Ever since I acquired the rights to the perfect domain for my efforts — FloridaPolitics.com — I knew that one day, this website would have to be put out to pasture.
Well, after more than 51,000 posts, this is the final one.
Going forward, I am devoting my full energies to the Florida Politics brand, whether it be the website, email programs like “Sunburn” and “Last Call,” or our gorgeous, award-winning INFLUENCE Magazine. Keep Reading
Two days after the St. Petersburg City Council passed an ordinance limiting campaign contributions, which is expected to be legally challenged, Council Chair Darden Rice was still exulting. A former president of the League of Women Voters in St. Pete, Rice was an early champion of the just passed measure that … Keep Reading
Four of the top five teams in the country kicked off their games at noon Eastern on Saturday, which suggests that all were expected to roll. No. 2 Clemson, No. 4 Penn State and No. 5 Georgia all did just that. Then there was No. 3 Oklahoma. The Sooners and Iowa … Keep Reading
After hours of debate, the St. Petersburg City Council approved a campaign-finance reform measure Thursday, which could have national implications. The final vote was 6-2, with Council members Ed Montanari and Jim Kennedy dissenting. Once the final vote became clear, the crowd in city chambers erupted with cheers. … Keep Reading
If there was any doubt about the interest level in the ‘battle of the two Ricks,’ check the latest campaign finance reports for Rick Kriseman and Rick Baker, both of whom raised substantial money during the last two weeks of September. … Keep Reading
Part of my job at Sachs Media Group is running data experiments that nobody has asked us to run, for the simple pleasure of satisfying curiosity and the attempt to better understand what kinds of things matter to people. Our themes generally relate back to the space of communications or politics. For example: does reading news on a mobile device versus a newspaper change people’s perception of social dynamics? (Yes.) This week’s experiment took a similar approach, using a survey…
Disney World’s Magic Kingdom continues to be the top amusement park draw in the world with 20.5 million visitors in 2015, according to a report released Wednesday. Disneyland in Anaheim, California, was No. 2 with an estimated 18.3 million visitors, followed by Tokyo Disneyland, which had an estimated 16 million, according to a report from AECOM and the Themed Entertainment Association. Disney World, Universal Orlando and SeaWorld all saw a jump in attendance in 2015 over the previous year, according to…
Gov. Rick Scott has ordered flags at half-staff for former state Rep. Martin Eugene “Gene” Campbell, who died last week. Scott issued the directive Wednesday. Campbell, a longtime high school teacher and administrator, served in the Florida House of Representatives 1974-76 and again in 1978-80, according to Scott’s statement. “Campbell had a passion for education, often proposing bills to better fund Florida schools,” he said. The U.S. and state flags will be flown at half-staff at the Palm Beach County Courthouse, the Royal Palm…
Steven Wells Jr. hit an RBI sacrifice fly to start a four-run eighth inning that helped Florida State beat North Carolina State 7-3 in Wednesday’s pool play at the Atlantic Coast Conference baseball tournament. Taylor Walls added a two-run single in the go-ahead inning for the fourth-seeded Seminoles (35-19), who trailed by two before tying the game on Dylan Busby‘s two-run single in the sixth. Chase Haney (5-0) earned the win with a scoreless inning of relief in a rematch…
Gov. Rick Scott some suggestions to make sure college students graduate in four years. Remove additional fees for online classes. Allow Bright Future scholarships to be used for summer classes. Make sure students get credit for college-level courses taken in high schools. The Naples Republican laid out his proposal at is Degrees to Jobs Summit at the Loew’s Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando. The two-day summit – which was sponsored by several organizations, including the Florida Chamber of Commerce, The Florida College System…
Lobbyist and former appellate judge Paul Hawkes has joined the Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney firm in Tallahassee. Hawkes inked an agreement Wednesday and begins immediately, according to John “Mac” Stipanovich, head of the firm’s state government relations team. “Paul is an outstanding addition,” Stipanovich said. “We had been pursuing him for some time. No one in Tallahassee is smarter or more experienced in every form of government relations.” Hawkes, 58, has been a prosecutor, a GOP legislator for Citrus County, and a top aide to former Gov. Jeb…
A Florida sixth-grader has won the 2016 National Geographic Bee. Twelve-year-old Rishi Nair of Seffner, Florida, won the top honors Wednesday at the 28th annual Bee in Washington. Nair clinched the win by correctly answering “Galapagos Islands” to the question: “A new marine sanctuary will protect sharks and other wildlife around Isla Wolf in which archipelago in the Pacific Ocean?” Nair gets a $50,000 scholarship, a trip to Alaska and Glacier Bay National Park and a lifetime membership in the…