement last December that the two nations would resume diplomatic efforts. Kathy Castor has championed health care issues since being elected, and she’s been front and center in getting the word out for eligible…

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Today on Context Florida: education accountability, Miami Gardens, Student loan debt and sagging pants

Published on March 5, 2015 in Apolitical/Top Headlines by Phil Ammann

Today on Context Florida: In the second of a two-part series, Julie Delegal examines the move to lower the stakes in Florida’s high-stakes education accountability system, as well as how they got so high in the first place. Republican Rep. Debbie Mayfield of Vero Beach is so frustrated with the entire standards-based accountability system that she wants to give entire school districts the ability to “opt out” of standards-based tests altogether. Florence Snyder talks of the Miami Gardens police, and its…

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Florida lawmakers criticize Obama’s changes to Cuba policy

Published on March 5, 2015 in Top Headlines by Associated Press

Republican lawmakers blasted President Barack Obama‘s decision to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba on Thursday, saying it will only serve to empower the communist nation that’s been ruled by a dictatorship since 1959. Republican members of the House Local & Federal Affairs Committee speaking before a nearly empty meeting room gave forceful speeches in support of a three-page message expressing the will of the Legislature they hope to send to Obama and congressional leaders. The 8-4 vote to send the…

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Jeff Brandes proposes major red light camera reform

Published on March 5, 2015 in Top Headlines by Janelle Irwin

State Sen. Jeff Brandes has proposed a series of amendments to an omnibus transportation bill that could have a drastic effect on red light cameras throughout the state. The amendments to Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles’ SB 1184 would reserve red light cameras as a last- resort safety measure at intersections prone to traffic accidents. “These cameras were initially proposed as programs designed to improve safety, but they’ve turned into nothing more than a back-door tax increase on Florida drivers,” Brandes said. “These…

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#6 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Tom Lee

Published on March 5, 2015 in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by Peter Schorsch

The 53-year-old Brandon-based homebuilder moves up one notch from his 2014 ranking, in part because of his status as chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee for the next two legislative sessions. Tom Lee initially served in the Senate from 1996-2006, serving as Senate president for those last two years before an unsuccessful run for chief financial officer against Alex Sink in 2006. He returned to Tallahassee in the Senate in 2012, and in 2014 worked double duty on the…

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Life and politics from the Sunshine State's best city

Top Headlines - page 2845

#4 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Jeff Brandes

St. Pete City Council moves on three measures aimed at keeping Rays baseball in town

#5 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Kathy Castor

Today on Context Florida: education accountability, Miami Gardens, Student loan debt and sagging pants

Florida lawmakers criticize Obama’s changes to Cuba policy

Jeff Brandes proposes major red light camera reform

#6 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Tom Lee

Top Headlines - page 2845

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