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Many Floridians of note deserve U.S. Capitol honor

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Florida had been a state for less than a century when it came time to honor famous citizens with two statues at the U.S. Capitol, and there were few plausible candidates. Dr. John Gorrie, the physician who invented mechanical refrigeration – imagine modern Florida without it – was an outstanding choice. But from today’s perspective, Confederate Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith is a head-scratcher. Let 2016 be the year the Legislature finally retires him. Smith’s historical distinction was to command Rebel…

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Gwen Graham passes civics education initiatives in House

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Three civics education initiatives proposed by U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham are set to become law as part of the just-passed Every Child Succeeds Act, approved Thursday by the House 359-64. Graham’s camp says the Tallahassee Democrat shepherded language into the bill by working with a bipartisan group of members to sway Education Committee Chairman John Kline to include language in the sweeping rewrite of the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act. Specifically, Graham sought authority and money to establish academies to teach civics;…

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Mitch Perry Report for 11.23.15 – “Spotlight” sparkles

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

A good (and finally, chilly) Monday morning to you all. Over the weekend I saw Spotlight, the superb new film that depicts The Boston Globe‘s investigation regarding allegations of sexual abuse by hundreds of clergy in the Boston archdiocese (Special props to actor Mark Ruffalo, sporting the best bowl haircut seen in a premium film in years). The time depicted is 2001, when there was a lot less blogging going on in journalism. The Globe’s reporting ultimately led to their winning a public…

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Jeb Bush’s ill-starred campaign follows track set by earlier Florida governors

in 2017/Top Headlines by

As Jeb Bush struggles to win the Republican nomination for president, it’s a reminder that he’s sadly following a string of other successful Florida governors who came up far short of capturing the party’s brass ring. Every Florida governor from 1967 to 1979 ran for president, but none of their candidacies went anywhere. Claude Kirk, elected in 1966, was seriously considered as Richard Nixon‘s running mate in 1968 but lost out to Maryland Gov. Spiro Agnew. Kirk lost the governorship…

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Martin Dyckman: Jeb Bush-Gotterdammerung, and the rise of Marco Rubio

in 2017/Top Headlines by

It is startling to even think these words, let alone to have to write them, but I’m feeling sympathy for Jeb Bush. He may not welcome that emotion from a liberal who has rarely agreed with him about anything, but there’s a nation at stake. It seems almost unbelievable that the two most qualified of the Republican presidential candidates, Bush and John Kasich, are lagging far behind people whose election would be an international disgrace. Donald Trump is the most…

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Meet Keaton Alexander, one of the ’30 under 30′ rising stars of Florida politics

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Keaton Alexander didn’t fall far from the family tree. Her great-grandfather, Ben Hill Griffin Jr., was in the Florida Legislature and ran for governor in 1974, losing the Democratic primary to Reubin Askew. Her father, JD Alexander, was a Florida state representative and senator for 14 years. And her sister, Britton, was press secretary for the Senate’s Republican caucus. Keaton’s heart was in dance, she says, specifically musical theater, but politics called. She is the Florida financial coordinator for former Gov. Jeb Bush‘s 2016 presidential campaign. “I…

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Florida Supreme Court turns down case sparked by Gov. Scott

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

The Florida Supreme Court is turning away a case challenging a law that allows Gov. Rick Scott to use a blind trust instead of providing a detailed accounting of his finances. The high court on Monday ruled that it would not consider an appeal of a lawsuit filed by a former aide to the late Democratic Gov. Reubin Askew. The one page order was approved unanimously. Jim Apthorp contended that letting politicians use a blind trust violates a 1976 constitutional…

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