Monthly Archives: October 2013
Zest of the Day: George Sheldon runs for AG
My old friend and political mentor George Sheldon has announced his candidacy for Attorney General. Sheldon’s resume is one-of-a-kind making him a potential dream candidate for Florida Democrats. Story from the Tampa Bay Times.
In C.W. Bill Young and E. Clay Shaw Florida has lost two legends
Two of the legends of Florida politics have passed on in the last few weeks. Yesterday’s passing of Congressman Bill Young (R-Indian Rock Beach) came just weeks after his longtime colleague former Congressman E. Clay Shaw (R- Fort Lauderdale) passed on. Both were throwbacks to another era, when Republicans were fiscally responsible yet socially compassionate […]
Zest of the Day: C.W. Bill Young, 82
Per the Tampa Bay Times, U.S. Rep. Bill Young has died following recent reports that he was seriously ill. Congressman Young, known as a stalwart conservative who braved lonely times decades ago as a Republican in the Florida Senate and who softened his rigid views in later years, was a fixture in Florida politics for more […]
Marco Rubio one of 18 Senators to vote “No” on Debt/Shutdown deal
Is anyone really surprised? Rubio was one of only 18 Senators to vote no today on the debt/shutdown deal. We’ll post the vote of House members from Florida after tonight’s vote.
Murphy Defeats Gunter 51-49: What Does it Mean?
The final results are in: Democrat Amanda Murphy has beaten Republican Bill Gunter to replace the inimitable Mike Fasano by a margin of 322 votes despite Gunter’s massive support from the Tallahassee establishment and hard-right financiers the state over. But is this a one-off thrill for Florida Dems owing to exceptional circumstances — the government […]
Will Amanda Murphy victory set up Florida Dems for big 2014?
Amanda Murphy’s expected, yet significant victory in the HD-36 Special Election creates a great deal of momentum for Democrats heading into a critical election year. It also brings Democratic numbers to 45 in the State House for the first time since before the 2000 election. This high-water mark still leaves Democrats in a 30 seat […]
Democrats confident about special election victory in Pasco
Special elections are momentum fueled turnout wars. They also often prove to be harbingers of political trends for the upcoming election cycles. The 1993 and 1994 special election victories for the Republicans in multiple congressional races indicated the national mood was swinging and the GOP was going to have a banner year. The same thing […]
Zest of the Day (with commentary): Another US House race looming, Adam Hasner’s house for sale at big loss
Former State Rep. Adam Hasner (R- Delray Beach) was one of the most partisan and petty members of the Legislature when he served. After losing to Lois Frankel in the district where he lives, Hasner is apparently thinking of moving north to challenge US Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Jupiter). Last year when the Sun Sentinel unwisely […]
Zest of the Day: Florida Democrats Feeling Energized
Good news for the Democrats as the record for the party in off-year elections since 2002 is the worst of any political party east of the Mississippi River. Energy and enthusiasm is needed heading into 2014 to reverse this embarrassing trend. Story from Jeremy Wallace in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
The Florida Squeeze 